Chicago lawyer-turned-author Lisa Sherman uses her legal background to dig into the “why” behind unexpected actions in her new thriller “Forget Me” (Speaking Volumes, August 22, 2022), the first book in the new "Forget Me Not" series.
Her debut female-led psychological thriller has enough twists and turns to keep even the most astute mystery reader satisfied, and begs the question, How can you know who you are if you don’t remember your past?
Who’s that girl?
After being fished out of a river in small-town Wisconsin, Wanda Dellas is lucky to be alive – yet, she can’t help but feel like something’s wrong.
In “Forget Me” the debut psychological thriller from Lisa Sherman, dark secrets of the Midwest are about to be revealed.
“Forget Me” (Book 1 of 2 in the Forget Me Not Series)
Lisa Sherman | August 22, 2022 |
Speaking Volumes | Mystery, Suspense
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ABOUT FORGET ME:
Wanda Dellas is living someone else’s life: that’s the sense she’s had since an accident robbed her of her long-term memory. Barely scraping by, Wanda cleans offices at night in order to support her young daughter. She tells herself that anyone would believe they’re meant for a different existence. Yet she can’t shake the sense that she’s missing something—and that the past she’s been told belongs to her is not the whole story.
Claire Stanbrick’s photo is all over the news. A missing businesswoman who’s presumed dead, Claire bears a striking resemblance to Wanda. After learning that Claire went missing around the same time as her accident, Wanda embarks on a journey to uncover the truth about her past. Yet with each additional clue she uncovers, Wanda faces new dangers that threaten her life . . . or is it Claire’s?
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Lisa Sherman, a member of Sisters in Crime and the Chicago Writers Association, uses her legal background to create psychological novels that dig into the “why” behind people’s actions.
The first in a planned duology, “Forget Me” is one debut novel readers are sure to remember.
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Robbed of her memory in a mysterious accident, Wanda Dellas feels void of an identity.
But things change when Wanda learns about a missing woman who looks all too familiar.
She can’t help but wonder if this case might hold answers to her past.
The closer she gets to the truth, the closer danger gets to her and her young daughter, leaving her to question whether some memories are best left forgotten.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
LISA SHERMAN: Lisa has always had a passion for stories and the fictional worlds created by her favorite authors.
Her love of words led her to pursue a BA in English Literature as an undergraduate.
Her interest in jurisprudence led her to law school, where she attained her Juris Doctor degree.
Later, Lisa rounded out her love of writing by obtaining an MFA.
Lisa has always been fascinated with the “why” behind people’s actions.
As a writer of psychological thrillers and women’s fiction, she hopes readers will enjoy getting a sneak peek into what makes her characters act the way they do, especially when faced with challenging or extraordinary situations.
Find out more at: https://lisashermanauthor.com
Follow Lisa Sherman on social media:
Twitter: @LisaShermWrites | Instagram: @LisaShermWrites
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An Interview with
Lisa Sherman
How did your legal background influence your approach to fiction writing?
There’s an old saying that law school teaches you how to think like a lawyer. Part of thinking like a lawyer involves analyzing caselaw and statutes, comparing them to the facts of the case at hand, and putting the pieces together to build legal arguments, defenses, etc. When I am plotting a novel, I use those same methods to think through which clues I would need to complete the story puzzle. In addition, I’ve always felt that legal cases are inherently stories in and of themselves. While caselaw is comprised of true stories as opposed to fiction and thankfully, not all cases are as dramatic as psychological thrillers, underlying every case is a story: a story of what happened, who’s at fault, and why. Learning to identify and answer these questions was one aspect of what initially drew me to the legal profession, an aspect that continues to ignite my passion for both the law and writing today.
In your opinion, what is the connection between memory and identity? Why did you choose to explore this topic in “Forget Me”?
I feel that so much of who we are as individuals is based on our memories. The experiences we’ve had and how we responded to those experiences, as well as the long-term effect of those experiences on us greatly shape not only who we are but how we view the world around us. In the Forget Me Not series, the main character is plagued by the question, “How can you know who you really are, if you can’t remember your past?” She learns along the way that there is more to a person’s identity than just their past and that sometimes the past is not always what it seems.
Why was it important to show Wanda as a strong-willed mom?
My initial goal was to write a story containing a fierce, female protagonist. Historically, the role of women in the thriller genre was a mostly negative one. Women were presented as seductive, ditzy, weak, and in need of rescuing. I am grateful that many authors in recent years have flipped around this trope in their novels. I tried to follow in the footsteps of those authors by presenting both Wanda and Claire as strong point of view characters. As I drafted “Forget Me,” I also attempted to underscore that trend by making Wanda and Claire formidable characters who are not only mothers, but for whom motherhood is a driving factor in their motivations and actions.
What can readers expect from “You Belong to Me,” book two in the Forget Me Not series? And when can they pick up a copy?
While the central question in “Forget Me” is answered at the end of book one of the
Forget Me Not series, book two is a continuation of the storyline. In “You Belong to Me,”
readers will go along for the ride as central characters from “Forget Me” find themselves
in new dangerous situations with a mystery that needs to be solved. “You Belong to Me”
is scheduled to be released in Summer/Fall 2023.
What do you hope readers will take away from this series?
First and foremost, I hope readers enjoy reading this series. In “Forget Me,” I hope they have fun riding the story rollercoaster as they piece together whether Wanda and Claire are the same person or not. I also hope readers enjoy exploring the motivations of the characters in the novel as well as find the novel’s emphasis on the fragility and unpredictability of memory to be thought provoking.
Sounds very good.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment, Mystica.
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