All Is Not Forgotten by Wendy Walker

All Is Not Forgotten

By Wendy Walker
Published by HQ Stories  (E-book - 12 July 2016; Hardback - 14 July 2016)
ISBN: 978-1785770524

Publisher's description

You can erase the memory. But you cannot erase the crime.

Jenny’s wounds have healed.

An experimental treatment has removed the memory of a horrific and degrading attack.

She is moving on with her life.

That was the plan. Except it’s not working out.

Something has gone. The light in the eyes. And something was left behind. A scar. On her lower back. Which she can’t stop touching.

And she’s getting worse.

Not to mention the fact that her father is obsessed with finding her attacker and her mother is in toxic denial.

It may be that the only way to uncover what’s wrong is to help Jenny recover her memory. But even if it can be done, pulling at the threads of her suppressed experience will unravel much more than the truth about her attack.

My  verdict

All Is Not Forgotten has a fascinating, clever and compelling plot. What if you could forget a particular traumatic time in your life? Something that could have a major impact on you. But while your mind has forgotten, what if your body hasn't? What if somewhere in the back of your mind, the memories remain? What if you then let those memories back to find the perpetrator of the crime?

But what if it's not you this has happened to - what if it's your child? Would you let them take the pill that will make them forget their past? And then would you be prepared to let them remember it all over again?

The novel is narrated by a psychiatrist who is involved with Jenny and her family, trying to help them put their lives back together. It's a slow burner but the pace and tension gradually build up. It's clear that Jenny's rape has a major impact on her whole family. And, as expected, they are all struggling to cope with the aftermath.

All Is Not Forgotten is horrifying in the way it gets right inside your mind. I loved the psychology and science background, focusing on memories and the imprint they leave behind.  This is a shocking and highly thought-provoking read, and I sat thinking about it for some time after I finished the final page, with my head buzzing.

I received an Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.

Click here for a guest post by Wendy Walker about her journey to publication.

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