The Memory Project
A Sci-Fi Mystery Novel
by Andrew C Youngson
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Pub Date Mar 31 2021 | Archive Date May 20 2021
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Description
“Remember me…”
She cries to me from the past. A past that isn’t mine.
Douglas ‘Angel’ Sermanni is losing himself.
Other people’s memories are an open book to him – the gift and curse of a Weaver. His psyche has been fractured by the trauma of his clients, and now he’s been cast out by his secretive overseers, The Mnemosyne Project.
The fog of Angel’s mind is punctured by a recovered memory: the dying call of a young girl. He flees London – and a fledgling romance with a normal human – to follow the dying girl’s final words.
He is led back to his Thailand boarding school where a forgotten pact made with childhood friends is rekindled. Amid the rain and neon of Bangkok’s backstreets, a deadly truth lies in wait.
With each terrifying revelation, Angel’s past and present fold into one another, threatening to change the course of his world forever.
A science fiction mystery novel
The Memory Project is a queer speculative fiction that explores the world of Weavers, rare telepathic humans who can experience the memories of others through touch.
The story brings together the themes of friendship, nostalgia, gay romance, gender and identity fluidity to explore the meaning of memory and its mutability. And all in the package of a page-turning supernatural murder mystery.
With the compelling pace of YA fiction and the reflection of a 30-something drama, The Memory Project fuses self-discovery with nostalgia and supernatural mystery. X-Men meets The Perks of Being a Wallflower.
A Note From the Publisher
Andrew C. Youngson is a Scot living in London. A former features writer for a daily newspaper, he now splits his time between work in the education sector and writing.
He was schooled in Bangkok, Thailand, during his teenage years – an experience which has informed elements of his novel, The Memory Project.
As a gay man, Andrew is passionate about telling queer stories, and reimagining genres through an LGBTQ+ lens.
Available Editions
ISBN | 9798715193346 |
PRICE | $5.99 (USD) |
Links
Featured Reviews
This is a brilliantly written mystery debut story by Andrew Youngson. I absolutely loved the idea of memory erasers and weavers.
What I enjoyed most about the book is the characters and the presentation of dialogues. Such an easy flow and because the chapters are fairly short was easy to read. At times I found myself there's too much description but as I read on, I realised the necessity.
Friendship and gay relationship was explored well. If I say more I will end up giving away too much. I thought I knew the ending but I was wrong. Looking forward to reading more of this author's work.
The colour descriptions in the book make it feel lively and full. I like the awkward character interactions because they feel relatable, as most of the time the characters are strong and outgoing I found this refreshing. I really enjoyed the memory flashback idea, it was definitely well-done.
4.5 ⭐️
The book description immediately caught my attention. The concept of Memory Readers, Writers, and Erasers is brilliant and intriguing. I know I have to read this book and it's a good thing I did! It was enjoyable and so compelling that you want to finish it in one sitting. The world-building and the story were well-written, I loved the detailed descriptions of the characters, the setting, and the sceneries in Thailand.
I love the gay romance and how the author has represented it like any other normal love relationship. Angel is so lucky to have Dhaval. There were moments between them that gives you butterflies in your stomach feeling. I also the strong childhood friendship foundation that the main characters have. That even though they have separate independent lives after boarding school, they have this strong bond and support for each other.
It would have been more exciting if there were more details about the two top-secret organizations involved and how the main characters will be able to help other Weavers like them.
This book is so good that I look forward to reading more of the author's future works.
If you like reading sci-fi, mystery, friendship, and romance, I would recommend this book to you.
Many thanks to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this debut novel.
I really enjoyed this book. It was nice and light with a dash of Sci-fi. I loved bringing the city of Bangkok in to my mind to hang out for a while. The premise is fascinating. What if there were people that were brought up incorrectly by an institution as governmental mind readers and mind alterers, how would it be handled by the first round of kids brought up by it and what would the after effects be to their mishandling of them and things they don't understand. Delightful.
I even loved how the story flowed and presumed to end. Unfortunately, I felt like the end should have occurred at chapter 30. Ending at that note right when 'the look' was given would have broken my heart. Instead, we get a few chapters setting up a possible second book and ruining a perfectly good moment for tragedy.
I still really enjoyed it.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I thought that the idea behind it was very intriguing and I simply couldn’t resist it. The idea that the weavers could see people’s memories and treat them for trauma using this gift was fascinating! The main plot was well thought out and executed brilliantly and I found the characters to be intriguing. I found there to be a lot of dialogue, however I didn’t mind so much because it advanced the action and showed how the characters developed throughout the book.
I was most definitely left satisfied at the end. I enjoyed the mystery element of the book and thought the end was surprising and exciting to read. I would highly recommend this book.
Good sci-fi book, solid 4 stars, refreshing that Angel’s sexual orientation isn’t critical to the storyline, yes he goes on a date and has a love interest, but the author could have changed the pronouns and the story would be the same. Personally I like this, his story isn’t about his sexuality, that’s just a given, and Angel he a lot of bigger concerns in this world were he can read peoples memories. In fact, his abilities make dating or even interacting normally with people a challenge, even an incidental touch can trigger a painful memory “pushed” into Angel. Of course, in a world were people like Angel exist there needs to be an organization that trains and protects them, that’s where The Mnemosyne Project comes in, part educational institution part consulting firm. Every secret institution has a bit of a hazy history and Angel is on a path to uncover the history of what the institution did to him and to confront his past, his abilities, and finally recall some memories of his own.
Please note: I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley, but that never has an impact on how I review a book.
This mystery with a dash of sci-fi was unique and gripping. I loved the concept of Weavers and the "powers" associated with memories, and I thought the author really brought to life the third culture/expat life of Angel and his friends in Bangkok. I also loved that Angel's sexuality wasn't a major plot point or plot device and I really appreciated both Angel and his love interest acknowledging that they were moving really fast in their relationship.
Overall, I thought the mystery was really compelling. The author did a great job of dropping hints here and there until the reader (and Angel) is able to see the full picture. I did, however, think the ending dragged a little. The last four or so chapters open the story up to wider consequences which is interesting but I think it negates some of the gut punch of emotion that happen in chapter 30.
I think this would be great for mystery/thriller readers who want to get into sci-fi or sci-fi readers who want to get into mystery/thrillers. The SFF elements were pretty light and felt to me in the same vein as John Marrs's The One, The Minders, etc.
Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for the e-arc of The Memory Project.
By the time that I had picked this book up I had forgotten what had drawn me to it in the first place. After the first chapter, however, I was back in and hooked on what was being written. Dougie is a Weaver, he can access a persons memories through touch and something has gone wrong.
I really enjoyed this book and found it intriguing to the point where near the end I didn't want to put it down. I really appreciated the different ways that the characters were portrayed, and how each character was broken in their own way but had managed to heal, or begin their journey to healing, by the end. I will say I did find a few parts of this story a bit confusing and possibly in a physical copy the definition between different character perspectives would be more defined. As much as I was confused I also found this book intriguing and compelling.
Douglas ‘Angel’ Sermanni has lost his job as a therapist. His last client’s trauma is still affecting him. It affects him more than most therapists. Douglas is a Weaver. A Weaver is a human who has the ability to read and absorb people’s memories. When it came to his parents attention that he knew things about others without hearing it first, he scared his parents. Why? He ends up being sent to an experimental boarding school to learn how to use his special talent. He becomes friends with three classmates that have special skills. When they’re done with school they all go their separate ways. Douglas is gay and starts to have a relationship but then quits it without any warning to the other guy.When he receives a package from Thailand and no ther return address, he is puzzled. This causes him to decideto go back to the area where the school is/was and to see a classmate who lives nearby. It ends up being a reunion. They all got packages. Why? Who sent them?
The novel is a mystery with science fiction, a little romance, and a little paranormal. The story is written well with twists and turns due to secrets forgotten or never known. It did surprise me when I found out about an important character for Douglas that disappeared in his life. I enjoyed reading this novel immensely.
Wow. When I began reading The Memory Project I could not have anticipated how gripping the debut novel would be. You know how when you read a good book and bits of it pop into your mind throughout the day?--curiosity of where the plot will go or what will come next in the story? Well, that's what The Memory Project was for me.
Overall the pacing was just the right tempo, and I loved as the author kept the reader in the dark about most of the plot arc. It kept me hooked until the end. Speaking of which, I enjoyed that the novel did not end at a climax point, but rather left the ending open.
Additionally, the characters were overall diverse in their personas, and it was refreshing to read with queer representation.
4 stars for The Memory Project! Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.
One of the absolute best books I've ever read! I was taken with the book from page one. From its beautiful writing, to its alluring characters and interesting and mysterious plot, it was masterful.
I loved being drawn into the world of the Weavers, intrigued with the various types, each with their own unique abilities of mind reading.
I look forward to seeing what else this author will have in the future!
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