Beyond the Memory Veil

 Beyond the Memory Veil is perhaps one of my favorite books I have ever read. The book is incredibly clever with countless cultural references for the astute reader. The book is akin to an LDS version of Paradise Lost, well, written in prose. It is an instant modern classic.

Now, I think I will caveat my review and say, to fully appreciate the many cultural references, you need to be pretty familiar with LDS culture and doctrine. In some ways, this limits the potential audience of the book. At the same time, I think you could enjoy the book without that background; just some of the references will be lost.  One of these examples is “family council” which is something pretty common in an LDS household, or at least in my mind this is just another phrase for “family home evening,” which I had as a kid: a night spent with one’s immediate family featuring a lesson/activity and a home baked dessert at the end. I think you don’t need that cultural background to understand the book, but I think it does shape it.

Other lines like “Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we diet” is taken from, oh, actually it is from Isaiah, Isaiah 22:13 “let us eat and drink; for to morrow we shall die.” That said, Isaiah is quoted to a great extent in the Book of Mormon.

A few more cultural references that tickled me, a book called “The Panosyn Papers: Revealing the Man Behind the Myth” a clear nod to “The Joseph Smith Papers”  as well as an audio disk titled “Panosyn Superstar” a nod to my favorite musical, “Jesus Christ Superstar”.

The references don’t stop there, but I will for the purpose of this review.  Honestly, I think I enjoyed the book most by going in blind, so I recommend that. I’ll share my one major grievance with the book, which is the ending. It ends in the middle of the story. So I’m a little sad about that, but excited for the next book in the series. 

One reviewer on Goodreads complained about this point too, saying the story doesn’t have a plot. I would disagree with that, there is a pretty obvious plot, actually a few. The book is divided into two sections, which are intermixed throughout the book. Act 1 chapters take place before the memory veil and Act 2 chapters that happen after.  And maybe if you have been convinced to read the book you can stop reading now, not that I will spoil anything, but again, I like the idea of going in blind as I think it is more rewarding. The plot in Act 1 is the news of the inheritance test, it is a depiction of the premortal life. This is the reason I think Paradise Lost is an apt comparison, because like Paradise Lost, you identify with Lucifer. He is a real person, and not some mere personification of evil. We see him here in his pre-fallen state and listen to his rhetoric; it is very interesting. Act 2, the plot is, will Emily, the main character, pass this inheritance test? There are many milestones in this process, from boarding the mysterious boats (again, a boat, like Nephi sailed), to what comes after.

Not to bag too much on this other Goodreads reviewer, but he says “Also I didn't care for the ‘fake curse words’ used in the book. Why bother?” The reason for this is incredibly obvious - Latter-day saints don’t swear. It would be off putting if the book did.

Taking a step back, the characters are interesting, the writing is incredibly clever. The encoded references within the book are enjoyable but the biggest point, discovering the story and what it is about, is the most enjoyable part of the experience. I highly recommend this book. In fact, I’m even going to recommend Leaf Bound have an annual book award and nominate this book for it. 

Perspective: 1st person

Tense: Simple Past

Length: 322 pages

Kindle unlimited: No

https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Memory-Veil-L-Shaw-ebook/dp/B0CRCZD6D5/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=