{Interview & Giveaway} THE FORGETTING CURVE by Angie Smibert

~*~

A Backwards Story is happy to launch The {Teen} Book Scene's THE FORGETTING CURVE Tour!  Check out the tour schedule to see the list of events.  Stop back next Friday, May 11th, for my review!

(I know it's not fairy tales, sorry!!!)

THE FORGETTING CURVE is Angie Smibert's second novel.  It's the sequel to MEMENTO NORA, the second in a dystopian series.


Visit Angie's web site and find her on Twitter.  She also blogs for the LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY WRITERS on Thursdays.

An interview with 
Angie Smibert

Can you give us a hint at what's happened between the end of MEMENTO NORA and the beginning of THE FORGETTING CURVE?

Only a few weeks have gone by from the end of the first book to the beginning of the second. As you might remember, MEMENTO NORA ends with the main characters (Nora, Micah, and Winter) being sent to Detention (aka, Big D) and having their memories wiped. So, by the beginning of THE FORGETTING CURVE, they’ve forgotten what they did in the first book—and so have many, many other people in Hamilton. In fact, the kids “remember” other things happening to them during that time. Except for Winter, most of the time. Her cousin, Aiden, comes home to investigate.

When I read MEMENTO NORA, one character I wanted to learn a lot more about was Winter, so I'm happy to see that she's still sharing her perspective with readers. She shares her POV with her cousin Aiden and friend Velvet. Can you introduce us to Aiden and Velvet?

Aiden Nomura, Winter’s cousin, has been away at school. (And you find out why later.) He thinks of himself as the consummate hacker and social engineer. (That’s someone who hacks social situations to get what he wants.) Everything’s a door he has to open. But the one person in the world he cares about the most is Winter. So he figures out a way to get back to Hamilton for the summer to help her—and he finds a whole lot more going on than he bargained for.


Velvet Kowalcyk is Winter’s best friend (besides Micah). You met Velvet very briefly in MEMENTO NORA; she’s one of Micah’s crew at the lunch table. Velvet is a thrift shop diva, who can make a stunning ensemble out of garbage bags and twist-ties, if need be. She’s also a budding song writer.

Will we get any insight into the two remaining narrators from the first book, Nora and Micah?

Nora and Micah will make an appearance or two in  THE FORGETTING CURVE . However, this is really Winter, Aiden, and Velvet’s story. The plan, though, is to have Nora and Micah back in book 3, THE MEME PLAGUE, as narrators.

Will the Memento comic strip or a similar form of getting information out return in THE FORGETTING CURVE?

Memento is still floating around, but a new form of information comes out—the MemeCast. It’s an underground radio show inspired by Memento.

TFC is a scary concept because it's on every street corner, and citizens are encouraged to rid themselves of bad memories for points toward fabulous rewards. How did you come up with and implement the concept of such a terrifying concept?

I got the idea for TFC (or at least the forgetting pill) from actual research going on in the area of post-traumatic stress disorder. A number of researchers are looking into drugs that can help alleviate the impact of traumatic memories on PTSD sufferers. So I just took the idea a little farther—and put it in Starbucks-like shop on every corner.

How many books do you envision in the series? Can you reveal any secrets about what's to come?

The series should end (unless I have an incredible brainwave) with the next book, THE MEME PLAGUE. It’s scheduled to come out in Spring 2013. As I said above, Micah and Nora (and Velvet) will come back as narrators. Aiden and Winter will definitely be involved, but I haven’t decided if they’ll get a chance to narrate again.

I had fun reading MEMENTO NORA and am looking forward to THE FORGETTING CURVE.  Angie's interview has me even more excited to dive back into her world!


Stop back NEXT week to read my review!

And now, because Marshall Cavendish and The {Teen} Book Scene are awesome, you have a chance to win this exciting novel!  Runner-ups will receive autographed bookmark swag!