While I received a copy of this e-book via netgalley, all opinions remain my own.

This book was WILD. You can read the synopsis to see how strange the concept is, but it somehow comes together and it is so wonderfully done. This is a book I would pick up and read again. I found it compelling to find out what would happen to Linda. Can she reconcile her past with what she thought she knew?

I absolutely loved this book! Linda Russell is a quirky young lady living a withdrawn and isolated life in the vibrant city of Seattle. Her reasons for being that way are slowly explained to the reader in a manner that mercilessly ensnares you. As we flashback to her childhood, the horror of how she raised herself and the condition she was in when discovered will take your breath away. Against all odds, Linda is a true survivor. When she meets her new overly-friendly neighbor Anvi, she at once distrusts her but wants to be close to her. We don’t know whether we like Anvi or not. Personality-wise she’s an absolute sweetheart and so helpful to Linda but does she have ulterior motives like so many strangers in the past have had towards Linda? And what’s the deal with Linda’s father? He should be ashamed of how he sat back and let Linda live the sad existence she’s known her entire life. But is there more to his side of the story, can we find any reason to actually like this pompous man?
I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough; the story’s plot is that enveloping. With a mix of pity, horror, anger, and compassion this is an emotional roller coaster that’s well worth the ride.
Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. The release date is March 2, 2021.

Forget Me Not was a really cool thriller. We immediately are not sure if Linda can be trusted as a narrator or source of information based on her history. This was not a slow realization for us readers, it's insinuated from the get-go. The way that technology has also evolved from our current time to the time in this story was unique. Because this story is built around a world we already know, just slightly in the future, we did not need a ton of world building. The information we did receive was understandable and created an easily imagined technology. Linda is a feral creature who is just trying to exist in a world that doesn't seem to want her. Her realizing she could exist in VR without having to force interactions with others to satisfy her not-father was something I think many introverts can relate to. Her friend and neighbor really seemed to help her without any expectations from her, and those of us with trauma and anxiety can really connect with how nice this can feel. The pacing of this book felt strange. There were moments the book was incredibly fast paced, and other times it was slowly going, with Linda recalling facts and interactions that didn't always feel relevant to the story at hand.

All and all, this was a unique Sci-Fi dystopian that I really and truly enjoyed.

I really liked this story! The near-future setting in a world post-election and post-COVID is fascinating – not too “out there” as it’s not too far in the future, but definitely different than the world we’re living in today. I very much enjoyed exploring that reality for a few days while I savored Forget Me Not.

Not to be outdone by the setting is our heroine Linda, and her new friend Anvi - characters who really draw you in. Part Sci Fi, part Suspense Mystery, part Women’s Friendship Fiction, Forget Me Not really is a satisfying read. You can’t wait to find out the secrets in Linda’s past that she holds so close to her chest as to be almost completely hidden. Moved as you by her childhood trauma, you can’t help but root for Linda. As Linda herself reflects, “She can let go of the past. Maybe then she can find out who she really is.”

Linda is a 24-year-old woman living alone in an apartment in Seattle, Washington. She keeps her head down, doesn’t talk to strangers, and only goes out on “excursions” at the insistence of her father, the tech mogul Arthur Niequist. All she wants is to be left alone from the world that maligns her very being. You see, Linda was never supposed to be born – her mother gave Linda life in a desperate move to alleviate her grief after losing her only daughter in a tragic accident.

Linda lives day to day hiding in her apartment and avoiding people. She can’t seem to overcome her rough upbringing as “wild” girl who ran around her home property with no education and no shoes, for the most part ignored and neglected by her grief-stricken mother. That is, until two things happen: Linda unexpectedly befriends her new neighbor, the purple-haired and outgoing Anvi; and her childhood home suffers a devastating fire. Linda wants to visit her former home, which brings all the old memories back to the surface, as well as puts her life in danger.

In addition to the likable characters and the interesting near-future setting, Forget Me Not also contained an interesting balance of social commentary that teetered back and forth a bit, but overall balanced in the middle of the political spectrum.

Give Forget Me Not a read – I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. And come back and leave me a Comment about what you thought of it!

A big thank you to Alexandra Oliva, Ballantine Books of Random House Publishing Group, and NetGalley for providing a complimentary Advance Reader Copy in exchange for this honest review.

As mentioned on GoodReads.com: Author Alexandra Oliva grew up in a small town deep in the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York. A first-generation college graduate, she has a BA from Yale University and an MFA in Creative Writing from The New School University. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, son, and their brindled pup, Codex.

Forget Me Not publishes March 2, 2021 from Ballantine Books. Reserve your copy today, and check out other highly-anticipated releases of 2021, at BookShop.org – the online bookstore that contributes 75% of the books’ profit margin to indie bookstores – you can even pick your local bookseller to receive the contribution!

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Took me a little while to get into this. Thought it was going to have more of a sci-fi, virtual reality, futuristic feel to it. Though it takes place slightly in the future and the tech is a little more advanced, it wasn’t so outside the realm of the present. Once I got the feel for what kind of world it was, I was a little more into it.

There were some elements to the story that didn’t really add anything to it, side plots that seemed like they were going somewhere but ultimately didn’t. I think they kind of distracted from the main story and weren’t necessary.

The main story was ok though. Was good enough to hold my interest and provide a little something different than my usual reads. But nothing too mind-blowing either. I’d say it’s like a 3.5 kind of story. No big complaints but no excited raving either.

So, here's the thing: this book has the potential to be great. The framework is definitely there. I think where it's lacking is in the content itself.

As other readers mentioned, what's eventually revealed to be the Glitch Hunter game framework creation (???) scenes aren't necessary. At the beginning of the book, it seems as though we may find out that Linda wasn't supposed to be part of this world (ie: that she was a glitch) or that the game creation was going to somehow greatly impact her story, and that was intriguing. But we later discover that actually, they were just including her in their game for the ~culture~ of it all, because #CloneGirl. Which, okay... but not necessary for the story given that it ultimately had very little to do with the rest of the story.

Then, the virtual reality gaming. Again - at the beginning of the story, you think there's something going on with a virtual reality world, so it seems as though all the gaming content is setting us up for a reveal later, but that's not the case at all, and it ultimately felt unnecessary. I think we could've gotten the same revelations about Linda's character with waaaayyyy less time spent in her VR game world.

The most interesting part of the story came at the last quarter or so of the book when we started to get the big reveals about Emmer (aka MR, there was never a twin sister, she was intended to be a copy of her deceased sister but failed, her memories weren't her own) - this content could've easily been expanded on and would've been way more interesting than the other stuff we actually got.

Like I said, the framework exists. The beginning and end of the story were good, and seeing a near-future world of technology was also really interesting, but ultimately, this one was a miss for me.

I really struggled to get into this story. I’m not sure if it was a timing issue for me or a subject matter issue. I’ll be revisiting it in the future to try and see if it goes better

In her excellent sophomore novel Forget Me Not, Alexandra Oliva transports readers to near-future Seattle . Layers of mysteries build in the first fifty pages. We meet Linda Russell, whose every move is choreographed to avoid notice. Trips on the elevator must be made alone. A trip to the park is ruined if a particular bench is occupied upon arrival. Linda must walk quickly, but not too quickly. No eye contact. Always blend in.

We get hints that Linda was confined as a child, that she escaped, that she is still under watchful eyes that keep her from being fully free.

The mysteries unspool at a swift pace, keeping the pages turning with satisfying reveals. The world building is stellar. Laced with plausible and intriguing technological advancements, readers could see themselves living in this world soon. The character development is similarly outstanding, with even secondary characters being nuanced and fully-fleshed. Oliva shows the same talent for mind-bending psychological exploration that we saw in The Last One, but with a whole new world and psyche to explore.

The synopsis for Forget Me Not sounded so unique! I was ecstatic when my wish was granted to receive this ebook.

Starting out, I had trouble getting into it. I felt like such an exciting story just had to start out with a bang. I'm glad I kept reading, though, because it really did get better with each chapter.

I felt sympathy for Linda throughout the whole book. I just kept asking myself how I would feel if the only reason I was born was to replace my dead sister and that helped me really bond with the main character.

I feel like some chapters could be omitted to help with some pacing issues, but all in all, this has the promise of being a great read.

I definitely won't soon forget Alexandra Oliva's newest book Forget Me Not. It was a very unique story set a few years into the future. Linda was a very interesting, multi-layered character. Her story was revealed little by little until the full truth comes to light. I loved the depiction of her mental illness and inner dialogue. It seemed very believable to me. This was such a different story and was very fun to read. In the first few chapters I was a little confused as to what was going on and why Linda was the way she is. That soon cleared up as I read on. I will for sure read more of this author's other novels. This was a great suprise of a read! Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

I am a HUGE fan of Alexandra Oliva’s debut novel “The Last One”, and I was thrilled that I was chosen to read her follow up novel. ⁣This is an author who hasn’t succumbed to the “sophomore slump”.
Linda’s childhood was filled with neglect and isolation-she was left to raise herself in a walled off home in the woods, her father gone, and her mother punishing Linda for not being more like her deceased older sister. An adult Linda still shoulders the burden of her trauma, living a slightly hermetic life in the not-too-distant future, one which is very technological heavy. When there is a fire at Linda’s childhood home, she returns there seeking clarity about her past. ⁣
Just like her debut novel, Alexandra Oliva gives us a unique story with deeply developed characters and illustrative prose. You can feel Linda’s pain and anxiety, and easily imagine the lush yet desolate woods she called home.
I also enjoyed the themes and questions this book raised about identity, legacy, science, morality, mental health, and forgiveness.

I am a huge fan of The Last one so when I saw Forget Me Not available on NetGalley I had to wish for it. I'm so happy my wish was granted because this book is fantastic and even better than the Last One.
A young girl whose whole purpose in life was to replace her dead sister.. Its a beautiful book about family and the struggles and how a girl copes with her purpose in life

Forget Me Not is set in the Seattle and Pacific Northwest of the future – the year 2028 – and features technology and science that are not yet accessible to us in the year 2020.

The protagonist, Linda, is a sympathetic character who was born to serve as a genetic clone for a sister that died tragically. The unpredictable nature of cloning meant that Linda was not an exact replica of her sister, and her mother was not able to cope with or accept this seeming second loss. As such, Linda existed for twelve years in solitude in a virtual prison behind the walls of her family’s 20-acre property never knowing that the reason for her existence was to be the replacement for a dead girl.

When Linda does escape, she trades the prison of her home for the modern technological world she has no knowledge of and is completely unprepared for. She quickly becomes a viral figure known as the Clone Girl on social media where she is ruthlessly hunted and harassed. As such, she trusts no one, isolates herself socially and physically and hardily fears interactions with others.

Forget Me Not is a fast-paced story with great timing and plenty of twists and turns that kept me guessing. While I did enjoy reading about the technological advancements enjoyed in the world of this book, I did find the subplot of virtual reality with its deliberations on quantum physics and parallel universes to be quite a distraction that eventually lost me as a reader.

The character of Linda evokes sympathy as a lonely, forlorn figure who never experienced the love of family or the nurturing warmth of a mother; however, aside from this consideration, I did have difficulty connecting with the characters in this novel.

All in all, this is a science fiction suspense tale that I do recommend with a three star rating.

My thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for a complimentary advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

If you’re looking for a suspenseful story, look no further. Forget Me Not, by Alexandra Oliva is worth a read.

The story follows Linda Russell, who was raised by her mother in a walled-off compound where she was allowed to run wild. She never saw anyone but her mother and her sister until one day she escaped over the wall. She was immediately thrust into the modern world with its 24/7 news cycles. She became the biggest news and ended up trending on social media, none of which she understood. Thankfully, her father stepped up to take her in.

Now, years later, Linda has met a new neighbor, an outgoing woman named Anvi, who quickly becomes her best friend. Meeting Anvi is good for Linda, but it also sets in motion a series of events that put herself, as well as her new friend, in danger.

The story seemed unique to me and it drew my interest right away. I was left wanting to know more about this mystery girl and why she was raised in that way. This was a page-turner for sure. I stayed up late a couple nights to finish it.

The characters are given enough background information to make them intriguing. For example, what happened to Emmer, Linda’s twin? Will Linda ever learn the truth? What really happened to Madeline?
There’s also a parallel story line with someone called GH that seems odd at first. It doesn’t seem to relate to the rest of the story and is puzzling for the reader. But it is eventually tied in and you see how it relates. I think that could have been left out, but doing so would have left one major story element unexplained, so it was necessary.

Some of the chapters are made up of emails that Lorelei, Linda’s mother, wrote to her ex-husband but never sent. She saved them on a USB drive shaped like a butterfly. Her emails show a decreasing level of rationality as she gets older. She has been raising foxes and she’s also doing genetic experiments, one of which resulted in Linda begin born.

The tale comes together in the wrap-up and all is explained. I thought it well done, but thought perhaps the GH segments could have been cut out and the incident explained in another way. But, that’s just my personal opinion on it. It’s a fine story and well plotted. The chapter breaks are not jolting even when the narrator switches from the emails to Linda’s story, etc.

Overall, I give this one five stars for a well-crafted story that will keep you up long into the night wanting to find out what happens next.

FORGET ME NOT is a genre-blending tome of intrigue, mystery, action, and thrills set in the far future where technology rules yet secrets still hold. Any slowness of pace is to be cherished because once the plot kicks off things only twist and turn faster and faster as each memory is unearthed, each secret rips free, and you witness wide-eyed the story of Linda who is not Linda nor quite anything she seemed.

This is one of those stories that has an unreliable narrator, reminiscent of something like Gone Girl or The Girl on the Train. Once you know that, it’s fairly easy to predict at least a portion of the story.

Linda had a rough childhood to say the least; she was essentially an experiment conducted by a mentally ill woman intent on somehow reliving her time with her dead daughter. It’s heartbreaking in many ways; this author is gifted at making sympathetic characters. Linda is so timid and lost in everyday situations it’s hard not to pity her.

The mystery element was well done, if a bit predictable. I especially liked the setting and atmosphere of an abandoned, burnt up property in winter. Sort of reminded me of the Norwegian noir novels out there.

While I don’t think this is as good as the author’s first book, it’s a solid read that I enjoyed. I imagine it’ll do quite well.

Linda Russell had a completely unorthodox childhood. Her mother allowed her to run wild on their walled-in property. When she was 12, she escaped and became infamous. The Internet and social media made it impossible for her to escape notoriety. She moved whenever recognized and couldn't ever truly enjoy herself. Linda meets her new neighbor. When she doesn't seem to recognize Linda, a friendship begins. Linda is introduced to online gaming and the anonymity intoxicates Linda. Being able to move and interact without recognition is wonderful for Linda.

Linda has to return to her childhood home to view damage from a fire. As she walks around the property, she is overwhelmed with memories. She has unwittingly placed herself in danger again. Will she be able to face the danger and reclaim her life or will she become a victim?

This story has so many elements: love, loss, dysfunctional family dynamics, mental abuse, lack of self-confidence. Alexandra Oliva keeps you spinning from one shock to another. Her main character is a victim of so many bad circumstances that you wonder how she manages to continue. While some of the events seem horrific, it almost becomes too much. We are taken to the edge of belief, I'm glad that Linda’s suffering does come to an end. This is a good book that will surprise you at every turn.

I would definitely recommend this book for young adults interested in a contemporary mystery. There were sci-fi elements, technology and gaming. I enjoyed the way Linda, our main character began discovering that being alone really wasn’t what she wanted. That allowing others in could be a good thing. The plot kept me guessing until the end.

Forget Me Not is a gripping sci-fi novel by Alexandra Oliva. The story centers around Linda Russell who lives amongst the urban sprawl of Seattle in the not-so-distant future. A modern world where wearable tech and facial recognition is commonplace, VR gaming and self driving cars are mainstream, and social media has consolidated under one company: SocialHub.

Falsely dubbed #Clonegirl by the vicious, prying eyes of the media, Linda lives a life of solitude and eschews social encounters. That is until she meets her new neighbor Anvi, one of the few people who can coax Linda out of her shell. Together they explore the infamous house that Linda grew up in, a den of iniquity. Little do they know that doing so will open up a veritable Pandora’s box. When a tragic series of events unfolds, Linda comes face to face with the demons from her past and learns the unbearable truth about her childhood.

I was absolutely blown away by Forget Me Not. It is rare to come across a compulsively readable and accessible sci-fi novel, let alone one that crosses over into psychological thriller territory so effortlessly. I was captivated by the believable futuristic world that Oliva created, it feels eerily accurate given the trajectory we’re on right now. In fact, last night I deleted my Instagram and Facebook accounts and I’d be lying if I said that Forget Me Not didn’t have a big part to play in that.

Oliva sure knows how to write believable characters. I instantly fell in love with the vulnerable, naive and socially awkward Linda. I saw a bit of myself reflected in her character and I was very sympathetic to her plight. My heart ached for the sad, raw truth of what she experienced as a young girl. I also enjoyed Anvi, with her scintillating intelligence, ‘bad’ habit of adopting strays and steadfast determination. Even the villains were drawn in shades of grey and capable of evoking my compassion. And who could forget the courageous and lovable Nibbler?! Nothing has made me want a dog so badly.

Forget Me Not has all the elements you want in a great sci-fi thriller: a fast-paced and engrossing plot, well-developed characters and plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing the whole way through.

What if you found out you were born genetically modified to replicate someone? What if your past wasn’t what you thought, and weren’t even your own memories?

Linda Russell grew up on a 20 acre walled off property virtually alone. The woods were her home. She lived for 12 years not knowing her mother had birthed her to replace another daughter who died a tragic death years ago.

One day Linda witnesses something she wasn’t meant to see, climbs the walls and escapes. That escape becomes a different type of trap as she is thrust into the modern world which she is totally unprepared for. She lives immersed in social media and technology although has never felt more alone and society has forced her to inhabit as she is known around the world as “Clone Girl”. Will Linda ever learn the truth?

This was my first Alexandra Oliva novel, but it will not be my last. This was creative, sad and creepily close to what could happen in today’s world where everyone is obsessed with perfection and image. She even references Covid (shudder) This was a giant mystery the entire time I was reading it. At first I was slightly confused, but I caught on. I felt this refreshing and my heart broke for Linda and her strange childhood. Read this if you like fantasy, sci-fi, adventure and suspense with some heart.


Thank you to Netgalley and Ballantine for my advance copy in exchange for my honest review.