I felt that this book fell flat with me due to not feeling the characters or connecting with the book. The cover did grab my attention however this got DNF at 31%.

I am sorry for the inconvenience but I don’t have the time to read this anymore and have lost interest in the concept. I believe that it would benefit your book more if I did not skim your book and write a rushed review. Again, I am sorry for the inconvenience.

Despite its great and enigmatic opening, I was having trouble focusing on this story. My attention kept wandering, and I could not get any further that 10% into this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Thomas Nelson--Fiction for this ARC in exchange for my review.

I enjoyed this book overall. It definitely felt like a debut novel as some things were not fleshed out the way I had hoped and some characters felt flat. That being said, I do plan to read the sequel and am looking forward to following the author's career!

This was a very unique book! Unique setting, unique concept, unique technology described throughout. This was a page-turner and was very fast-paced and intriguing. I enjoyed the dual points of view of Fletcher and Freya, and the Forgotten Four were very likeable, realistic characters.

This book was amazing. It kept my mind working through endless theories throughout from page one. I am assuming it's a first in a series, and I can't wait for the sequel.

The book delves into mysteries surrounding memory, dreams, and visions. It's science fiction at its best. It introduces the topic of memory in a fresh new way. It's clear the topic's been researched well because it's hard to spot any plot holes.

I loved the pacing of this book, something that's been bothering me in books I have been reading lately. It's on point. The events surprised me and didn't drag on.

The characters were sweet, flawed and realistic. They helped the story develop into a mysterious puzzle of conspiracy theories of a cognitive nature.

I can't wait to find out more about the villains/anti-heroes of this world.

Engaging plot. Engaging characters. Engaging concept! I thoroughly enjoyed this dystopian novel. Like Black Mirror for that younger generation!

(Actual: 3.75 stars, rounded up.) “𝘐𝘯 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 1987, 𝘢 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘦, 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘶𝘤𝘬𝘺 𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴—𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴—𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢 𝘥𝘢𝘺.” We all know how much I love a good sci-fi story, perhaps most especially when it focuses on memory, so it goes without question that I already was so on-board with this novel’s concept. This was a fun YA speculative fiction story! Memories are treated as currency in this world, and that makes it all a very complicated business. The plot is compelling and engaging from the start, with amazing character development throughout & chapter endings that make you just want to keep going. This book also has some dark academia vibes & elements of 𝘐𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 thrown in, so if you like either of those things, I suggest picking this one up! (Note: This is the first book of a duology, with Book 2 to be released early next year.)

I loved reading a book set in an alternate version of the 1980s! I thought it was really cool to see something so different and celebrating a really fun decade.

The pacing of the book seemed a little weird to me, though. It seemed like THE MEMORY INDEX was telling one kind of story and then kind of flipped to telling a different kind of story really late in the book. I struggled with the characters’ responses to the change, and the timing of the switch. Like they seemed to kind of roll with it as though there was no other choice, but then they also seemed content with the switch. It confused me.

I liked the relationship between Freya and Fletcher and the way both grow through the story. Another thing I liked is the way Ollie’s and Chase’s characters added humor and fun to the story.

On the whole, I think the story was okay. I liked the characters more than the plot. I wish the pacing had been different so that there was more time to explore how the characters felt as they learned new information. I’d say this one was a solid okay for me. If you love stories set in the 80s and alternate history or weird memory issues, you may love those elements of this book.

“The Memory Index” by Julian R. Vaca was nothing short of a masterpiece. It was the perfect YA dystopian that I didn’t know I needed in my life, and it managed to rekindle my love of dystopian novels!!

Blurb:
An elusive disease has overtaken the world that ravages people’s memories. Known as “Memory Killer,” this phenomenon erases people’s memories forcing them to artificially “recall” their own memories by affixing electrodes to their temples while being connected to a “MeReader.” The “MeReader” is like a cassette tape player that people insert their “memory tapes” into so that they can replay their memories back to them.

A new technology that will render these “MeReaders” obsolete and make it so that humans don’t have to waste time replaying their memories during the day is being trialed at a Tennessee boarding school. 500 students from across the country are selected to participate in the trial. Four students of these students (Freya, Ollie, Fletcher, and Chase) quickly become friends. But when strange occurrences begin to happen, these four teens start questioning the intentions of the corporation behind it all…

Review:
Truly, I was blown away by this novel. Julian R. Vaca has a talent for realm-building that sucked me into the story since the first page. Throughout the story, Vaca provided plentiful details that made the disease/technology seem very realistic and plausible. And the 4 teens that the book followed were all such amazing and sympathetic characters!! I just want to be besties with them all!!! This book definitely brought back nostalgia for teen/high school life🥹And I have to say, Chase was definitely my favorite character🤪😍😍 His much-needed comedic relief was always welcome!! And the retro school dance was positively my favorite scene😂🪩🕺🏻

Lastly, I really appreciated how diverse the cast was and how issues such a racism were handled throughout the story. The Latina representation was super nice to see😍

5🌟

🚨CW: Occasional mild language & drinking

The Memory Index takes a fascinating and engaging concept and proceeds to completely mindfuck the reader. That's not necessarily a criticism. Our main characters explain situations well, and behave in understandable ways in response to a lot of wild things happening. The "historical" setting is interesting, with the alternate timeline seeming shockingly close to the real one, and the concept of the memory killer is certainly enough to get an interesting book out of. There are a few parts that get very jumbled up- there are so many different memory devices and words that refer to specific aspects of memory that they start to blur together and it gets harder to remember when we need to be paying attention and when we should be shocked, when we should be suspicious and what is happening in the background. It also gets hard to follow who is evil and who is on the protagonists' sides- not that the book should have to make it painfully obvious who we should trust, but I should at least get a vibe of who the CHARACTERS trust, and what and why THEY believe someone is suspicious or trustworthy. The main question also seems very lackluster for the thrilling quality of the rest of the book- okay, what if the memory killer strikes when someone is hooked up and watching their memory? What's the big deal with this, or with people asking it? We never really get to know. I look forward to the sequel, which will doubtless smooth out a lot of the questions the reader still has surrounding memory and the memory killer, and might do well in blending the form from the initial boarding school mystery to late stage action thriller.

The cover first grabbed my attention, then the first line, “Emilia Vanguard hadn’t considered that she might die until Mr. Lear said so.” What??

I was captivated by this and the action, and adventure that followed. I couldn’t put this book down because of the author’s creative way of storytelling, and world building, It was amazing as I learned more about the “Memory Killer “that was wreaking havoc on the world. It was intriguing to learn how people relied on these tapes to hook up to their minds and upload memories daily. It was interesting to learn why some people had to do it more than others.

This was a riveting story and a captivating concept for a book. I was thrilled to learn that there will be a book two released on April 11, 2023. The title is The Recall Paradox. I’ve marked my calendar and look forward to reading the sequel to this imaginative story. This will be a wonderful escape and one that will be great for your book club to discuss. This is the first book I’ve read by this author; it won’t be the last.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I requested and received a copy of this book by the publisher/NetGalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”

Nora St. Laurent
TBCN Where Book Fun Begins!
The Book Club Network blog https://psalm516.blogspot.com/

A huge thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a free copy of this book. This was a truly unique story, very different from anything I had read before. It starts with several different characters doing different things and that throws me sometimes. I am glad I stuck with it though because there was a big payoff with this intriguing novel. The only things that would have improved it though is expanding a bit on the prologue and epilogue. I almost forget about that by the time I reached the ending. Maybe they could have checked in with those events a little throughout the book as well. This is definitely setting us up for a sequel and I can't wait to read it and see what else is in store. I really recommend this book. It is great for teens on up!

The Memory Index by Julian Ray Vaca is a great action packed novel. It kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time.

I started reading the Memory Index based on the description alone. The premise of mind-alteration intrigues me, and when well-done, holds a lot of promise for deep discussions. Unfortunately, I couldn't get into this story. The first few chapters were distant narration, and by the time the main characters started showing up with depth, I had lost interest.

I was left with too many questions that weren't resolved quickly enough to continue reading.

Title: The Memory Index
Author: Julian Ray Vaca
Genre: Scifi, YA
Rating: 3.0 out of 5

In an alternative 1987, a disease ravages human memories. There is no cure, only artificial recall. The lucky ones--the recollectors--need the treatment only once a day.

Freya Izquierdo isn't lucky. The high school senior is a "degen" who needs artificial recall several times a day. Plagued by blinding half-memories that take her to her knees, she's desperate to remember everything that will help her investigate her father's violent death. When her sleuthing almost lands her in jail, a shadowy school dean selects her to attend his Foxtail Academy, where five hundred students will trial a new tech said to make artificial recall obsolete.

She's the only degen on campus. Why was she chosen? Freya is nothing like the other students, not even her new friends Ollie, Chase, and the alluring Fletcher Cohen. Definitely not at all like the students who start to vanish, one by one. And nothing like the mysterious Dean Mendelsohn, who has a bunker deep in the woods behind the school.

Nothing can prepare Freya and her friends for the truth of what that bunker holds. And what kind of memories she'll have to access to survive it.

This felt very cliched and unpolished to me—kind of like a bad 80s movie. With a twist, of course, but all in all, the characters were more caricatures than believable people. Even if I believed the basic set-up of the story—Memory Killer is a mysterious disease that erases random memories that can be retrieved by watching a tape of the incident in question—I would not believe the deus ex machina that takes place after Freya and her friends get caught on their little jaunt in the woods. In short, this just didn’t work for me.

Julian Ray Vaca lives in Nashville. The Memory Index is his newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Thomas Nelson in exchange for an honest review.)

The Memory Index is an intriguing read about the battle between memories and finding truth. It has some thrilling discoveries that have you progressing along with The characters, and you will find that you can’t stop until you get to the end.

When "I forgot" isn't just an excuse but a dreaded truth that can wipe out who a person is, technology is the only recourse humanity has. Memory Killer is undetectable, unavoidable, and affects every person on earth. In an alternate version of the 1980s, technology has been developed to help store and replay memories to fight off the destruction Memory Killer leaves behind. While this deadly thief affects everyone, some are worse than others. Recollectors can travel on their own while degens must depend on recollectors to travel after dark and even go to work. A new technology is on the horizon that will hopefully remove the need for recall and a new high school boarding academy will be the trial grounds. 500 students are hand-picked and move to a remote location for the year. Freya and Fletcher have very different backgrounds but have an instant connection on the first day of school. They, along with their new friends, are on a quest to find answers that are elusively hiding behind a façade of high school deans and campus. What are the weird half dream memories that Freya is having? Why is the dean trying to single Fletcher out? Where are the train tracks and where do they lead to? And why are students starting to disappear? In order to answer these questions Freya and Fletcher will have to risk it all , maybe even their lives. But the truth is even harder to accept than they imagined.
Once you start this book, be prepared to keep the pages flipping until the end. The characters' fear is palpable, the action is heart pounding, and the alternate world Julian Ray Vaca creates is at once familiar and foreign. These characters have delved into my life and I can't wait for the next adventure we get to go on. While this author is new, I can't wait for the next book! I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Thanks to Netgalley and Thomas Nelson for the ARC of this!

This was an intriguing premise within a fast moving book that kept my attention and sucked me in. I was surprised at how much pop culture the author chose to include, I would expect that in an alternative world that other technology and pop culture would be impacted by all the other changes. The friend group was fun, but I think it could’ve been one POV, where information had to be shared there to show up instead of the reader seeing it from the beginning and then waiting for the MCs to share with each other. Definitely ends with cliffy vibes! For fans of easy YA sci-fi reads like The Program and people looking for more 80s vibes after Stranger Things.

The Memory Index was certainly a unique concept, and I really enjoyed it for the most part! Let us break it down!

What I Liked:

►I loved the whole concept and the connection to memories. It was so thought provoking, because how important are our memories, right? Imagine if yours could simply be stolen out of thin air, how much of a panic that would induce. Well, it's no different in this book, but since society is more or less used to this happening, they have been able to develop some work-arounds.

►I liked the characters. I really enjoyed Freya and her newfound group of friends. Freya's story was the most compelling at first, but we're then introduced to their stories as well, and they were all quite well developed.

►The story takes some very exciting turns. It isn't simply about memory loss, but about what this new program is trying to accomplish. Without giving too much away, everyone's intentions may not be as innocent as they claim them to be. And when classmates begin to vanish from the campus, Freya and her friends want to make sure they are not next.

What I Had Trouble With:

►Kind of felt "easy" at times. Like- yes, the stakes were high at times, but a lot of the ways that things were resolved felt a bit easy to me, without giving away too much. Even the relationships that the characters formed almost felt a little easy. Maybe that is a boarding school thing, but the fact that they all found each other and fell into a group dynamic immediately and without issue made me unable to suspend my disbelief.

►This may very well be a personal gripe, but the songs felt really randomly placed and like, too much. It was sort of like they were screaming at me every few pages "Look! It's 80s music because we are in the 80s!!!" Maybe some kind of alternative would have worked better, like maybe making the songs a chapter title or something? That way they could have been infused into the story without seeming out of place. Idk about you, but my inner thought process doesn't do a full stop when some random song starts playing somewhere, so it just seemed to take me out of the story a bit.

Bottom Line: Very cool premise, and a lot of intrigue, though sometimes it felt resolved too quickly.