(Don't You) Forget About Me by Kate Karyus Quinn

"Your parade lacked those simple joys and sorrows, and four years later it still marches on inside me, advancing toward its inevitable ending..."

Here's the second book from Kate Karyus Quinn. I really liked the weirdness that was Another Little Piece. Of course, I was excited to try (Don't You) Forget About Me.

Lots of people want to go to Gardnerville. Once you live there, you are cured of illness and made well. Citizens of Gardnerville live well over a hundred years, maybe even several hundred years. However, nothing comes without its price. The teenagers are particularly volatile. Strange things end up happening. The weirdest and worst things happen during a fourth year.

During a fourth year, four years ago, Skylar's sister, Piper, led her classmates to jump off of a bridge. Sixteen of them died. Skylar tries her very best to forget everything, taking forget-me-not flowers that leaver her with long gaps in her memory. It's hard to figure out who is telling the truth, or even to figure out if Skylar is reliable. Everyone tells her that Piper is dead, but she doesn't believe it. She believes that Piper is in the reformatory at the edge of town, and it's up to Skylar to get her out.

Another weird part of Gardnerville is how some of the residents have powers. Skylar's father had the power to make people like him. Skylar can see secrets. The boy who Skylar becomes friendly with, Foote, absorbs injuries. High school teacher (And Piper's ex-boyfriend) Elton is using the forget-me-nots and other flower-based drugs to keep the teenagers docile. He is also using Skylar to see into their thoughts, sending anyone with problematic tendencies to the reformatory. The thing is that the reformatory may be hurting rather than helping. The reformatory feeds off the kids, feeding the town, and keeping Gardnerville going, which means keeping fourth years going. That is, unless Skylar stops the whole thing.

Basically, the book is us figuring out what exactly is going on along with Skylar. We know there is something happening with Piper, and while aspects of it are predictable, I still found the book to be compelling. I really like Quinn's writing, and her books are definitely unique.

I received my copy of (Don't You) Forget About Me from Edelweiss, courtesy of HarperTeen. It's available for purchase now.