Sydney West ~ Review

 
Sydney West
by Rebecca McKinsey
ISBN:  978-1614347521
$15.95 (paperback)
$9.99 (kindle)

About the book:
After a tall, pale stranger collapses in the middle of a busy coffee shop, a college town is inspired with paranoia that isn’t completely unwarranted. The man wakes as an amnesiac but for impressive observation and memory skills, with an eccentricity to match. Inconsistencies build around him as he tries to piece together his history, teaching others about the real world in the process.

My thoughts:
To start, Sydney West is a strange book. Opening with Sydney telling a total stranger to call for help and then passing out in a coffee shop - then waking up in the hospital without any memory of "who" he is or "what" he does and "why" he does it. Said stranger decides he needs to check up on Sydney who is strange in his own right and thus forms a new friendship if you can call it that. Sydney is very self involved and almost autistic in that things need to be a certain way, he isn't very sociable and as he learns about himself he finds out he has no friends, loves tea and when he gets home he has no food in the house.

I'll be honest, I really struggled with this book. I didn't like Sydney much - but I really liked the stranger (I'd like to know more about him - he reminded me of Leonard from Big Bang Theory (don't ask me why). I felt sorry for Sydney because he had no memories to ground him, no friends to care for him and he doesn't seem to have a purpose in life. There is a mystery involved but it took about 1/2 of the book to start finding out what the true mystery is (and it's not Sydney's amnesia - sorta) and then to find out about someone who is playing with Sydney's life through the ability to hack into his computer and "watch" Sydney.... I think you get the idea.

On a positive note: this book is very well written and Rebecca has the intellect and skill to write a book like this - and 2 more sequels as well. While I struggled with the book I have a feeling books 2 and 3 will not be quite as unsettling (mainly because I'll be expecting this kind of book) and perhaps more questions will be answered. If you like unusual books (with sarcastic & mysterious/suspicious undertones) I suggest checking this one out from the library or purchasing one through Amazon (click here). 

Read Chapter 1

About the author:
Rebecca McKinsey is the 21 year old author of several books including The Storytellers series (I really want to check out this one) as well as the Sydney West series. 

Disclaimer: I received a copy of Sydney West to read and review on GivingNSharing. I was not required to write a positive review and no money exchanged hands.