I have never read anything by this author so going in with a blank slate I have nothing to compare. I really enjoyed about 3/4 of this book. I enjoyed the twists and turns and couldn't wait to finish and recommend it.

Then it turned for the. The last 1/4 of this book dragged so badly that I actually started to feel annoyed at needing to finish. I feel like it should have been wrapped up after the plot reveal for a tighter story. I still enjoyed it overall but it lost a star toward the second half.

I was not fond of this book. I wasnt sure where it was going but eventually pieced it together. I wish it went more into the "why" of it all. I strongly disliked the voice of the reader. It felt like they were dumbing the voice down for the people. it made me feel dumb as well.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC.

A really dark, really twisted version of The Truman Show. A good read that lost steam towards the end.

I have had a difficult time with this one but I can’t tell if it is the narration style of the story itself. It took over an hour for me to be even a little invested in the story. During Wally’s story the mystery of what’s going on starts to unwind and quickly Truman show vibes crept in. Unfortunately, I’ve lost interest. This wasn’t quite for me but it was well written. Probably good for thriller lovers. I was hoping for more horror.

This is a book that will mess with your head, it will leave you with questions. All and all I liked this book a lot and I will be stuck with this one for quite a while due to the fact that I am left with so many unanswered questions and not knowing what was the truth and lies!

Twilight zone meets the Truman show with a little bit of Pleasantville thrown in. That's how I would decobre this book and I mean it in all the beat ways possible. From the firat page I was hooked into this story and the charxtxera and the every changing characters and narrative of what was happening. What is real and what is not what is in our minds and what if the worst things we feared are true. This was excellent writing and I felt the tension so heavy within these pages. I was terrified and intrigued on equal measure. I wanted so badly to know what was happening and at the same time loved the aspect of not knowing and being carried along with hank and wally until the end. This was a twisty tale that held me and didn't let go this idilic perfect town was beautiful and yet wrong in all the ways it was suppose to be right. It felt like seeing behind a film and hoe things where made that's what the town felt like. It was this ever consuming feeling that what I was seeing was wrong witch was exactly what was intended by a great author that knows how to play with narrative and distorting reality and our very fears. This was such a great read I read it so fast not being able to put it down. This is my first time e reading from this author but I promise it won't be the last and that ending I feel it will stay with me long after finishing. A fantastic book I highly recommend.

I received an advance audiobook copy of The Memory Ward by Jon Bassoff from netgalley.

I enjoyed the narration. The changing of characters and storylines was easy to follow.

This mind bending book had me scratching my head trying to figure it out until the big reveal. I had my suspicions about some of the twist, but definitely not all.

Very well written and thought out. Definitely recommend.

I’m going to give this a 3.5 star rating, it took me a little while longer than I would have liked to get into the story, when I did start to become intrigued around half way through the ending wasn’t as satisfying as I would have like and felt I was left with so much confusion and so many questions. However, the audiobook was really good at portraying the creepiness and uneasiness of the narrative! I don’t think this book would be for me, however I could definitely see it being right for others, I maybe just feel like I would have liked for answers at the end

Thank you Blackstone Publishing for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

The Memory Ward is guided by a fascinating, curious premise - what is real? What isn’t? Who can you trust? Psychologically disturbing at times, it will send you down a rabbit hole of conspiracy theories that will keep you up at night.

I had mixed feelings on it, personally. Some parts had me on the edge of my seat while others felt like they dragged on. It took me a while to get through it, and it definitely picked up in the second half, but it just kind of misses the mark for me. Regardless, a unique story that will appeal to those with a taste for sci-fi, fantasy, and maybe even dystopian tales.

LOVE IT , so happy to listen to this book, I love Wally! Isn't he so sweet to his Dad!? Don't we all wish to be so care for in our old age? But scary, and WEIRD. Great!! It's so funny to be wondering what is going on here? Just keep the gory gross stuff, I can do without that. Thanks so very much to have better audiobook selection also.

4.0 stars - Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC audiobook of 'The Memory Ward'. What a mind-bending book, definitely unlike anything else that I've ever read. I've never watched 'Russian Doll' but after reading the synopsis, I wondered if I was going to get vibes of 'The Silent Patient' ... while it had small elements of 'The Silent Patient', I found it much more similar to the TV Show 'WandaVision'. The constant questioning of what was real and what was imagined was such a wild ride! I enjoyed finding out the reasons behind what was going no - that part fascinated me, although I did find it highly unethical. I'm also not 100% sure I fully grasped the last chapter, but still enjoyed the book nonetheless!

The audiobook bounced back and forth in quality, which was weird. The story itself was predictable, yet still entertaining, and the reveal was super shocking, as it picked up in intensity and graphic content for said reveal.

The Truman Show meets Black Mirror in this mind-boggling story where nothing is quite as it seems.

Hank is an average guy living a pretty average life in quaint Bethlehem, Nevada. He's a mail carrier with a wife, a home, and friendly neighbors. Life couldn't get much better. That is until the day Hank discovers the mail he's delivering is nothing but blank pieces of paper disguised as letters. He begins picking up on other details he's overlooked, and another community member reaches out, carefully sharing their concerns about this idyllic town they're both living in.

What's discovered is a rollercoaster of information, making it difficult to piece together the truth from the lies, the reality versus the perspective. And just when you think you have it figured out, you realize how very wrong you are.

This is the exact kind of psychological thriller I become immersed in. The story pulled me in from page one and I was desperate to find out what was going on in Bethlehem and with Hank. Is it a simulation? Is Hank mentally unwell? Is it an experiment? The story plays out in such a way that you consider each as possible at various times throughout the story. It was gripping and held my attention effortlessly throughout the book. The narration (sped up, of course) was fantastic as I always appreciate when different narrators are used for different characters.

As much as I was engaged in the story, I was a bit disappointed in the conclusion. But only because I was hoping everything would become clear after the hours spent trying to piece together the truth. Overall, I really enjoyed this story and will be checking out other novels written by Jon Bassoff!

4.5 Stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for providing me with a copy of this audiobook!

The Memory Ward by Jon Bassoff feels like a softer version of a mind-f*ck. I say that because part of me knows that what I just read could happen—and probably has happened.

I will admit, it dragged a little at times, but I understand why the author wanted us to experience the mundane, everyday life of Wally.

At first, I thought this was a sadistic version of The Truman Show, but it turned out to be something far worse. I wanted a book that would make me cringe, shake my head, leave me saying “WTF just happened,” and most of all, I wanted something that would shake me to my core.

Well... I got it.

This book was a strange, wild ride for me. It made me want to find more sci fi thrillers, a genre I was not familiar with prior. Thank you, NetGalley! Must say 1 star knocked off for the ending. It left me wanting a bit more.

If you love a good unreliable character and don’t need endings tidied up, I’d recommend this book. I really enjoyed it! It was unique and left me pondering what is real.

Thank you NetGalley for the audiobook to review!

Thank you for the advanced audiobook copy.

This book kept my attention at the beginning, and I was invested for most of the book on learning what is going on. But the ending left me, wondering what in the world is happening or just happened. I was so confused and kind of felt like I wasted my time with the whole entire book. I’m really conflicted with the rating on this book. Like I said I enjoy the first half to 3/4 of it. But the ending just irritated me.

The Memory Ward by Jon Bassoff is a psychological thriller. It's a dark and atmospheric thriller. What a story full of twists and turns! I really enjoyed it.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC copy.

Speculative fiction straight out of the twilight zone and black mirror combining element from The Truman show (initially) and then later Stepford wives. The whole book gave me a sort of dejavu vibe. Have I read or seen something similar before?
The setting seems to mirror a 1950/60s time period, however I believe that was all smoke and mirrors and the real setting is actually present day or near future.
The book is split into different parts each part told by a different character all of which live in Bethlam, Nevada and idyllic picture perfect town where the residents are definitely not what they seem.
I listened to this on audio which provided a different voice for each character, which is always welcomed but I do have to say the voice of the main character Wally was really really off putting. Whether intentional or not (i actually think the former) this characters voice sounded meek and unintelligent often with a slight stutter. I understand voice acting and to a certain degree matched the character but wasn't needed it could have been portrayed differently and it really put me off the book a lot of the time. The rest of the narrators where excellent.
Without giving too much away I have to add that the pace of the book was very slow and repetitive (although the repetition makes sense) however there isn't much happening. A LOT of gaslighting (again makes sense) but incredibly frustrating because the pace is so slow and we as the reader are already 10 steps ahead and waiting for the book to catch up. It's not that we realised the twist (can we call it a twist) for me at least it was all very obvious what was going on we just needed to get there. Most of the action is presented to us in the last third of the book where pace picks up but in an effort to be 'original or clever' the author fell into the trap of adding drama and detail for the sake of shock value which was unnecessary.
The ending? Well I think it can be taken both way and again was trying to be 'clever' and was not well executed. Sometimes sticking to the plan is the best way.
An unfortunate execution to what could have been an excellent premise.

Thank you to Blackstone Publishing who provided me with an audiocopy of this book via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I wanted to like this book so bad….and I really got hooked in the very first few chapters and then it went down hill fast. It was very repetitive with the same story told from different people but still was all the same. Overall the story concept was very much like a Twilight Zone episode that went on for way too long. The concept was there but the execution for me was lacking. The ending made me annoyed.