My chance encounters with books have been the best this year. I stumbled upon this in the library, and the cover had me, and then the blurb, and thank god I picked this up. I had never heard of the book or the author, so this book coming up as remarkably astounding and the best has been nothing but the sweetest reading surprise for me.

I am so over joyous about reading such a brilliant book and yet so out of words. I need to learn how to surmise it, but I will give a meek attempt at it (and terribly fail). Broadly concerning four individuals, 'The Memory of Love' steers through the life stories of these utmost real, flawed characters set in Sierra Leone against the backdrop of the civil war. It wraps around many more characters in its course and sets through the deep caverns of complex emotions and the human psyche that feels both astounding and unfeigned. The story smoothly interplays between two timelines (during and after the war) around different characters, and it does so phenomenally well; I was equally invested in all the stories, timelines, and people (which is a rarity for me). The story glides through time and people effortlessly giving justice to everything needed, progressing through hope and longing to the pitfalls of renunciation and resignation, all too well.
In my initial experience, what felt like a war novel became so much more. I have read my share of war books, but this one, by far, is the best. It's about the people not directly fighting the war but deeply affected by the same: their love and loss, their struggle and scuffle for existence, duplicity and loyalty in relationships, mental health issues, and PTSD. It's about my best read of this year! A million times and over for books like these <333