Member Reviews
This book had so many twists and turns and definitely took me along for a ride! I woyld recommend this for the journey of the story
This was a brilliant read. As soon as I started reading this book I just knew I was going to love it. Highly recommended
Unfortunately this book was not for me, it was a bit slower than I would like and it just didn't hold my attention. I am sure other people will love it!
Great novel that kept me hooked throughout. Intriguing storyline and well rounded characters that ensured my interest was kept. Thanks for the opportunity to read
A really enjoyable, easy read with an interesting plot line. The cast of characters were great, especially Jemma. Highly recommend
I enjoyed the storyline, however, there were a few twists that seemed far-fetched. I found at times there was a lot going on so not an easy read, but overall I enjoyed it and the plot twists along the way kept me reading.
This was an easy and enjoyable read, with some really interesting sub-plots and twists. Recommended if you don’t want something too taxing
Forget My Name was intriguing right from the opening chapter, in fact the first sentence, and straight away I was wrapped up in the mystery of a woman who couldn’t even remember her own name. Laura and Tony have recently bought a house together so the last thing they are expecting is a strange woman to turn up on their doorstep claiming they are in her home. Of course, they don’t believe her, especially given she has little memory of anything else, but she does remember the exact layout of their house… Would they live to regret letting her into their home?
Tony christens her Jemma with a J and Jemma’s character was truly fascinating. As she struggles to remember anything, she is a proper unreliable narrator and attempting to get to know her left me with more questions than answers. From reading the blurb of this book, I had an idea where I thought the story was going to go but J.S. Monroe surprised me with twists I wasn’t expecting and a plot that went to places I hadn’t imagined. This was a cleverly plotted and compelling book with a sinister edge to it that made each chapter more and more tense and suspenseful.
One thing I particular enjoyed about this book was the strong characterisation and how the author built up everything with vivid descriptions that made it so easy to picture the place and the event and as the reader I gained such clear images of everything that was happening which made it all the more chilling to read. I loved how the author brought everything to life and every chapter of this book played out like a movie in my head. Each character was interesting and full of personality so there was never a dull moment.
There was such a complex plot here that appeared so well researched, and it was extremely fascinating. Jemma was a true mystery in Forget My Name but there were plenty of sickening and thrilling aspects which gave the story an edge. I was captivated trying to work out the story of Jemma, and though further on I had my suspicions, I could never have guessed the depths to it and every single intricate detail had me mesmerised.
Although this book was captivating from the first page to the last, I do think that maybe the amount of twists and turns led to some coincidences which weren’t really necessary and made parts of the book more difficult to believe and buy into. If I thought too much about it, parts of it were probably too implausible for my liking, however for pure entertainment value, I let them slide as this was still a really engaging and engrossing story.
Forget My Name had me gripped and held my attention all the way through as I was dying to get to the bottom of the mystery. It was surprisingly haunting and truly entertaining. I will definitely be checking out other books by this author.
Book 50 for the year and wow what a book!!! This had me hooked from the very first chapter where I meet “Jemma.”
This really is a book where you cant talk about the plot for the risk of spoiling something. The second Jemma turns up at Tony and Laura’s house, we know that it is going to go all Pete Tong! I was so intrigued by everything. Who was Jemma? How did she lose her memory? How can she remember the house?
It was fab to see Silas and Strover again, I wasn’t expecting that. This is my second book by Monroe but I had met them in a newer book The Other You, here I saw the beginning of their working relationship and the worry of Silas’ son.
It was such an adventure. However, it’s a creepy and harrowing tale when you get to the end, almost Hostel like and quite heartbreaking too.
I was on edge, things I thought were linked, weren’t and vice versa. It properly plays with your mind, especially as the premise of the book is to do with your memory. I tried to remember, what I deemed as, key points in case I needed them later on. And then things I dismissed became relevant. I do love it when things like that happen!!
I enjoyed being back in Wiltshire, especially they mentioned the Salisbury Plains and the rumbles of the Army Trucks. Many a time I would run over there to come face to face with the trucks or hear them from my home. It was nice to step back in time.
I thought this was such an intense book! It had me hooked, lined and sunken, knotting myself up as I tried to work out the end. It also had me fretting about losing my memories, that is such a scary thought. I think that why this book was so harrowing. The simplest things have gone from your brain, having to cope each day as your memory starts again. Then learning the true horror of what was behind it all, well let’s just say I think I would have dealt a harsher punishment. It wasn’t enough!
This book is a winner in my eyes. I was listening to it every opportunity I got. I needed to know Jemma would be ok and how she fit with Tony and Laura. The outcome was not one I imagined!!!!
Definitely one of my top books for the year! It blew me away and I still rave about it now.
Full disclosure... I purchased this audio book by mistake, confusing it with a book by another author, but the blurb seemed interesting so I settled in for the duration.
Whilst the narrator has a lovely voice, her “accents” and alternative voices began to annoy me about quarter of the way through, but I persevered.
If you follow my blog you will know that I can’t stand coincidences and halfway through the book it’s full of the bloody things.
However, I continued listening, as let’s face it there isn’t much else to do in Lockdown.
The story revolves around a young woman who appears in a small village, knocking at the door of a recently married couple claiming to have lost her memory except she’s convinced she lives there.
When it becomes known that a previous owner of that house was a young women with severe mental health issues and a previous murder conviction this stranger turning up makes the villagers wary and the police interested, however this stranger is determined to stay one step away from the police.
Sounds great doesn’t it? Well unfortunately it just didn’t work for me. Maybe it’s better in book format, but this just didn’t work for me.
I flew through this one, it had the perfect mix of hints for reveals but also reveals I didn't see coming. I felt the characters could have been more developed and fleshed out but it was an enjoyable read nonetheless. Even when I stopped reading I was thinking about the next time I could pick it back up.
Solid, unusual, suspense thriller. A woman shows up at Laura and Tony's house, with no recollection of who she is, just that she had intended to visit this village and she might have lived in this house. It gets more interesting when they learn that a previous resident was psychotic and had murdered her best friend. Furthermore, she might resemble this stranger.
The premise was interesting with lots of focus around amnesia and memories. And the pace relentless, ensuring engagement and easy reading. As the story developed though it became less plausible, and I found the characters a bit stereotypical, filled with mysterious pasts and ulterior motives. Enjoyable while I read it, but ironically I may "forget its name".
A mystery woman turns up at the house of Laura and Tony and she claims she lives in that house. As we get into the storyline, the woman, whom Laura makes ‘Jemma’ is seemingly suffering from amnesia. Not remembering who she is, where she is from and now she has got to this house, all is not quite as it seems.
This is a fast paced thriller with a lot of twists and turns and one which has you just racing to get to the next plot twist. For me however, as soon as the plot began to unravel, there was times in the book that felt out of place, a little bit rushed and all a bit confusing. Some parts I felt I needed to re-read.
A gripping story with twists and turns galore and I can honestly say I have never read a book involving this subject, which made it all the more interesting (I can’t say any more than that without spoiling it). It will certainly get you thinking. Thank you NetGalley and Head of Zeus for letting me read and review this book.
Read July 20
Oh my gosh this was so delightfully dark and twisty and well thought out. Everything wove together beautifully which was miraculous considering the number of plot threads, the large cast of characters, the geographical locations, and let’s throw in some ancient culture and religion and to top it all off the ending was technically left on a mini cliff-hanger!
The initial plot was “simple”. A woman turns up at a young couple’s house with no recollection of who she is other than she thinks she lived there previously. Tony – the husband – decides to name her Jemma for the time being, a weird choice since it turns out a woman named Jemma did live there… Until she killed her friend… Is their temporary houseguest a killer or is there more to her than meets the eye? Add a paranoid wife and a local journalist with trouble of his own and you get an intricate tale of memory and its impact on oneself.
A good read, but unfortunately it did not capture my attention as much as I hoped it would.
The story itself is good, but I wonder if it was just the wrong book for me. Everyone else seems to have really enjoyed it. I blame the pandemic for lack of concentration.... :-)
This was a very thrilling read. Imagine you forget who you are, but then you start remembering little bits. The book took some twists I didn't expect, and I didn't see the ending coming! Recommended.
TB
This was an intriguing story that interested me from start. Who is the mystery woman who has turned up at Tony and Laura’s house?
She arrives having forgotten who she is, lost her handbag and only has a memory of the house she turns up at.
It was an enjoyable read that had be hooked
Would recommend.
Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review
A tense thriller, this keeps you guessing on who to trust throughout and keeps you turning the page.
Not what I was expecting from this thriller but I still really enjoyed reading it and it took me by surprise more than once.