The Memory Thief by Bryce Moore

The Memory Thief by Bryce Moore

Release Date: September 20, 2016
Publisher: Adaptive Books
Rated: MG 12+
Format: ARC
Source: Sunshine Sachs
Buy: B&N
Goodreads ● Website

After witnessing another one of their parents’ public fights, twin brother and sister Benji and Kelly wander off at the local county fair.  Benji runs into a group of bullies and escapes into a tent called The Memory Emporium, where he meets a strange old man inside named Louis.  The old man shows him a magically vivid memory of a fighter pilot, in the hopes of getting Benji to pay to see other memories Louis has collected from people over the years.

Benji quickly realizes the ability to take memories could help his parents stop fighting with each other, and he asks Louis to teach him how to become a Memory Thief.  But Louis isn’t the only person with the ability to show and manipulate memories.  There’s also the mysterious Genevieve, a Memory Thief with much more nefarious motives.

Benji learns how to manipulate memories himself, but having that power comes at a cost to his family, and possible to his own mind as well.  Genevieve’s powers get out of control as she steals more and more memories from people in town – including Benji’s sister, Kelly.  Benji must learn to use this newfound power, as he is the only one able to stop Genevieve.

It's been a while since I've dived into a middle-grade book with fantasy elements, but wow, this one was fantastic! I had a ton of fun reading The Memory Thief. Not only did it remind me of my middle school reading days, but it also was so captivating that I read it in one or two sittings. I'm so glad I got the chance to read and review this one, and I'm hoping there's going to be more.

Benji was such a great character, and I loved how with taking memories from other people, his personality changed as well. The writing seamlessly adapted his character to fit the situation, and it felt like a natural progression. Kelly was a fantastic character as well–I really enjoyed the sibling (or rather twin) connection Benji and Kelly had with one another. Louis was just this eccentric old man who I couldn't help but enjoy, and Genevieve was this intriguing antagonist, who I will admit, while evil, sounded awesome as a baddie. The only thing is that I wish we had learned more about Genevieve. This book was kind of short, and I wish we'd explored more into her motives as a "villain" in this story. I mean, you do get some sort of explanation and exploration of her life at the end, but I felt like that could have been examined more. 

I enjoyed the novel's concept. The idea of memories and being able to see other people's memories and taking them, borrowing them, etc., is something I actually haven't come across in middle grade or young adult literary fiction until now. The closest, I think, would actually be Roald Dahl's The BFG, where dreams do play a large role...but they aren't the focus of the story. Anyway, obviously memories play a large role in this story and 

A fun adventure that readers of all ages will enjoy, The Memory Thief was an action-packed story about a boy trying to save his family and the rest of his town, whilst trying to adjust to his newfound skills in memory navigating. While this worked well as a standalone I'm secretly (well, not so secretly now!) hoping that there will be a sequel, or even a series. Don't miss out on this one!

▪ ▪ ▪ Thank you so much to Hayley at Sunshine Sachs for sending me a copy for review! ▪ ▪ ▪

If you like this, try...

• Trollhunters by Guillermo del Toro & Daniel Kraus ● Goodreads
• The BFG by Roald Dahl ● Goodreads

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