My response to Forget I Told You This was uneven. As I began reading, I was excited by the complexity of topics the book was taking on. Near the middle, I simply felt overwhelmed by too many conspiracy theories. Yes, it's a conspiracy theory novel, but the concatination of conspiracies pushed things beyond the point of my ability to willingly suspend disbelief. As I finished reading, I found I was enjoying myself again. The writer tied up lose ends that had been bothering me and helped me to better understand what had been motivating the central character all along.

If I had to describe this book in terms of other books, I'd call it a cross between Thomas Pynchon's The Crying of Lot 49 and Dan Brown's Angels and Demons, with perhaps a bit of Fraya Marske's A Marvellous Light thrown in.

What I d—
• quick pacing
• a lesbian central character, who interacts with other lesbian characters over the course of the book
• the author's knowledge about and respect for book-making and the physical act of writing
• the circus- moments with unexpected stilt walkers, acrobats, and fire artists
• the over-the-top details in descriptions of the physical realities of Q, the social media company at the novel's center
• family relationships that weren't easy, but that the characters were committed to

What I didn't —
• the central character's lack of goals and the ways her actions felt the result of outside influences rather than her own desires
• as noted above, the absolutely baroque piling up of conspiracies and unusual attempts to circumvent those conspiracies
• how quickly the central character found herself obsessing about sudden infatuations

If you enjoy Dan Brown or similar writers, it's a pretty safe bet that you'll enjoy Forget I Told You This and will find yourself racing through it. I received a free electronic review copy of this title; the opinions are my own.2023 netgalley7 s1 comment Erin SwanAuthor 1 book88

This is a beautifully written and suspenseful novel that explores the tension between the old and the new, the tangible beauty of the handwritten page and the technology that may just wipe those pages from existence. I loved this story for its big themes and taut plot, but particularly for its wonderfully flawed protagonist Amy Black, whose search for love and for her own self kept me turning the pages, eager to see what would come next in her journey. I highly, highly recommend this book!5 s Orlando Ortega-MedinaAuthor 6 books70

FORGET I TOLD YOU THIS by Hilary Zaid is a literary masterpiece that flawlessly weaves together themes of love, loss, and the thrill of technology in a way that's nothing short of mesmerizing. Zaid's writing is an enchanting dance of words that transports you into a world both familiar and extraordinary.

At its heart, the novel presents the story of Amy Black, a queer single mother and aspiring artist, whose journey takes an unexpected turn when a stranger entrusts her with transcribing a mysterious love letter on a dark, power outage-stricken night and then vanishes. As Amy delves deeper into the stranger's disappearance and the intricate threads of the narrative, she finds herself entangled in a web of secrets, data vigilantes, and a breathtaking illuminated manuscript hidden within the labyrinthine library of Q, the world's largest social media company.

Zaid's prose is a symphony of emotions and imagery, drawing you into the protagonist's psyche as she navigates through the complexities of her life and the enigma that is Q. The exploration of Amy's personal journey as a mother, artist, and lover is executed with unparalleled depth and authenticity, making her a character who resonates deeply with readers.

What truly sets FORGET I TOLD YOU THIS apart is its ingenious blending of techno-thriller elements with heartfelt, intimate narratives. The world of Q, with its holographic halls and clandestine societies, mirrors our own obsession with technology and the fine line between connectivity and intrusion. As Amy's curiosity propels her into the heart of this digital realm, the tension escalates, culminating in a breathtaking crescendo.

Hilary Zaid has masterfully crafted a tale that is both a reflection of our contemporary society's digital complexities and a timeless exploration of the human spirit. FORGET I TOLD YOU THIS is a literary gem that showcases the author's prowess in storytelling, character development, and narrative innovation. If you're seeking a novel that seamlessly melds love, loss, and heart-pounding techno-thrills, look no further. This book deserves every one of its five stars and more.4 s T.536

I’ll be honest: I have no idea how to review this book. I feel it was written for a very specific group of readers and while I’m one of them, I don’t know if it’s something other people will .

The best way I can describe this is take the concept of a Dan Brown book, mix in some cyberpunk/technothriller elements, infuse it with poetry, and sprinkle in a niche passion for illuminated manuscripts. Also sapphic romance. It’s a little the comic series Tokyo Ghost if I had to compare it to anything but it’s very clearly not anything else.

Basically we have a middle-aged woman mourning the loss of her wife who had uterine cancer and she’s trying to make a living writing letters in a not very distant or far fetched future Bay Area. A massive Facebook/Meta- company, called Q, is essentially becoming rich off data (so basically a true story) and destroying both human history and culture as well as all sense of privacy and free will. A lot of talk about conspiracy theories and I don’t know if they’re stuck on the name of the company being Q and making references to QAnon or if they honestly think social media companies are harmless.

I loved this and it broke my heart and terrified me all at once. I’m looking for Zaid’s other book now and I look forward to more. Again, though, there’s probably a very small, very specific niche audience that this book will appeal to and I’m part of it but I’m not sure how to go about recommending it. Be forewarned it’s probably not for everyone. I love medieval history, words, and art - and I’m a Luddite who uses technology because it’s there and you kind of have to but I think the world was better off without most of it. So take that as a guide to if it’s your thing.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.20233 s LeeAnn1,429 2

Excellently written. Love the juxtaposition of tactile pen and paper versus digital social media. A lovely and unique cat and mouse undercover reporter style thriller that to me is oddly reminiscent of Erin Brochovich.

I adore that the author is able to paint a word picture so vibrantly. From the very beginning, "the kind of love that could dye your whole world midnight blue," and deep in the story, "a small glass bottle shimmering with liquid the color of blood... bloodred wax dripped over the cap, a square label, smaller than a postage stamp, white on black." And then, finally, "I slid the letter between the pages of my recovered portfolio, just another leaf hidden in plain sight among the leaves."

The prose of this book reads so much poetry, and reminds me of Babel in its epic storytelling style.

Don't miss the author's acknowledgements at the end, which begins, "This is a work of fiction many of whose marvelous and terrifying elements are real." The book is truly a work of art.3 s Nina Klose3

Zaid's 2nd novel is a must read for the 21st century. It is beautifully written, with compelling characters and a plot that is topically relevant right now. When I realised it had an AI theme, I wasn't sure I'd it - but I was quickly drawn in and couldn't put it down. I am also not a niche LGBTQ reader - but the touching and sensuous love scenes would appeal to anyone who enjoys a bit of romance. For me, it had echoes of Bulgakov's Master & Margarita and A. S. Byatt's Possession. Highly recommend. 2 s Cassi104 3

4.5 stars rounded up2 s Geonn CannonAuthor 106 books190

A queer lead with face blindness (which was utilized very well, I thought, and added to the intrigue), complex conspiracies, a fictional amalgamation of Twitter/Facebook/Amazon that may or may not be sentient and/or evil, random circus acts, and (best of all) a culture of writing, books, physical printed/handwritten material. What's not to love? A very unique book that I'm glad to have stumbled over.2 s Jennifer654 37

This is such an odd book. Zaid's narrator is wholly unreliable - awkward, resentful, lonely, prone to flights of imagination, selfish, ambitious, romantic, unperceptive (literally), needy, untrustworthy, and capricious - so her behaviors are erratic and often disturbing, as is her logic. Around this central character Zaid has built dark whimsy, a sinister and destructive corporate entity that promises delight in exchange for, well, everything, alongside a shadowy counter-corporate movement of artists and scholars. The visuals are incredible - they drove me through what was otherwise a fairly frustrating book that kept flipping between a prosaic story critiquing big tech, a side-story rejecting excessive faith in anything, a devastatingly sad story of aging, appealing musings on and descriptions of art, and a love story. That the bumbling narrator seems to have almost zero agency or understanding of the role she is playing - being directed to play - is probably a statement about how we interact with social media and information more generally, but was so off-putting, not least because she kept betraying people. Nonetheless, a really interesting book, thought-provoking, and beautiful in its own way. And the love story is charming.fantasy female-protagonist lgbtq ...more1 Abinaya Annadurai105 1 follower

This is a  masterpiece that deals with themes of love and loss in a mesmerizing way. The author's word makes us travel to an extraordinary world. As I was an old school girl who still writes letters I can connect with FMC Amy Black. Her search for love makes us eager to turn the page.
Loved the collocation of pen, and paper versus social media. I enjoyed the prose of this book. The journey Of Amy Black, a queer single mother as she finds herself between ambition and her conscience is intriguing. Loved the middle-aged FMC. I am in an urge to read this author's other books. Part thriller, part mystery makes us think about the technology. Overall, I loved this novel and would recommend it for literary lovers.1 Denise Ruttan212 12

I keep trying to find sapphic books I and getting disappointed. I had mixed feelings about “Forget I Told You This” but ultimately, it wasn’t the book for me.

I was intrigued by the premise of a 46-year-old queer woman recovering from lingering heartache after getting dumped by a longtime lover years before, who is a scribe whose art lies in handwritten letters in a digital world, face blind and ly a little autistic.

Amy Black stumbles into a competition for a coveted artist-in-residency spot at Q, the world’s biggest and most corrupt social network, and simultaneously becomes embroiled in a complicated terrorist plot. The folks at Q, ironically enough, also love all things analog, medieval manuscripts that they steal and upload into the cloud.

Q is a data company, tracking connections, purchases, health data from wearable devices. Where this book really shone and what kept me reading was the commentary on what that data collection has done to our lives and communities, the ethics of the right to be forgotten, the contrast between posts and s and letters and quills.

There were some brilliant passages of writing in here, too, and the relationships in this were fascinating, especially the problematic one between Amy and Connie, reflected later in her entanglement with the mysterious artist Blue.

I also struggled with the writing style in parts; I felt it dragged into unnecessary detail and back story. I got it the first ten times that Amy was still mourning the life she had with Connie, for example. And I was excited to read about a middle-aged woman but I’m 41 and didn’t really relate to Amy’s experiences; she felt 15 years older than me, though I definitely related to parts.

I also found the sex scenes rather awkward; they focused so much on bones and sharp angles that I couldn’t figure out what the underlying meaning was.

This book had a lot going for it, a very slow burn techno-thriller, and I picked it up because it was on a few most anticipated release lists, but I found it unsatisfying overall.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.1 Jeremy FeeAuthor 5 books58

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free ebook copy of this work. This review is my honest opinion.

In the novel FORGET I TOLD YOU THIS, author Hilary Zaid created a wonderful sense of tension with the clash between paper and digital, extending the concept into not only a statement of identity for some people, but ultimately an intriguing web of mystery as well. I especially enjoyed the author’s descriptions as the story unfolded.

I highly recommend this work for fans of books that make you think.1 Jennifer22

This is the second novel I have read from Hilary Zaid and I'm absolutely in love with her writing. Everything is so layered and there is so much going on, but it never gets confusing. I laughed when Q was the all-seeing and evil social media empire, since Twitter just got rebranded as "X." The language is beautiful, but it doesn't get in the way of the action. It's a page-turner in the best way.1 Caitlin Martin16 31

Forget I Told You This follows queer middle-aged mother, calligraphy artist, & letter-writer Amy Black as she finds herself suddenly pulled into the crossfire between the future the world’s leading social media company, Q, is building & the past an underground group of artists seek to preserve; between spotlight & anonymity; between her ambition and her conscience.

This book dances between the lines of genre, with nods to both dark academia and dystopian speculation, in a writing style that shifted between poetry and prose. At certain times, this is the book’s strength; other times, it was its challenge. There were moments when the flowery language, detailed descriptions and hyper-realistic, almost fever-dream atmosphere of the book really landed. There were sections and lines I read over and over again and thought, “wow, that was some good writing.” And, transparently, there were times when I thought “can we stop interrupting action to muse about xyz”. It felt a bit Zaid was too ambitious with this story; if the author had chosen to take out a few of the threads & really hone in on the best ones, I would have rated this book higher.

However, I solidly enjoyed this book. I love a middle-aged woman MC, particularly a queer one. And I am biased to love Bay Area stories as a resident and I felt Zaid expertly captured the dichotomy and tension between artists/activists/anarchists and big tech who cohabitate the Bay Area— and how an average person must find their within that tension in order to survive.

All in all, I did enjoy this book and would recommend it as a Fall read!arc-1 Merry4

I just finished reading a wonderful novel. If you want to be spellbound, intrigued, stimulated and challenged, I recommend Hilary Zaid’s latest novel, Forget I Told You This. In this fantastical account, Zaid has tightly woven a love story, a thriller, a social critique and a homage to the physical act of writing.
There’s much to celebrate in this book. The writing is rich and textured, evoking the interplay of senses. It’s atmospheric, capturing the heat of autumn in the Bay Area, the temperature of our digital culture, and the speed at which our attentions are diverted on a regular basis. Zaid marvelously connects contemporary life with the technologies of the past, and not just the distant past of medieval scribes and the crushed shells of snails: post boxes, typewriters -- even paper itself -- serve as anachronistic stimulants for the narrator, Amy Black.
Zaid touches on a number of themes – family, difference, love, and loss – all tied together through the idea of “connection”: what it means, how it’s sustained, what happens when it’s lost. The protagonist defies Big Tech, as Zaid herself puts the lie to the messages bombarding writers and readers everyday: No one writes. No one reads.
So, this is a book worth reading and I’m really glad Hilary Zaid wrote it.

1 Walter Underwood355 29

I ran out of patience and energy to continue with this book at 44%. Plenty of atmosphere, but really inconsistent plot. It kicks off with a big scene, then Amy wanders fairly aimlessly, filling in background, until about a third of the way through when we git a big burst of plot from a stranger. Then she wanders again. Is it still deus ex machina if it starts the plot instead of finishing it?

So, simultaneously overwritten ("The bruised purple notes of a Nocturne bled through the walls") and underwritten (her mother performed with the symphony, but we don't know which instrument). Plus the feast and famine plot pacing just was too much for me. I didn't require "calligrapher vs big tech" to be a thriller, but stuff has to actually happen. Marissa HigginsAuthor 3 books95

Hilary Zaid’s second novel is about a queer single mom who wants access to a secretive and exclusive artist residency, only to realize her imagined mecca is hardly what it seems. It’s speculative! It’s Californian! It’s techy! There’s enough going on plot- and suspense-wise to keep you engaged even if you really don’t want to think about your present (or past, or future) family at all. Because what’s worse than overbearing parents? The all-knowing surveillance state! For fans of Her and San Junipero.

I included this book in my round-up: https://chireviewofbooks.com/2023/12/... Liliyana Shadowlyn2,814 91

An absolutely brilliant book that will draw you in with each subsequent page, and won't let you go until long after it's done. They say be careful what you wish for, and Amy learns this in the hardest way - leaving her to make a choice - does she follow her dreams, and Q's rules, or side with the vigilantes and take down the tech giant, ly helping the larger world? Zaid did an amazing job of bringing Amy and the world she lives in to life, and the plot moves along at a smooth pace with very few lulls. I loved this, and can't wait to read more by this author!1 R.L. MaizesAuthor 4 books221

In Hilary Zaid’s gorgeously lyrical new novel, FORGET I TOLD YOU THIS, big data clashes with traditional arts as queer protagonist, Amy Black, struggles to decide whom she can trust and whom she might love. Part thriller and part mystery, the novel takes the reader on a breakneck journey through the near future while considering what technology has given us and what it has taken away. Fans of Zaid’s moving debut novel, PAPER IS WHITE, should be delighted with the author’s sophomore novel in which she employs her signature prose and a slightly wider lens.1 AncaAuthor 6 books147

I loved the rich, atmospheric prose of this novel. It is a techno-thriller about surveillance, yes, but what I was most moved by was the vulnerable depiction of family--an adult caring for her elderly parents and her adult brother with special needs, while aching for her son who has just left home. I also jotted this down: "Isn't that what we all want? To be recognized as the person were meant to be?"2 s Yaniv80

I did not enjoy the book. I really wanted to this book and I kept reading it with the hope that something would surprise me but alas nothing did. The saving grace was the it was short and easy to read and had some action, even if predictable. If I wasn’t reading this for a book club I would have given up on the book altogether after the first 10% or so. 2024 book-club-books Camille L. Landau1 review1 follower

While the book is propelled by a compelling mystery, I found myself wanting to slow down and re-read it for beautifully observed detail. Zaid's "Paper is White," this book is astonishing in its observation and painfully beautiful in its language. 2 s Corky167 22

This started off very intriguing - the opening scene was perfection. Then things began to unravel into a fever dream I couldn't quite follow. Misha1,129 38

This one was not for me, I'm afraid. A lot of interesting things added to the pot that eventually did not pan out much or just weren't explored enough for my taste. E.J. LevyAuthor 7 books80

I can’t wait to read this new novel by Hilary Zaid, a writer I so admire! The are terrific—and the subject sounds all too timely.
Autor del comentario:
=================================