Title: Forget Me
Author: Chelsea Vanderbeek
Genre: YA Christian Fiction
Age Group: Young Adult
Rating: 4,5 stars
Purchase: Amazon
Review copy provided by Enchanted Book Promotions in exchange for an honest review.
Sabine is a budding poet who was practically born with a pencil in her hand. Though her intelligence and maturity far surpasses that of those around her, she lacks the confidence and social graces to come out of her shell.
She’s been forced on numerous occasions in the past to slip inside the glass double doors of Hilltop Baptist Church. The youth group was her mom’s idea, really. A shot-in-the-dark way for Sabine to try and make some wholesome friends in a wholesome place. Not that it ever worked out—at least she was usually able to make it out with minimal negative attention as her plain-old invisible self.
This time was different. She always hoped it would be different, but not like this. When Sabine decides she’s had enough of this life, she ends it and becomes more visible than she’s ever been before. Is it possible she wasn’t as forgettable as she once thought? The only way to find out is to watch the aftermath unfold, and no matter the outcome, she can’t do a thing about it. No one can…
…or can they?
Forget Me is an inspiring, beautiful story about Sabine, a budding poet who is intelligent and mature for her age… But is also painfully shy, and lacks the confidence to make friends and open up to others, and come out of her shell. Her mother pressures her to go the Hilltop Baptist Church, to a youth group, in the hope of making friends there. It has never really worked out, and Sabine struggles to find a home in this world. But when she decides she’s had enough and takes some drastic steps, it might turn out she’s not as forgettable as she always thought she was.
Reminiscent of 13 Reasons Why, this is a raw, emotional, heartbreaking tale of a teen struggling with low self-esteem and depression. It’s a tough book to read and an even tougher one to read, as the subject matter is quite sensitive and bleak, but the author does a phenomenal job crafting believable teenage characters, and making Sabine’s struggles feel real and honest.
Not a feel-good kind of book, but one that I can genuinely recommend to teens, even the ones struggling with depression or the same things the protagonist is struggling with. The writing is sincere and genuine, and you can feel the author’s genuine intentions to relay a message to the readers. There’s a lot of good intent, passion, and kindness in the writing of this book, despite the bleak narrative.
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