facebookTitle: THE FORGETTING
Author: Sharon Cameron
Publisher: Scholastic
Pages: 405
Release Date: 9/13/16
Format: eBook
TW/CW: Abuse, death, blood
Rating: 4/5
What isn’t written, isn’t remembered. Even your crimes.
Nadia lives in the city of Canaan, where life is safe and structured, hemmed in by white stone walls and no memory of what came before. But every twelve years the city descends into the bloody chaos of the Forgetting, a day of no remorse, when each person’s memories – of parents, children, love, life, and self – are lost. Unless they have been written.
In Canaan, your book is your truth and your identity, and Nadia knows exactly who hasn’t written the truth. Because Nadia is the only person in Canaan who has never forgotten.
But when Nadia begins to use her memories to solve the mysteries of Canaan, she discovers truths about herself and Gray, the handsome glassblower, that will change her world forever. As the anarchy of the Forgetting approaches, Nadia and Gray must stop an unseen enemy that threatens both their city and their own existence – before the people can forget the truth. And before Gray can forget her.
I’ll be honest.
When this book came out last year, I definitely thought this was the dumbest premise for a book I’d ever seen. I was also super burned out with dystopian novels and wary of all books promoted by big YouTubers because… ya’ll convinced me Miss Peregrine’s was SPECTACULAR… and that was a lie.
However, around Christmas last year, the ebook went on sale for $1.99 and I, thinking only of filling my Kindle, was like “Yeah, maybe I’ll read that… one day…” When I saw that Sharon Cameron is going to be attending SeYa Fest in March 2018, I decided to go ahead and read THE FORGETTING. I mean, the worst that could happen was I decided not to finish it and quietly move on with my life.
But I liked it. A lot.
The start was slow, I will agree with half the reviews on that. Generally, I’m turned off by books that try to set up an entire world within the first chapter but Cameron did a great job of both info dumping and keeping the reader interested… not an easy feat. I was worried that the romance element of the story would overpower things I thought were most important, like Nadia’s family and how the Forgetting would (and had) effected their bonds.
There were a few things that puzzled me (and were the reasons this lost a star). Why was everyone not reduced to learning how to talk, walk, feed themselves, etc., after the forgetting? If it wipes our memories, then shouldn’t they have also forgotten their language? I’m probably reading way too deep into, but I couldn’t stop thinking about it!
I also didn’t quite like how neatly the ending wrapped up. While I vaguely understood Nadia’s dad’s intentions, the forgiving aspect was way too fast. Also, it was hard to believe that Nadia didn’t have any hard feelings towards her older sister after everything that had happened.
However, this was a fast paced read and I’m glad I finally took the plunge and read it! If you’re into dystopian novels, a little romance, and a great mystery, this might be the one for you!
Sharon Cameron was awarded the 2009 Sue Alexander Most Promising New Work Award by the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators for her debut novel, The Dark Unwinding. When not writing Sharon can be found thumbing dusty tomes, shooting her longbow, or indulging in her lifelong search for secret passages.
You can find her on facebook, twitter, or check out her website!
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