Review: Remembrance by Michelle Madow
Release Date: July 2011
Publisher: Dreamscape Publishing,
Pages: 314 pages
Series: Remembrance #1
Source & Format: Purchased: Kindle e-book
Amazon | Goodreads
Summary
When Drew Carmichael transfers to Lizzie Davenports's high school, she is drawn to him. Lizzie feels as though she knows Drew - but she can't explain their connection. She can't stop thinking about him, but he wants nothing to do with her. Not to mention the fact that she already has a boyfriend, Jeremy, and Drew is dating her best friend, Chelsea.
Little does Lizzie know, she's been reincarnated from Regency England and fighting fate isn't easy.
Thoughts on Remembrance
I thought this book was a steal when I found it in Amazon's Kindle store. It only costs $2.99 and had a 3.77 rating on Goodreads and 4.5 stars on Amazon, which isn't too shabby.
I was expecting a light, easy read with a unique love story. I'm often hesitant to commit to inexpensive Kindle titles since they are often self-published and poorly edited. I don't have anything against self-published books; I just typically think there is a reason they are self-published. However, the reviews made the book sound amazing.
While the premise sounded fun, the book fell short in execution. The entire book essentially felt like a fan fiction knock-off of the Twilight series and the Fallen series. I couldn't stop making comparisons in my mind. For example:
- Lizzie feels drawn to a mysterious bad boy.
- Lizzie is confused by the boy's actions: one moment he's kind to her and the next he's ignoring her.
- Lizzie is torn between two boys - her boyfriend and the attractive stranger.
- Lizzie learns that she and Drew shared a connection in their past lives.
Sound familiar? The entire time I was reading the book, I felt like I was reading a recycled version of something I'd already read. While there were other things I found problematic, the plot and its stereotypes are becoming all too common in this type of young adult book.
Unfortunately, I also thought that the characters were one-dimensional. Personally, I wouldn't want anything to do with either of the guys in the book. Why did she like Drew, aside from their magical past connection? Who knows. I can't tell you. And that is one of my biggest pet peeves: characters who "fall in love" without any real interaction or reason.
There were also numerous references to Jane Austen and Pride & Prejudice, which drove me crazy. It's one of my favorite books, and it honestly got on my nerves that there were so many references to it in a book that was blah. And trying to compare (or even imply) that the main character was Lizzie Bennet? Horrible. There is no way this Lizzie was anything like one of the most beloved characters in all of literature.
The reincarnation revelation barely registered a blip in terms plot development. This book is the first in a series, and I had no desire to read any further. In my opinion, that's a bad sign. If I could do things over again, I'd definitely pass on this book.
So Quotable
"But it was time to realize that I wasn't Cinderella, and no matter how hard I wished it were true, life wasn't a fairy tale where everyone lives happily ever after."
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