Book Review: Forgotten by Cat Patrick

Pages: 304

Genre: YA Fantasy

Pub. Date: June 11, 2011

Source: Personal Copy

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Goodreads says, "Each night at precisely 4:33 am, while sixteen-year-old London Lane is asleep, her memory of that day is erased. In the morning, all she can "remember" are events from her future. London is used to relying on reminder notes and a trusted friend to get through the day, but things get complicated when a new boy at school enters the picture. Luke Henry is not someone you'd easily forget, yet try as she might, London can't find him in her memories of things to come. When London starts experiencing disturbing flashbacks, or flash-forwards, as the case may be, she realizes it's time to learn about the past she keeps forgetting—before it destroys her future."

London Lane isn't a normal girl.  She experiences something unusual every night when she falls asleep.  She forgets the day before as if her memory has been completely erased.  In order to "survive" she writes her self notes about the previous day, like what she wore, what she has for homework, what happened at school, etc.  Complications in her plan arise when she meets and connects with a new student, Luke, and she starts experiences flash-forwards in addition to flashbacks about various events.  Cat Patrick's debut novel, Forgotten, is extremely unique and entertaining; I thoroughly enjoyed it.


London's situation is so unique as I stated previously. I was captivated by the concept.  What if we forgot what we did yesterday? Who we talked to? What happened? That is definitely a trying situation, but what if we wanted to forget certain events or if certain people wanted us to forget certain events? It's an interesting question and London explores this very topic in Forgotten.  She has to piece together events from the future in addition to the memories she's experiencing from her past, especially about an important event that occurred to her family many years ago.  


Her relationship with Luke was heartwarming.  I can see why many people are fans of him, but at times, he was a bit too sweet for me.  Because I am a skeptic at heart, I was always questioning his motives and trying to understand how a relationship could progress so quickly despite her memory issues. In the end, I couldn't help myself. I was definitely rooting for these two love birds.  


In Forgotten, things do get a little darker than expected as the plot thickens, which took me by surprise in a very good way.  So, it's not just about London coping with her issues, dealing with school, and dating Luke; there's much more to Forgotten as there is a few mysteries thrown into the mix.


I would have loved to learn a little bit more as to why London has certain flashbacks and not others, but once I let go of trying to understand the "rules" of her condition, I was swept away by the premise.  If you are looking for a one-of-a-kind fantasy that includes a mystery that will have you hooked, definitely check out Forgotten by Cat Patrick this summer.