The Unsung Song of a Wren

by Erin Forget

Hands protected by a thin layer of black latex. It's unlikely she will be in contact with another person or animal (because she's vigilant) but the gloves quiet her mind. By design, Wren Roussel is unknown, living an unassuming life in a Northern Ontario city, that is, until the day Scarlett Hernandez tracks her down. Scarlett knows what Wren is capable of - the ability to see your past life when she touches your skin. Desperate for help, Scarlett needs to learn who she was in a past life and figure out the root cause of her debilitating nightmares of being abducted, held captive, and abused. The cash reward Scarlett offers Wren is enticing and allows a way for her to leave her old life behind, but that's only if her own secrets can remain in the past. 

328 pages, Paperback

Published April 29, 2025

Reviews

[Tracy Redden · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was truly an endearing and beautiful debut novel.
I was captivated by MC Wren's unique ability (medium or clairvoyance). Whatever it may be, it's not something l've ever read about and it definitely intrigued me and kept me interested throughout.
When Wren touches people she has the ability to see their past life. This ability has plaqued her for her entire life, and now in her thirties she just wants to be invisible and try to keep a quiet mind. But circumstances bring her to Scarlett which sets them both on a turbulent path of trying to solve missing person cases from over 30 years ago.
Couple things I loved. First Wren's resilience against all that life has thrown at her (plus her patience with Scarlett 😤)
Second, it's set in Ontario Canada ❤️

This is a wonderful literary novel. Thank you again to the author for giving me the opportunity to read and review debut.

Definitely recommend

[Farrah Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an easy but hard read. The bones of the book are quite good: Wren is a woman who has the ability to see other people’s past lives simply by making skin to skin contact. She is enlisted by Scarlett, a total rollercoaster of a character who suffers from severe nightmares, to help her find out the cause of these past life fuelled nightmares.

The hard part of this read stems from lack of editing (I’m assuming on the publisher’s part) and not enough notes. There was a lack of solid descriptions of the different settings this book takes place in, which made it hard to visualize while reading. The character of Scarlett is interesting but deeply unlikable and inconsistent; she literally does crazy things in this novel which made this reader wonder why Wren doesn’t split at the first sign of crazy. There’s a couple of inconsistent narrative points (character eats a banana but then claims to be starving a few pages later because they haven’t eaten anything since yesterday?) and the actual layout in the printed novel has unnecessary spacing which doesn’t follow other novels where that extra gap is used to create a new scene/setting which takes a bit to get used to.

This book has a lot of potential though. Some tighter editing and further exploration of some of the events that take place (Italy or police college) and trimming the end a few chapters (after the main mystery is solved, everything after is a bit unnecessary or could’ve been summed up in an epilogue) would benefit this book. This easily would’ve been a 4 star with tighter editing and copy editing (there weren’t spelling errors per se but the narrator’s POV changes were jarring at moments and there were words being used that didn’t mean what I’m sure the author what trying to convey).

[Sydney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wren Roussel can see a persons past life by touching their skin. So far, it has been more of a burden than a gift. When Scarlett appears desperate for help against the nightmares of a past life that have plagued her, Wren is hesitant to assist. With the promise of a hefty cash reward in exchange for help, Wren agrees to try to solve the mystery with Scarlett.

The characters had rich back stories. I found the plot captivating, and it held the right amount of growing tension paired with questionable characters to make an interesting story. The pacing was good and overall I enjoyed this novel. 

A few rough transitions and weird POV changes is my only complaint.

This is is a debut novel and I'm excited to read more Erin Forget stories in the future. 

Thank you to Erin Forget for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

[Marharyta · Rating 4 out of 5]

💕 I absolutely loved the premise of this story. Having the power to see a person’s past lives just by touching them. It’s intriguing. It sounds like it would be exciting, but we learn pretty quickly that it’s not always so.

When the book starts, Wren has isolated herself, and stays from any lingering human contact. It’s a sad path that her “gift” has become a curse.

Scarlett is a fantastic character. “The only predictable trait about Scarlett is that she is unpredictable.” She seems so well put together, but in reality, is haunted by nightmares. Visions of her horrific previous life - tormented and seeking justice. She’s a mess and I love it.

One can only imagine how these images have caused her restlessness and feelings of delusion until she meets someone who can explain them to her. And thus begins the unravelling of a mystery of the girl who died a horrific death.

[Angie B · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved every minute of this book! Watching Wren wrestle with her unique ability to see people’s past keeps you locked in while Scarlett’s volatile personality keeps you on your toes. A real page turner of a mystery that gives you both satisfaction and a cliffhanger ending! Can’t wait for Erin’s next book!

[Laurie Schmid · Rating 5 out of 5]

Was intrigued, could not put book down.
Something new and fresh.
Left wanting more about Wren.

[Sean Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it! Couldn’t put it down and finished it in 4 days.

[Shug · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting twist on psychic abilities. The MC, Wren, comes to understand more about herself, her family and her abilities when she sets out to unravel a past mystery.