The Memory Index

August 1, 2022

Gr 8 Up-In an alternate 1987, a disease called Memory Killer is stealing memories and destabilizing the world. To prevent permanent memory loss, everyone takes part in government-controlled artificial memory recall using technology created by a company called Memory Frontier. Fletcher is one of the lucky "recollectors" who only needs to use artificial recall once a day. Freya is a "degen," or degenerate, requiring multiple per day. The two are recruited to attend a boarding school and participate in a trial of Memory Frontier's newest technology. They and their roommates, Chase and Ollie, forge a loyal friend group and work together to question the motives and uncover the secrets of their school. An imaginative and thought-provoking premise is richly realized, and the personal and societal implications of widespread memory loss are deeply explored. Themes of grief and trauma, and their multifaceted connections with memory, add depth and complexity to an already inventive work. The 1980s setting is portrayed primarily through movie and music references, with a complete list of songs and a QR code to access the playlist included at the end of the book. Freya is Mexican American, her roommate Ollie is Vietnamese American, and they experience overt and implied racism. At times the pace is slowed down by concept explanations, and the dialogue does not always feel wholly authentic to teens, but these aspects do little to detract from the overall work. VERDICT A clever and empathetic work of speculative fiction that examines the power and fragility of memory, recommended for general purchase. Cinematic writing, teen sleuthing, and a nostalgic setting make this book a great recommendation to fans of Stranger Things.-Elizabeth Lovsin

Copyright 2022 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2022
A plague that distorts memory shifts the ways of the world. It's 1987, and it's been almost a decade since Memory Killer swept the globe, fundamentally changing the way society operates due to its ability to leave large swaths of people without access to their own memories. Some, like foster kid Freya Izquierdo, are labeled degenerates due to their need to rely on artificial recall technology to fill in for the missing halves of their memories. Others are luckier, like ever curious Fletcher Cohen, who is a recollector--someone who only accesses artificial recall once a day to function. When Freya is invited to be a guinea pig for a new treatment at Tennessee boarding school Foxtail Academy as an alternative to getting sent to jail for trespassing as she investigated her father's death, she has no choice but to accept. Freya finds there's much more than meets the eye at her new school, and she joins forces with newfound friends Fletcher, Chase Hall, and Hoa "Ollie" Trang to unravel a corporate conspiracy unfolding on campus. This central mystery is fun and engaging, evoking the spirit of '80s action/adventure movies, and the characters are intriguing, their personal development nearly as compelling as the main storyline. Freya is Mexican American, Ollie is Vietnamese American, and Chase and Fletcher read White. Thrilling worldbuilding plus a creative tangle of mysteries mark this debut. (playlist, discussion questions) (Science fiction. 12-18)

COPYRIGHT(2022) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

September 19, 2022
Vaca’s mind-bending, 1987-set debut centers a quartet of teens attempting to uncover the secrets behind Memory Killer, a disease afflicting humankind that renders people unable to retain a large portion of their memories without artificial aid. Despite the Memory Killer’s prevalence, many consider 17-year-old Mexican American foster kid Freya Izquierdo a second-class citizen because she needs the help of artificial recall tech to access more than half her memories. Meanwhile, congressman’s son Fletcher Cohen, also 17, is one of the luckier victims of the disease; he’s a “recollector,” someone who can remember up to 75% of their memories naturally. Their paths cross when the teens receive invitations to Foxtail Academy in rural Tennessee, a boarding school where students will test a new device from Memory Frontier, a corporation that promises to revolutionize recall. Strange happenings and student disappearances cause Freya and Fletcher, along with their respective roommates, to suspect nefarious activity at the school. Via expansive worldbuilding and complex characters, Vaca adeptly combines a mysterious disease, corporate malfeasance, a sprinkling of romance, and good old-fashioned teen sleuthing to deliver an absorbing adventure. An ’80s music playlist concludes. Ages 13–up.