When eccentric homeless man Andre Lortie jumps to his death in Old Montreal, the police discover two wallets in his possession: those of retired psychiatrist Judith Harper who was recently murdered in a bizarre ritual and corporate lawyer Nathan Lawson who has vanished. As police detective Victor Lessard and his partner Jacinthe Taillon investigate, they soon find links to all 3 and a dark history begins to emerge.

A huge coverup dating back to the 1960s and conspiracies involving the CIA, President Kennedy's assassination and brutal psychological experiments done in Montreal are at the heart of the kidnappings and killings. Revenge and promises to never forget are the culprit's motivations.

A thrilling Quebec thriller and I hope more Lessard books are translated into English.

I received an eARC from Netgalley and Dundurn Press with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book and provided this review.

Never Forget is the third Lessard procedural thriller by Martin Michaud. Originally published in French in 2012, this is the first of the series to be translated into English. Released 18th Jan 2020 by Dundurn, it's 576 pages and available in paperback and ebook formats.

This is a well written but often disturbing procedural thriller. The narrative is choppy and jagged for the first third of the book, switching abruptly between disparate elements both current and retrospective which circle and interweave ever more tightly until they become a single story including shadow politics, shockingly unethical medical research, cover-ups at the very highest level, corruption, dirty money and torture. It's a fairly hefty book (nearly 600 pages) and the author makes good use of the word count to develop the characters and move the story to its inevitable denouement.

The protagonist is flawed: depressed, a recovering alcoholic, physically and emotionally wrecked, suffering from PTSD and trying to have some semblance of a normal relationship with his adult kids (also troubled) and his lover (much younger, but a sane spot of happiness in his very messed up orbit).

The author writes convincingly and very well. This book is quite gritty and includes graphic depictions of torture/murder, rape/involuntary BDSM, graphic consensual sex, rough language, suicide, mental torture, domestic violence. Also, almost everyone smokes. Despite this, it's an engaging and intriguing read.

The translation work is seamless. It doesn't read like a book in translation. I hope Dundurn go back and release the earlier books in English.

Four stars. Worth a read for fans of gritty procedurals.

Never Forget reminds me of coming late to a darkened movie theater in the middle of the flick.

You try to find a seat, hunker down, and adjust your mega container of popcorn. Meanwhile, your eyes adjust to the dim lighting and you squint to make sense of who these characters are and what's been happening. But once you do, it all begins to make sense.

For your perusal: It's 1980 in Montreal and we're introduced to Victor Lessard, a detective in the Major Crimes Unit of the Montreal Police. He and his partner, Jacinthe Taillon, have been called out to the suicide of a homeless man. Let me fill you in on Taillon. Taillon will curl your toes with her mouthy comebacks and her ability to cause a tidal wave in a pond of still water. She's a food hound and there's not a donut that doesn't have her name on it. She doesn't play well with others either. But she has the eyes and ears of a bloodhound.

Back to the homeless guy........no one can prevent him from jumping off the roof of an inner city building. But he's left behind two wallets on the ledge before he takes the plunge. One of the wallets is from a retired female psychiatrist and the other is from a successful male lawyer. How are these two individuals connected to this unfortunate soul? We'll follow the breadcrumbs later as the body count starts to rise.

Said lawyer sits in a meeting going through a file. There's a drawing of a hangman with blanks to figure out the missing word. We don't know, but our lawyer buddy does. Rattled, he leaves abruptly and takes a large amount of folders in the trunk of his car. Lawyer Guy stops at a local cemetery, enters a crypt, deposits bag of folders, and leaves the key on the top of a headstone some distance away. You'll have to stick with this one to find out what happens to Lawyer Buddy and why.

I grabbed this one because I love the idea of a fine-tuned detective storyline set in Montreal. It's a gritty one, but we've come to expect real life. This one is #3 in the series and has been translated into English. I'm not sure that #1 and #2 have been translated yet. That's why there's a bit of confusion with the background noise in this one. But once you've gotten a feel for the characters, you're good to go. Looking forward to the next one in line, please.

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Dundurn Press and to Martin Michaud for the opportunity.

All I can say is, when are books 1 and 2 going to translated to English? I am ready to read more of Victor Lessard by Martin Michaud! I am a huge Jo Nesbo/Harry Hole fan and this author/charachter duo is just as good. Add the Montreal setting, which I know well (had family who lived there for many years) and you have a fabulous combination. The grittiness of Montreal comes through. I love that Victor is complicated. It makes the story so much more compelling when life is not easy for the characters. The struggle make the story so much more readable. Wow, this was a fabulous story and I'm so grateful to Net Galley for pointing it out to me.

Never Forget is the third book in the Victor Lessard series by Martin Michaud, but the first to be translated into English. It’s out now in English in Canada and the U.S. Thank you to @netgalley and Dundurn for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. ⁣
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When a homeless man jumps to his death in Old Montreal, the police discover two wallets in his possession: one from a recently murdered psychiatrist and one from a missing lawyer. As police detective Victor Lessard and his partner, Jacinthe Taillon, begin their investigations into what initially seem like separate cases, a dark history and connection between the crimes emerge. ⁣
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While this is the third book in the series, you can certainly jump right in with Never Forget and read it as a stand alone. At times, I struggled to keep track of the extensive list of characters and multiple plot lines, but the characters I could focus on, like Victor and Jacinthe, made those struggle worth it and the author ultimately tied the plots together well. ⁣
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Though the story deals with hypothetical versions of history, as a Canadian, I found the references and connections to Quebec and significant parts of Canadian and Québécois history like the FLQ kidnappings and the Referendum, fascinating. While you don’t need knowledge of this history to enjoy the book, I do think to adds to the richness of the reading experience and helps tie the plot together. ⁣
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Recommended for readers who enjoy strong police procedurals with a historical angle. ⁣
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I can’t wait for the rest of the series to be translated!⁣

Never Forget is the third novel in the Victor Lessard series by Martin Michaud. I have not read the first two novels but I did not feel as if I was missing anything, maybe there was some more character background that would make sense but nothing detrimental to the reading of the book.
Never Forget is a fairly long book. There is so much story that it feels hard to cut anything. The only part that could get cut would be the sub story with Victor's son Martin, but maybe that connected to a previous book or will connect to a future book that it is needed.
One of the great things is that clearly Michaud took a real event, MK-Ultra, and spinned a murder mystery story around it. It is such an interesting and mysterious event from the 1960s that you can really create a story around it. While it was a lengthy book I definitely enjoyed the story and would recommend it to Montreal based crime novels.

This was a very compelling read. It wasn't an easy read for several reasons but it was very good. The fact that it is the 3rd in a series means that you are starting with no background yet it is referred to many times. The author's habit of changing from first name to last name and back again is also jarring and confusing. Lots of characters and places, many unfamiliar to readers in English is another reason. Yet, even with all of this, the book is so good that you have to finish it. The mystery is interesting and complex as are the characters. Will definitely read the earlier books in this series if they are ever translated. Really good read!
I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley and the publisher and voluntarily chose to review it.

I wish to extend my thanks to NetGalley and Dundurn Press for this gripping, fast-paced police procedural with its ingenious, but very complicated plot.

I see that this is the 3rd book in the Victor Lessard series, but the first to be translated from French into English. This intense, thrilling mystery can be read as a standalone as references have been made to previous situations and events. It is apparent that Lessard and his partner have a working history in past criminal investigations, and I was happy to see that the first two books in the series are being translated for publication in English. Martin Michaud, the author, has won awards for his mysteries in French, and a TV series has been popular in Quebec. I am glad that the publisher has introduced me to a new, compelling series and look forward to the new translations.

Adding to the complexity of the plot were the names of so many characters. They would be described by either their first name or family name initially. Once I thought I had them all straightened out in my mind, there would be a switch from their first or last name by which they were originally introduced, leaving me to figure out to which character was now being named in the narrative. There were some uncomfortable descriptions of torture, violence and a few sex scenes I thought unnecessary. However, these problems did not detract from my enjoyment of the very intelligent plot which kept me riveted.

Detective Sergeant Victor Lessard has returned to the Major Crimes unit in Montreal, after leaving in disgrace. He has sustained a leg injury and has been treated for anxiety and depression. He is struggling with the urge to drink alcohol. He is a relentless, intelligent, gruff police officer, determined to restore his reputation. His partner is a junk food-loving, loud, brash policewoman with a sarcastic, annoying sense of humour.

A mentally disturbed, homeless man jumps off a rooftop to his death. Wallets belonging to a retired female psychiatrist and a prominent male attorney are found on his person. The psychiatrist is found murdered in a bizarre ritual, and the lawyer has gone missing.

The bodies begin to pile up. Two have been killed with a medieval torture device, adapted to make it even more deadly, and two others have been shot by bow and arrow. As Lessard and other police officers try to find a connection between victims, they begin to discover other killings in the past which may be related. There may be some involvement by mental health officials, lawyers and a much-admired Senator. The path leads to some scandalous, unorthodox experiments secretly carried out upon mental patients decades earlier, and finally leads Lessard to the USA for answers. and hears some shocking revelations and theories.

In the meantime, as Lessard attempts to untangle what may be a conspiracy, he is facing personal problems. His son has been arrested for his involvement in a terrorist plot. His loving girlfriend, Nadja, has a brother in law enforcement and he and Lessard dislike each other.

This is an intense, compelling thriller about what is remembered and what one is forced to forget. It deals with regrets, revenge, retribution, guilt, and past abuse within the mental health system. Recommended to readers who like a complex police procedural. This one is set in Montreal, Quebec. Awaiting more English versions of the Victor Lessard crime series.

Victor Lessard, a discarded demoted cop returns to a major crime unit and is partnered with Jacinth Taillon, a rookie. Their boss gives them what he believes is an easy case to start, the death of a homeless man. Little did he realize his mistake.

When Victor and Jancinth go to check out the homeless man (Lortie) they find two wallets in his possession, both belonging to murder victims. They know Lortie had a history of mental illness, could he have done it.....and why would he? It seemed unlikely, so the mystery begins. The cops struggle with their relationship and their ideas of how to solve the puzzle.

An excellent mystery, well worth the read.

I cannot imagine for the life of me why Martin Michaud, a Quebec mystery author who writes in French has not been translated into English before now. "Never Forget," the third in the Victor Lessard series, is a fabulous book, and made me wish I had heard of him before. I understand that some others in the series are also being translated, and I look forward to them.

This is a long, convoluted book, and it demands concentrated attention while reading it. It is totally worth it. The book is set in Montreal, a police procedural with the Homicide detectives. Victor Lessard is the Detective-Sergeant, and the protagonist. He is joined by his partner, Jacinthe Taillon, and other members of the squad.

The story starts with a murder and a suicide, and Lessard is called in to investigate. Soon there are other murders, the investigation and linkage of which are complicated by the snowy winter and the Christmas season and its festivities. I don't like spoilers so I don't want to say anything more about the plot save that it holds together, even though it posits something very unlikely.

If you like police procedurals, mysteries, or books set in other countries, I heartily recommend that you try this one. It is very satisfying and fun to read. Michaud obviously knows his business, and you will be glad he does.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC. The opinions are my own.

They’re back! DS Victor Lessard and his partner DS Jacinthe Taillon are together again on another murder case. After a tormented homeless man plunges to his death leaving behind a few cryptic words and two wallets, the two detectives soon find themselves up against a cunning adversary.
This is a positively riveting murder mystery. It has a super cast of characters. Lessard is an intelligent flawed hero, a recovering alcoholic prone to fits of rage, yet he’s a great cop who will follow the clues wherever they take him. All the other members of the Major Crimes Unit are remarkable in their own way. The plot is outstanding as well, with all the conspiracy and cover-ups to be discovered as it unfolds. If crime novels or murder mysteries are your thing, then you’re likely to love this latest book from Martin Michaud. I sure did. 4.5 stars

Another new author for me and and a very good crime thriller. It has been translated from French. The translation was really good, but what I can't understand is this. This is the third book in the series and the first to be translated WHY???? Reading this book I found I was missing so much of the back story and I felt cheated. In my opinion this was a mistake. We need the first three books translated please. This could have been a five star read.
Thanks to Dundurn Press and Netgalley for the ARC

When Andre Lortie, a homeless man with psychological issues, plunges to his death, two wallets are found in his possession. The first belonged to a Jane Doe whose body was found in a warehouse. The other belongs to Nathan Lawson, a lawyer who soon disappears and is later discovered murdered in a similar fashion to the Jane Doe. The investigation falls to Victor Lessard of Montreal’s Major Crimes Unit.

Shortly before his disappearance, Lawton requested files from the firm’s archives which have also disappeared. While Lessard’s partner is sure that Lortie had something to do with the murders, Lessard has his team looking into Lortie’s past and Lawton’s activities for any connection. They discover that Lortie’s health records show his involvement in mind control experiments at McGill College. The Jane Doe was Judith Harper, a professor at the college who was associated with the program. On a search of Lortie’s possessions they discover cryptic writings that make no sense, but as the investigation continues his team is able to decipher jottings that pertain to the experiments. There are references to the JFK assassination as well as several other murders that occurred in the 1960s. Lessard wonders how these could be connected to the current murders or if they are just the writings of a man labeled as delusional. When additional murders occur, clues are deliberately left at the scene for Lessard to discover the true story behind events that occurred years ago.

The opening pages of this book jumped from one character to another and it was a little disorienting. However, once the investigation begins and the links between each character are established, the story draws you in and does not let go. Lessard is a character with a number of failings. He is a former alcoholic who has just recently returned to the unit after being demoted when a past case went wrong. His partner is Jacinthe Taillon who is abrasive and impatient to find solutions. Together they often clash, but compliment each other in the field.

Martin Michaud has written an engrossing mystery that deals with memories - those that control current actions and those that are lost. The direction of the investigation changes a number of times as actions or words are recalled, leading to a totally unexpected conclusion. This is the first of Michaud’s Lessard novels to be released in the US, with others to follow later this year. These are definitely books that I am looking forward to. I would like to thank NetGalley and Dundurn Press for providing this book for my review.

Compelling Quebec thriller!

A gritty murder mystery that segues into the bizarre. Set in Montriel, a detective and his partner are confronted by a series of grotesque murders that have a dark history.
I reveled in this thriller. Devastating Quebecian crime noir! Always that cutting edge that is present in many of the movie and literary contributions from this part of the world.
I loved Victor Lessard a detective sergeant with the Major Crimes Unit of the Montreal Police. Victor is introspective, taciturn and a recovering alcoholic, taking copious amounts of anti anxiety pills, who has returned to the major crimes unit after having left in disgrace. He has a hair trigger temper when aroused. Jacinthe Taillon is his gung-ho, take no prisoners partner. She's dynamite and totally not PC. Together they are a seemingly ill matched yet superb duo.
When the murders lead to past CIA experiments in mind control and questions are raised about JFK's assassination in relation to these experiments, the story enters the twilight zone of political theories and deniability.
This is the first Victor Lessard novel to be translated into English. I look forward to more.
A most satisfying reading!

A Dundurn Press ARC via NetGalley

This book will really appeal to Jo Nesbø / Harry Hole fans. The books main character Victor Lessard is a Detective Sergeant who is carrying a lot of baggage. He and his equally volatile partner Jacinthe Taillon are investigating some very brutal and disturbing murders that seem to be pointing to a link to the assassination of JFK. Not sure if this is a legitimate link or a red herring the two constantly bicker and argue about whether to believe this or not.
In the meantime it appears that Victor's son Martin may be involved with some sort of neo-nazi faction and getting quickly out of his depth.
The unfortunate thing with this book is that it is number 3 in a series but the first to be translated from French to English, I am not sure why they have chosen to go with book 3 first as I think some of the confusion I had about the characters comes from an assumption that I am already familiar with their back story.
Despite all of this I was intrigued and hooked and find myself looking forward to more of this series being translated (or I could challenge my rust high school French and attempt to read the originals).
Thank you Dundurn Press and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Dundurn Press and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This third book in a series is the first translated into English. It was a great read, very well-written and gripping, I liked the characters and the way the plot developed. That said, we're missing pieces of the backstory which would otherwise inform the reading of this book - it's obvious the central character is suffering the aftereffects of a previous case. The huge number of different voices/characters was very confusing to begin with, but once I was hooked I couldn't put it down.

The setting in Montreal worked for me, but the extremely far-fetched and tenuous conspiracy theory upon which a major part of the plot hung was too much for me.

Review # 3 NEVER FORGET by Martin Michaud and reviewing for Netgalley..
Unfortunately it didn't take me long to realize that this was a Crime Thriller and I normally prefer Psychological thrillers. I was very confused through the first 1/3 of the book and had trouble keeping up with the large amount of characters. The story was decent though way too long at almost 550 pages and I began to wonder if Id ever get through. This could have been a much shorter story as it at times became overly descriptive with unnecessary tales from characters that had absolutely nothing to do with the story .⭐⭐⭐Three stars

Why the decision was made to translate to English the third book in this series instead of the first remains a puzzle to me, but I'm sure my enjoyment of it suffered as a result (as well as from a few glitches in the translation). While this book stands on its own fairly well, knowing more about the main characters' backgrounds and previous interactions would have made my reading more enjoyable. Nor was I comforted by the author's suggestion that readers are "not to worry" about the lack of background because we "will be able to learn more" when the first two books are translated later this year and next. Sorry, but it's rare that I go back and read prior books in any series.

So for the first half or so, I struggled. But I hung in there, and for the most part, my overall experience was positive as the pace - and my understanding of the rather complex plot - picked up. Detective Victor Lessard of the Montreal Police is an interesting and, for the most part, likable character; hints reveal that he's been shaped, for better or worse, by his background (hence the desire to learn more about what that was). Fighting demons of his past and dealing with two grown children and a new love - a woman named Nadja - keep him on the edge of self-destruction throughout.

His partner, Jacinthe Taillon, doesn't fare so well in my eyes. She and Victor have a contentious yet cautiously respectful relationship, which certainly adds spice. On the other hand, I couldn't help the feeling that considerable effort went into making her unappealing - and I must say that for the most part it succeeded. She's mouthy, irreverent, impatient and basically portrayed as a fat slob who never saw a French fry she wouldn't eat (at one point, for instance, she "came up behind him [Victor] with the grace of a dump truck." Maybe it stems from my feminist leanings, but the overweight digs seemed a bit excessive (pun intended).

The plot is complicated mostly by rather abrupt shifts and an abundance of characters - sometimes called by their first names, sometimes by their last and sometimes by something entirely different - but it's definitely intriguing. At the beginning, a woman's body turns up in a warehouse sporting some very strange markings; later, it's discovered that she was a retired psychiatrist. Then, a homeless guy jumps off a roof, leaving behind a couple of wallets. One belongs to a recently murdered man (also a psychiatrist), and the other to a ritzy corporate attorney who has gone missing.

While constantly dealing with Jacinthe's disagreeable nature, Victor has to work around a few health issues of his own. And unbeknownst to Victor, his son Martin finds trouble of his own, putting him in danger and causing friction between Victor and Nadya. As the police investigation into the suicide and murder victims and missing lawyer continue, evidence of an almost unbelievable conspiracy with ties to the United States begins to emerge, and even more bodies turn up - done in by a fiendishly wicked weapon.

In the end, things are wrapped up rather nicely, making this is a worthwhile read (albeit not an easy one to wade through). Many thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for introducing me to a new series by way of an advance review copy.

I was given this ARC by Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. The opinions in this review are my own.

When a homeless man (Lortie) jumps to his death, he leaves two wallets behind. The wallets are found to belong to two people who have been murdered. As the sergeant detective, Victor Lessard, tries to piece together the connection between Lortie and the two deceased, more people go missing and bodies are popping up along the way. It's a crazy, tangled web of lies, cover ups, and murder. Nothing is as it seems and the most likely suspects turn up dead.

Until now, I had never read any books by this author. I was relieved that, although this book is 3rd in a series, it was also great as a stand alone. The author was very descriptive so that I knew who each character was and what part they played in the story. I stayed up entirely too late reading. I couldn't put this book down. It was never boring as there was always something happening that kept me on the edge of my seat, so to speak.

I am looking forward to reading the rest of this series and am thankful to Netgalley for the introduction!

This is book three in the Victor Lessard series, but the first translated into English. Why did the publishers decide to do this? I have no idea. While this could've been confusing (and apparently was for some readers), Michaud includes a lengthy note at the beginning of the book that gives us quite a bit of background on Lessard and his partner Taillon. That was helpful. 

One oddity: sometimes Michaud refers to characters by both their first and their last name in the same scene. For example, Loic Blouin-Dubois might be called Loic or Blouin-Dubois. This tripped me up several times, making me think the story was referring to two people rather than one. Once I remembered people's names, I was fine.

Once I got into the story, I truly enjoyed it. 

I thoroughly enjoyed the dynamic between Victor Lessard and Jacinthe Taillon. They're work partners and vie with each other for power, even over trivial things. He turns up the car heater; she turns it down. She turns the radio to one station; he switches to a different one.

Taillon is vivid: she drives with a lead foot on the accelerator, eats at every possible moment, and goes nuclear with everyone--even when it's not a good idea. This is a cop you want behind the wheel when a criminal takes off in a stolen car: fearless, skilled, and ready to burn rubber in pursuit. 

Lessard's temper is slower to erupt, but don't mistake him for mild mannered. He's a former alcoholic and when he loses his temper, it's unforgettable. Fresh out of rehab, he's dealing with random and overwhelming outbursts of anger.

Even the supporting characters have their own lives and battles apart from the murder case. Lessard's boss, Paul Delany, is dealing with his wife's hospitalization from breast cancer and worries that it has metastasized. Young cop Loic is struggling to redeem himself after a huge mess-up on a previous case. Martin Lessard, Victor's son, is involved in some activities his father will definitely disapprove--or will he? 

The cast of law enforcement characters is large but the author gives everyone a distinct personality. I particularly liked a man nicknamed the Gnome, whose seven children come to the Christmas Eve party.

Another character, a nasty, unlikable man, is fleshed out by a tidbit of information. He longs to savor another Christmas Eve alone, watching a silent film, drinking champagne, and eating foie gras, just as he and his late mother did each year. Not my kind of Christmas Eve! But this desire takes the character from being another arrogant rich man with too much power and too little compassion, and makes him relatable: he misses his mom and their holiday tradition.  

There are a lot of threads in this story. Among other things, we get the CIA, the JFK assassination, addiction, mental illness, experiments on brainwashing inflicted on helpless people . . . The list goes on. It comes together in the end, but I spent much of the book guessing and second-guessing how various elements fit together. Michaud throws in a heaping measure of red herrings that successfully diverted my attention. Consider yourself warned. 

The publisher compares Michaud to authors like Michael Connolly, Ian Rankin, and Jo Nesbo. I'm familiar with all three authors, and I think the comparison is right on, particularly with Nesbo. Some of the violence in Never Forget is graphic, and I've noticed that Nesbo, too, includes some truly horrific details about violent crimes.

I've written before about my personal conflict with explicit violence: at what point does realistic violence become gratuitous violence? I don't think Michaud crosses that line, but many readers might disagree. For me, the humanity of the police officers balances out the violence. 

Certain character's actions might trigger sexual assault victims. Though much of that aspect is implied rather than shown, it's still disturbing. You might need to give Never Forget a pass. 

This is a novel about memory. How it affects us. How we remember--or misremember--our own pasts and the collective pasts of communities and nations. And most of all, how some never forget a wrong done to them. 

Overall, I enjoyed this novel. It's long but I think it's worthwhile reading for crime fiction and thriller readers. 4.5 stars, rounded up to 5.

Thanks to Dundurn Press and Netgalley for a copy of Never Forget in exchange for an honest review. This review will appear on my blog on February 3, 2020.