This is a total trainwreck of a book that I should have marked DNF instead of forcing myself through it.

The story is relentless in being completely annoying and scoff out loud ridiculous. The main character, Caroline, is bonkers for fake and for real. I listened to the audio (which was done well despite the material the narrator was working with) and followed along in the e-book.

Yes, the definition of unreliable narrator is true here, but the way in which Caroline tells what happens to her after she googles herself is so frenetic and bizarre that the wide umbrella of mental health disorder doesn't begin to cover her personality and behavior.

I can't imagine how anyone found this enthralling unless it is that feeling when something is so bad that you just can't look away. The ending, well, it had a twist of course, but not one that could salvage the story.

This was an old ARC that I picked up off the shelf when I got the audiobook from the library. I'm definitely not the intended audience for this novel. Not recommended.

EXCERPT: Saturday, April 21st, 2007 9.07 am

The oddest sensation seized me that morning. At first it was subtle, nearly imperceptible, like the onset of a rolling fog. It crept over me with quiet, unsettling determination. I tried to shake it but the feeling only grew stronger. It permeated my joyful veneer until it snuffed the thrill from my core. I'd never felt anything like it.
Things weren't going as planned. I didn't expect to feel doubt the day after I'd handed him my manuscript. I'd anticipated pride and celebration, joy. It was a triumph for God's sake.
No. On second thought, it wasn't doubt that wormed its way into my giddy fever. It was something else entirely.
As a warm breeze leaked through the screen window over the sink, I shivered. And grappled with this feeling. It was foreign.
It was fear.

ABOUT 'THE MEMORY BOX': What would you do if you Googled yourself and discovered something shocking?

a group of privileged suburban moms amuse themselves by Googling everyone in town, digging up dirt to fuel thorny gossip. Caroline Thompson, devoted mother of two, sticks to the moral high ground and attempts to avoid these women. She’s relieved to hear her name appears only three times, citing her philanthropy. Despite being grateful that she has nothing to hide, a delayed pang of insecurity prods Caroline to Google her maiden name—which none of the others know.

The hits cascade like a tsunami. Caroline’s terrified by what she reads. An obituary for her sister, JD? That’s absurd. With every click, the revelations grow more alarming. They can’t be right. She’d know. Caroline is hurled into a state of paranoia—upending her blissful family life—desperate to prove these allegations false before someone discovers they’re true.

MY THOUGHTS: I just don't know what to say other than I was sorely tempted to d-n-f this on several occasions, and ultimately wish I had.

The book has a wonderful premise but lacked in execution. I found The Memory Box by Eva Lesko Natiello to be not at all suspenseful, extremely repetitive, overly dramatic and bogged down in unnecessary detail. It was like the author tried too hard to make Caroline seem crazy when a lot more subtlety would have been far more effective. Caroline is endlessly questioning her own sanity, but I would definitely not describe her as paranoid. And the detail! We hear about every speck of dust, every crease in the paper, how the string is tied on a box (yes, THE memory box!), the interior of Caroline's wardrobe, and how it came to be like that. And she is, at times, cruel to her dog, whom she professes to love. IMHO, Caroline should have been heavily sedated and admitted to a psychiatric hospital.

There were a couple of high points in the story. I really liked how Caroline 'selected' Andrew to be her husband. That was a very clever touch. And I loved the last line in the book, delivered by Andrew, although I now have grave fears for his safety.

This is author Eva Lesko Natiello's debut novel. Should her writing career continue, I hope she learns to remain focused on what is important to the storyline, reduce extraneous clutter, and to introduce some subtlety.

⭐.8

#TheMemoryBox #NetGalley

THE AUTHOR: Eva lives and writes in suburban NJ, which provided the setting for the fictional town in her debut novel. She is particularly fascinated by misconceptions and how destructive even the most benign misunderstanding can be.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Kobo Writing Life via NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of The Memory Box by Eva Lesko Natiello for review. All opinions expressed in this review are my own personal opinions.

Unfortunately this book was not for me, it was a bit slower than I would like and it just didn't hold my attention. I am sure other people will love it!

This was a crazy read that also made you feel a little crazy, It was interesting, but it was also somewhat disappointing.

A well written novel with an intriguing plot however I just couldn't get into the novel for some reason. Maybe it was the characters but I can see other enjoying this

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I could easily see the women near where I live doing exactly what Caroline's neighbors do - Googling everyone in the neighborhood to discover dirt to fuel the gossip mill.

When Caroline decides to see what is online about her using her maiden name, the twists begin.

This book is perhaps best described as a cautionary tale. You just never know what is floating around in the depths of cyberspace.

For Caroline, ignorance was bliss.

I rate this book as 4 OUT OF 5 STARS ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book.

This book was a roller coaster ride.
Some of it was treatment, fun and thrilling and unexpectingly heartracing.
But it also ad it's slow moments and hard breaks that I didn't enjoy as much.
All in all it's a nicely done thriller that still has some ruff edges, but if you just want something shocking and gripping to read?
This is a good one to pick up!

This didn't really capture my attention. Good plot but badly created characters.. Would not recommend.

This book was just okay. I wasn't able to connect with the story. It was slow going until 100 pages in. It was all over the place which got a bit confusing. The ending was lack-luster and hoped for a better suspenseful ending. I would however, pick up any future published books from this author. Thank you for the eARC.

The Memory Box was an interesting story with complex characters. You definitely have to commit to keep going, as it is confusing at times. However, in the end the truth reveals itself. Overall. I really enjoyed this novel!

4 Stars

I didn’t know exactly what to expect when I first started read The Memory Box, I heard several people say they’ve read it, but I’ve kept it on my TBR for awhile. Needless to say I’m glad I finally picked it up!

This book had my mind going in several directions. I kept telling myself I just didn’t know what exactly to believe. And the ending gave every single reason hey I should have felt that way! Whoa! I just love these types of psychological books where my mind continues to try and guess what exactly is going on and you can’t quit pinpoint it.

Overall I thought the writing was good, the story was interesting and definitely kept me guessing. I’m so glad I finally got to read The Memory Box!

All I know is this book made my brain feel scrambled. The main character opens Pandoras box then keeps digging when she finds that her sister has died. Instead of asking her SO for help she goes it alone like a crazy person. I felt physical anxiety over this book and the character, just not for me.

I couldn't put this book down, I felt like I had to finish immediately to see what really happened. The ending blew me away. You have to experience this novel for yourself. This book is like watching a train wreck. You want to look away, but you can't. Go and read it now!

This looked like a great book, but unfortunately it was archived before I could read it. I will pay more attention to that before requesting. Thank you.

The memory box by Eva Lesko Natiello.
A group of privileged suburban moms amuse themselves by Googling everyone in town, digging up dirt to fuel thorny gossip. Caroline Thompson, devoted mother of two, sticks to the moral high ground and attempts to avoid these women. She’s relieved to hear her name appears only three times, citing her philanthropy. Despite being grateful that she has nothing to hide, a delayed pang of insecurity prods Caroline to Google her maiden name—which none of the others know.
The hits cascade like a tsunami. Caroline’s terrified by what she reads. An obituary for her sister, JD? That’s absurd. With every click, the revelations grow more alarming. They can’t be right. She’d know. Caroline is hurled into a state of paranoia—upending her blissful family life—desperate to prove these allegations false before someone discovers they’re true.
A slow but ok read. I just found it to be unbelievable. 3*.

Unfortunately, I could not get into this book at all. I was very disconnected from the story and the characters.

This book was a definite hate-read for me. I was interested enough to keep going to see how it all turned out but I wouldn't say I enjoyed reading this book. I had some major issues with character development, plot progression, etc. that took away from the story. For example, I understand what the author wanted to achieve by having an unreliable narrator, but it actually caused the book to be completely illogical by the end. There were many moments that seemed seriously unrealistic, so I found myself basically frustrated the entire time. Although the concept was interesting, the execution of this was completely dismal.

3.6/5
I am in dilemma, I quiet liked the book. As it gave me a vibe of Gone Girl, where we have this psychological thriller revolving around the Girl protagonists.
She keeps on loosing memory, or may be not.
The story is a bit of dragged, and there were many plot holes in it.

As a plot it is intriguing, but for some it can be very overdone. Because of the language, and character's same "things" again n again.
Full review will be posted soon with blog link
Thanks netgalley and publishers for copy of ebook in return of an honest review.

I think the book was somewhat interesting, but more frustrating as it went along and the main character was annoying. Her reactions to things just made me want to shake her. Of course there is a big twist ending that is supposed to explain away some of this, but it just didn't work for me.

There are plenty of smaller twists throughout the book, but you see them coming a mile away, long before the main character does. This means you spend a significant portion of the book just waiting for her to get it together enough to catch up to you. None of the smaller twists were shocking. To be honest, even the bigger twist at the end wasn't shocking.

There are so many comments that I want to make and examples I want to use, but they would all give away something from the book. Even though the twists weren't surprising, you should still read them without spoilers so I will end this review early and just say that if you like books with MC's that are a mess and "big twist" endings, go ahead and give it a try. It wasn't terrible. I just think it's been done better and this one didn't fully live up to its potential.

Finally read this book, which was better than i had first thought. It isn't a book that gripped me and no doubt it's because i found the story too slow for too long at the beginning. Nonetheless i do thank Netgalley and the Publishers for my copy.