With an unreliable narrator that fascinated me at times and yet equally repelled me- All Is Not Forgotten gave a little sizzle to the July #SRC2016 picks!

 

This book was sent to Traveling With T for review consideration.

All is Not Forgotten

Summary: In the small, affluent town of Fairview, Connecticut everything seems picture perfect.

Until one night when young Jenny Kramer is attacked at a local party. In the hours immediately after, she is given a controversial drug to medically erase her memory of the violent assault. But, in the weeks and months that follow, as she heals from her physical wounds, and with no factual recall of the attack, Jenny struggles with her raging emotional memory. Her father, Tom, becomes obsessed with his inability to find her attacker and seek justice while her mother, Charlotte, prefers to pretend this horrific event did not touch her perfect country club world.

As they seek help for their daughter, the fault lines within their marriage and their close-knit community emerge from the shadows where they have been hidden for years, and the relentless quest to find the monster who invaded their town – or perhaps lives among them – drive this psychological thriller to a shocking and unexpected conclusion.

 

Traveling With T’s Thoughts:

This book was slightly on my radar. I was seeing it, but had not been to look hard at the book to see if I wanted to read it. Then it showed up in my mailbox 🙂 And on Sunday afternoon, after my niece being in town from Wed night to Fri afternoon and my aunt coming in from Fri to Sunday- ole T needed some time in the pool with a book. I grabbed this one and began to read it.

First, it’s brutal at times. The description of the rape, the images it puts in your mind.

And then….

THE NARRATOR.

I was intrigued by him. At times repelled by him. I liked that I didn’t know who he was. I didn’t like that I did not know who he was. I was a hot mess.

Then he’s revealed. And this is when I start having some problems with him. He’s Jenny’s therapist. Ok cool. Now in a blurb on the book there is talk of an unreliable narrator. Ok… getting some tingly Spidey-sense feelings about him. As the book goes on, he, at times, almost has a sinister air about him- especially when he puts his own plans in motion. Yes, I know why he said he did that. And I got that. I took him at face value.

THEN…

The end. It was not a dramatic ending. It did not cause me to gasp. It tidied things up (but not in a sloppy way or in a way that they author realized I only 5 pages left so let me tidy this ending up quickly!) But when I found out the ending, oh it made me so mad at the narrator.

BECAUSE HE IS SELFISH.

Not only did he play with Jenny’s memories for his own purpose- the ending just showed how different things could have been for Jenny. How other things in the book did not have to happen. How the reason he did things in the book did not have to happen.

I need a large drink.

So, I know you are thinking- Oh T- you hated it? I’ve heard such good things! I don’t hate this book. It was a fast read. It kept me turning pages. I actually wish I was still in a book club so I could discuss it with them. Not that my old book club actually read books (but that is neither here nor there!)

If I make a 2016 Characters I love to Hate list- we have a contender for the #1 spot 😉

 

*This is a July #SRC2016 selection. The book was sent to me for review consideration. All thoughts and opinions are mine alone.*

 

Happy Reading and Bookishly Yours,

T @ Traveling With T