The Unhappening of Genesis Lee

by Shallee McArthur

What would it feel like to never forget? Or to have a memory stolen?

Seventeen-year-old Genesis Lee has never forgotten anything. As one of the Mementi—a small group of genetically enhanced humans—Gena remembers everything with the help of her Link bracelets, which preserve them perfectly. But Links can be stolen, and six people have already lost their lives to a memory thief, including Gena’s best friend.

Anyone could be next. That’s why Gena is less than pleased to meet a strange but charming boy named Kalan who claims not only that they have met before, but also that Gena knows who the thief is.

The problem is that Gena doesn’t remember Kalan, she doesn’t remember seeing the thief, and she doesn’t know why she’s forgetting things—or how much else she might forget. As growing tensions between Mementi and ordinary humans drive the city of Havendale into chaos, Gena and Kalan team up to search for the thief. And as Gena loses more memories, they realize they have to solve the mystery fast…because Gena’s life is unhappening around her.

Sky Pony Press, with our Good Books, Racehorse and Arcade imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of books for young readers—picture books for small children, chapter books, books for middle grade readers, and novels for young adults. Our list includes bestsellers for children who love to play Minecraft; stories told with LEGO bricks; books that teach lessons about tolerance, patience, and the environment, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

• ISBN10: 1629146471
• ISBN13: 9781629146478
• Publish Date: 4 December 2014 (first published 18 November 2014)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Skyhorse Publishing
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 352
• Language: English

Reviews

[shannonmiz]

Well, well, this was quite the pleasant little surprise! I was almost afraid to read this one, because I didn't know if the whole "memory link" thing could be believable, but it was. The idea of the Mementi having to literally guard their memories as they wore them on their body was unique and frightening, but explored quite well!

What I Liked:

• Genesis and Kalan The main character, Genesis (who often went by Gena) is likable, but flawed and often has a bit of trouble thinking and acting for herself. I can relate to this, and she is able to summon courage often, so I enjoyed her growth. Sure, she makes some bad (even dumb) decisions, but so do we all. I like that in a character, much more than I like a perfect character, so this worked quite well for me. Kalan was an amazing romantic interest, and definitely the most likable character in the book. I wasn't sure if the Christianity stuff would bother me (it has a tendency to get preachy in some books) but it absolutely was not overbearing- it was quite simply just a character trait like any other, which is incredibly refreshing to see. I loved that the author was able to make it a part of who he was, but not at all his whole identity.


• The Family Stuff I should kind of rephrase this, because I didn't like Gena's family. I quite disliked them in fact, especially her complete ass of a father. They were all so concerned with appearances and being socially acceptable and how Gena's thoughts or actions would affect them with absolutely no concern for Gena herself. And she was so used to this that it was incredibly hard for her to break out of the status quo. It's infuriating, but all too real. I loved that not only was it an involved family, but an involved family that had issues.


• The Mystery Come on, who doesn't love a good "whodunnit"? I seriously didn't know, though I kept having theories and guesses (most of which were wrong, until closer to the end). It was exciting, and the stakes absolutely couldn't have been higher- memories and brain functions and such? Yep, kind of important!


• It made me think. During the book, I kept asking myself "What makes us us?", since the book obviously delves into the roles memories play in our functioning, and in our humanity.

What I Didn't: 

Not much! My only real complaint about this book was the end. Not the actual last few pages, but last few chapters/plot sequence. It got a bit cumbersome, and there were times that there was so much going on that I kind of had no idea what was happening. It was full of action, but maybe a little too much action. The pace got a little fast and I had some trouble keeping it all straight.

Bottom Line: It's a win for me. I enjoyed the story, cared about the characters, and aside from a bit of an overload at the end, it was overall quite good! The ending left room for a sequel, but certainly didn't require one. Certainly a book to check out!

*Copy provided for review from publisher via Edelweiss
This review was originally posted on It Starts at Midnight