Never Forget.
Memory is Copeland-Stark’s business. Yet after months of reconsolidation treatments at their sleek new flagship facility, Hope Nakano still has no idea what happened to her lost year, or the life she was just beginning to build with her one great love. Each procedure surfaces fragmented clues which erode Hope’s trust in her own memories, especially the ones of Luke. As inconsistencies mount, her search for answers reveals a much larger secret Copeland-Stark is determined to protect.
But everyone has secrets, including Hope.
1 | Don’t look back
HOPE
The Wilder Sanctuary
Rancho Mirage, California
“And how are the nightmares?”
“Fine.” Hope shifted, pushing stringy hair from her face with her palms. “I haven’t had any this week.”
“None at all?”
Hope shook her head slowly, face impassive.
“That’s important progress.” Dr. Stark looked impressed with his own abilities, as if he’d performed a special magic trick to protect Hope from herself. Perhaps in a way he had.
Dr. Stark jotted notes on his tablet with a pointy gray stylus. “Are you sleeping any better?”
“A little. An hour or two at a time.” It was a lie. She hadn’t slept at all.
Hope focused on the San Jacinto Mountains outside the picture window, framed by the endless blue of the summer sky. Desert sky. It was hard to think about darkness right now, with so much light around her. “Does that mean I’m getting better?”
“As we’ve discussed, it’s important you get concentrated stretches of sleep.” Dr. Stark flipped his tablet to expose the keyboard, typing with a renewed purpose. “It will help you make progress in the Labyrinth.”
The word Labyrinth filled Hope with a viscous dread. She knew she’d visited it dozens of times since arriving at Wilder, though never remembered what had happened there. “I told you I’m never going back.”
“You did,” Dr. Stark said. “But as I said, it’s important to try and push through. It helps you confront what you’re avoiding.”
“I’m not avoiding anything,” Hope said. Another lie.
“I’m increasing your temazepam to thirty milligrams,” Dr. Stark said. “And tomorrow evening I’d like you to spend some time in ViCTR using the Erleben device. Say, forty-five minutes?”
Hope glanced at the ceiling. She wanted a cigarette in the worst way.
“Great,” he said. “Check in with the pharmacy after our session.”
Stark was doing the casual Friday thing that day, though Hope remained uncertain if it was, in fact, Friday. He resembled a prep school student, with his shiny polo shirt and immaculately pressed chinos. The polo looked brand new, still creased in the sleeves and too white, almost blinding. Hope couldn’t picture Dr. Stark performing the tasks of mere mortals: changing the toilet paper, taking out the garbage, shopping for polo shirts. Maybe his wife did all that. Maybe she bought five polo shirts in different colors from Neiman Marcus, hanging them in an orderly row, next to his dry-cleaned Italian suits in clear plastic bags.
“Is there anything else you want to tell me?” Dr. Stark asked, still typing, fingers thin and bare.
“Are you married?”
“Divorced,” he said. “More thoughts about last year, perhaps?”
“Nothing else,” Hope said. She glanced outside again. “Have there been any messages for me?”
“I’m sorry.” Stark shook his head. “But I promise to let you know if there ever are.”
An artificial chime reverberated through the room’s speakers, and Dr. Stark smiled. “We’ll pick up again next week.”
Hope wiped her hands on her pants and rose, heading for the shiny glass door.
“Hope,” Dr. Stark said.
She paused, hand on the doorknob.
“Be well.”
“Be well, Dr. Stark.”
Audrey Lee started writing fiction at the young age of eleven, when she and her best friend co-authored a masterpiece about gallivanting around London with the members of Depeche Mode, Wham!, and Duran Duran.
Unfortunately, these spiral notebooks have yet to find a publisher evolved enough to understand the genius buried within. As a result, The Mechanics of Memory is her first work of published fiction.
Before she started writing fiction, Audrey received her master’s degree in education from UC Berkeley (Go Bears!) and spent over two decades in public education. When she isn’t writing books she consults with school districts about creating environments for students that are more equitable, culturally responsive, and socially just.
Audrey lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband, son, and Maltipoo, Luna. When not working, Audrey is compulsively organizing something, bullet journaling, cheering for her son at a dance competition, max betting on a slot machine, or watching the Golden State Warriors with a dirty martini in hand.
Website
https://audreyleeauthor.com
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Praise:
"Audrey Lee's mesmerizing THE MECHANICS OF MEMORY is as complex as it is thrilling. All we ever really have are our memories, but what if those memories aren't real? Lee takes this premise to frightening extremes...Steeped in paranoia and delightfully playful with the concept of reality, THE MECHANICS OF MEMORY is wildly entertaining and, ironically, quite unforgettable."
- Carter Wilson, USA Today bestselling author of The Father She Went to Find
"One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest meets Inception in Lee's stunning debut. A must read."
- James L'Etoile, award winning author of Dead Drop and Face of Greed.
"The Mechanics of Memory is propulsive and muscular. I hung on every word. A technological thriller that keeps us perched on the edge of our seats as well as our disbelief, Lee pulls it together masterfully. In the end I cried in relief...and instantly wanted more. Can't wait to see what's coming from her next!"
- Linda L. Richards, award-winning author of Dead West and Endings
"The Mechanics of Memory is a swift, twisty speculative novel that grabs you from page one. With engaging characters and intriguing science, the reader is absorbed throughout. For fans of Blake Crouch and other high-end speculative twist rides."
-Shannon Kirk, International-Bestselling author of Method 15/33 and the gold medal-winning The Extraordinary Journey of Vivienne Marshall
"Debut author Audrey Lee has created an intoxicating mix of psychological thriller and domestic drama a la the streaming series Severance. As you take your first steps in The Mechanics of Memory, you will find yourself falling under Lee's spell, unable to leave her world until the very end."
—Naomi Hirahara, USA Today bestselling author of Mary Higgins Clark Award-winning Clark and Division
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