False Memory (False Novel)
Gr 9 Up-"I don't know who I am, but I might be a badass." So says Miranda North when she wakes up on a park bench with no memory of who she is or where she came from. When she visits a mall, people react to her with stark fear, and in their haste to get away, they end up killing themselves. Peter explains that she is a Rose, a genetically enhanced human with super-soldier abilities and the power to inflict psychic fear on people. The purpose behind the Roses is to wield a new weapon in war, one that attains peace through chaos. Meanwhile, the creators of the Roses have a nefarious plan in mind; they want to release the Roses on Cleveland to see how much havoc can be wreaked. Peter is abducted by members of the Beta team-all clones of Miranda and her friends-and a rogue Rose named Rhys has plenty of unpleasant secrets up his sleeve. A love triangle adds to Miranda's confusion in this fast-paced sci-fi adventure. After a clunky beginning, the story picks up, and the stakes are heightened with the appearance of the cloned Beta team. A plot twist two-thirds of the way in, however, throws readers off and makes for a bit of confusion. Miranda is somewhat of an ambivalent character who handles her memory loss with remarkable acceptance. For fans of surface-level fast-paced stories.-Jamie Kallio, Orland Park Public Library, ILα(c) Copyright 2011.  Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc.  No redistribution permitted.