How does a book earn a 3-star rating? For me, it’s a book I enjoyed reading but one that doesn’t make me FEEL and is not one I rush to read again. Val Emmich’s The Reminders fits the criteria here for a 3-star read.
Gavin Winters is grief-stricken over his partner’s death and flees Los Angeles for New Jersey, hoping to find peace with the family of an old friend. Instead, he finds ten-year-old Joan. Joan has the rare ability to recall every day of her life in cinematic detail. Joan has never met Gavin, but she did know his partner, Sydney, and waiting inside her mind are vivid memories to prove it.
Told in the alternating voices of Joan and Gavin, I found Gavin the more likable of the two. Joan came across as whiny and annoyed me. I liked Gavin and would have liked to know more about him and Sydney. The few feelings this book inspired were for Gavin and Sydney. There was a hint of mystery as Gavin finds out things he didn’t know about Sydney from Joan. I enjoyed this tiny hint of intrigue.
I often take notes while reading a book that I’ll be writing a review for … things that stick out that I liked and disliked. I didn’t take any notes while reading The Reminders because nothing stuck out. I suppose it’s good nothing bad stuck out, but nothing worth remembering stuck out either. As a debut novel, The Reminders is okay and I would recommend it to friends, but as I stated above, I’m probably not going to read this one again.
I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley.
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewer: Jennifer
Title: The Reminders
Author: Val Emmich
Release Date: May 30, 2017
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