Publication: April 10th 2014 by Hodder Paperbacks
Source: Purchased
Goodreads description:
What if you had the chance to start again...but only if you promised never to look back? Samantha is popular, rich, and seemed to have it all...until the night she and her best 'frenemy' Cassie disappeared and only Sammy resurfaced, with no recollection of who she is or what happened. Sammy's a stranger in her own life - a life she no longer wants any part of. Losing her memory is a chance to start again. Then Sammy begins receiving mysterious notes warning her about that night, urging her to not look back. But she can't let it go. As she starts poking around in her past she begins to remember...and something sinister begins to surface.
** WARNING: CONTAINS POSSIBLE SPOILERS **
This was my first novel by this author and I was a little apprehensive at first because there is so much hype surrounding her. But this book definitely didn’t disappoint. I loved how the writing style just flowed and was so easy to read. The storyline was a little predictable at points, but the buildup of suspense was fantastic. The mystery aspect of the book was also very well done and was just so captivating that I could not stop reading because I needed to know what happened!
I loved the character of amnesiac Sam. It was such a startling contrast between that Sam and the Samantha from before. The Sam with no memories could be annoying, naive and a little too trusting at times, but I liked that she realised she didn’t want to be the mean and horrible person that she was before. There was a hallelujah moment when she finally ditched the popular mean girl posse (her so called friends) and her loser boyfriend.
Carson was another favourite character of mine. He was the typical nice guy and he put up with being victimised by Sam for so long. Yet he still cared about her, forgave her for things that most people wouldn’t, and came to her rescue on more than one occasion. I loved this couple and it was really sweet seeing the romance slowly blossoming between them.
Scott, Sam’s brother was yet another favourite character of mine. He had his typical annoying brother moments, but for the most part he was extremely protective over her and I really liked their sibling relationship.
Now onto the hated characters. Sam’s boyfriend Del, who truly is a despicable character. He takes advantage of the fact that Sam has no memories to manipulate her into staying with him after she broke up with him for cheating on her, he tries to cop a feel (during a funeral for crying out loud!) and takes explicit photos of her without her knowledge or consent. So much hate for him.
But the character I hated even more than Del (and I didn’t think that was possible) was Sam’s mother. She was the epitome of the wealthy socialite that prioritised social standing and how she was perceived by others above all else, including her children. I was livid when I found out that Sam’s mother not only knew about those illegal photos of her daughter that were circling the school, but she actually pressured her daughter into forgiving and staying with her low life of a boyfriend, simply because his family was wealthy and high up on the social hierarchy. What kind of a mother does that?! Does your daughter really mean that little to you?
But despite all that, I still loved the book and it was 5 stars for me right up until the very end when we find out who the person behind everything is. And I was shocked. Not because I couldn’t guess who it was (the clues were definitely there), but because to me, it just seemed so completely out of character to the way that person was written right up until that point. That ruined the book a little for me because it made it less believable. There was ultimately a good reason for their actions and it explained so many things, but it definitely could have been handled better. It would have been a lot more realistic if that character had been portrayed in line with how they had been written for the rest of the book. But that was my only real issue with this book.
Overall, this was a fantastic book with a likable protagonist and a well thought out storyline. I gave it a 4.75/5 rating and I would recommend it to those who like YA and mystery. This was definitely easier to get through and more enjoyable than some of the adult mysteries I have read and also got me hooked on this author’s writing.
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