This book reminded me of The Forgetting Time by Sharon Guskin. Both books use a fascinating idea — that children can sometimes remember past lives when they are very young. What Jonah Knew was loving story that ended as happily it could have but was still quite sad.

Do you believe in reincarnation? What would you think if your little boy tells you he has another mom and a dog? And then when you take him to your favorite summer vacation place, he recognizes the house where he said he lived before he was killed in the head and went up into the sky.

Lucie Pressman lives in New York City with her husband Matt and their son Jonah. Jonah was born in 2003, six months after Helen Bird’s son Henry disappeared from Aurora Falls, NY, when he was 22.

Jonah is a sensitive boy. He hates loud noises like fireworks, and he occasionally suffers from night terrors. Lucie has ancestors who died in the Holocaust. She takes Jonah to a therapist wondering if her son is suffering from genetic memories passed down from those ancestors. In the summer of 2010, the Pressmans take a summer vacation in Aurora Falls. When they stop at the local bakery, run by Helen Bird, Jonah recognizes her, her house and is greeted ecstatically by Helen’s son’s dog Charlie. Jonah tells them that Charlie is his dog, and that Helen was his mom before he was killed in the head and went up into the sky where he picked Lucie and Matt to be his new mom and dad. The Pressmans have a hard time accepting Jonah’s revelations, but Helen believes him. She hopes to find out what Jonah knows about her son Henry’s murder. Shockingly, so does the murderer, who still lives in Aurora Falls.

I really enjoyed this book. The author is a descriptive writer, and her characters are well drawn out. It is an entertaining murder mystery, but it is also a story of the unconditional love that two mothers have for their sons.

Thank you to the author and Netgalley for my ecopy of this novel in exchange for my honest review!

Admittedly, this book didn’t hook me right away. Call it a slow burn, but there was a lot of back story and information packed into this multiple part story, which actually took away some of the thriller vibes for me. It also felt really, really long to me, and probably could have been shortened by at least a few chapters.

I did, however, love how this book addressed family generational trauma and it’s impact on all members of the family unit, especially when left untreated. The science and psychology behind Jonah’s experiences and memories was super interesting to me, especially towards the middle to end of the book.

All in all I liked the book, but wouldn’t call it a thriller- definitely more of a psychological mystery.

What Jonah Knew
A Novel
by Barbara Graham
This is a wonderful, brilliant book. A seven-year-old boy inexplicably recalls the memories of a missing 22-year-old musician in this psychological thriller about the fierce love between mothers and sons across lifetimes, a work of gripping suspense with a supernatural twist .
I felt this was so real, felt the pain, the hurt, and love. Henry and Jonah with a connection that Helen Bird will find the closure to finally closure for Henry.
You will need tissue and a new way of seeing life. Brilliant.