Review: Unforgotten - Jessica Brody

Can you ever really be safe from the horrors of the past?

Seraphina and her boyfriend Zen are on the run and in hiding from the scientists who created her.

But will they be able to stay hidden as Zen falls prey to a mysterious illness and Seraphina's creators develop a dangerous new weapon?

Now Seraphina's only hope of saving Zen and defeating the company that made her is a secret buried deep within her mind.

A secret that those hunting her will kill to protect.

Unremembered Series:
The Memory Coder (Free short story on the Tor website)
Unremembered
Undiscovered (Novella)
Unforgotten
Unleashed (Novella)
Unchanged
The Intelligence Director (Free short story on the Tor website)
The Human Engineer (Free short story on the Tor website)

Visit Jessica Brody's website for more information

Review:
Unforgotten is the second book in Jessica Brody's Unremembered trilogy and picks up a couple of months after the ending of the first book. Seraphina and Zen have fled back to 1609 to escape the Diotech scientists and if they can just keep their heads down there is no way they can ever be traced. Unfortunately while Zen has settled in quite quickly Seraphina is struggling and the villagers look at her with suspicion in their eyes. When Zen becomes ill and an accident causes Seraphina to be accused of witchcraft she suddenly finds herself in more danger than ever before and she may just have to team up with the enemy if she wants to save the boy she loves.

I really enjoyed Unremembered so I was looking forward to continuing the series and seeing what happened to Seraphina next. I really enjoyed the beginning of the book, it was great to see Seraphina and Zen so happy together and I was enjoying the glimpse into the past through their eyes, everything is so different to what they were used to but neither of them cared about missing modern conveniences as long as they were together. Then Zen got ill and things started going horribly wrong, Seraphina's actions caused a record of her existence to be created which meant Diotech were able to track her down and suddenly Kaelen is on the scene. Kaelen was created by Diotech just like Seraphina and he has all of her abilities and then some so Seraphina is in deep trouble. There is something hidden deep in her memory that Diotech wants and when Kaelen promises to give Seraphina the cure Zen desperately needs she has no choice but to travel with him into the future while she tries to unlock her memories.

I hate to say it but I was disappointed by Unforgotten, it isn't a bad book and I definitely still want to finish the series but for me this just didn't quite live up to the potential of the first story. I think I was just disappointed that Seraphina and Zen were apart for so much of the story, after everything they'd been through together I wanted to see them continuing to work as a team. I definitely wasn't happy that it seemed like a convenient way to introduce Kaelen as a potential love interest, I would have been fine with him as an enemy or a potential ally but I didn't want or need a love triangle in this series. Come on authors, how many times do we have to read these trilogies where the main plot point is a love triangle? I'm so sick to death of that trope that I'm actually bored of complaining about it. It's definitely makes me wary of picking up new series and I hate that.

So if I wasn't so annoyed at the triangle I probably would have enjoyed this more, there was plenty of action, some intriguing plot twists and it was interesting to see the future the way Jessica Brody has imagined it. I'm invested in these characters enough that I want to see how things resolve themselves so I will be picking up the final book but I am now more wary about reading it and my expectations have definitely been lowered. Let's just hope that the series can end on the high note that it started with.

Source: Received from Macmillan in exchange for an honest review

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Paperback / Kindle:

Review: The Memory Coder - Jessica Brody

When a security breach is detected, the Memory Restoration Department is called upon to do what they do best: make you forget. But with every memory that’s taken out, a new one must be installed in its place. It’s a job that requires skill, artistry, discretion, and flawless proficiency in the language of memories. That’s why only the best programmers in the world are recruited to work for the department. But diving too far into another person’s memories is a dangerous endeavour. And for some, the temptation is just too strong.

“The Memory Coder,” an original story by Jessica Brody, is set in the world of Unremembered, the first book in a sci-fi/suspense trilogy, on sale March 5, 2013.

This short story can be read for free on the Tor website here.

Unremembered Series:
The Memory Coder (Free short story on the Tor website)
Unremembered
Undiscovered (Novella)
Unforgotten
Unleashed (Novella)
Unchanged
The Intelligence Director (Free short story on the Tor website)
The Human Engineer (Free short story on the Tor website)

Visit Jessica Brody's website for more information

Review:
The Memory Coder is a free short story that can be read on the Tor website here. It is set in the same world as Unremembered by Jessica Brody and fits into the time line before the first book. Although it is set before Unremembered I would personally recommend reading this story after the book because it does give an insight into events that you don't find out about until later on in the novel. I think the story will also make more sense if you've already read the book. That slight spoiler is mentioned in the next paragraph of my review so if you don't want to know more and you haven't read Unremembered yet then you may want to stop reading now.

Having already read Unremembered I really enjoyed The Memory Coder, it was nice to find out more about how the Memory Restoration Department go about removing memories. The idea of someone writing code that will create false memories that can be implanted directly into your brain is incredibly creepy and I have to admit that the idea of it really freaks me out. Imagine not being able to trust that your own memories are real! I wouldn't want to live in this world that's for sure!

The story is fairly easy to predict but it's hard to create much intrigue in such a short amount of time and I still enjoyed following it to the end. If you enjoyed Unremembered then I'd definitely recommend giving this one a try.

Source: Read for free at the Tor website here.

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Review: Unremembered - Jessica Brody

New UK Cover

A catastrophic plan crash leaves one survivor: a girl with no memory.

Who is she?

Where does she come from?

Nobody knows and no one comes forward to claim her.

Haunted by a looming threat she can't remember and plagued by abilities she doesn't understand, she struggles to recall who she is. But every clue leads to more questions. And she's running out of time to answer them.

Her only hope is a boy who claims they were once in love.

Alone and on the run, who should she trust? And what if she discovers that she is safer with a past that stays unremembered?

Unremembered Series:
The Memory Coder (Free short story on the Tor website)
Unremembered
Undiscovered (Novella)
Unforgotten
Unleashed (Novella)
Unchanged
The Intelligence Director (Free short story on the Tor website)
The Human Engineer (Free short story on the Tor website)

Visit Jessica Brody's website for more information

Review:
When Sera wakes up in the ocean, floating amidst the wreckage of a plane crash and surrounded by bodies, it is obvious she is the only survivor. What she doesn't know is how she survived such a horrific accident and why she has no memory of who she is or why she was on the plane in the first place. She has no physical injuries so why is her memory a blank hole? Who is the mysterious boy who visits her in hospital claiming he loves her and can she really trust him? The more she discovers about her past the greater the danger becomes and the harder it is to know where to turn for help.

Unremembered is a fabulous start to Jessica Brody's new trilogy and it has left me really looking forward to getting my hands on the next two books. Thankfully there is no major cliffhanger at the end though so although I'll be picking up Unforgotten as soon as I can get hold of a copy I'm not going to die of frustration during the year long wait! It is going to be really hard to write much about this book because I'm very conscious of the fact that most of the things I want to talk about are major spoilers so I'm afraid this will probably be a fairly short review. Don't mistake the lack of words for a lack of enthusiasm though because I'm definitely recommending the book.

One thing I can say is that this was a book that surprised me, I made several guesses to what was going on fairly early on as I was reading but none of them turned out to be correct. The actual reveals shocked me and I love it when a book can do that. The story also flows really well, it was one of those books that kept me sucked into the story so much that I was annoyed when life got in the way and I had to put it down.

Sera is a great character, her amnesia leaves her confused and vulnerable but she manages to stay strong and determined to discover what is really going on around her. She is smart enough to figure things out and when she starts to get to the bottom of things she is brave enough to risk her safety to protect those she has come to care about. I loved Zen, he has the whole mysterious thing going for him but it was nice to come across a YA hero who isn't a bad boy. Now I like my bad boys as much as the next girl but they seem to be in every book I pick up at the moment so I enjoyed reading about someone more normal for a change.

If you're a fan of YA sci-fi then you don't want to miss Unremembered, it has great characters and a fast paced plot with plenty of twists that will keep you on your toes. I'm definitely looking forward to more from Jessica Brody in the future.

Source: Received from Macmillan in exchange for an honest review

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Original UK Cover

Paperback / Kindle:

Unremembered Blog Tour: Exclusive Deleted Scene from Jessica Brody

Today I'm taking part in the blog tour to celebrate the release of Unremembered by Jessica Brody. This is a fantastic book (I'll be posting my review later today) and I'm excited to be able to share an exclusive deleted scene with you all. Before I hand the reins over to Jessica let me give you a little more information about the book:

A catastrophic plan crash leaves one survivor: a girl with no memory.

Who is she?

Where does she come from?

Nobody knows and no one comes forward to claim her.

Haunted by a looming threat she can't remember and plagued by abilities she doesn't understand, she struggles to recall who she is. But every clue leads to more questions. And she's running out of time to answer them.

Her only hope is a boy who claims they were once in love.

Alone and on the run, who should she trust? And what if she discovers that she is safer with a past that stays unremembered?

Unremembered Series:
The Memory Coder (Free Short Story set in the same world)
Unremembered
Unforgotten (2014)
Unchosen (2015)

Visit Jessica Brody's website for more information



Now please give a very warm welcome to Jessica!

*******************

Jessica Brody

(Photo Credit to Brian Braff)

A Deleted Scene of a Deleted Memory

By Jessica Brody

There was one scene in UNREMEMBERED that was infinitely harder to write than any other part of the book. And that was the scene in which Seraphina finally learns the truth about her past and the people who have been manipulating her memories. In my original outline, I had simply planned on having Zen (the intriguing boy who keeps showing up claiming to be in love with her) tell her the truth. But when I got to that part in the manuscript, I became stumped. For one, the scene started to get really long and it essentially comprised of nothing but not-so-interesting dialogue (which completely goes against all the “show don’t tell” rules of being a writer.) And secondly, I realized there was no way Seraphina would ever believe anything this guy had to say. She’s an extremely distrustful character. She needs to see the truth to believe the truth. And that’s when I came up with the idea of having Zen show Seraphina some of her stolen memories through a fictional technology called Re-Cognization.

Once this idea came to life, the scene really improved. In the book Sera is actually able to experience her own forgotten memories again. And it hopefully makes for a much more entertaining read than a bunch of expletive dialogue.

But soon after came the challenge of figuring out which memories to show her. The sky was the limit. It was difficult because I basically had too many choices. Needless to say, many memories were tried and then ultimately rejected and deleted from the final manuscript. The memory below (and the conversation that follows) was one of the “rejected” memories that never made it through the revision process. I chose to cut this one because the scene was already getting pretty lengthy and this one didn’t feel completely necessary (despite how much I liked it.) Although I was able to pull some text from this memory and the subsequent conversation and sprinkle it in throughout the rest of the story. So if you’ve read the book, you might recognize a passage or two.

Please note this is an unedited, unproofed scene (eek!) So you’ll have to excuse any imperfections that you come across. J

##

Deleted from UNREMEMBERED:

I’m on a beach. I can hear waves crashing. Can smell the salt in the air. Can feel the soft sand between my bare toes. I wiggle them, digging my feet deeper.

“Sera,” I hear a voice call. I look up and see a girl. With dazzling crystal blue eyes and long dark hair that whips in the breeze. I recognize her. She is my friend. Her name is Kammine.

A strong affection warms my body. It spreads out through my fingertips.

“We’re going in the water. Are you coming?” I glance behind me and see two more girls. Sable and Ry. My other friends.

Sable is doing a cart wheel in the sand. She finishes with a flourish, then laughs. We all do.

Ry loops her arm through mine and rests her head on my shoulder.

I smile and turn to kiss her forehead. Her hair smells like strawberries.

She starts to lead me toward the water. “Come on!”

But I shake my head and unhook my arm. “No way,” I tell them. “That water is freezing!”

Kammine pulls her shirt over her head, tossing it by my feet and runs toward the waves. “Who cares!” she calls over her shoulder.

Sable follows suit, tearing off her bathing suit cover and scampering after Kammine. I’m the only one left. I sit on my towel and watch them frolicking in the water. Ry dives head first under an oncoming wave. She surfaces a moment later, giggling with delight.

Oh, how I love her laugh.

“Come on!” I hear Ry call again, waving to me.

I finally give in, stand up, and peel off my shorts and tank top. I run toward the shore. The water splashes up against my shins. It’s so cold, I let out a shriek that quickly morphs into a laugh.

The laugh continues to echo in my ears as everything around me starts to fade away. Sable disappears first. Then Kammine. And finally Ry.

The water dissolves into whiteness. The sky vanishes.

The memory comes to an end.

But I don’t open my eyes. I want to stand here and bask in the glow of this memory. It was so wonderful. Glorious. Perfect.

A perfect day.

“I had friends,” I say quietly. Joyfully.

But then I open my eyes. And my blissful state is instantly demolished by the pure anguish that is splattered across Zen’s face. He won’t even look at me when he speaks. He keeps his head down. His eyes cast low.

“No. You only thought you did.”

“What are you saying?”

Zen finally meets my gaze. I can see the remorse tugging at his lips. I can see how much it burdens him to tell me this. And I can see my own terrified face reflected back in his pupils.

“I’m saying,” he begins. “It wasn’t real. The beach. Your friends. None of it. It was an implanted memory. Completely artificial.”

My voice starts to constrict. It takes me a moment to find my voice. And even when I do, it’s shattered beyond recognition. “Why would they implant an artificial memory into my brain?

Zen exhales painfully. “To replace the ones they didn’t want you to know about.”

##

I hope you enjoy unraveling Seraphina’s mystery in UNREMEMBERED!

*******************

Thanks for a fabulous guest post Jessica, I loved the deleted scene and I really loved the way Zen helps Sera regain her memory in the book. Unremembered was so much fun to read and I can't wait to get my hands on the next two books!

What do you all think of the deleted scene? Have you already read Unremembered? If not has this made you add it to your wish list?