What If Elizabeth Couldn’t Remember What Happened at the Inn at Lambton?
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Source: Review Copy from Publisher
TYPE OF NOVEL: Pride and Prejudice Variation
TIME FRAME: Begins a few months after Darcy visits Elizabeth at the inn at Lambton
SYNOPSIS: Something happened to Elizabeth while she read Jane’s letter that day in Lambton, and as a result she suffers headaches, dizziness, and amnesia. Since there is no evidence of who caused these injuries and Elizabeth cannot remember otherwise, the Gardiners have banished the one person who was found in the same room as Lizzy just after the attack – Mr. Darcy. Now a few months later, Lizzy is living a sheltered life in Cheapside, where her guardians have restricted her contact with the outside world and forbidden all mentions of Mr. Darcy. Lizzy knows Mr. Darcy could never harm her – especially after his saving her family from Lydia’s disgrace, which further proves his honorableness and worth. But Lizzy’s family is convinced that no such rescue ever took place…
WHAT I LOVED:
- So Many Questions: What happened to Elizabeth? Who really is to blame (because we know it isn’t Mr. Darcy!)? What is the truth regarding Wickham? Where is Lydia? – Suzan Lauder keeps her readers in suspense and guessing in this tale. I was aching for the past scenes and unknown to be revealed…but Ms. Lauder tortured us a little with the wait! I enjoyed having so many aspects of the past to ponder, it was fun to try and sort it out myself. And I loved that there were some developments that were quite a surprise! Such a surprise!
- Danger + Mystery: An attack and amnesia – this premise provokes some delicious drama and angst! Out of all the possible deviations and directions authors can go with the Lambton Inn scene, this deviation is decidedly unique! The thought of someone harming Elizabeth and the questions surrounding the unknown events of that day added such a thrilling sense of intrigue to this tale. Not to mention the mysteries surrounding several missing people and the bewildering memories Lizzy professes to be truth…
- Elizabeth in Love: She may be slightly confused about what happened in the past, but Elizabeth has no confusion over her feelings for Mr. Darcy. I loved seeing Elizabeth try to learn Mr. Darcy’s whereabouts and plan an encounter with him. I loved that she took comfort in her memories of Mr. Darcy and trusted in her certainty of his honor and disposition. But most of all, I loved seeing Elizabeth yearn for Mr. Darcy – to witness her ache for his presence, her desperateness to see him. *sigh* One of my favorite parts is when Elizabeth asks Mr. Darcy to piece together the events of that fateful day with her – talk about a swoony scene!
- Memory-Loss: I enjoy stories that utilize memory-loss as a plot device, especially when it is handled plausibly – like it is here. I thought the portrayal of Elizabeth’s experience with her memory-loss felt authentic. The circumstances of how she lost her memory, what her family does to help her recuperate, and the episodes Elizabeth experiences as she tries to unravel the past were all thoughtfully developed. I also appreciated how Ms. Lauder illustrated the struggles and unhappy realities of dealing with memory-loss.
WHAT I WASN’T TOO FOND OF:
- Some Small Quibbles: A few times the pacing felt a little slow; perhaps it was because there was a lot of restating past events and retelling memories/experiences to others? In addition, there were some scenes of inactivity and waiting that felt drawn out and also little out of character – would Darcy really have kept away, not asked more questions, not done all he could?
CONCLUSION:
I have always loved Ms. Lauder’s strikingly unique stories, and I was so thrilled to see her latest take such a suspenseful slant (please write some more romantic suspense!) With The Mist of Her Memory Suzan Lauder delivers a mystifying and riveting tale that highlights her creativity, storytelling skills, and powers of intrigue!
I love Suzan’s stories and this was one I especially enjoyed reading. Congrats on another interesting tale, girl.
Me too, Brenda!! Like yourself, she comes up with some wonderfully original premises!!
I enjoyed your review, Meredith. Suzan not only writes good books, but she’s a kind, generous supporter of other writers. She’s one of the best.
So very true, Jan! I love the support she gives to writers (and bloggers!)
Oh dear! I’m struggling to comment again! There is the strange side bar which gets in the way! My first comment disappeared when I was attempting to click on the details boxes to no avail. (I filled them in first this time but still struggled!
Anyway I must say I loved this book as I love all Suzan’s work. I first read it while posting but enjoyed re reading it all in one go when I got the book!
I’m now struggling to click on the Post Comment box!
So sorry, Glynis. If the sidebar in your way is the social media sidebar you should be able to hide it – hover the mouse over it and look for the arrows.
Very happy to hear you enjoyed this one!
Wonderful review, Meredith! I just loved this story by Suzan and the cover is gorgeous too!
Thank you, Carole! Yes it is! I quite love it!
Thanks for your generous review, Meredith. I don’t know about writing another suspense book, though. It was really hard keeping all the threads and facts in this novel correct and aligned. I even had spreadsheets to help me!
Thanks especially to the readers who support me and make me continue trying something new each time I write a book. I feel each of you is a dear friend who I want to support by sharing just a little of my imagination. It’s always great when you feed the muse!
Thank YOU so much for sharing your story with us! I can imagine it being a bigger challenge to write suspenseful stories! So much planning and intricate weaving!
We are happy to follow you wherever you go, Suzan!
Wonderful review Meredith, hello to your Mr. Bingley. It really made me want to read this different story. I love those swoon-worthy scenes. I have this on my wish-list. I’m looking forward to reading it. Blessings to Suzan on the success of this book.
Thank you, sweet friend! I am so glad it enticed you! Definitely one I think you will enjoy!
I thought this was a nice, unique romantic suspense, too. The memory loss element was a fun one to put in the story.
For sure, it worked really well! So glad to hear you enjoyed this one too!
Thanks for your review. I really enjoyed Suzan’s book and think I might have to go back a re-visit!
Wonderful! Happy re-reading! Thank you for reading my review!
Thank you for the review, Meredith. There was definitely a lot to love in this story! From all of the details that evidenced the extensive research Suzan did to the various twists and turns in the plot. All were unexpected and riveting. It is a story I will definitely re-read!
So well said, Kelly! Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and support for Suzan!
Another thoughtful review, Meredith! Intrigued!
Thank you, Christina! I hope you get the chance to read it soon!
A lovely review. This book has been on my TBR list, I hope to get to it soon – thanks for the repeated recommendation!
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
Thanks for the review, Meredith. This is one of my favorite books. It kept me intrigued until the very end. Suzan Lauder does know how to write suspense and romance!
She does! So happy to hear it is one you loved, my friend!
Good review…as always. I read and enjoyed this story.
Thank, Sheila! I appreciate you stopping by to check it out!
This comment is so late, I don’t expect any answer. Your review, (wonderful!) was posted just before we left on vacation and I was just overwhelmed. I just wanted to compliment your review and say how much I love Suzan’s books, and how much I have wanted to read this one for seemingly forever.
I am a psychoanalyst and I’m in memory loss, as a possible consequence of repression. Repression is a psychological defense against over welling anxiety, after a traumatic experience.Recently, I have become interested in applying Freudian libido ideas to literature. AAre other people on your website interested in such a discussion? I have had some difficulty writing to you on my iPad, since a strip of Facebook, Twitter ect from the left of my screen.