What the Heart Remembers
Debra Ginsberg


ISBN-10:
0451237005
ISBN-13: 978-0451237002
Publisher: Penguin Group
Line: NAL Trade
Release Date: Sep 4, 2012
Pages: 384
Retail Price: 15.00




Genre: Thriller/Mystery
Rating:

Whispers of the past…

When young Eden Harrison receives a heart transplant from an unknown donor, her seemingly charmed life falls apart. Haunted by dreams of people and places she doesn’t recognize, Eden is convinced that her new heart carries the memories of its original owner. Eden leaves her old life behind as she is mysteriously drawn to the city of San Diego.

Whispers of the mind…

There, Eden becomes fast friends with Darcy, a young woman recently widowed by Peter, her wealthy, much older husband. But Darcy is unsettled by her inability to mourn, and more unsettled by recurring thoughts of Adam, a young musician she was having an affair with-- who has suddenly vanished.

Review

Eden Harrison is a happy young woman with everything going for her. She is intelligent, athletic, and has just become engaged to a wonderful guy. She has always been healthy, but one day, she faints after her usual run and is rushed to the hospital. Unbelievably, she finds out she will need a heart transplant to survive. She is lucky enough to receive a heart, but after the surgery, Eden is no longer the happy-go-lucky girl she used to be. Her unhappiness is much more than simply her impatience with her recovery. Eden is having terrible nightmares about her collapse and also about people she doesn’t even know. Eden leaves her fiancé Derek and her home in Portland for a new life in San Diego. Eden becomes entangled in the life of a wealthy, beautiful widow named Darcy. As their lives become more and more intertwined, it appears their connection may go back further in the past than either of them realize.

The premise of this unusual novel - that memories can be passed to an organ-transplant recipient from the donor - is fascinating. The book is part psychological thriller and part murder mystery. The prologue immediately got my attention and then as I continued reading, the suspense builds, and I was intrigued to find out how the event from the introduction connects to the rest of the story. I was able to guess some parts, but there are many surprises before the books’ conclusion. In addition to the events Eden has experienced, Darcy has had much drama and tragedy in her life as well. The reader is never sure if and how the two women’s stories are connected. Things are often confusing, especially since some of the events described are actually dreams. Even after I finished the book, I was still unsure of how all the pieces of the story fit together. For example, instead of having a greater understanding about what caused the strong connection between Eden and Darcy, I was left more puzzled at the end of the book.

I enjoyed the book, but none of the characters are one hundred percent likeable. Eden has been through a lot, but is often selfish and moody. Darcy is an enigma and it’s hard to tell if she is the victim or a manipulator. Eden’s fiancé Derek seems to be the most decent, caring character of all, but he is not perfect. I was rooting for him to find happiness, whether or not that led him to a life with Eden or not. As the story takes more and more twists and turns, I became unsure about both Eden and Darcy. One of the messages of the story to me is that people aren’t all good or all evil and people shouldn’t be judged by just one aspect of their life. Even when I was unclear about what was going on, I was entertained. There is a lot of sadness in this book, but I like that it still has a hopeful ending. Fans of Ridley Pearson or Laura Lippman’s stand-alone novels will be interested in this unique thriller.

Reviewed by Christine


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