Remember Della

by Cynthia Mock Burroughs

Before the dreams, sixteen-year-old Katherine would have said the biggest problems in her life were too much homework; Gordy, her pesky eight-year-old brother; and a mom and stepdad who fought like cats and dogs.

As far back as Katherine can remember, she’s had what some might call “portentous” dreams, but they never left her questioning her soundness of mind. So why is her sleep being disrupted, night after night, by increasingly disturbing dreams of a yellow scarf, and why are dreams of a girl named Della invading her slumber, as well?

How far will sleep-starved Katherine go to salvage her sanity and make the dreams go away? Nothing seems to be out of the question once she discovers who Della is and that no one, including the girl’s mother and step-father, recognizes—or will admit—Della has simply vanished (gone “splitsville"!). Katherine decides if she has to lie, steal, break into someone’s home, or include her blackmailing little brother in her search for answers, then so be it.

What Katherine finds will intertwine her life so indelibly with Della’s, she will carry the emotional scars for years to come.

In her desperate quest for the truth, Katherine is joined by an extremely colorful cast of characters, including long-time friend and recent love interest, Em; Mrs. Harper, her octogenarian neighbor; a chain-smoking waitress named Clovis; and her precocious brother, Gordy.

Remember Della, similar in style to The Secret Life of Bees and To Kill a Mockingbird, is a mystery with a paranormal twist. The story, which takes place in the South during the mid-fifties, is chock-full of facts, trivia and slang from that era. While an entertaining read, this book addresses bullying and abuse—both physical and emotional—in a fresh and unique way during a time before such issues were “labeled” unacceptable and problematic.

276 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 12, 2011

About the author

Cynthia Burroughs, a life-long resident of South Carolina, currently lives in McConnells, South Carolina with her “wonderful and very patient” husband of almost forty-eight years.

“Remember Della”, a light paranormal mystery, is Cynthia’s first published novel. She says she particularly enjoyed writing this book as the story is centered around a young girl growing up in the South, in the mid-fifties - both a time and place to which she could relate.

In addition to the sequel to “Remember Della”, Burroughs has two other manuscripts in progress and is currently in the final stages of revising a children’s chapter book.

Reviews

[Steph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review of Remember Della by Cynthia Burroughs
I got the book from the author and Paranormal Romance & Authors That Rock in exchange for an honest review.
Remember Della is a wonderful standalone that mix a little bit of the supernatural, a whole bunch of drama that comes with the teenage life and a little bit of background of the 50’s. I have to admit that when I read the title I was expecting that Della was the heroine of this book but I was surprised when Katherine appeared and pretty much guide the reader through her life as a teen and how it all changed with a dream that involved an introverted girl named Della.
Katherine seems like and ordinary girl whose main trouble in life should be finishing her homework or worried about what her friends and pretty much a mini army of gossipers keep spreading the rumor that there is something else between her best friend Emery and her. However, that is so not the case. Kat has been having this dreams that are kind of like premonitions for a while. She knew the portrait in her bedroom was going to fall and hit her/ therefore, she made her mother change the place of her bed. The portrait really fell and could have beheaded her. She knew her brother would break his arm in an accident and that an uncle of hers will die before any of those things happened. Her dreams were consumed with premonitions to the point where she tried her best to avoid sleep. It was no wonder her mother feared those dreams of hers and that she did her best to consider them as casualties. Nevertheless, a dream of a yellow scarf changed everything.
I must admit I was pretty confused when at the beginning of the novel Katherine was multitasking between remembering, dreaming and speaking to a journalist. It was a little difficult to distinguish between what happened, when it happened and who was the one talking. However, the interest of the journalist on one particular memory of Katherine really got my attention. In fact, Katherine became my favorite character due to her curiosity and determination. She did her best to find Della, the owner of the yellow scarf that had squeezed her neck so many times in her dreams. Katherine fear that was sort of a warning and with the help of Em, she started investigating what happened to Della. No one in school seemed to pay attention to her, her father seemed violent and no one had seemed the girl for quite some time. I was pretty impressed that she would want to keep searching for the girl even when it could put her in danger.
Emery was also a character that I came to love. He was so supportive and protective when it came to Kat. Also, he knew how to charm her mother and tease/play/prank her brother. Since the start of the book he had an aura that screamed boyfriend to be and husband material. I know I may be exaggerating a little but I sincerely thought that by the way he got along with Katherine’s family. Every doubt I had that told me that it couldn’t be left my mind when I saw how he supported her no matter what. I am not going to lie and tell that everything between Kat and Em was perfect. Just like Kat said, it would have been a miracle if it had been the case. However, I truly believe that Kat and Em didn’t disappoint in any part of the story.
I recommend this book to anyone that loves reading about drama, mystery, growing up and young love. I promise you won’t regret giving a chance to this book and I can also assure you that the ending will not disappoint.

[Diane Coto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Katherine (Kat) tries to avoid sleep because she’s trying to avoid her dreams. They are prophetic and she is afraid of them … even after all these years. She doesn’t go to bed until she is absolutely exhausted. The current year is 1976 and she is telling a journalist her story from 1955. In 1955, she was sixteen-year-old Katherine Harris and lived with her mom, her stepdad, and little brother, Gordy. Her only confidant was her best friend, Embry (Em) Anderson. She felt she could tell him anything. Her dreams were of a yellow scarf on a bus. Something very frightening happened; her dreams weren’t specific. She finally realizes the yellow scarf of her dreams belonged to a very shy and withdrawn girl named Della.

Della hasn’t been in school for a couple of weeks, but no one has missed her. Kat and Em try to track her down and things get more than a bit interesting. Another oddity — Della and her brother, Bud, are both being raised by their mother and their rather brutal stepfather, but Bud, who is a Wydell’s star running back, is as outgoing and popular as Della is shy and withdrawn.

As Kat is held captive by her intrusive dreams, the reader is held captive anticipating what happened to Della. The suspense and mystery are spot-on. I was drawn in by the time period as well. I love the fifties, a time perceived as much more simple than today. The author included the slang of the era. Surprisingly, eight-year-old Gordy picked up a lot of it from his constant viewing of TV. This is well written with very likable and unforgettable characters. Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

[Arlene Mullen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The is the story of 16 year old Kat in the 50s. It is told by an older Kat as she remembers what happened. She is considered a physic. She is able to see the future in her dreams. She keeps dreaming about this scarf. The thing is that the girl, Della is missing and no one will admit that she is gone.
It is a great story. I loved all the characters. I liked how you could tell that it took place in the 50s by the way they talked.
It was a very interesting story. As she tries to figure out what is gong on and why she is involved in it. Once I started this story I could not put it down. I had to know what what going to happen. A great mystery!
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[S.K. Gregory · Rating 5 out of 5]

Remember Della is the story of Kat, a sixteen year old girl who has strange dreams involving a yellow scarf. Told from the point of view of an older Kat, she takes us back to the fifties and her life back then. Having had other precognitive dreams, Kat sets out to help a classmate called Della. A girl who seems to be invisible to everyone.
With a memorable host of characters and an intriguing storyline, this is a great story that will keep you hooked.

[Ella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Please see my full review at http://readingisawayoflife.blogspot.com/