A really original book. I liked the questions it asked about memory and how our experiences influence who we become but that we always have the agility and choice to become something else as we move into the future. Also the author's description of the madness of those who lost their memory beads resonated with me. They lose their memories but not the emotions associated with those memories so they have no frame of reference to help them deal with why they feel a certain way. This was very much like my own experience with postpartum depression- feeling emotions that I didn't understand the cause made me feel like I was going insane but once I understood the cause and could label it, the emotions were much more manageable. ( )

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A world where every single memory is recorded and kept in crystal clear recollections. Not just what happened, but how it felt. Then, the ability to pass memories and feelings down after your death. This is the world Genesis Lee lives in. For Genesis, aka Gena, her entire world holds a strong sense of certainty. That is, until she and her best friend are both victims of a memory thief.


The Unhappening of Genesis Lee by Shallee McArthur is such an interesting read! It’s a truly refreshing book with a unique sci-fi/dystopian concept that you rarely find in the overly saturated YA market that seems to spend most of its time focusing on love triangles and romantic leads; and hey, there’s nothing wrong with that if you want romance in your YA. It just becomes tiring when it moves to the forefront of what is expected out of a YA novel.

Our main protagonist is Genesis “Gena” Lee, an Asian-American teenager. She is part of the elite group called Mementi who remember everything thanks to physical beads/links they wear at all times. They came about after years of cerebral experimentation that did have severe consequences on those that survived the initial procedures. Now, years later, this small group of elite humans have their own closed off community, while the Populace, non-Mementi humans, look at them with anger and suspicion.

Still, teenagers being teenagers, Gena and her BFF Cora find themselves at a mixed population party when suddenly an attack! Someone is going around stealing Mementi memories. Part of Cora’s memories are stolen and Gena is sympathetic, horrified that someone could do that, not realising that she too has lost a memory, even though all of her “links” are present. Enter, the “love interest” Kalan, a Populace boy Gena ran into the night Cora had her memories stolen. Unable to remember Kalan, Gena is forced to rely on his faulty memories to track down the thief as she slowly starts losing more and more memories. Is there romance? Minimal in my estimation. The focus of the story remains on Gena at all times, through the search for the memory thief and her relationship with her family.

One thing Ms. McArthur does extremely well is portray the sense of anxiety, anger, and confusion present in all of the victims of memory loss. Their memories are gone, but the emotions behind those memories still remain. It is reminiscent of what happens to Alzheimer’s victims. Ms. McArthur also does a fantastic job of creating a well fleshed character in Gena, a strong female protagonist that shows women can be smart AND girly, that can like a boy without having to be dumbed down.

The Unhappening of Genesis Lee by Shallee McArthur is a great YA dystopian read with an awesome female protagonist and an incredibly interesting plot with a twist to the ending you don’t see coming, but accept.

// I received this title for free in exchange for an honest review // ( )

*I requested this book from Edelweiss/Above the Treeline as a free e-book ARC. I receive nothing but the book, and was not in any way compensated for reviewing it.*

The year is 2084. Tensions are high between the Mementi - those whose memories are stored externally and perfectly on Links - and the Populace - those whose memories are, well, more traditional. Genesis, or Gena, and her friend Cora are just going out for a fun night at the club when they are accosted; Cora loses a Link, and Gena doesn't - but her memories don't seem to be quite right either, as she discovers when she runs into a Populace boy who clearly remembers her but whom she doesn't recall at all.

I was really impressed with this book. There were a few plot turns I thought rather convenient, but I wonder if it was just because I was reading too fast. The book unfolds almost like a movie and keeps you reading at a breakneck pace. Gena is a really great heroine with interesting traits (she has panic attacks and a pet snake). The contrast between Mementi and Populace, rich and poor, are presented through Gena's first-person narration so we get a teasing bit of history without a lot of explanation or infodumps. It's set in the future but is light on science and details of society; more of an adventure, with a side of dystopia. I enjoyed the ride immensely. ( )