The Memory Police

3.5 rounded down - some spoilers

I was sure this was going to be 4 stars right up until the end. I really liked the premise although i found myself confused by the ‘rules' at times. Sometimes the narrator would use the word of a disappeared thing, sometimes would describe how foreign the name of something felt in her mouth and have to sound them out. I enjoyed the writing style and pace - i think im quite suited to this type of storytelling, whereas people in negative reviews seemed to feel frustrated by it. The characters remaining nameless felt right to me and i generally liked them enough. They werent very in depth but i didnt feel frustrated by this, the old man was my favourite however i never felt much attachment to R.

I felt incredibly exited to near the end, whilst i could foresee the events and twists that came (memory police after the party, old mans death etc), i thought that things would come to some sort of conclusion. Each disappearance was given its time up until the end, i felt the bodily disappearances were rushed and didnt give me time to digest and understand them, and then it was over. On the last section of the manuscript, when it ended on a cliff hanger i flicked through the remaining few pages stressed that, that would be that and i would get no conclusion. The same then happened back in our story, she lost her body and throughout the description i felt confused, lost, presently aware of the lack of pages left to explain what was happening, let alone the myriad of questions i had about the story and world in general. I had hoped we would learn some about the memory police, or the world outside the island even if we never learned of the Inui familys or her mothers true fate. I dont know if im just not appreciating a story which leaves questions unanswered for the reader to digest and sit with but this felt like far too many. I felt dissatisfied and liked id been lead up a great old hill by someone who knew the shape of the land, but just before we reached the peak they scurried off pointing me in the direction i needed to go which led me to a disappointing and confusing view almost entirely obscured.

Overall, i had a pleasent journey but now feel a little gutted and abandoned, like my story teller had to rush off and