The Last Thing I Remember

West. That was me. Charlie West. What were they talking about? What bridge? I didn’t know about any bridge. “Don’t worry. Prince understandings. He doesn’t hold you responsible. But whatever the truth is, the West boy is useless to us now. Then in the same smooth, cool, ironic voice, Waylon said softly “Kill him.”

Book: The Last Thing I Remember by Andrew Klavan, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2009

Genre: Adventure/Thriller

Target Audience: Boys 16+

Subjects: Patriotism, Terrorism, Character/Identity

Summary: When you wake up in a torture chamber, the last thing you want is to realize you’ve lost an entire year of your memory and have no idea why you are there or what’s going to happen to you. Charlie manages to escape for the moment, but those people are still after him. And so are the police. The police think he killed his friend. The terrorists think he was one of them and betrayed them. Charlie has no idea which – if either – is true. Is he a good guy or a bad guy? He knows he WAS a good guy, but if he was falsely accused of killing his friend, then maybe he became a bad guy. But surely he wouldn’t? Would he?

Notes: This is an interesting look at the character of a person. Charlie’s friends and family don’t believe he could have killed his friend. They have no doubt of this. It wasn’t him. But Charlie wonders still. What kind of person would he have to become to do this? Could he really have thrown off all the patriotic and Christian ideals he once held to and joined a group of terrorists? This book and the second deeply explore that concept. So it’s a look at the identity of a person and what makes them do the things they do. Unfortunately, as good of a concept as that is, Charlie’s identify and reasons for being a good guy are not based as much on Scripture as belief in the American system of democracy.  It’s more of a political cry than spiritual. Charlie’s beliefs are deeply rooted in patriotism, but loosely rooted in the Bible. When looking to find out what’s right and what’s wrong, it’s not the Bible he turns to, it’s the ideals of the government instead. He clings to a quote from Winston Churchill rather than a verse.

Recommendation Scale: 3/5

Reviewer: J:-)mi

John 8:31-32 – To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. ³² Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”