The Memory Key by Liana Lu

onyxdarkling
Jun 5, 2015
2 min read

In the future, the population lives in fear of an incurable disease called "Verget's Disease", which is a bit like Alzheimer's. To combat the memory-destroying effects of the illness, many people have been fitted with a memory key, which records and stores memories. After being injured, Lora's memory key starts acting up. Lora's mother died in an accident, but after viewing resurfacing memories, Lora begins to become suspicious. Was her mother's death really an accident? Determined to find out the truth, she sets out to dig into the secrets of the company her mother worked for. What secrets ae they keeping? What do they know? And if her mother's death wasn't an accident, why?

Lora lacked the backbone that is important in a heroine. She's shy and quiet, which isn't a bad thing. I can't deny that Lora is loyal to her mother and is persistent in her quest to learn the truth about her death. However, she has so many contradictions that make her frustrating! Lora says she secretly resents her best friend, but then, after every fight, those feelings are forgotten as they make up. Lora was hurt by Tim, her love interest, but she forgives him far too quickly. She refuses to let go of her mother, until she does. Gah! She could have developed,* and there was certainly some potential. In the end, she fell flat.

There's not much to say about The Memory Key other than that I didn't really enjoy it. Lora was a weak and disappointing heroine. The idea of the story and the aspect of technology that stores memories is interesting, and I was hopeful. I picked up this debut in hopes of something fresh and creative. Instead, I found a slightly bland story with a slow, not-quite-interesting-enough plot and characters I didn't feel I could connect with. I found myself actually putting the book off and finding excuses not to read it. Despite my best intentions, I just didn't feel it with this one. 2.5/5 stars.