Book Review: That’s Not My Name by Megan Lally
Amnesia, a boyfriend suspected of murder, and a mystery that will grip you until the very end, check out my full review of That’s Not My Name by Megan Lally below!
Book Information
Waking up in a ditch with no memory of what happened is terrifying until Mary Boone’s father comes frantically into the police station looking for her. Mary thinks she has everything figured out and will get her memories back soon, but strange things start happening and her father keeps forgetting things that a father should never forget….
Drew has been searching for his girlfriend, Lola, since she went missing nearly five weeks ago. It doesn’t help that he’s the prime suspect in her disappearance. But even with the sheriff’s office focusing on him instead of actually looking for her, Drew is determined to find Lola before it’s too late. He knows, deep in his heart, even if he’s to blame for her going missing, that she’s still alive somewhere.
Review | Heidi Dischler
This was honestly a really good read, and I wasn’t expecting too much from it for a few reasons. First, the story felt very predictable as a whole. There are quite a few things that just hit you in the face like “I know you know this isn’t true, but let’s pretend like it is.” However, I will say that this strategy worked in the book’s favor when it comes to the ending.
So, what were my favorite things about this book? The story idea as a whole, and the incredible ending (there’s a really good twist that I didn’t see coming). Things that I liked but didn’t necessarily love? The characters and literally the entire first half of Drew’s POV. It was boring and angsty and it basically was a “woe is me” kind of thing until we actually got to the good stuff.
Speaking of beginnings, this book was very slow to start off. Things kind of kept just chugging along and I didn’t see where we were going except the one thing I had stuck in my mind that was true. Now, the writing itself was still super engaging, so I didn’t find myself wanting to just give up on the book, but that doesn’t change the fact that it was just really… slow.
Spoilers ahead.
The main thing I obviously want to talk about is the spoilers for the ending. I LOVED how “Mary” gets locked in the basement and finds all the names. The newest one? Lola. Drew’s missing girlfriend. It was depressing but honestly so well done. Our “Mary” that we’ve been following is actually Madison, and that took me by surprise so much. I loved the twist and the ending itself merits a read for this novel.
Overall, this book really was captivating and thrilling, especially once you get past the first 50% of the novel. When you hit that point, it’s a “I’m not putting this down until I find out the ending.” A solid 4 out of 5 that was teetering closer to a 5 at a lot of points for me. Definitely a fun mystery book.
Source: Audiobook on Libby Public Library
(P.S. You can read this book for free by signing up for a free trial of Everand, which gives you one free audiobook or ebook of your choice!)s
