The best books about amnesia from Next Chapter [June 2022]
Amnesia is a condition that affects a person's memory, making it difficult or impossible to remember things that have occurred in the past. It can be caused by a variety of factors, including brain damage, illness, or trauma. There are two main types of amnesia: retrograde amnesia, which is the inability to remember past events, and anterograde amnesia, which is the inability to form new memories. In fiction it’s most often seen in the psychological thriller subgenre, and is mainly used as a storytelling tool in the form of the protagonist’s memory loss (and its subsequent recovery).
The concept is also widely explored in movies, for example in the American neo-noir thriller Memento (2000).
Below, we’ve collected some of our novels, as of March 2023, that feature a protagonist with amnesia or have a storyline where memory loss plays an important part. If you enjoy one of the stories below, please don’t forget to leave the author a review! Don’t agree with our choices? Please leave a comment and let us know your favorite :)
Books featured on this page
Chloe - Never Forget (Carl Sant Murder Mysteries Book 2) by Dan Laughey
133 Hours by Zach Abrams
Book excerpt
The elevator door opens opposite to the building’s reception area. I breathe deeply, welcoming the gust of fresh air coming in from the street as people pass through the front entrance. “I’m going to take a seat for a couple of minutes,” I say, pointing to the sofa in the main lobby. “Let me see what else I can check,” I hold up my phone, “and while I do, can you speak to the man at the security desk to see if there’s any record of when I left this building on Friday?”
“Good idea. I’ll get right onto it.”
The last three texts are social messages from acquaintances and are of no further relevance. I switch onto my voicemail. Of the four messages, the first one is electronic spam seeking to know if I need help resulting from an accident I had that wasn’t my fault. I’m so sick of these calls. I wonder if I should reply to them and ask them to sort out my current dilemma? I feel myself grimace, thinking I’ve not totally lost my sense of irony.
I find the second message rather concerning. It’s from the letting agent I rented my flat through and it’s asking why the rent payment due on Monday hasn’t been received. That’s odd, I think; I pay by standing order and there ought to have been more than adequate funds to cover the payment. I must investigate this. I’ll call my bank at the first opportunity, but there are a few priorities I need to attend to first.
Kalorama Road by E. Denise Billups
Book excerpt
Just as I enter the duplex, the cell phone rings again for the third time in fifteen minutes. It's Shane, but I ignore him, unable to explain why I bailed on him after the meeting. For several days, I can't look him in the eyes without the urge to scream you've ruined my life! But it's not all his fault. I'm just as much to blame, but I need to shout at someone besides myself. Honestly, I can't be near him without the urge to tell him I'm pregnant. But I can't.
Taking off my shoes and placing my bag on the foyer console, sweat congeals to gooseflesh from the chilly room. Why does Allie have the air-conditioner so high? The room is fragrant of roses. On the dining table, roses Shane gave me the other night sit in a tin canister. What happened to the beautiful vase? They were so bright and red this morning, now they're limp and dying. I rush to turn off the air conditioner shocked to find it's not on. Allie must have recently turned it off. Right away, I notice an empty wine bottle and head toward the kitchen counter. Allie's been drinking. It's unlike her to drink alone I ponder, looking for a second wine glass, only finding one. Did she drink the entire bottle? Something's amiss. Or maybe she needed to unwind. God knows I could use a glass. But a whole bottle! She'll be painfully hungover in the morning.
At the breakfast nook, Allie's cell phone moves toward the edge, buzzing a muted vibration. Rushing, I catch it before it falls to the floor, wondering who's calling so late. I'm curious and answer, “Hello.”
Chloe - Never Forget (Carl Sant Murder Mysteries Book 2) by Dan Laughey
Book excerpt
Hyde Park meant one thing for DI Sant. Trouble.
Students able to afford the higher rents chose suburban Headingley. The rest took the budget fare – back-to-back terraces with cobbled back yards.
Owing to Hyde Park’s high rates of property crime due in no small measure, Sant knew, to naïve students leaving doors and windows open – Chestnut Avenue in Hyde Park was once dubbed Britain’s most burgled street – the landlords spent so much time dealing with claims that anything resembling a joined-up attitude to property maintenance had fallen by the wayside.
It was the rotting front entrance of one of these tired student homes at which Sant and Capstick knocked, a confused medley of ska and drum and bass greeting their arrival. A burnt-out wheelie bin was laid out on its side, the stench of melted plastic still heavy in the air. The bleak November sunset tried to shed light on the sounds and smells, but even sunsets in this part of town were unrevealing.
A young man wearing an apron finally answered the door, clearly put out at the interruption to his culinary endeavours. They waited for him to speak, but unblinking eyes stared back at them.
‘And a good afternoon to you too,’ Sant said, putting on a plastic smile. ‘I’m Detective Inspector Carl Sant and this is my colleague Detective Constable Brad Capstick, and here are our ID cards to prove it. May we?’
Protective Hearts by D.S. Williams
Book excerpt
“Finn! It’s okay. You’re safe now. He can’t hurt you anymore.”
Shep’s anxious voice reached me and I returned to present day in a rush, found myself wrapped firmly in his arms. I inhaled raggedly, my cheeks wet with tears.
Shep drew away, cupping his hands against my jaw tenderly. “It’s okay. It’s over now, baby.” He stroked his thumbs across my cheeks, brushing the tears away and fury was evident in his startling green eyes. “I won’t let him hurt you again, Finn. Not ever again.”
I drew a shuddering breath, inhaling the rich male scent of Shep’s skin, wondering abstractly what cologne he wore. Whatever it was, I loved it. A subtle mix of pine and bergamot, the aroma calmed me, soothed away the horror of what I’d heard and imagined in the darkness.
“I promise you. I won’t let him get to you. I swear I’ll protect you,” Shep said huskily, still brushing tears from my cheeks.
For a long moment, I watched him, welcoming the calm assurances he offered. Shep returned my gaze and the fury in his eyes faded, replaced with another emotion I couldn’t grasp. Inhaling another shaky breath, I watched Shep swallow deeply, his attention dropping from my eyes to my lips.
A Man's Face by B. Roman
Book excerpt
“Will the Jury Foreman read the verdict.” Judge Larimer’s instruction is routine and without a suggestive note, even though he already knows what the verdict is.
The Foreman, a composed woman, stands and reads, “We the jury find the defendant Not Guilty.”
“And so say you all?”
“Yes, Your Honor.”
“We thank you for your service and you are dismissed.” Larimer’s gavel comes down with a bang, and he rises, declaring, “Mr. Jordan, your client is free to go.”
An elated defendant is teary-eyed with relief. “I can’t thank you enough, Marc. I thought I was doomed.”
“You’re welcome, Daniel. Now get out of here and go home to your family. I never want to see you here again.”
Marc packs up his briefcase, thanks his staffer and starts to leave the courtroom, but he is held back by the Bailiff.
“What’s up, Mac?”
“The Judge wants to see you in Chambers, Mr. Jordan.”
The ominous command to visit a judge’s chambers at the end of a trial is always discomforting. Marc closes the door behind him and faces Judge Leroy Larimer who is hanging up his robe. Larimer’s round belly starts to poke through the buttons on his shirt. Too many Reuben sandwiches and root beers, Marc deduces.
“What’s going on, Judge?”
“I don’t usually compliment the Defense. It gives them a big head. But this time the Prosecution did not prove its case, and frankly they had a good case to prove. The nitwits.”
There we have it: the best books about amnesia from Next Chapter in 03/2023. We hope you enjoy the stories - and if you do, please leave a comment below, or a review in Goodreads or your favorite store. It would mean a lot to us!
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