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I Remember You
Seventeen-year-old Lucas is a star hockey player who's headed for the marines as soon as high school is over. Then there's Juliet, straight-A student and rigorous debater, whose college trajectory has been carefully planned for years. They couldn't be more different. But from the moment Lucas sees Juliet, he swears he remembers their first kiss. Their first dance. Their first fight. In fact, Lucas knows everything that's going to happen between them - not because he can predict the future, but because he claims to have already lived it.
Juliet doesn't know whether to be afraid for herself - or for Lucas. Because as Lucas's memories occur more frequently, they also grow more ominous. All Juliet wants is for Lucas to be safe with her in the present. But how do you hold onto someone you love now when they've begun slipping away from you in the future?
Juliet doesn't know whether to be afraid for herself - or for Lucas. Because as Lucas's memories occur more frequently, they also grow more ominous. All Juliet wants is for Lucas to be safe with her in the present. But how do you hold onto someone you love now when they've begun slipping away from you in the future?
320 pages, Hardcover
First published February 10, 2015
64 people are currently reading
3068 people want to read
About the author
Cathleen Davitt Bell
4 books124 followersI've hiked on the rocky Italian coastline, used positive visualization to control pain, visited every bowling alley in the Adirondacks, invented my own kind of pasta dish (write and I'll give you the recipe), and am halfway to raising two kids in partnership with a terrific husband. I can tell a pretty mean ghost story, make butter with ingredients from the corner deli, and have just published a book about the most passionate kind of love I can imagine.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 356 reviews
December 23, 2014
SPOILER FREE
First of all, this is the most memorable temporary book I will ever read in my life. Julia is such a strong character and makes you feel so confident. I have not read many books that have the main character portrayed as an independent, smart, well-educated girl that is in high school. Usually it's just a girl that doesn't care about school and wants to suck face with her boyfriend. Lucas is just care free. He is an ice hockey player and is a guy, so it's expected. Also, he's ... different. I think it was a little rushed in the beginning and everything came at once. He told her he was having all these weird dreams, which you find out later is déjà vu/futuristic memories. The story progresses and Lucas starts to loose his sanity. He gets drunk a lot and is slowly dying. I will stop there but don't worry I have not spoiled any of this book!
Overall, I Remember You is a book that teaches life lessons, shows true love and you will definitely need tissues for the ending!
First of all, this is the most memorable temporary book I will ever read in my life. Julia is such a strong character and makes you feel so confident. I have not read many books that have the main character portrayed as an independent, smart, well-educated girl that is in high school. Usually it's just a girl that doesn't care about school and wants to suck face with her boyfriend. Lucas is just care free. He is an ice hockey player and is a guy, so it's expected. Also, he's ... different. I think it was a little rushed in the beginning and everything came at once. He told her he was having all these weird dreams, which you find out later is déjà vu/futuristic memories. The story progresses and Lucas starts to loose his sanity. He gets drunk a lot and is slowly dying. I will stop there but don't worry I have not spoiled any of this book!
Overall, I Remember You is a book that teaches life lessons, shows true love and you will definitely need tissues for the ending!
November 28, 2016
Ohhhh, I really liked this one. It was really slow though, and for that reason alone I wouldn’t outright recommend it to anyone. I'm not exactly what you'd call a patient reader either, but this kinda hit the right buttons for me so it still worked.
It reads like a contemporary YA romance with a sci-fi element of time travel (or a sort of time travel?). . . it's interesting to note that the author makes absolutely no attempt to give any sort of explanation for this aspect of the novel. That would normally drive me nuts (although time travel explanations also normally drive me nuts too, lol) but it didn't bother me here.
The way things sort of came together was pretty trippy (most recent season of Game of Thrones spoiler & spoiler for this book I guess:
Despite the slow pace, there was a countdown of sorts going on in the story, and I read the whole thing with an almost desperate urgency, needing to know if my heart was gonna get broken at the end.
Did my heart get broken at the end? Ha. Like I’d tell you.
It reads like a contemporary YA romance with a sci-fi element of time travel (or a sort of time travel?). . . it's interesting to note that the author makes absolutely no attempt to give any sort of explanation for this aspect of the novel. That would normally drive me nuts (although time travel explanations also normally drive me nuts too, lol) but it didn't bother me here.
The way things sort of came together was pretty trippy (most recent season of Game of Thrones spoiler & spoiler for this book I guess:
Despite the slow pace, there was a countdown of sorts going on in the story, and I read the whole thing with an almost desperate urgency, needing to know if my heart was gonna get broken at the end.
Did my heart get broken at the end? Ha. Like I’d tell you.
September 19, 2018
"I said I would never forget. And I didn’t.
Lucas: I remember you."
2015 Reading Challenge #04: A book published this year.
Cuando Lucas le dice a Juliet que todo lo que están viviendo ahora ya lo vivieron antes, que él lo recuerda, Juliet se siente aterrada. ¿Está Lucas loco, tiene un tumor, se golpeó la cabeza? Lógicamente, Juliet no puede creerle pero eso no le impide enamorarse de él. Y pronto se ven envueltos en una relación intensa y obsesiva.
"What I really wanted from Lucas was Lucas. Undiluted, uncopied, unphotographed, unprocessed Lucas. I didn’t want to share him. I wanted it to be just him and me. Alone."
(Ahora, antes de que comiencen a juzgar, recuerden: son adolescentes. Sus sentimientos son absolutos, apasionados, impulsivos y vibrantes.)
Al pasar los días, Lucas comienza a tener cada vez más "recuerdos" y es capaz de predecir cada vez antes de que sucedan: el incendio de una casa, la separación de sus padres... su muerte (no es spoiler). El peso de este nuevo conocimiento comienza afectar su relación con Juliet. Él solo quiere olvidar, y ella —por momentos— solo quiere olvidarlo.
"I wanted to be the self I was before Lucas, before his secrets, before everything had gotten so complicated. Or at least, I sort of wanted that. I didn’t want it enough to give Lucas up."
El libro está escrito como si Juliet estuviera escribiendo la historia para Lucas. Y aunque tal vez para algunos pueda parecer un poco lento, a mí me gustó bastante. El plot es original y me encantó la explicación de como Lucas tiene todos esos recuerdos.
Amo cuando los libros logran confundirme y sorprenderme, y tal vez es porque comencé este con cero expectativas, pero este realmente me sorprendió. Todo es una gran paradoja, pero who cares?
La historia transcurre a lo largo de varios años, y los personajes no permanezcan estáticos, sino que realmente crecen. Maduran, se dan cuenta de sus errores y cambian la dinámica de sus relaciones. Las consecuencias de ese crecimiento, aunque era obviamente necesario, me pusieron bastante sentimental.
Recomendable si te gustó The Time Traveler's Wife, te gustan los YA y puedes tolerar actitudes adolescentes en su máxima expresión.
January 7, 2015
I was lucky enough to get my hands on this book. Bell is a master story teller - making you think about the characters when you are not reading, making you want more, more, more. The relationship between the two main characters is palpable and you will want to jump into Juliet's shoes and remember when love was like that - so new and real and raw. The story is paced well, and pages turned easily. You'll forget that you're reading a book, you'll be so enveloped in this thriller. I highly recommend you getting a copy as soon as it hits the shelves, if there are any left. If not - order online. An outstanding novel. I also loved her other two books, Slipping and Little Blog on the Prairie.
February 13, 2015
I actually didn't mean to read this book. Don't get me wrong - I wanted to read it eventually, but I ended up sitting down and reading the first few pages and then I just couldn't stop. From the start, there was something about Juliet's voice that kept my attention. I think, maybe, she reminded me of me. Or, the me I was when I was in high school, falling in love for the first time.
I Remember You recounts the high school romance of Lucas and Juliet. Both have a plans for their lives. Juliet is college bound, while Lucas has long known he would join the Marines. Neither expected the other - well, I guess that's not quite true. At least not by the time the reader meets the fated couple. Somehow, Lucas has experienced his life and his relationship with Juliet before. He swears that he remembers their first kiss, their fights, their lives - that he has somehow returned from the future and has been given a second chance to be with Juliet.
Juliet is practical and doesn't know what to make of this Lucas character, a boy who swears he's known and loved her before. Despite her better judgement, she finds herself falling for him. And, as their relationship deepens and grows more complicated, she's concerned by the flashes of memory - or is it the future? - that plague Lucas, signalling that all is not well in his future.
I was surprised by how deep a chord this novel struck for me. And how nostalgic it made me feel. There's nothing like first love and this particular story was incredibly bittersweet and affecting. I'm really curious about how teens will respond to this novel in comparison to adult readers. In my mid-twenties and far enough away from my first love and first relationship to at least think semi-critically about it, I found this story about a boy who has lived and been able to reflect on his past mistakes, then go back and essentially have a redo, surprisingly emotional. In our own lives it's near impossible not to think 'what if' and I Remember You presents a scenario in which 'what if' becomes actionable. I think, because of this distance, I Remember You became less of a sweet romance with a touch of scifi and was instead something more substantial. I hope teen readers find something equally substantial in the their own reading.
Recommended.
I Remember You recounts the high school romance of Lucas and Juliet. Both have a plans for their lives. Juliet is college bound, while Lucas has long known he would join the Marines. Neither expected the other - well, I guess that's not quite true. At least not by the time the reader meets the fated couple. Somehow, Lucas has experienced his life and his relationship with Juliet before. He swears that he remembers their first kiss, their fights, their lives - that he has somehow returned from the future and has been given a second chance to be with Juliet.
Juliet is practical and doesn't know what to make of this Lucas character, a boy who swears he's known and loved her before. Despite her better judgement, she finds herself falling for him. And, as their relationship deepens and grows more complicated, she's concerned by the flashes of memory - or is it the future? - that plague Lucas, signalling that all is not well in his future.
I was surprised by how deep a chord this novel struck for me. And how nostalgic it made me feel. There's nothing like first love and this particular story was incredibly bittersweet and affecting. I'm really curious about how teens will respond to this novel in comparison to adult readers. In my mid-twenties and far enough away from my first love and first relationship to at least think semi-critically about it, I found this story about a boy who has lived and been able to reflect on his past mistakes, then go back and essentially have a redo, surprisingly emotional. In our own lives it's near impossible not to think 'what if' and I Remember You presents a scenario in which 'what if' becomes actionable. I think, because of this distance, I Remember You became less of a sweet romance with a touch of scifi and was instead something more substantial. I hope teen readers find something equally substantial in the their own reading.
Recommended.
February 1, 2015
And the unpopular opinion train rides again...
I wanted to like I Remember You so much! But I think I need to take a break from YA because it's all starting to seem so stagnant and blah (at least I would take a break from YA if I didn't have a stack of YA ARCs to review) and nothing is making much of an impression on me. I Remember You was no exception. This is surprising when you think about how awesome the synopsis seems. But the book is not awesome...not in the least.
My main issue with I Remember You was that I didn't like any of the characters. Or rather I didn't like the main characters...and that includes their romance. This is a classic story of "Boy likes Girl. Girl Likes Boy. Girl turns into a raging jerk while she's with said Boy." Juliet was just everything I get annoyed in when it comes to female YA characters. She starts off smart and seems to have a good head on her shoulders. She meets hot guy; insta-love happens, and Juliet gets obsessive and becomes a jerk. She starts being shitty to her mom. She starts blowing off her best friend (who was also a horrible character who leads guys on and treats them like crap). She starts becoming extremely clingy. Not all of this is on her, though. Lucas was plenty annoying, too (he just wasn't written as big as a jerk). So, basically I was stuck reading a romance between two unlikable character and that breaks a book for me. Basically, the only likable characters in I Remember You were Juliet's mom and Dex (who should have soliloquies written about him due to his sheer awesomeness).
I Remember You had an engrossing plot. I'll give it that. However, a lot of what built up that plot seemed tedious and repetitive. Juliet and Lucas kept fighting over the same things. Juliet was on the cusp of telling her best friend the truth, but then at the last minute her mouth makes the decision, and a lie comes out. This happened about 3 or 4 times with just the best friend and a couple of other times with her mom. And on top of that, the writing in I Remember You wasn't terribly spectacular.
Overall, I didn't really like I Remember You. The only reason it's getting two stars instead of one was because the plot was engaging at some points and because I liked the whole PTSD angle (which should have been explored more). Other than that, I wasn't wowed, mainly because of the main characters and the intense, borderline obsessive romance. I wouldn't really recommend it.
I wanted to like I Remember You so much! But I think I need to take a break from YA because it's all starting to seem so stagnant and blah (at least I would take a break from YA if I didn't have a stack of YA ARCs to review) and nothing is making much of an impression on me. I Remember You was no exception. This is surprising when you think about how awesome the synopsis seems. But the book is not awesome...not in the least.
My main issue with I Remember You was that I didn't like any of the characters. Or rather I didn't like the main characters...and that includes their romance. This is a classic story of "Boy likes Girl. Girl Likes Boy. Girl turns into a raging jerk while she's with said Boy." Juliet was just everything I get annoyed in when it comes to female YA characters. She starts off smart and seems to have a good head on her shoulders. She meets hot guy; insta-love happens, and Juliet gets obsessive and becomes a jerk. She starts being shitty to her mom. She starts blowing off her best friend (who was also a horrible character who leads guys on and treats them like crap). She starts becoming extremely clingy. Not all of this is on her, though. Lucas was plenty annoying, too (he just wasn't written as big as a jerk). So, basically I was stuck reading a romance between two unlikable character and that breaks a book for me. Basically, the only likable characters in I Remember You were Juliet's mom and Dex (who should have soliloquies written about him due to his sheer awesomeness).
I Remember You had an engrossing plot. I'll give it that. However, a lot of what built up that plot seemed tedious and repetitive. Juliet and Lucas kept fighting over the same things. Juliet was on the cusp of telling her best friend the truth, but then at the last minute her mouth makes the decision, and a lie comes out. This happened about 3 or 4 times with just the best friend and a couple of other times with her mom. And on top of that, the writing in I Remember You wasn't terribly spectacular.
Overall, I didn't really like I Remember You. The only reason it's getting two stars instead of one was because the plot was engaging at some points and because I liked the whole PTSD angle (which should have been explored more). Other than that, I wasn't wowed, mainly because of the main characters and the intense, borderline obsessive romance. I wouldn't really recommend it.
May 4, 2015
Funny. Heartbreaking. Hopeful.
This is definitely one of my best 2015 reads so far. While typing this, I could still see some teardrops beside my keyboard. Guys, please read this. I couldn't put into words how amazing I think this book is. Seriously, I was thinking of how I could describe my reading experience but the only word that kept popping into my mind was "amazing." If you have read Kim Holden's All Of It, it has kind of the same element.
You know I love, love the romance element in a book and this book has lots of that. But I loved that it's not just about the romance between the characters. It's about friendship, it's about family, it's about life.
I couldn't say anything else but READ IT. READ IT. READ IT!
This is definitely one of my best 2015 reads so far. While typing this, I could still see some teardrops beside my keyboard. Guys, please read this. I couldn't put into words how amazing I think this book is. Seriously, I was thinking of how I could describe my reading experience but the only word that kept popping into my mind was "amazing." If you have read Kim Holden's All Of It, it has kind of the same element.
"Are the memories we recall governed by the feelings attached to them? Is that why they stay with us? Or do we remember only what we remind ourselves of over and again as the years go by?"
You know I love, love the romance element in a book and this book has lots of that. But I loved that it's not just about the romance between the characters. It's about friendship, it's about family, it's about life.
I couldn't say anything else but READ IT. READ IT. READ IT!
March 30, 2015
When I read a book that is supposed to be romantic I want that: romance .This book has some romance but it is mostly sad.I liked both characters but I would have enjoyed it much more if it had been a happier story.
By romance I mean the feeling expressed in Here to Stay,this beautiful song by Nicolas Wauquiez and Nancy Mensah.
Lukas and Juliet, the young couple in love, are seldom on the same page; when one remembers the other one doesn't and they miss each other even when they are together. I found it hard to read until the end of the book. However, the final chapters where the best part of the book ,besides I had the film American Sniper fresh in my mind , which made me understand the situation in the war better.
www.theleisurediaries.blogspot.com
By romance I mean the feeling expressed in Here to Stay,this beautiful song by Nicolas Wauquiez and Nancy Mensah.
Lukas and Juliet, the young couple in love, are seldom on the same page; when one remembers the other one doesn't and they miss each other even when they are together. I found it hard to read until the end of the book. However, the final chapters where the best part of the book ,besides I had the film American Sniper fresh in my mind , which made me understand the situation in the war better.
www.theleisurediaries.blogspot.com
January 6, 2015
I had the great good luck to read this while it was still in manuscript form, and it is wonderful. Warm and true and confused, like so many teenagers in love. The spooky, magical hints keep dropping, and the romance rises, and you're carried along by the true beating heart of it, the real sweetness at its core. I even hesitate to use the term romance, which I think has been used so freely that it ceases to mean anything, but it has real heart, and hope, and it gives you that feeling of being in love for the first time: chaotic and thrilling and scary. It's really terrific.
October 22, 2020
Lần đầu giở cuốn này ra đọc, lê lết mãi mới được nửa cuốn. Hôm nay nhân dọn dẹp lại tủ sách, giở cuốn này ra skim nửa còn lại. Nói chung là mình không có đủ sự quan tâm dành cho các nhân vật để mà cảm thấy bị cuốn hút bởi câu chuyện, mặc dù ý tưởng tác giả đưa ra khá hay... Nếu không phải dọn tủ sách thì chắc mình còn không nhớ ra là mình có cuốn này cơ.
October 12, 2020
I was really excited to read this because the concept seemed so fascinating but unfortunately i just wasn’t invested. There was a lot of potential in my opinion that went unfulfilled and although I’m happy the characters got their happy ending, I wish I could have enjoyed the journey more.
March 25, 2016
This book is fantastic! There was never a dull moment, and I never once second-guessed that Lucas and Juliet were truly made for each other.
I love that this book was really different from anything else that I've read in YA. Lucas's dreams of the future were a really intricate way of writing and developing the story line.
All of the characters were different and lovable in their own ways. Rosemary is so spunky and Juliet is so kind and understanding. She really was a perfect narrator for the story.
All in all, I really loved this book. I was blown away and Bell's character development and the way that she wrote the story— it's one I'll always remember!
I love that this book was really different from anything else that I've read in YA. Lucas's dreams of the future were a really intricate way of writing and developing the story line.
All of the characters were different and lovable in their own ways. Rosemary is so spunky and Juliet is so kind and understanding. She really was a perfect narrator for the story.
All in all, I really loved this book. I was blown away and Bell's character development and the way that she wrote the story— it's one I'll always remember!
February 22, 2015
Move over Eleanor and Park...I Remember You is this year's next best thing. Such an emotional and powerful book. I loved every minute of it. Sequel pleasssse!
April 16, 2024
This was not my typical kind of book but I ended up really enjoying it! I loved how the plot developed and the ending was incredibly satisfying and unexpected to me.
October 31, 2017
2.5*
Kiểu sách viết cho mấy em teen, lỗi chính tả thì lắm, lại chẳng có gì đặc sắc...
Kiểu sách viết cho mấy em teen, lỗi chính tả thì lắm, lại chẳng có gì đặc sắc...
July 18, 2018
This is hands down the worst book I’ll read in 2018. How do I know? Maybe I’m a dead time traveler and I’ve lived it already. Or maybe this book is so atrocious that I can’t fathom reading anything else nearly this bad.
Juliet and Lucas are high schoolers in love because...the plot demands it. There really isn’t anything too terribly interesting about these two, and outside from their hobbies, I didn’t care about them at all. Lucas claims he can see the future and knows what’s going to happen to them, and...that’s it. That’s the plot.
I don’t know how this time traveling even works. Can he just see detailed visions of the future? Is his older self somehow inhabiting his younger self? Is his life flashing before his eyes and he’s merely reliving his youth before he dies? The author offers an explanation but I still don’t understand what it is. I’m probably just too stupid to figure it out, but at this point I’m too bitter to care. This whole plot could have benefited from more (not confusing) details about this.
And speaking of details, why were there so many unnecessary things said in this book?
“He finished his speech and looked down at the fake brick linoleum that my mom always hated and was waiting to get the money to replace.”
“The fact that he scratched all the appointments into a free calendar his mom had gotten in the mail that had pictures of babies dressed in flower costumes took nothing away from what he was doing.”
Did I need to know all of that? Was the fate of the universe hanging in the balance on whether or not I knew what kind of calendar it was? This book isn’t very long to begin with but it could have benefited from editing that took out things like this.
And the metaphors. For the love of God. There were terrible metaphors everywhere in this book. A few of my favorites are:
“He took the notebook and Xeroxes out of my hand and pushed them to the side, as if he were putting a screaming child in time-out.”
“He stopped. He turned and gave me a look that said ‘I am way too bored to answer your question.’ Like he was a rock star and I was a ten-year-old begging for an autograph.”
“Her face was contorted, as if she’d just noticed that I was a mutant zombie baby killer.”
This is supposed to be a sweeping love story and yet it’s littered with terrible imagery that even E. L. James would be too ashamed to use. Who thought this was finished? Who had the bright idea that this was okay the way it was written?
The characters, like I said, are just bland. I hated the best friend Rosemary, she strings some poor guy along and no one does anything to stop her. The Jason subplot wasn’t needed and just served to bring tension to the story, or I guess some kind of climax because without it there really wasn’t one.
The ending made no sense. Can Juliet now time travel and see into the past or inhabit her teenage body or whatever it is Lucas does? How exactly did she save him from dying? I’m left with more questions than I had before but the book ended before I could even fully form them.
I don’t understand how people think this is some kind of profound love story. Maybe if the characters weren’t cardboard and the writing wasn’t so juvenile, I could see it. But as is, this is a hot mess of a novel that was entertaining but overall a waste of my time.
Juliet and Lucas are high schoolers in love because...the plot demands it. There really isn’t anything too terribly interesting about these two, and outside from their hobbies, I didn’t care about them at all. Lucas claims he can see the future and knows what’s going to happen to them, and...that’s it. That’s the plot.
I don’t know how this time traveling even works. Can he just see detailed visions of the future? Is his older self somehow inhabiting his younger self? Is his life flashing before his eyes and he’s merely reliving his youth before he dies? The author offers an explanation but I still don’t understand what it is. I’m probably just too stupid to figure it out, but at this point I’m too bitter to care. This whole plot could have benefited from more (not confusing) details about this.
And speaking of details, why were there so many unnecessary things said in this book?
“He finished his speech and looked down at the fake brick linoleum that my mom always hated and was waiting to get the money to replace.”
“The fact that he scratched all the appointments into a free calendar his mom had gotten in the mail that had pictures of babies dressed in flower costumes took nothing away from what he was doing.”
Did I need to know all of that? Was the fate of the universe hanging in the balance on whether or not I knew what kind of calendar it was? This book isn’t very long to begin with but it could have benefited from editing that took out things like this.
And the metaphors. For the love of God. There were terrible metaphors everywhere in this book. A few of my favorites are:
“He took the notebook and Xeroxes out of my hand and pushed them to the side, as if he were putting a screaming child in time-out.”
“He stopped. He turned and gave me a look that said ‘I am way too bored to answer your question.’ Like he was a rock star and I was a ten-year-old begging for an autograph.”
“Her face was contorted, as if she’d just noticed that I was a mutant zombie baby killer.”
This is supposed to be a sweeping love story and yet it’s littered with terrible imagery that even E. L. James would be too ashamed to use. Who thought this was finished? Who had the bright idea that this was okay the way it was written?
The characters, like I said, are just bland. I hated the best friend Rosemary, she strings some poor guy along and no one does anything to stop her. The Jason subplot wasn’t needed and just served to bring tension to the story, or I guess some kind of climax because without it there really wasn’t one.
The ending made no sense. Can Juliet now time travel and see into the past or inhabit her teenage body or whatever it is Lucas does? How exactly did she save him from dying? I’m left with more questions than I had before but the book ended before I could even fully form them.
I don’t understand how people think this is some kind of profound love story. Maybe if the characters weren’t cardboard and the writing wasn’t so juvenile, I could see it. But as is, this is a hot mess of a novel that was entertaining but overall a waste of my time.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 1, 2022
This book sits somewhere between cliche and interesting. So much of the story is like so many other YA novels. A nerdy girl and a jock boy. But this one has an interesting premise that changes things. Lucas tells Juliet that he has memories of them together. Of their first kiss, of the gift she gets him for Christmas. Juliet finds herself falling in love with Lucas, even as his memories of them begin to change him.
I feel like this story would have benefited from having two different points of view. Only having Juliet’s thoughts and perceptions lessens the impact of how much Lucas goes through. There’s too much focus on her when he’s the one with the interesting story. Obviously, all of the story can’t be told from his perspective, but I think it would’ve added more depth.
For the most part, I enjoyed the story. I liked the way it turned and the way it ended. It’s a nice easy story to read with little depth. It is memorable because of the storyline, but there isn’t much that goes into it.
3 stars in total. Though a higher 3.
I feel like this story would have benefited from having two different points of view. Only having Juliet’s thoughts and perceptions lessens the impact of how much Lucas goes through. There’s too much focus on her when he’s the one with the interesting story. Obviously, all of the story can’t be told from his perspective, but I think it would’ve added more depth.
For the most part, I enjoyed the story. I liked the way it turned and the way it ended. It’s a nice easy story to read with little depth. It is memorable because of the storyline, but there isn’t much that goes into it.
3 stars in total. Though a higher 3.
April 27, 2016
Actual rating: 3.5
Thank you, Cathleen Bell and Netgalley for providing me a copy of this book!
When Lucas drops a pen in class and Juliet picks it up, he looks into her eyes and remembers their first kiss in the rooftop. So he takes Juliet up the rooftop, kisses her, but ends up freaking her out. Then he explains that he keeps seeing these "memories" of them, which turns out to be memories of the future.
I had great expectations for this book because when I read the synopsis, I immediately wanted to read it! I felt my hands tingling, and I looked for ways to get a hold of a copy the minute I clicked "Want to Read" on Goodreads. However, the book didn't live up to my expectations.
The romance in this book was too fast paced for me. After the kiss that freaked out Juliet, they immediately liked each other, and they were heads over heels with each other in the first few chapters of the book. Aside from the romance however, there was not much happening to the story.
There were also times when I felt like my orientation with the timeline of events were off. I didn't know that a certain amount of time had passed, and would only know about it in the latter chapters. But, what I hated the most was the fact that Juliet became a bitch to everyone aside from Lucas when they got together. I just hated the personality change and it almost came to the point when I couldn't stand her anymore.
Fortunately, for me and for this book, it began to pick up towards the last half of the book. Now it's not to say that I loved all of the last half, but I began to like it. If I were to judge just based on the last half, I would probably give it 4.0 stars. Things began to make more sense and the timeline was clearer. The story also began to progress.
Towards the last 20% or so of the book, I began to love it. Things began to be really amazing, and it lived up to the expectations that I had before I read the book.
Overall, this book didn't live up to my expectations as a whole, but I liked it more and more as the story progressed.
February 7, 2019
Poignant, nostalgic and beautiful.
dnf
February 23, 2020DNF at 33%.
Uhm... I really don’t want to know -at least not now- what kind of secrets or plot-twist has. It bored me and I really don’t care about the relationship of this two.
Uhm... I really don’t want to know -at least not now- what kind of secrets or plot-twist has. It bored me and I really don’t care about the relationship of this two.
June 25, 2017
WOW! The story flowed beautifully, and I love that the author took us on a journey of what true love could really feel like. I'll be gushing over Jules and Lucas for a very long time.
February 21, 2015
When I first read the synopsis of this one, I was thinking it was going to be a run of the mill time travel romance book. Admittedly, I hadn't really read many of those, so it was fine with me. But it ended up being much more than that.
The book is written as though Juliet is writing a letter to Lucas. Maybe a journal to him would be a more appropriate comparison, since it is the length of a book, after all. Either way, I thought it was the perfect way to write the story. The reader is able to experience the story from Juliet's thoughts, but with the details that Juliet finds important. It's a great (and plausible) way to jump ahead to more important bits rather than having to deal with daily minutiae. We're able to get right to the heart of the story through Juliet's feelings and recollections.
Juliet is a really lovely main character. She is smart, she has her head on straight, and she is really quite likable. Lucas is also likable most of the time, and I can't really explain to you when/why he isn't, because it would give things away. Let's just say you're rooting for these two. We also get to see Juliet's other relationships evolve. Her best friend Rosemary is not always the easiest character to like, but she and Juliet were such opposites that it was easy to see what drew them to each other. Juliet also has to deal with her changing relationship with her mom, which was a nice addition to the story (and quite refreshing- no Parent-in-YA Syndrome here).
The romance, of course, plays a huge part in the story. I liked the majority of it, but there were times that I kind of wanted to give Juliet a little shake to remind her that she is a smart, strong young woman. The romance develops a bit quickly for my taste, but I don't know if I'd really call it full blown insta-love, since Juliet did question things, and was wary of jumping right in to actual love. The one thing that I have mixed feelings about is Juliet's behavior in the middle of the book, when they were already in love, and together. She blows off her friends and family, as well as her interests and her school responsibilities. On one hand, um no. No one needs to be doing that. However, there are young women who make this mistake, and I can't help but wonder if this was supposed to be a cautionary measure? Either way, it didn't sit well with me.
The plot was very enjoyable, and since Juliet jumped ahead and skipped the details that could have dragged it down, it moved nice and quickly. I really enjoyed the twist on typical time travel that the author used in this story. There were a few things that I did see coming, but I still had no idea how everything would turn out in the end. And there were tears shed. Quite a few of them, really.
*Copy provided by publisher via Netgalley for review*
This review was originally posted on It Starts at Midnight
The book is written as though Juliet is writing a letter to Lucas. Maybe a journal to him would be a more appropriate comparison, since it is the length of a book, after all. Either way, I thought it was the perfect way to write the story. The reader is able to experience the story from Juliet's thoughts, but with the details that Juliet finds important. It's a great (and plausible) way to jump ahead to more important bits rather than having to deal with daily minutiae. We're able to get right to the heart of the story through Juliet's feelings and recollections.
Juliet is a really lovely main character. She is smart, she has her head on straight, and she is really quite likable. Lucas is also likable most of the time, and I can't really explain to you when/why he isn't, because it would give things away. Let's just say you're rooting for these two. We also get to see Juliet's other relationships evolve. Her best friend Rosemary is not always the easiest character to like, but she and Juliet were such opposites that it was easy to see what drew them to each other. Juliet also has to deal with her changing relationship with her mom, which was a nice addition to the story (and quite refreshing- no Parent-in-YA Syndrome here).
The romance, of course, plays a huge part in the story. I liked the majority of it, but there were times that I kind of wanted to give Juliet a little shake to remind her that she is a smart, strong young woman. The romance develops a bit quickly for my taste, but I don't know if I'd really call it full blown insta-love, since Juliet did question things, and was wary of jumping right in to actual love. The one thing that I have mixed feelings about is Juliet's behavior in the middle of the book, when they were already in love, and together. She blows off her friends and family, as well as her interests and her school responsibilities. On one hand, um no. No one needs to be doing that. However, there are young women who make this mistake, and I can't help but wonder if this was supposed to be a cautionary measure? Either way, it didn't sit well with me.
The plot was very enjoyable, and since Juliet jumped ahead and skipped the details that could have dragged it down, it moved nice and quickly. I really enjoyed the twist on typical time travel that the author used in this story. There were a few things that I did see coming, but I still had no idea how everything would turn out in the end. And there were tears shed. Quite a few of them, really.
*Copy provided by publisher via Netgalley for review*
This review was originally posted on It Starts at Midnight
April 12, 2015
Originally reviewed for an Author Spotlight here.
I Remember You by Cathleen Davitt Bell is the most haunting book I think I have ever read. It is extremely intense, in a good way, and it made me stop and think, a lot. I literally had to put the book down so many times just to absorb what I had just read. I was so torn between going to bed for work and staying up to finish the book. I laid in bed for about 45 minutes just thinking about how scary and realistic the situation in the book was. Like, WHAT IF....
The book is told in a journal type format. Sometimes I forgot I was reading what Juliet was writing. It felt too real and in the now to be something written from the future.
The characters in this book are so believable. I can picture these being REAL adults living in the world right now.
Juliet is this amazing, smart, confident girl. But she has her faults. She doesn't trust easy and she has to find a logical answer/meaning to everything. Not even love will get her to give up her need for solid answers.
Lucus is this amazing guy who wants nothing more than to be with Juliet. He wants her in his future. He has seen it without her and he either didn't like it or he messed something up and now he has to redo life, it seems.
My heart was broken while reading this book. Having Lucas change halfway through and Juliet still knowing everything he has told her made things very hard. Juliet struggled to try and convincing Lucas of what he has told her. But she has her eye's opened when Dex said something about "you believed him because you love him." If Lucas REALLY loved Juliet, wouldn't he believe her just as she believed him?
The book goes through different ages/time periods for the characters. By the end of the book the characters are grown up and their story is still continuing. The Majority of the book is told in 1994-1995. So the characters are my sisters age, which I find to be pretty cool. Having my sister being a teenager in high school around that time really helped me to imagine some of the things in the book better.
The ending of the book goes through college years and a few years after. It shows that the future can change and it also shows how love never truly goes away.
I REALLY want to know what happens after the book ended. Did Lucas live? Did they get back together? Did Juliet tell him about everything and he finally believed her? UGH! I know there isn't going to be a second book and that thought it kind of killing me.
Overall, I gave the book 5/5 stars.
I Remember You by Cathleen Davitt Bell is the most haunting book I think I have ever read. It is extremely intense, in a good way, and it made me stop and think, a lot. I literally had to put the book down so many times just to absorb what I had just read. I was so torn between going to bed for work and staying up to finish the book. I laid in bed for about 45 minutes just thinking about how scary and realistic the situation in the book was. Like, WHAT IF....
The book is told in a journal type format. Sometimes I forgot I was reading what Juliet was writing. It felt too real and in the now to be something written from the future.
The characters in this book are so believable. I can picture these being REAL adults living in the world right now.
Juliet is this amazing, smart, confident girl. But she has her faults. She doesn't trust easy and she has to find a logical answer/meaning to everything. Not even love will get her to give up her need for solid answers.
Lucus is this amazing guy who wants nothing more than to be with Juliet. He wants her in his future. He has seen it without her and he either didn't like it or he messed something up and now he has to redo life, it seems.
My heart was broken while reading this book. Having Lucas change halfway through and Juliet still knowing everything he has told her made things very hard. Juliet struggled to try and convincing Lucas of what he has told her. But she has her eye's opened when Dex said something about "you believed him because you love him." If Lucas REALLY loved Juliet, wouldn't he believe her just as she believed him?
The book goes through different ages/time periods for the characters. By the end of the book the characters are grown up and their story is still continuing. The Majority of the book is told in 1994-1995. So the characters are my sisters age, which I find to be pretty cool. Having my sister being a teenager in high school around that time really helped me to imagine some of the things in the book better.
The ending of the book goes through college years and a few years after. It shows that the future can change and it also shows how love never truly goes away.
I REALLY want to know what happens after the book ended. Did Lucas live? Did they get back together? Did Juliet tell him about everything and he finally believed her? UGH! I know there isn't going to be a second book and that thought it kind of killing me.
Overall, I gave the book 5/5 stars.
July 16, 2016
Ohmygod. I think... I think this book is now my all-time favorite YA. Ever. And that's saying a lot.
It's incredibly rare for me to purchase (read: order) a physical copy of a book by an author I've not heard of before. But when I saw the cover and the title, I instantly knew that this book will possess some of the possible elements I'd love in a ~YA contemporary~ story: it involves the concept of time (I'm a sucker for anything time-related), destiny, forgotten memories, lost identities, and sweet and innocent first loves. Moreover, one review refers to this as similar to The Time Traveler's Wife - AND I LOVE THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE. Needless to say, because of that, I had high expectations from this book. And you know what? Bell damn well delivered on that one. If I may, yes, this book is like a YA version of The Time Traveler's Wife, but still with its own original components, and I commend Ms. Bell for that.
What to say? Where to start? Simply put, I love the pacing and development among many others. It's fast and gripping, keeps you on your toes, keeps your mind warped up about what's happening, all the while praying for a happy ending. And the ending is just.... Time Traveler's Wife- like. We did not have to worry about the future after all. :)
But what stands out for me is the protagonist Juliet. In YA, you rarely read stories with smart protagonists. You know, the ones who actually do their homeworks, and study after spending the rest of their time in school hanging out with their boyfriends. But here, Juliet is smart. She's a journalist by training, is on the debate team, and actually studies in the library and does her homework at home. Plus, she's prepping herself to go to law school! I support! And Lucas, sweet cinnamon roll Lucas here is the hockey player jock who supports all that. Plus, he plans to enlist in the Marines. They have plans for the future ya'll! Having said that, I love these two so much that I didn't mind their best friends much, sorry.
It's going to take a while to get over this story. I think I may just read it again. And I rarely re-read books.
It's incredibly rare for me to purchase (read: order) a physical copy of a book by an author I've not heard of before. But when I saw the cover and the title, I instantly knew that this book will possess some of the possible elements I'd love in a ~YA contemporary~ story: it involves the concept of time (I'm a sucker for anything time-related), destiny, forgotten memories, lost identities, and sweet and innocent first loves. Moreover, one review refers to this as similar to The Time Traveler's Wife - AND I LOVE THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE. Needless to say, because of that, I had high expectations from this book. And you know what? Bell damn well delivered on that one. If I may, yes, this book is like a YA version of The Time Traveler's Wife, but still with its own original components, and I commend Ms. Bell for that.
What to say? Where to start? Simply put, I love the pacing and development among many others. It's fast and gripping, keeps you on your toes, keeps your mind warped up about what's happening, all the while praying for a happy ending. And the ending is just.... Time Traveler's Wife- like. We did not have to worry about the future after all. :)
But what stands out for me is the protagonist Juliet. In YA, you rarely read stories with smart protagonists. You know, the ones who actually do their homeworks, and study after spending the rest of their time in school hanging out with their boyfriends. But here, Juliet is smart. She's a journalist by training, is on the debate team, and actually studies in the library and does her homework at home. Plus, she's prepping herself to go to law school! I support! And Lucas, sweet cinnamon roll Lucas here is the hockey player jock who supports all that. Plus, he plans to enlist in the Marines. They have plans for the future ya'll! Having said that, I love these two so much that I didn't mind their best friends much, sorry.
It's going to take a while to get over this story. I think I may just read it again. And I rarely re-read books.
June 19, 2022
This story made me laugh, smile, BROKE my heart in a bunch of small pieces, made me hopeful, just to leave me hanging on the side of my seat. I hate but love this story. The author did a very swell job on this one because I still can't reread it because of the emotions I don't want to feel again.
I HIGHLY recommend it, just don't talk to me about it. I'm maybe still healing.
Staring the book:
When Lucas told Juliet about his visions:
Events after that:
The ending of the book:
I HIGHLY recommend it, just don't talk to me about it. I'm maybe still healing.
"I said I would never forget. And I didn’t.
Lucas: I remember you."
Staring the book:
When Lucas told Juliet about his visions:
Events after that:
The ending of the book:
October 7, 2017
Chi vừa đọc xong cuốn này, điện thoại còn 5% pin nhưng vẫn cố gõ thật nhanh phần cảm nhận chung này, sợ mai viết thì sẽ nguội mất 🙌🏻
Cảm xúc lúc này của Chi đang là rất cảm động 😭 ngay sau khi đọc xong kết truyện.
Thực ra ban đầu chọn cuốn này, tớ chỉ nghĩ đây đơn thuần là một cuốn Young adult về học sinh trung học Mỹ thôi cơ. Nhưng khi sách về tay rồi, bắt đầu đọc rồi thì lại phát hiện ra nó còn có một phần khác nữa, Chi không nói ở đây vì có lẽ sẽ trở thành spoiler cho các cậu mất - nhưng nếu ai muốn biết thì có thể xem phần hashtag tớ dùng bên dưới phần Rate sao cho cuốn này nhá.
Đoạn đầu cuốn này rất ổn, mạch truyện theo dòng hồi tưởng của nhân vật chính yên ả dễ chịu, về cuộc sống thời trung học của nhân vật cùng những người bạn. Nếu chia thành 4 phần đi, thì phần 3 có lẽ sẽ dễ khiến người đọc nản nhất, vì có chút đều đều và luẩn quẩn nữa. Nhưng cái kết đã phá tan mọi điều không ưng ý của Chi ở phần trước, nên chung lại thì tớ khá là ưng.
Cảm xúc lúc này của Chi đang là rất cảm động 😭 ngay sau khi đọc xong kết truyện.
Thực ra ban đầu chọn cuốn này, tớ chỉ nghĩ đây đơn thuần là một cuốn Young adult về học sinh trung học Mỹ thôi cơ. Nhưng khi sách về tay rồi, bắt đầu đọc rồi thì lại phát hiện ra nó còn có một phần khác nữa, Chi không nói ở đây vì có lẽ sẽ trở thành spoiler cho các cậu mất - nhưng nếu ai muốn biết thì có thể xem phần hashtag tớ dùng bên dưới phần Rate sao cho cuốn này nhá.
Đoạn đầu cuốn này rất ổn, mạch truyện theo dòng hồi tưởng của nhân vật chính yên ả dễ chịu, về cuộc sống thời trung học của nhân vật cùng những người bạn. Nếu chia thành 4 phần đi, thì phần 3 có lẽ sẽ dễ khiến người đọc nản nhất, vì có chút đều đều và luẩn quẩn nữa. Nhưng cái kết đã phá tan mọi điều không ưng ý của Chi ở phần trước, nên chung lại thì tớ khá là ưng.
April 11, 2015
I Remember You is a fantastic book by
Cathleen Davitt Bell
. At the start of the book, I was not entirely sure I would enjoy it, but I am certainly glad I got past that feeling.
Two lives intersect in a most unusual way when Lucas seeks out Juliet. They each are exceptional main characters in such a convoluted story resulting from a dream state/memory of Lucas’ future life including major historical events yet to occur.
This elaborate unfolding story is folded into high school and teen year’s angst and uncertainties in great world building and character development. Sub-plots are by themselves and secondary characters make this a really fun read. I finished it in a single non-stop read.
I don’t wish to spoil this story, so You Should Read It because it’s great!
Two lives intersect in a most unusual way when Lucas seeks out Juliet. They each are exceptional main characters in such a convoluted story resulting from a dream state/memory of Lucas’ future life including major historical events yet to occur.
This elaborate unfolding story is folded into high school and teen year’s angst and uncertainties in great world building and character development. Sub-plots are by themselves and secondary characters make this a really fun read. I finished it in a single non-stop read.
I don’t wish to spoil this story, so You Should Read It because it’s great!
September 28, 2016
This book made me laugh, made me cry, and I loved the journey of it. I'm sad that more people don't know about this book! Loveable characters, and a heart stopping ending! I will be looking for more by this author!
January 9, 2018
The beginning started off really strong but the middle was super slow. The ending made up for all the confusing bits so maybe 3.5 stars?
As always I wanted a longer epilogue but I did enjoy where it left off!
As always I wanted a longer epilogue but I did enjoy where it left off!
September 21, 2014
4.5 review to come closer to release. I am thinking it will be in the next love stacks!
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