Book Review: False Memory by Dan Krokos

False Memory by Dan Krokos
Publisher: Hyperion
Publication date: August 2012
Pages: 336
Source: ARC from ALA
For: Review
Series: False Memory, Book 1

When Miranda wakes up with no memory of where she's been or what she's done, she is understandably confused. But when she finds out she's been trained as a weapon and created to be able to destroy entire cities, she is overwhelmed. Her old life seems impossible to recover, despite her friends' attempts to remind her, but all that pales when she discovers a more sinister design behind her existence.

Things I Liked:
This book is filled with crazy times!  It was a roller coaster trip through action and adventures from start to finish.  The concept was so awesomely complicated that sometimes I couldn't keep up.  This book has pretty much non-stop action, loads of twists and turns, and a wild ending that will have your heart racing (no kidding: I had an adrenaline rush during a few passages).  This is most definitely a fast-paced, intriguing new series that will have teens (and tweens) racing to the end and wondering what comes next.

Things I Didn't Like:
Despite the many good things about the book, the relationships and some of the ideas left me with some nagging issues.  The memory loss of Miranda (not a spoiler - she wakes up first page with lost memories) is a little bit too selective for me.  It isn't that from a certain time period on, she can't remember things, it's more like some things she remembers and some she doesn't.  She knows who she is, but not what she's supposed to be doing.  She remembers her training sometimes without thought, but not the people she trained with.  I have to admit I had a difficult time trying to wrap my mind around just what she conceivably could and couldn't remember.  This is sort of explained and I'm not well-versed in real memory loss and how it works, but I admit to feeling skeptical at times.  Also, the violence made me just a wee bit squeemish.  Otherwise, it was a story filled with twists and turns and a truly surprising (yeah!) ending.

Read-alikes:
Variant by Robison Wells
The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken (this might be more because I was reading it about the same time and the kids have powers too)

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !@
not a lot, no f-bombs

mrg-factor: X
mostly some implied stuff, nothing actually happens

v-factor: ->->->
a bit gore-tastic for my taste

Overall rating: ****

What's the best surprise ending book you've read?

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