Book Review: Say You'll Remember Me by Katie McGarry

Say You’ll Remember Me by Katie McGarry

Pages: 400
Publish date: January 30, 2018
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
ISBN: 9780373212378
Purchase: Book Depository – Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU – QBD

When Drix was convicted of a crime–one he didn’t commit–he thought his life was over. But an opportunity came with the new Second Chance Program, the governor’s newest pet project to get delinquents off the streets, rehabilitated and back into society. Drix knows this is his chance to get his life back on track, even if it means being paraded in front of reporters for a while.Elle knows she lives a life of privilege. As the governor’s daughter, she can open doors with her name alone. But the expectations and pressure to be someone she isn’t may be too much to handle. She wants to follow her own path, whatever that means.

When Drix and Elle meet, their connection is immediate, but so are their problems. Drix is not the type of boy Elle’s parents have in mind for her, and Elle is not the kind of girl who can understand Drix’s messy life.

But sometimes love can breach all barriers.

Fighting against a society that can’t imagine them together, Drix and Elle must push themselves–Drix to confront the truth of the robbery, and Elle to assert her independence–and each other to finally get what they deserve.

Say You’ll Remember Me:

I received an e-arc of Say You’ll Remember Me by Katie McGarry from Harlequin Teen in exchange for an honest review. This has in no way influenced my thoughts and feelings about the book.

If you have been around for a couple of years, you would know that I love Katie McGarry books. I’ve read every single one of hers up to this moment, and really enjoy all of them. I am a massive fan of the ways that she deals with characters and their lives. And Say You’ll Remember Me is heartbreaking, beautiful and just hits you in the right places.

Say You’ll Remember Me follows Drix a convicted teen who is now part of the Second Chance Program. When Drix was convicted of a crime that he didn’t commit he thought his life was over. But with this second chance, he wants to take. He wants to do something right with this life. Then he meets Elle and something about her changes Drix. But he also changed Elle. Elle’s a governor’s daughter and has had her life handed to her, but when she wants to do something more.

Say You’ll Remember Me had a really interesting concept. A lot of Katie McGarry’s novels deal with teens that are on the outside, that are pushed away by society. Drix has been convicted a crime that he didn’t commit, but no one knows that. It was really hard throughout the novel to see the hardship that Drix had to go through. He wants to do so well, but society is pushing him away. They want him to fail.

I really enjoyed Drix as a protagonist in Say You’ll Remember Me. His not the usual protagonist that you see in young adult novels and I think that’s why I really enjoyed him. Throughout the novel, the reader is able to see that Drix will do anything for his family, for those that he loves. He will even tear himself apart so that his family can get what he wants. I loved Drix’s honesty throughout the book as well. Not so much with his family, but with himself.

I thought I wasn’t going to like Elle. I thought she was going to be a spoilt rich kid – but she wasn’t. Getting to know Elle’s story was fascinating. I loved that she was into coding and wanting to follow her own path. But she had this pressure not only from her family but the public around her. She was a ‘star’ and ‘beauty’ in their eyes. It was hard to see Elle try and be another person, while also trying to do the things that she loves. A lot of teens have pressure to look a certain way because of society and Elle is full of that. She wants to make everyone happy, just like Drix.

I really enjoyed the romance between Drix and Elle. While it was slow, from the start the reader is able to see that they enjoy each other company and like each other. But, there is so much standing in their way. It was really hard seeing Drix and Elle push each other away for various reasons. You could see that they cared for one another, but understood that sometimes life gets in the way.

Family is a massive theme in Say You’ll Remember Me. Both of Drix and Elle don’t have the best family life and it really shows throughout the book. Drix’s relationship with his parents is barely there, they do more bad than good. Now the only family he has is with his brother and sister. I really enjoyed seeing them bond and rebuild their relationship with one another. Elle’s relationship with her parents is very stressed. They expect so much from her, without asking Elle want she wants.

Overall, Say You’ll Remember Me by Katie McGarry is intense and takes you on a journey. It’s heartbreaking and uplifting. It explores family, social standards and second chances. With classic Katie McGarry romance Say You’ll Remember Me is an exploration of teen love and it’s ups and downs.

About the Author

Katie McGarry was a teenager during the age of grunge and boy bands and remembers those years as the best and worst of her life. She is a lover of music, happy endings, reality television, and is a secret University of Kentucky basketball fan.

Katie is the author of full-length YA series, Pushing the Limits and Thunder Road. Her debut YA novel, Pushing the Limits was a 2012 Goodreads Choice Finalist for YA Fiction, a RT Magazine’s 2012 Reviewer’s Choice Awards Nominee for Young Adult Contemporary Novel, a double Rita Finalist, and a 2013 YALSA Top Ten Teen Pick.

Nereyda Gonzalez

· Reply

January 31, 2018 at 3:42 AM

I havent read a book by this author in a while but I did used to love them. She does that teenage angst and romance so well. I need to read this one!

Jessica

January 31, 2018 at 7:44 AM

Thank you so much! ~Jessica, InkSlinger PR

Julie

January 31, 2018 at 3:15 PM

The cover looks gorgeous and the premise sounds really interesting. I haven’t read any of Katie McGarry’s books before but I think I’ll have to pick this one up.