Review: Vanessa Carnevale’s ‘The Memories That Make Us’

 

The Memories That Make Us
Vanessa Carnevale

Gracie Ashcroft is supposed to marry Blake Beaumont in three months’ time. The trouble is, she doesn’t know who he is…

After an accident leaves Gracie with severe amnesia, she’s forced to decide: live a life that is made up of other people’s memories of who she was, or start a new life on her own. Leaving her fiancé Blake behind, she moves to the country where she takes on the task of reviving her family’s abandoned flower farm.

While attempting to restart a business with an uncertain future, she tries to come to terms with the grief of losing a mother she can’t remember and a fiancé she so badly wants to fall in love with again. What she doesn’t count on is developing a deep connection with Flynn, a local vet. Worst of all is having to confront the fact that she might lose either chance at love.

Forced to examine the person she has become, Gracie confronts the question: if you had your time over, would you live the same life twice?

 

What AusRom Today thought:

The author presents a story rich in emotion; love, heartbreak, loss and discovery. Carnevale should be commended for what can only be described as meticulous research in regard to  amnesia and exceptional creative licence in portraying how this might actually feel.

A story of finding yourself, believing in yourself, and most importantly living the way you feel is right for you free of familial or societal expectations.

This is a redemptive story and one that you can’t help but feel hopeful whilst reading.

Carnevale’s writing style is vivid and well articulated, so much so that you can’t help but feel as though you are living each and every moment with the characters. This shows an impressive level of skill as a storyteller.

Told with sensitivity and compassion, The Memories That Make Us showcases Vanessa Carnevale’s skills as a brilliant writer with exceptional storytelling talent.