Review: Unremembered by Jessica Brody

Unremembered
Jessica Brody
Series: Unremembered (Book 1)
Hardcover: 320 pages
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
Release Date: March 5, 2013
Source: Our shelf

When Freedom Airlines flight 121 went down over the Pacific Ocean, no one ever expected to find survivors. Which is why the sixteen-year-old girl discovered floating among the wreckage—alive—is making headlines across the globe.

Even more strange is that her body is miraculously unharmed and she has no memories of boarding the plane. She has no memories of her life before the crash. She has no memories period. No one knows how she survived. No one knows why she wasn’t on the passenger manifest. And no one can explain why her DNA and fingerprints can’t be found in a single database in the world.

Crippled by a world she doesn’t know, plagued by abilities she doesn’t understand, and haunted by a looming threat she can’t remember, Seraphina struggles to piece together her forgotten past and discover who she really is. But with every clue only comes more questions. And she’s running out of time to answer them.

Her only hope is a strangely alluring boy who claims to know her from before the crash. Who claims they were in love. But can she really trust him? And will he be able to protect her from the people who have been making her forget?

From popular young adult author Jessica Brody comes a compelling and suspenseful new sci-fi series, set in a world where science knows no boundaries, memories are manipulated, and true love can never be forgotten.

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Review

Unremembered is not what I expected! It was much more!
 
And just as a warning, this review may contain spoilers!
 

We start off with an amnesic Jane Doe--the sole survivor of a plane crash. {Mystery!} People begin to call her Violet because of her vivid purple eyes. Violet is sent to live with a foster family since NO ONE knows who she is or claims her as their daughter/sister/girlfriend/etc. Ok, let me stop right here and express my love for the foster family. Brody did an amazing job at writing this part of the story. Though we only hear from Violet's point of view, the uncertainties and love the Carlsons have for her is abundantly clear. Cody, even in his awkward thirteen-year-oldness shows deep concern and affection for Violet.

 

As daily life continues, Violet learns things. Things like what a supermarket is, what the internet does, and what cell phone is used for. It is baffling that she doesn't know some of the most basic aspects of modern society. But, I get it--she's been through a major trauma.

 

We have the dark and mysterious boy that pops in and out of Violet's life a few times, vaguely revealing a few snippets of Violet's past. And this is where I have the most problems with Unremembered...I don't understand Zen. I don't honestly believe he and Sera (we learn her real name from Zen) are soul mates. There just isn't any chemistry between them. And, instead of just filling her in on everything, he's very sly and coy about what he shares. I don't understand this--why doesn't he just tell her everything? I think Brody might have said why, but it was so paper-thin that I don't remember...

 

In all honesty, I liked the relationship between Sera and Cody so much more than Sear and Zen.

 

There is also a major plot arch that i didn't see coming...I mean really didn't see it coming. And it's kinda the like the most major part of the story. It's the why. And I like it. I've read books with similar plots that weren't quite as put together. I appreciate the simple way in which Brody introduces and explains it. It works. And I can roll with it.

 

And then there's the ending. Which I didn't like when I first finished the book. I felt cheated. And it felt cheap. However...the more I've thought through and processed Unremembered, I really think this might have been the best ending. It does leave enough open-ended that the story can continue, but it also closes off enough that Unremembered could stand alone.

 

A little bit more truth for ya...I'll throw this in for free...I was fortunate to see Jessica Brody while she was on tour at a local book shop. At that point I hadn't heard of Unremembered until that day, and listening to her talk about it made me want to read it. So I bought it, had it autographed. And now I've read it. And really liked it!

 

4 Moons!