I am Forgotten

by J.A. St. Thomas

A violent pandemic divides what remains of the world into victims, villains and heroes. Sixteen-year-old Jackson Riley is about to find out that sometimes, under the worst of circumstances, a person can be all three. Quiet and shy, Jackson has few enemies but even fewer friends. Family means everything to him, but when faced with death at the hands of his virus-crazed parents, he is forced to make an unspeakable choice. In the aftermath, he struggles to crawl out from beneath the crushing weight of guilt and responsibility in a world devastated by a pathogen designed to kill every adult. Alone but for his younger sister, he is easy prey for an enigmatic cult of superhuman beings hell-bent on exploiting him for their own nefarious intentions. Betrayed and teetering on the brink of defeat, he jumps at a chance to rewrite history and save the world, despite the consequences.

Genres: Dystopia, Young Adult, Zombies, Horror, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Thriller

204 pages, Paperback

First published August 13, 2013

About the author

J. A. St. Thomas has been writing most of her life. Growing up the only child of late in life parents, her imagination received a healthy workout. After moving to New York, she spent a short time working in film before meeting her husband. Then kids happened and writing quickly found its way to the to-do-list, remaining there far too long. A handful of her short stories have won competitions and been published in small presses. However, writing novel length fiction is her true passion. When she’s not writing, she enjoys spending time with her family, reading, music and anything related to horror, especially zombies.

Reviews

[Navessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Win. So win. There’s one line that really sums up this book.

“Here we go, chasing Alice back down the rabbit hole.”

Yup, that. I know you’re probably thinking “Wut?” but just trust me on this one. If it wasn’t an intentional rabbit hole or if it wasn’t done this well it could be a disaster, I get that, but the great thing about this book is that it is intentional. It moves from one “genre” to the next, forces you to accept its twists and turns and makes no apologies for it.

Still, with the wrong MC it could tank. Fear not, my friends, Jack is the perfect MC for a book like this. He’s adaptable, a survivor, and even though he’s constantly on the verge of snapping due to the overload of “What the actual fuck?!” in his life, he somehow manages to roll with the punches, to successfully traverse that razor edge between self-control and insanity.

I’m sure you’re wondering what the hell I’m talking about so I’ll try to explain what I mean without confusing you.

This book starts off with a zombie apocalypse. I mentioned in a status update that diving into the first chapter is like tossing a hand grenade and I’m sticking with that analogy. You’re given one page of ‘prepare yourself’ before the pin is pulled. It starts off with full blown gore and some pretty harrowing scenes. But then something I’ve never come across in a zombie book happens, the zombies begin to die off. You see, the virus that infected them appears to have a shelf life.

From there it becomes incredibly suspenseful because we all know that zombies have an ugly little habit of not really staying dead, and in a world littered with their bloated, rotting corpses I’m sure you can imagine the tension you’d feel waiting for one of them to jump up and take a bite out of someone.

Another unique thing about this virus is that it only targeted adults so now we have nothing but child survivors. Enter Lord of the Flies feels. Kids can be assholes, especially left to their own devices, and as Jack and his little sister Claire try to make their way in this new world, we encounter more than our fair share of them.

So now we have what you could call a dystopian and Jack and Claire are joined by other survivors, a pink-haired girl named Jade and an older boy named Sam that looks eerily similar to Jack. Then we meet still more children and two of these come with special powers. So now we have a paranormal dystopian? And then…are those elves?!

Stop. Just stop it. This book is round, don’t try to fit it into a square peg. My advice is to emulate this MC and put your big girl panties on. Let this story play out in front of your eyes and I guarantee you’ll enjoy it far more than if you try to make it match some sort of preconceived expectations.

I had a blast with this book, in fact, I needed this book to help me get through another one I was reading. This was my consolation prize, my reward to myself for making it through that other piece of…“literature”, and if I hadn’t intentionally paced myself because of this, I would’ve finished it in one sitting.

Also, that ending… O__O

NEED MOAR!!!

I’d recommend this book for anyone that can think outside of the box or is looking for a well written and truly unique story that’s full of action, suspense, plot twists, awesome world building and one fantastic and highly likeable MC.

This review is also available on BookLikes and Goodreads.

[Liz Barnsley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book received via a goodreads giveaway – my grateful thanks to the author especially as it had to come from so far away…



A violent pandemic divides what remains of the world into victims, villains and heroes. Sixteen-year-old Jackson Riley is about to find out that sometimes, under the worst of circumstances, a person can be all three.



Firstly, an incredibly difficult book to review without spoiling it but I will do my level best and we will see how I get on. And if you are sensible you will not read too much about this tale before you read it – I basically had what I’ve put above to go on before I dived in…

So. Here we go. Virus. People Die. People come back to life and try and eat the survivors. A lone teenager stands between his sister and death..and sets off on a journey to find a safe place and other survivors…meets girl along the way. So far so Generic right? Indeed. But then no. Not so much….

This reviewers opinion on why this this book is brilliant. Its not so much that there are new idea’s here, although there are some. Its not so much that the author has found a whole new tale to tell but that she HAS found a way to tell it differently. Without giving too much away I can say that the story will lead you in unexpected directions. And then turn around and lead you down yet ANOTHER path. And well, you get the point….

Then you have the wonderful creation that is Jackson Riley – the teenager I mentioned earlier. This is his story, so you will need to love him. I see no reason whatsoever why you wouldnt. I mean the thoughts that go through this boys head had me laughing out loud upon occasion. With an ironic sense of humour and a wry eye to the ridiculous his reactions to the events going on around him are often funny, sometimes plain old “teenager” but always deeply emotional so you know they are real. I especially like the filing system he creates for his brain….

If you are feeling let down by the latest onslaught of YA/Post Apocalyptic/Teenage angst type tales that make you feel like you are reading the same book every time fear not…for now you have “I Am Forgotton”. Don’t expect miracles…we all read differently. But make sure you give it a go. Hey, its a bargain currently so the risk v benefit scenario is very high on the side of benefit..

One last thing. The author starts each chapter with a quote from the songs that inspired her during the writing process. Each one is relevant to what you are about to read, and at the end of the novel she tells you the songs they have come from. My favourite was “Your head will collapse. But there’s nothing in it. And you’ll ask yourself. Where is my mind?” (From Where is my Mind by The Pixies)

Highly recommended. Can’t believe there is not more buzz about this. Perhaps we can start some….



Happy Reading Folks!

[Lynxie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am Forgotten started off really well.

If you're after a book that will sucker-punch you in the guts, kick you in the butt, or smack you across the face with 'wake up and deal with this shizz' it'll be this book.



The really creepy, I wanna eat you, I'm gonna devour your soul type zombies. It was epic and creepy and a little bit soul-crushing in the first 30%.

Then, things went off the rails.



I didn't really like Jackson. He was meant to be a 16 year old boy, looking after his eight year old sister. At times his 'voice' sounded perfect for a 16yr old, at others it was so immature I thought I'd roll my eyes out of my head, and then occasionally his 'voice' was that of someone far older than 16. All up, I don't think he felt like a properly created character. His maturity level was shifted depending on the scene and made for annoying reading.

After about 50%, I wanted to stop reading. Things got crazy. They got so 'out there' that I wondered if I'd accidentally started reading another book on my kindle without meaning to. The level of 'crazy' that occurred was as polar opposites to what I'd expected from this book.

PLEASE PLEASE do not start a zombie story that has a great start to only screw it up with all that fantasy crap at the end.

I am a fantasy fan, I really am, but I don't think this was well done. The amount of supernatural beings that were added to this story made it clunky and slow to read. It felt too much, too hard to follow and just plain annoying.

The writing was good for the most part, only a couple of minor typos. A couple of things I noticed:

78% - ...bound at the waste (waist) and shoulders...
81% - ...and his tails (delete s) wags...

[Andi · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars. I've been in a bit of a reading slump lately and needed this book to get me out of it. I Am Forgotten offers a highly original take on the zombie apocalypse, focusing on the surviving kids after the virus kills ALL of the adults.

The story follows 16-year old Jackson ("Jack") and his 8-year old sister, Claire, who leave their home in search of other survivors. They encounter other kids--some with good intentions and others not--and attempt to figure out the cause of the virus.

Jack is an awesome lead - he adores his sister and is extremely good-hearted. Like many 16-year olds, he doesn't always know what to do, but he grows up very quickly. Claire isn't the usual whiny little girl, and I was glad for that! The other supporting characters were also strong. I won't name them for fear of spoiling the story, but I will mention Three, my favorite. ;)

This was a well-written page-turner with several twists when you least expect them. I absolutely cannot wait for the next one! It's available through Amazon's prime lending library for free; I liked it so much that I returned it and bought my own copy for $.99. I'm telling you, it's worth it!

[Deborah Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

READ THIS BOOK!!

[Sara Hemenway · Rating 3 out of 5]

So. This book.

I honestly don't know what to say. I was really with it for the first maybe 40%. It starts out with a fairly gruesome bang.

And then I got a little bored, but I kept going.

Then I remember being sad for a little bit.

I stalled out around 60%, because seriously, WTF.



I don't want to give anything away, but things start to get...strange.

And they only get weirder from there.



I suppose I enjoyed probably half the book, lol. I didn't always enjoy the narrator. I had to keep reminding myself that he was a 16 year old boy, so snark comes with the age. Sometimes he was funny and sometimes I got annoyed by the whining.

Overall, it was an interesting story, and it ended up totally in a place that I didn't expect. At all. No one could. Ever. So that makes it unique!

[Khalia Hades · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love writing spoilers.
I love ruining the endings for most of you readers. But sometimes, books like I Am Forgotten, leave you speechless. You mind begins to reel through the words of art that an author can produce.
Zombies...J.A. St. Thomas....you are a freaking genius!
The very last books that I've read about zombies was Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, and I've gotta tell ya'll. I Am Forgotten is fucking amazing! Jackson Riley is and will ever be my hero.

Thank you, J.A. St. Thomas.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderfully written book, I loved almost every character (even the ones I love to hate). Has some extreme plot twists, especially at the end; however, it did not feel forced and adds a lot of depth to the book. A true page turner which, honestly, I have not had in too long. I would recommend this book for any fantasy/dystopia fan, yes it has zombies, but it is sooo much more and will not disappoint!

[Heather Pierce · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where to start...I loved this book! Once I started, it had me entertained until the last word. I found it very unique and enjoyed how this author incorporated the song lyrics at the beginning of the chapters with the reference at the end. This book had twists throughout and until the end. I would recommend this book to any of my friends!

[Renée · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome, love it, amazing book! =D I was privileged to beta read I am Forgotten by J.A. St.Thomas - a great friend. I'm hoping to win a copy for my niece, Kyra. I think she will LOVE it too! <3

[Megan M · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is almost as awesome as it's author. And that says a LOT. Hoping this becomes a series of books, there is so much more story to learn. So enjoyable!! Read it and love it like I do.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a different take on a zombie apocalypse. I enjoyed it and I would definitely read a sequel.

[Katya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pure awesomeness! How many zombie stories have you read in which the zombies quickly become the smallest of the main character's problems? Exactly :p

[Thorny Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome, i have read it twice sense i picked it up at Tulsa ComicCon

[Maria Lawson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn't sure what to expect when I started I am Forgotten. I knew it had a zombie aspect to it but I was pleasantly surprised with how the cause of the outbreak was explained because it was really different than what I imagined it would be. I do want to hear more of this story and would definitely read any sequel to this book. I didn't love the voice of Jack and thought that the descriptions of their surroundings and what was happening from his point of view were kind of spartan at times. I really enjoyed the characters that were introduced in the latter half of the book. I did feel like the second half of the book was a bit rushed and could have benefited from added descriptions of events and more character interaction maybe even ending sooner and leaving some of the events for another book. I will certainly read more J.A. St. Thomas books and have already started Brain Damage. Now that, is a 5 star book for me!

[Paul Madsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting premise of death and life

The world ends with a pandemic and the dead coming back to life. A few teenagers find themselves as survivors only to find out all is not that what they want. This could be made into a TV movie.

[heather steigler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Different

This is way different than most apocalyptic stories as it added a cool twist. I won't tell you to ruin it but if you like apocalyptic and fantasy this is a book for you.

[Patricia Kaniasty · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story was just ok. A very typical post-apocalyptic story. Boy, sister on their own facing all kinds of survival situations.

[Kait Byrnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book I had a hard time finishing, I kept putting it down and going onto comics that I'm into. This was a very bizarre book. I did enjoy the point of view of Jack and how he dealt with all of the stuff that was thrown at him along his journey. I was a little disappointed that the reasoning for the ending of Jack's journey wasn't explained as well or to my understanding. I kind of just got the feeling that it was another action plot, bad twin creates chaos and death and he needs to be stopped and killed. I wanted to know more about the Lutine and why Jean Luc did this besides the wanting more power gimic. I wanted to know about the Lutine and how they changed Jade and how they acquired members. I did like that Jack turned into the new Keeper.

[Angel **Book Junkie** · Rating 2 out of 5]

Somewhere between being grossed out and trying to figure out why the first 20% of this book was so great and the rest had me completely puzzled. There was so much potential for this book but I think there was too much going on. I am not a huge sci-fi fan but after reading plague I thought I would give it a try. Just did not do it for me.

[Andrea · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF 32%

Too much testosterone for me. No strong supporting female makes it not worth it in my opinion. Claire I get is young but Jade is just blah. I wish she was more awesome. Maybe I'll pick it up in the future and give it another go.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a promotional copy of this book through Goodreads Giveaways.

[Frederick Sherron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jewels grab me from the very first page it was an awesome read and I highly recommend it to anybody that's into the Apocalypse of zombies