I thought this book had a interesting take on how ancestral memory is transferred through the blood.

I received an ARC eBook from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Oh, Blood Memory Society, how did I loathe thee? Let me count the ways…

I chose this book as my next read based solely on the short description, “What if you could inherit your ancestors memories? What implications would such an inheritance have on society?” and boy, did I spend the next 350+ pages lamenting my life choices.

The book opened simply with, “Death and a dime bag,” and went downhill from there…fast. Reading this book was like eating cauliflower; it was bland, tedious, and made no impression on me. I had gotten three chapters in—during which a mysterious fertility clinic was bombed and over 20 employees at a lab were deathly poisoned…you’d think that would be an exhilarating three chapters—before I even realized that I had no interest in the story at all and jotted down, “dull and unengaging” in my notes.

The story follows “lucky sperm club” member Will, who, at 32, is already an accomplished fertility doctor, West Point graduate, expert deep sea diver, and perfect physical specimen…obviously someone we can all relate to. One year after his parents die in a mysterious plane crash, Will receives a call from his West Point buddy Ross, whom he hasn’t seen in years and hasn’t been in contact with since he was unable to attend Ross’ wedding (but don’t worry, 48 hours later Will sends love and kisses to the wife and kids he didn’t know existed). Ross is working in a secret faction of the government and needs Will’s expertise as a matter of national security.

It turns out that some other “lucky sperm club” members are also members of the Blood Memory Society, which means they have a genetic mutation that has enabled them to access the memories of their ancestors, which can go centuries back (as long as the members keep marrying and breeding within the society, like show dogs). These lucky ducks with Inherited Memory (IM) are behind every critical invention and contribution of the last 200 years, from Einstein and Darwin to Edison and Van Gough, thanks to their ability to access hundreds of years of knowledge by suffering through a vision of bright light and a tiny headache. I’m no historian, but I couldn’t help but feel a resentment on behalf of these real-life geniuses that their accomplishments were diminished to little more than a cheat sheet at life.

The bombings and poisoning at the beginning of the book wiped out the majority of these history-makers and the key to extending the lineage lays in a gene mutation that makes it very difficult for women with IM to carry a child to term—that’s what Super Will comes in. His research has been centered on that very gene, and thus, a plot is created. From there we follow Will to a secret base where the one scientific-minded woman with IM is so he can examine her and try and solve the gene issue. While the majority of people with IM are described as creepy, pale, and twitchy, Will’s love interest—er patient, Victoria, is a perfect 10. We have her good looks to thank for this modern-day assertion from Will:
“The only abnormal thing about her was that she was too beautiful to be so brilliant.

Few books can get away without a love story plot of some kind, so this one didn’t shock me. But it would have had such a greater impact if she was just as “abnormal” looking as the rest of the society and this Adonis God fell for her anyway. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that Victoria’s parents were both murdered on a cruise ship by the same assassins who killed the other IM members, but that’s mentioned awkwardly as she and Will instantly become flirtatious…in spite of the fact that the fate of the world may be hanging in the balance. It doesn’t take long for this professional doctor and military man to put one of the most valuable women on the planet in danger so he can show her the coral reef at night and put the moves on her. Of course his impetuousness is what saves her from being assassinated when the secret facility is attacked, but a lack of consequences seems to be par for the course in this book. Will and Victoria then make a blockbuster escape and retreat to a hiding place, where they can investigate the attack (sleep together and go to the beach) and where he can keep her safe (leave her alone after one day so he can go investigate a family “mystery” that was so heavily foreshadowed I thought it was a trick).

This is where I’ll leave the remainder of the plot to the author and share the Good and the Bad of Blood Memory Society.

The Good:

-The pace. While I mentioned I wasn’t captivated by the story by chapter three, it certainly doesn’t waste time getting started and it maintains a pretty consistent pace throughout.

-The concept. When I selected this book I thought anyone could choose to access their ancestors’ memories and be forced to live with the ramifications either way, so I was a bit disappointed that it is reserved for such a finite portion of the population. That being said, the idea behind it was actually pretty thought-provoking, albeit poorly developed.

-Ease of reading. For almost 400 pages, this book was a very quick read.

The Bad:

-The characters. I genuinely didn’t care about a single character besides Tiny, and even he was just slightly endearing. Will’s character was all over the place; his eyes welled up, voice cracked and he cried at the mention of anyone whose existence he was vaguely aware of getting hurt (sounds harsh, but our hero is a drama queen. “No…no…no!” he muffled his voice with his hands, pain in his face…he punched the sandy ground with his fist.”), he’s supposed to be a professional, but immediately hits on his patient (who’s “mourning” the death of her parents), he promises not to tell anyone this national secret…and immediately tells his childhood buddy…the list goes on. Victoria was reduced to her sexuality and never given time to develop, and Ross was just a cookie-cutter government employee from 1952.

-The suspension of disbelief. I already mentioned that Will’s horribly selfish and immature plan to sneak one of the most important women in the world out of a secure bunker so he could snorkel with her was redeemed when she was saved from being murdered in said bunker, but Tiny had to be the biggest plot convenience I’ve seen in a while. Good thing he has a best friend who runs a whole island (including the marina they sneak into and out of), owns a secluded, gorgeous cottage, has a private security team, knows a pilot who will fly a stranger with a gun like it’s no big deal, has $10,000 in cash laying around to give his friend, and has a fake passport made in a matter of hours! But Field manages to lay off the unbelievable long enough to have Tiny give Will shoes that are too big with a hole in them and old camo pants. Because who would believe he could afford $30 at Target?

-The editing. The book had some truly distracting editing issues, from duplicate sentences and poor sentence structure, to missing or misused punctuation and flagrant word repetition. It got so bad that I actually counted how many times the word “seawall” was used at one point (17 times in three pages, if you’re wondering).

-The patronizing exposition. I may not be Walter White, but I am capable of following basic science plots. Field must not have been too confident of his audience though, because every scientific scrap is broken down until a 3rd grader could understand it, in a way that was completely unnatural and made Will look like an idiot. These concepts are fairly easy to grasp using context clues and common sense, but instead we get treated to dialogue like, “Plan B? What’s that? Isn’t Plan B an abortion pill?” from one of the brightest reproductive doctors in the country. This is also painfully present when Will is trying to solve the mystery of his family lineage like it’s a Rubik’s Cube, when in actuality it’s tic-tac-toe.

-Actually…just the dialogue as a whole. Just remember that everyone involved is 32+ years old and holds, at the minimum, a bachelor’s degree and a well-respected job…and that this was written in 2017.

“You still got it, dog.” Said by Ross when Will hits on a waitress.
“’Imagine the biggest nerd in high school and then multiply it by 10.’ Will belly-laughed so hard that a bit of French bread flew from his mouth.” Ross explaining what people with IM are like.
“Have you ever heard of the Salem witch hunts?” A real inquiry by Ross when he’s explaining why they keep IM a secret.
“I think I’m falling for you, Doctor.” Said by Victoria while they canoodled in the ocean two days after they met, the day after an entire facility was massacred.
“As he got closer, his suspicion was confirmed as the suitcase was covered in Pittsburgh Steelers stickers and decals. Obviously a man’s suitcase.” Will trying to steal a suitcase for clothes. This line was so antiquated and sexist that I assumed he would find women’s clothes inside and realize his folly. Nope.
“She wore…gym shorts that seemed two sizes too small, revealing the outline of her green panties.” Will sexualizing Victoria while she’s hiding from assassins.
“A sultry voice drew his gaze.” A description of Victoria yelling during a very stressful moment.
Basically any dialogue with Tiny. Apparently the only way Field knew how to differentiate a Bahamian from everyone else is to simply change “the,” “that,” and “this” to “da,” “dat,” and “dis.”

-The family “mystery”. ****spoiler**** As soon as Will’s great-grandmother’s diary was introduced and his family history was mentioned, I knew he had the gene. Dialogue like, “It’s like we skipped a generation or something,” made it plainly obvious, it was just a matter of time until this brilliant doctor (who is currently immersed in the intricacies of IM, including the knowledge of how you see a bright light and get a headache right before you get one) figured it out. Yet when Will begins to receive memories, he writes them off as déjà vu. I let that slide, but when he found himself speaking to a woman named Belle (who was mentioned in the diary), sees both he and she are dressed in a long-gone fashion, and she addresses him as ‘Julian’ (his grandfather’s name…who he knows ran off with a girl named Belle) and he still doesn’t put two and two together? Well that’s just beyond insulting to both the reader and this fictitious character. Also enjoyed the fact that the IM gene was last active only two generations before him, yet the government that has been engaged in this secret society for centuries and has a record of every person with IM didn’t already know this. *facepalm*

Deus ex machina. The happy ending they slapped on this book was dripping with sap and wrapped in a baby blanket. I knew early on it was being set up for a sequel, but the author still didn’t take any risks by putting his characters in precarious situations. Everything was neatly wrapped up by the end of the episode in time to do the dishes and put the kids to bed.

TL;DR:
If you’re looking to kill three hours at the airport…take a nap. Or better yet, pick up a copy of The Bourne Identity. It may have more than a few decades on this book, but it does government intrigue mixed with appropriate romance right. I just hope I don’t have the Blood Memory gene, my descendants shouldn’t have to experience this book, too.

I love mysteries and thrillers, especially ones having to do with medicine, so I was thrilled to be chosen to receive an advance copy of this book from Netgalley. I would like to thank the author and publisher for allowing me the chance to review this book. It opens with 2 acts of violence that kill a lot of people. The first is at a fertility clinic and the second at a lab for something called the Genesis Project. Dr Will Dunbar is called off his vacation by an old West Point friend to help with a secret project vital to the world's survival. Will is a reproductive medicine specialist so that ties him in with act of violence #1 but how is act of violence #2 related? Will's friend Ross introduces him to the concept of genetic memory and the Blood Memory Society, a secret society of the people who possess this memory which dates back hundreds of years. He is asked to examine Victoria Van Buren, who possesses blood memory, and work with her to reestablish the line. Of course she is young and beautiful and he is young and handsome so naturally they fall in love. You can see that one coming immediately. But the other twists and turns in the plot come at you from all directions in all manner until, like Will, you are not sure who to trust. The book is fast moving with lots of action and danger, and the characters are well developed. The premise of blood memory is well explained and believable. Throw in a little geography and history and you have it all. There will be a sequel but this book stands alone and has a satisfying ending. I look forward to reading more from Dr Fields.

There is a small, elite group of people who inherit memories from their ancestors. This means that instead of learning from scratch they are building on previous memories making them more able to progress and make new discoveries, write better music and so on. The US government is nurturing a project to increase the number of people with "blood memory" but needs help from a leading fertility expert, Will Dunbar. Things don't quite go to plan - wouldn't it have been boring if they had - and Will ends up on the run with Victoria, one of the people with blood memory. They don't know who to trust........

You do need to suspend a bit of belief with this book. Just accept the concept of blood memory & settle back to enjoy the book. The author does actually explain the reasoning behind the phenomena quite well making it sound believable to me. Whether or not the science he quotes is accurate I wouldn't know but it sounded good enough to allow me to believe it & enjoy it.

Will is one of those amazing guys - great looking, fit, an expert in all the skills he will need on the run, clever etc etc In many ways his character is slightly bland without much emotion being explored to make him three dimensional. However this is a fast paced action book so actually it really doesn't matter that much. None of the characters are that three dimensional but this isn't really an in depth book. Deep emotions aren't required just lots of good sounding science and plenty of rushing around being chased by men with guns!

It may sound as if I didn't enjoy this book much but actually I did. It was an excellent piece of escapism and there is nothing wrong with some escapism. The story flowed along well being easy to read. All of the required elements for this type of book were present - goodies & baddies, a love interest, action, guns and so on. It isn't great literature but it is entertaining. There is one element towards the end which was a bit of a cop out. The author had written himself slightly into a corner with the rules he created about this blood memory but then he decided to twist them in a way that just did not work for me. Sorry if this sounds awkward but I am trying not to give any spoilers!!! This made me a little cross & slightly spoiled it.

The book ended on a cliffhanger with the next one due to be published next year. I would be quite happy to read the next in the series & would consider actively seeking it out.

I received a free copy of this book via Netgalley.

Book 49 of my 2017 Reading Challenge
read from August 6 - 14

**I received an electronic version of this book from NetGalley and would like to thank the author and/or publisher for the opportunity to read and honestly review it**

Blood Memory Society by D.A. Field

Summary (via NetGalley)
What if you could inherit your ancestors' memories?
What implications would such an inheritance have on society?
A young fertility doctor is pulled into a national security crisis and haphazardly becomes responsible for protecting a brilliant young woman who possess her ancestor's memories. A fast-paced thriller, you'll have your heart in your mouth as you follow Field's character, Dr. Will Dunbar, from the Abacos Islands to Washington, D.C. and through the Florida Keys, Atlanta, Mississippi, New Orleans and Malibu. Tapped for his expertise in reproductive medicine, Dunbar finds himself in the cross hairs of national and international secrets, intrigue and conspiracy.

My Opinion
What a fascinating premise. The action started right away and it held my interest from the beginning to the end. It had good pacing and I didn't want to stop reading. There were some lucky coincidences that stretched belief but it was a good story so I just gave in to the ride.

I did roll my eyes at some of the lines that felt like I was reading the script for an action movie. I also rolled my eyes at the descriptions of Victoria...too beautiful to be so brilliant, really?!?!

It looks like the author will be writing a second book and I would read it because there is definitely room for continuation with this unique concept. But the ending of this book was satisfactory in case the author doesn't write it or a person doesn't want to commit to a series.

A Few Quotes from the Book (may be different in the final published version)
"Team X was the name given to this secret group of eight men and nine women, this collection of individuals with supreme intelligence that on this day was on the technological precipice of changing the world forever."

"Will squared his eyes to the general, clenched his jaw and replied, "Sir, it is not lost on me how dire the situation must be, whatever it is. You have brought me a long way and I sense the urgency in this room. I'm a soldier and a patriot at heart. I am at attention and I'm here to serve my nation. You may proceed to brief me on the status of affairs."

"That's the tough part about Inherited Memory. With the good, always comes some bad. Their brains are brilliant but their souls are tormented."

As soon as I saw the title and the cover of this book, I just had to pick it up. The title is intriguing enough for a reader like me who LOVES mystery/thriller genres, and I tell you, the story did not disappoint me either.

A young fertility doctor, Dr. Will Dunbar, was enjoying his vacation before he is heading to take an office in Mayo Clinic. Suddenly, he receives a call from his old friend Colonel Ross Chapman, and Will finds out that the government needs his help with his expertise. He also learns about a secret organization which protects a group of extremely intelligent people who possess their ancestors’ memory. Later, Will meets beautiful Victoria, who is a member of the society and possesses her ancestor’s memory, through Ross. He gets assigned to check up on her health, but soon he finds himself caught in a national conspiracy and forced to run off to protect her and his own life.

The whole story is a fast pace from the beginning, it starts with 2 big incidents that killed lots of people, and that is something I look for in a book. The story doesn’t get distracted much through the whole story, and you will keep reading something new happening through the pages.

I also liked the subject of this story. The story deals with the concept of Genetic memory. Although I don’t really believe there are people out there who were born with their ancestors’ memory, it is a great concept to make it to a sci-fi story. I think the author did a tremendous job to make the concept very possible and believable.

Although I enjoyed this book very much, there are few reasons why I give this book 3.5 stars and not 4 stars.

I guess I am not a big fan of a love story between Mr. handsome and Miss. beauty. I just could tell when I had reached 1/3 of the story, what would happen to these 2. I felt a little irritated and at the same time hoped the story would bring something unpredictable in these two’s relationship. Well, their relationship ended as I suspected, but that little disappointment was soon forgotten when the author revealed the mastermind behind the conspiracy. I couldn’t have guessed it!!! It was a great surprise!

I have some other things I would like to talk about here, but I will stop now, so I won’t spoil anything lol

But I have to say it was a book worth reading, and I cant wait for the second book in the series which will come out next year!!

I rate this book 3.5 stars based on the rating below.

(1 star: couldn’t finish, 2 stars: made myself finish it, 3 stars: I liked it💕, 4 stars: I loved it💕💕, 5 stars: loved enough to reread it!!)

I enjoyed every minute spent reading this book. It has suspense, mystery, romance. Well written, good character development and now I am anxiously waiting for the next book in the series.

i was on the edge of my seat from beginning to end, i could not put the book down, a great read.