Berls Reviews Memory Man by David Baldacci

Posted November 25, 2019 by Berls in Review / 10 Comments

This book may be unsuitable for people under 17 years of age due to its use of sexual content, drug and alcohol use, and/or violence.
Berls Reviews Memory Man by David BaldacciMemory Man by David Baldacci
Narrator: Ron McLarty, Orlagh Cassidy
Series: Amos Decker #1
Published by Hachette Audio on April 21, 2015
Genres: Mystery
Length: 13 hours 17 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Purchased
Goodreads
five-stars

This "impossible to put down" #1 New York Times bestseller introduces Amos Decker, a gifted police detective with a perfect memory who must solve a mystery he wishes he could forget: his family's murder (Washington Post).

Amos Decker's life changed forever--twice.

The first time was on the gridiron. A big, towering athlete, he was the only person from his hometown of Burlington ever to play in the NFL. But his career ended before it had a chance to begin. On his very first play, a violent helmet-to-helmet collision knocked him off the field forever, and left him with an improbable side effect--he can forget nothing.

The second time was at home nearly two decades later. Now a police detective, Decker returned from a stakeout one evening and entered a nightmare--his wife, young daughter, and brother-in-law had been murdered.

His family destroyed, their killer's identity as mysterious as the motive behind the crime, and unable to forget a single detail from that horrible night, Decker finds his world collapsing around him. He leaves the police force, loses his home, and winds up on the street, taking piecemeal jobs as a private investigator when he can.

But over a year later, a man turns himself in to the police and confesses to the murders. At the same time a horrific event nearly brings Burlington to its knees, and Decker is called back in to help with this investigation. Decker also seizes his chance to learn what really happened to his family that night. To uncover the stunning truth, he must use his remarkable gifts and confront the burdens that go along with them. He must endure the memories he would much rather forget. And he may have to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Memory Man will stay with you long after the turn of the final page.Unabridged, 1 audio sound file, 13 hours 15 minutes 09 seconds

My top thoughts:

This was a surprising read for me and not one I would have picked up on my own, I don’t think. It was a book club pick, but I didn’t start it until the day before book club. Well, guess what? I finished it in time for book club. It was that good!

Who I think would like it:

If you like quirky main characters, I think you’ll like Amos. He suffered a football injury that changed the way he sees the world and gave him a perfect memory… but also removed his “normal” people interaction skills. He reminded me a bit of a high-functioning autistic person in some ways.

This is, above all, a murder mystery. It’s not one that I feel like you could really solve without knowing everything that Amos knows, but as he reveals things he’s figured out you can make a guess at the next step — and you’ll be wrong at least half the time, but it’ll make sense. He just sees things in ways that the average person doesn’t.

This does hit some triggers – you’ve got child murder (you don’t see it happen, but you see the after), you’ve got rape (once again you don’t see it, but read about the after) and you’ve got some gender/sexuality questions. I felt like it was all handled well, though realistically (meaning you will see some insensitivity and it will piss you off as it should). But if those are major triggers for you, it may not be the book for you.

I’m actually disappointed that it’s a series  – not because I don’t want to read more – but because it worked really well as a stand alone and I worry that it won’t hold up over several books. Oh and the fact that I now have another series to keep up with!

Narrator thoughts:

The narration on this was FANTASTIC. First off, the primary narrator was Ron McLarty, but for female voices  Orlagh Cassidy chimed in and it was pretty great to get that genuine female voice. They also had sound effects that flowed seamlessly into the narration. I will definitely be listening as the series continues and recommend you do too!

5 stars Flipping Fantastic
Berls loved Memory Man! 5/5 Stars #audio #review Share on X

About Berls

Michelle adopted me as part of her blog when I decided to close down my blog, Fantasy is More Fun. The blog was dying, but my love of reading and the blogosphere was still strong as ever - so I found my new home here at Because Reading!

I'm not just a book lover, but a one time author (that hopes to be more in the future), wife, mom to the cutest, happiest, best 5 year old and step-mom to the craziest, sweetest 24 year old on the planet. My family mean everything to me and they appear frequently in the Sunday Post with Berls. So grab a glass of wine and chat books, blogging, and family with me!

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