When your childhood is cut short by murder and treachery, it's not easy to live a normal life. At the tender age of nine, Harriet witnessed her father beat her mother to death, and she holds herself partially responsible.

A gentle story about love, friendship, loss and loyalty and how growing up with that much baggage affects Harriet and how she learns to trust and interact with people afterwards. A great lesson in taking a chance on someone and finding happiness.

It's not easy to live a normal life when your childhood was cut short by murder and treachery. When Harriet was only nine years old, she witnessed her father beating her mother to death and she has always held herself partially responsible. To this day, she finds herself haunted by half memories, guilt, and disturbing dreams. She's built for herself a life of her own, a solitary, joyless existence that leaves little room for men or romance. As she approaches her thirtieth birthday, she knows she has to do something to change her life. Then, she suddenly meets Agnes, a rich, elderly widow who is looking for companionship at her summer home in Maine, and the two make a business arrangement. Harriet thinks that it will be like a paid vacation and give her the time she needs to plan for a better future, but she finds herself discovering challenges and obstacles that she hadn't expected. Agnes' nephew and sole heir only wants Harriet gone. She meets Eli, the local artisan, who has Harriet rethinking her plan to avoid men. Is it possible that he could come to return her feelings? Will the nephew's schemes, along with a heartbreaking betrayal, change her life forever? Will she fail Agnes, as she let down her mother so many years ago?

This novel was an emotional roller coaster as you watch Harriet deal with her past trauma and try to overcome the obstacles of the present as she tries to create a plan for a better future. I like how the author leaves little clues as to the direction the story will take. Harriet is a deeply flawed character and that only serves to make her more relatable. I found myself really feeling for her in many places. I enjoyed watching the relationship between Agnes and Harriet progress and the way they always seem to know exactly what the other needs. This book was a really easy, interesting read and I look forward to reading more by this author.

I received a copy of The Edge of Memory in exchange for an honest review.

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Very enjoyable story. Liked the development of the main character from a unsecure low self esteem to a confident woman.

Enjoyable read. I liked the slow evolution that the main character went through. Harriet was relatable in her insecurities.

The Edge of Memory by Maura Beth Brennan is the story of a girl who lives largely alone after seeing her father kill her mother. Always having blamed herself, it takes meeting an elderly woman and her grandson to help her see another version of the story. The idea for the book was good; however, I thought that the characterization could have been developed more. I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher. These opinions are entirely my own.

Very good book .i couldn’t put it down from the beginning,even at work on my breaks,if only for five mins,would definitely recommend this book

This is an interesting profile with bit of mystery.

Harriet was only nine when her father beat her mother to death. Harriet has blocked the memories but still has always felt responsible and unworthy to be happy. As her thirtieth birthday nears, she decides that she must change her life. Fate steps in when she meets a rich elderly widow, Agnes, who hires her as a companion. Agnes asks Harriet to accompany her to her summer home in Maine. Bit by bit Agnes gets Harriet to step out of her comfort zone and begin to truly transform herself.

Harriet meets Eli, an artist in town, who takes an interest in her, but they have misunderstandings to work through. Meanwhile Agnes’ nephew and heir visits on the weekends. He is arrogant and rude. Feeling threatened by the growing friendship between Agnes and Harriet, he accuses Harriet of not taking good care of Agnes as she seems to be having stomach illness. He blames Harriet for other accidents and missing items around the house too.

Intensity increases with Agnes' life threatened and Harriet's relationship with Eli challenged. Will her newly found confidence allow her to face the dangers to life and heart?

Although I had a lot of trouble relating to Harriet’s insecure character, the author makes a clear portrayal of a young girl who was the victim of abuse as a child and never received counseling to help resolve her feelings of shame, guilt and inferiority. I had to keep this in mind throughout the story. I thought some of the mystery was pretty obvious, but I still liked how it played out. There was one sexual scene that seemed a bit cliched. It was more detailed than I like but not totally graphic.

The writing has some light descriptive prose and is an easy read. I would recommend this to readers who like family drama, women’s growth, a little suspense and a touch of romance..

An enjoyable story. It's predictable but in a good way. Harriet has hit the crossroads in her life. So far she's had a traumatic childhood and an abusive marriage. She's on the brink of changing her life for the better when she loses her job. By chance, she meets an old lady Mrs Bertram and they get on so well and have so much in common that she decides to be her companion. There are a lot of ups and downs. Because of her traumatic background, she has a damaged self-esteem but I still found quite a lot of myself in Harriet. I loved Shannon, the dog and Edgar the cat. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an engaging read.

I was majorly turned off by the book. There was so much to not like about it. It's a rather simplistic story with simplistic and rather boring characters. I wanted to like it more, but it definitely could have used some improvements.

Thank you to Netgalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review. I found this an easy read and the main characters were very likable. The story follows Harriet who at the young age of 9 witness her Mothers murder. She has spent life just drifting from job to job, that is until she meets Agnes. Agnes is a lovely older lady who requires a companion. The story follows Harriet as she falls in love, protects Agnes from her money grabbing nephew and finally as she discovers the truth about her past when current events trigger once locked away memories. I loved this bok it was a very enjoyable read.

I found this book very interesting. It is all about the main character Harriet. After watching her father beat her mother to death at a young age she starts to think that maybe it was her fault. So she is a little shaken up and unsure of herself. Fast forward a few years later and she befriends an older woman named Agnes. The two women become very close friends when Harriet starts visiting Agnes since she wants companionship. It is then that Harriet leans that her past might have left more scars than she though. Will she fail her neighbor like she did her mother? What I didn't like about this book was while I found the plot interesting I found the story hard to get into. It was a very complex and hard read and considering the fact that it was simply written. What I loved about the book though was the friendship and how it was formed and strengthened between the two women. It was nice to see the power of it even though there was a huge age gap and it didn't seem forced or unrealistic which made it very special. Good story well written glad I got the chance to read it.

Edge of Memory was an excellent story about a woman, Harriet, with a horrible past who is now trying to get on with her life. As a child, she was a witness to her mother's murder at the hands of her own father. Now an adult, she has flashbacks, nightmares and survivor's guilt. She meets an elderly woman who needs a companion for her at her summer home. Harriet accepts her offer as a chance to start a new life. Rather than a nice vacation, Harriet is thrown into family mystery and drama. I enjoyed the book and would recommend it.

What a tender,gut-wrenching,heartbreaking yet beautiful story. I absolutely loved Harriet and enjoyed the plot. This was beautifully written and didn't leave out any details.I LOVED IT

Thanks NetGalley

I am sorry but I really struggled with this book. I kept hoping that it was going to get better. The storyline was very predictable. There were no surprises or twists in it.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and couldn’t put it down. A very well written story and definitely recommended.

I have just finished reading this book. I enjoyed reading this book, found it an easy read. The characters were likable Harriet has had a troubled past, suffers with flashbacks and gets very anxious. Agnes was a lovely old lady who although is very well off, doesn't look down on Harriet. I soon realised that Alex was going to be trouble. This is story has a little bit of mystery and romance along the way.

The Edge of Memory
by Maura Beth Brennan
First Edition Design Publishing


General Fiction (Adult) , Mystery & Thrillers
Pub Date 13 Dec 2017


I am reviewing The Edge Of Memory by First Edition Design Publishing and Netgalley:


Nine year old Harried Witnessed her Father beat her Mother to death. As an adult still haunted by those memories she has constructed a lonely and joyless life. Her life is a mix of half-Memories as well as nightmares. In this solitary existence Harriet has little room for men or relationships.


As she approaches her thirtieth birthday Harriet meet Agnes a rich elderly women who was looking for a companion at her home in Maine. The two forge a business deal, but Agnes sole heir and nephew wants Harriet gone.


Will Harriet be able to keep her job?


Will she allow herself to fall for the local artisan Eli?

Find out in The Edge Of Memory.


Five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

The Edge of Memory tells in 57 short chapters, interspersed with a few diary entries, the story about Harriet. It is an easy,gripping read about Harriet as she becomes a companion to a lovely, friendly elderly lady, Agnes. Harriet has to battle her nasty And incomplete childhood memories while trying to protect Agnes. The plot is straightforward, the characters are clear on who is good and who not. In the end all is solved and Harriet even finds happiness. This book is a good fireside or beach read as it is light but suspenseful without being too demanding.

I read some of the book but never felt invested in the characters. Plot seemed too contrived and similar to many others. Will abused women ever fall in love again? Will greedy nephew try and kill off his wealthy aunt? I read the beginning and very ending and skipped through 3/4 of the middle because I just couldn't care about the characters who seemed too thinly developed.