Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This was a cool book.. Interesting premise, well executed. I enjoyed this one.

The promise of this book’s synopsis seemed to hold excitement, mental health breakthroughs with a dash of romance and adventure. The reality was banal. The writing and dialogue did not match the message that was presented in the book’s summary, and it left this reader detached and dismayed.

I received an ARC from the author and publisher in exchange for an honest review.

A young adult, science fiction novel that takes us into the days prior to technology taking over everyone. Lies My Memory Told Me isn't quite dystopian, but the feeling that it's right around the corner was so prevalent and really haunting. Sacha Wunsch takes a normal town in America and twists it up with the genius idea of Enhanced Memory. People can experience everything they want through a machine, there's no need to go anywhere or do anything. But like all things, there's a dark side and Nova, daughter of two of the brilliant scientists who created the technology, is just about to discover it herself. I really enjoyed Nova, I loved her sketchy past, and I really enjoyed the shaking Kade and the EM experience gives her. She goes from complicit and fine with what she's told, to questioning it all. Wunsch takes the coming-of-age experience up a bit with the political undertones and it's done quite well. Unfortunately, the story is slow and there is a gap in the technology development that feels brushed over. About ten more chapters were needed to amp up the distress, to get readers, and Nova, to understand how memories are created, especially those of insane experiences like skydiving. We get a glimpse, but not enough for a title that isn't part of a series and it limited this book quite a lot. An excellent idea, but not quite as developed as I had hoped. I think younger, less critical readers will absolutely love this and I can see it becoming a television series or movie quite easily.

This was like a sci-fi thriller! It would seriously make a good movie!
The main twist was easy to guess but there were a couple other twists in here I didn't see coming. And two of them broke my heart! It was so sad!
I really liked the comparison of technology and mental health, along with what those big corporations do with that tech. It might start out as something good, but somehow it always becomes something bad. People get greedy and lack empathy.
Nova was SUPER interesting to read about. You learn as she learns who she is. She is curious and doesn't stop fighting.
Kade was so sweet! Ugh. I felt so bad for him!
I'm a big fan. I am definitely going to read more books by this author!

This one sounded great. It reminded me of a lot of sci-fi stories of accessing memories and sharing information, but I wasn't sure how I felt about it. It kept going on and on, but I was just never "caught" on the story.

A young adult, science fiction novel that takes us into the days prior to technology taking over everyone. Lies My Memory Told Me isn't quite dystopian, but the feeling that it's right around the corner was so prevalent and really haunting. Sacha Wunsch takes a normal town in America and twists it up with the genius idea of Enhanced Memory. People can experience everything they want through a machine, there's no need to go anywhere or do anything. But like all things, there's a dark side and Nova, daughter of two of the brilliant scientists who created the technology, is just about to discover it herself.

I really enjoyed Nova, I loved her sketchy past, and I really enjoyed the shaking Kade and the EM experience gives her. She goes from complicit and fine with what she's told, to questioning it all. Wunsch takes the coming-of-age experience up a bit with the political undertones and it's done quite well. Unfortunately, the story is slow and there is a gap in the technology development that feels brushed over. About ten more chapters were needed to amp up the distress, to get readers, and Nova, to understand how memories are created, especially those of insane experiences like skydiving. We get a glimpse, but not enough for a title that isn't part of a series and it limited this book quite a lot. An excellent idea, but not quite as developed as I had hoped. I think younger, less critical readers will absolutely love this and I can see it becoming a television series or movie quite easily.

thank you Netgalley for the earc in exchange for an honest review!

while the synpopsis for this book is fun and the dystopian element seems promising, i genuinely could not get myself to power through the beginning. the enhanced memory concept was extremely compelling, but overall the entire exposition falls flat and it doesn't really motivate you to power forward. even when the book picks up it doesn't quite fulfill what i wanted.

Nova’s parents invented Enhanced Memories where people can experience things from the comfort of the home. Something seems off though. ARC from NetGalley.

Nova’s parents invented Enhanced Memories, which is technology that allows you to instantly gain a memory, including learning a skill, traveling the world, or doing a dangerous activity. Now, people can live through risky activities, such as skydiving or doing drugs, without any dangerous consequences. Though Nova’s parents created Enhanced Memories, she doesn’t know the real impact of this technology on the world. Then, she meets Kade. Kade has an anonymous YouTube account where he does risky activities that are now obsolete since people don’t have to do them to have the experience. Nova and Kade have different opinions on the effects of Enhanced Memory, but she is still drawn to him. When people start treating Nova differently, she starts her own research into what Enhanced Memories, and her parents, are really hiding from her.

This story hooked me right from the start. Immediately, there were things in Nova’s life that didn’t make sense. When she was out with friends, there were people who would approach her, thinking she was someone else. Nova worked part-time in a nursing home with a memory care unit. There were some great practical uses of Enhanced Memory with those patients, since their memories could be saved before they were lost. However, as with all inventions that seem helpful at first, Enhanced Memory was used in harmful ways as well.

Nova was a senior in high school, but the storyline about her school got lost throughout the book. The story focused more on her part time job and her social life. It would have made more sense to have that school storyline continue, since she was still a teenager. I also would have loved to see a longer ending where there was more closure. I really enjoyed this story, and I would love to see what happens next.

Lies My Memory Told Me was a great new YA contemporary novel!

Thank you Inkyard Press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a crazy ride! Interesting story, well executed! Why would we go out and do things if we can just experience them with the help of virtual reality? And how will this alternative reality shape our daily lives? What if someone can make you believe something happened to you if it, in fact, never did? Lies my memory told me touches on these kinds of subjects in a great way. It is probably best suited for middle grade readers, as adult readers may take issue with some of the plot holes. Overall a good read.

This book was a tough one for me. I like the concept a lot. I think I was expecting vibes a little more like The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind? My favorite thing about that movie is the way they took the concept and examined it from many different angles. I feel like LIES MY MEMORY TOLD ME has a little bit of that in that it touches on several different ways Enhanced Memory technology could be corrupted or used to cause harm.

I had a hard time getting into the pacing, though. It felt like some elements to the story emerged really late– like the idea that there might be more to Nova’s history than she remembers. I think I wanted her to collect information and form a plan of attack a lot sooner than she did, and even when she did, her plan felt like, “I guess I’ll just go down this weird hallway and say I’m lost!” While I think that fit her quirky, compulsive character, I felt like it sapped some of the tension for me.

For most of the story, I felt like Nova’s emotional landscape stayed mostly in the sad/angry spectrum. I loved the relationship between her and Kade– and loved the way Kade brought her out of her grim feelings.

On the whole, I still think the concept of LIES MY MEMORY TOLD ME is really cool. I wish that I’d had deeper connection with the characters and the pacing of the story. I think readers who enjoyed THE FEVER KING by Victoria Lee might enjoy this one for its sci-fi thriller vibes.

Brief Synopsis: Nova is not your typical teenager. She is the only child of two very important tech geniuses who have invented a way for people to access other people's memories and experience things they might never experience. This new technology, known as Enhanced Memories, has "taken the world by storm" with new ways to help those with memory loss hold on to their most cherished experiences, safer ways to experience things, and more. But, there is always a downside, and Nova is about to find out the darker side of EM.

The premise of this book is absolutely fascinating. As a mental health clinician who has seen the impact that Virtual Reality has had on treating a variety of different mental health disorders, I was immediately drawn to the idea of Wunsch's "enhanced memories". Oh, the promise this book had for me.

The promise of what could have been and the reality of how flat this book really fell for me are two starkly different things. There were so many times I wanted to DNF this book but kept on going hoping for the moment that would make it all worth it. It never came. Kade and Nova's relationship seemingly comes out of nowhere and the readers are led to believe that it's deep and powerful. At one point, after little to no build up, Kade says something along the lines of, "that's the problem, I just can't stay away from you." Seriously?! Ugh.

I must admit, the parallel's drawn between people's addiction to EM and how quickly the world turns a blind eye to the negative impacts of the advancement of technology are really great. The messaging and the theme were there, it just didn't land.

Enhanced Memory, developed by Nova's parents, allow people to learn new skills almost instantly, travel the world, share memories, and learn anything. Nova feels this is a gift, even as Kade vlogs about the dangers of Enhanced Memory. He's afraid of her, though she's most comfortable with him, and over time Nova realizes that people won't meet her eyes, no one wants her to ask questions, and she has the nagging feeling that she's forgotten something.

It's a fascinating concept, and of course soon after we're introduced to it via Nova in the prologue. Of course, its benefits include learning new information or skills and safely experiencing things. There's so much stress on the benefits of using EM, but we see how much time her parents are absorbed in its development, and then the possibility of addiction is brought up. We also see how people aren't trying to develop new memories or experience the real world for themselves anymore. There's such fear of getting hurt, of experiencing loss, or fear or pain.

As the novel progresses, the mystery surrounding Kade's fears, her parents' behavior, and Nova's exposure to EM deepens. It's fascinating, and we really see the consequences of new technology as it evolves faster than people realize or laws can regulate. On top of that, Nova's own memory is suspect, and Kade isn't as unnecessarily paranoid as he seemed at first. I was drawn into the second half of the book especially because of this and loved how all the threads were neatly tied together at the end. This is a great book and really makes you think about memory, experience, and what matters most in life.

** I received a copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

Nova's parents created Enhanced Memory. A way to live big moment virtually through someone else's experiences. However, she finds herself falling on the backburner while her parents work away. Then she meets Kade who believes that the technology is detrimental to the world around them causing them to not live their own lives. Kade shows Nova that EM can be dangerous to everyone.

The commentary of becoming disconnected from technology is thoroughly pushed throughout this novel. However, that feels like the biggest picture of the book. Nova, our main character. often falls flat when the main action is happening. Big portions of her story feel very pushed back and forgotten. The possibility in this story is incredibly intriguing, but the writing makes everything fall flat. The pacing is my biggest issue. It felt very quick and there wasn't a lot of connection between any of the characters.

I do have students in my library who will like the concept of turning off technology, but I don't see it being a strong option.

I enjoyed this YA sci-fi thriller. The concept of this was really interesting. It was a cool take on some tropes we've seen before in other books and movies. I think the concept of a virtual reality technology that you can get addicted to is a very real conversation, as tech gets more and more available we are always on it.

Lies My Memory Told Me is a YA sci-fi that features a future where Enhanced Memory can give people experiences based on other people's memories via a VR type head set. The technology holds promise to enhance lives and help educate people. For Nova, it can be a curse becasue her parents invented the headsets.

For the most part, I enjoyed this one. I think that teens will probably enjoy it a lot more than I did. I thought it was a good commentary on social media and how it is taking over our lives. Often to our own detriment. The story also deals with the subject of addition and how people can often ignore that it is becoming a problem. The twist was a bit predictable and I called it fairly early on. I did like the characters, especially Kade. He was the only one with any sense. But, the thing I liked the most was how the relationship between Nova and Kade ended up at the conclusion. It was kind of refreshing. I would recommend giving this one a try. It was a fairly quick read give it a try.

Lie My Memory Told Me

Fans of Don't Look Deeper will love this similar sci-fi mystery in book form.

Nova's parents created Enhanced Memory, a new technology taking the world by storm. Special disks share someone else’s memory, and the watcher can fully experience anything without any harm to their selves. As it becomes more and more popular, Nova's parents become more and unreachable as they disappear into their EM Machines. One day, Nova meets Kade a boy who calls her by the wrong name and likes to have real experiences instead of fake memories. This is the event that starts to truly change her life. EM isn't as benign as they appear neither is Nova's life.

I enjoyed the mystery setup for Nova. I had an idea even before the novel laid Nova's twist before us, but that made me love it more. The author had set up for the outcome and left bread crumbs along the way. You feel felt like a detective instead of just being along for the ride.

The story itself is great sci-fi. It tells you a lot about current life through the lens of fantasy. The moral implications of Enhanced Memories aren't cut and dry. The book looks at the good this technology does. But it also critiques how it could harm society. This complexity gives the book a richness that is transparent and makes you think

Repetition slowed down some as the book went along. Filling space instead of keeping the atmosphere taunt. This, luckily, gets better about halfway through the book I believe.

The ending is too quick. The epilogue hurries along with the story. Typically I get tired of franchises, but there is so much here that Sacha Wunsch could have dived into. I wish the epilogue had been a sequel and we saw more in real-time what happens to Nova and the company that makes EMs.

i enjoyed reading this book, I thought it had a great psychological mystery feel. The characters worked and I enjoyed going through this plot.

Thanks to Net Galley for the ARC. This had some great ideas. It started strong and it was smart to have this in first person so we learn as Nova learns. However, it is pretty obvious from the jump what is going on and then it sort of unravels at the end. I know it is a YA book and teenagers are capable of doing lots of things, but not all these things. There is one point where Nova and Kade are caught, dead to rights in a place where there should clearly not be two teenagers and yet, the other person just nods and lets them go because Kade is charming. Really? Also, the “boy he sure his hot with his shirt off scene” was out of place and unnecessary. This isn’t that book.

I see why people like it. I really do. It just landed flat for me.

A YA thriller with an intriguing premise, this one failed to hit the mark for me in terms of execution. The issue is with the protagonist, Nova, who doesn’t realize until very late in the story that she herself is a central character in the drama. Because of this, she appears for most of the story to be an observer… and a fairly dispassionate one because she doesn’t believe there’s actually a problem until it starts to affect her personally. This sets the reader at something of a remove to the action and makes it difficult to really feel engaged with the story.

I’m fascinated by the concept of Enhanced Memory as a parallel to social media: most people believe it’s benign and even beneficial (I use Facebook to keep in touch with distant friends and family!) but don’t see there’s a dark side until it touches them personally (have YOU lost someone to a rabbit hole of conspiracy theories?) And because of this, I think the story wraps up too neatly. Yes, Nova and Kade exposed that the makers of Enhanced Memory were doing terrible, illegal and non-consensual things to harvest memories of unwilling subjects. But I don’t believe that in and of itself would be enough to change things for the better in the way it’s ‘told’ to us happens in the last few pages of the book. EM is too recent an innovation: and memories being duplicable, even if the duplicates are less immersive than the original, there are too many living people with real memories they’d be more than willing to sell for a decent enough payout. The timeframes have been compressed for the sake of making Nova still a teenager, basically, and I don’t think it quite fits together.

An intriguing concept, but an unreliable narrator and too much exposition along with timeframes that don’t quite gel means this one misses the mark somewhat. Three stars.