I was pleasantly surprised when I started reading this book and realized that it isn't a cookie-cutter LDS novel. The protagonists of Forget Me Not are Dalton McNamara and his daughter Skyler. Dalton is a Vietnam veteran who lost his leg in a POW camp. His daughter is from his first wife, a Vietnamese woman, who died by suicide after moving to the United States. Dalton has since remarried and his now-teenaged daughter wants to find out about her mother's family.

So, the family plans a trip to Vietnam. They hope that this trip will be healing experience for Dalton--who is plagued by nightmares from the war--and that it will help Skyler to understand her unique heritage.

This book is a sequel to Timeless Moments, which tells the story of Dalton's war years and first marriage. For readers who aren't familiar with the earlier book, Bell fills in the details through flashbacks and dreams.

What I liked best about this novel is that the storyline is unconventional. Also, the characters are complicated and they don't always react in admirable ways to difficult situations. For example, Skyler is very whiny about the food and substandard living conditions in Vietnam (she can't handle the bugs, reptiles, fishy-tasting noodles, etc). Dalton's second wife, though fairly perky and adventurous, is nervous about the locals and feels threatened by their different customs and language.

A weakness of this book is that it is too dialogue-heavy. I found myself wanting to 'see' the story and hear less chatter. Another element that made me uncomfortable was Bell's somewhat patronizing attitude to the Vietnamese. For example, she writes,

"The children here [in Vietnam] were so precious. Even living in filth and poverty, they were happy." (202)

This story would be difficult to pin down to a specific LDS genre. It has elements of a traditional romance novel spiced with moments of nail-biting suspense. Because one of the main characters is a teen, I suspect that young women would enjoy this book. Saints who lived through the Vietnam war might also appreciate Bell's novel, as it would remind them of the complex social issues that resulted from the war-mixed marriages, disabled soldiers, PTSD, etc.

Bell's take-home message is that the world is a small place and that more people should take risks and cross cultural boundaries. The character of Skyler is emblematic of this message as she not only genetically bridges two cultures, but she also learns to love the traditions of her mother's homeland even as she becomes more grateful for being raised as an American. Though Bell is effective in her message, she still lacks the skillful storytelling of the more polished LDS authors, like Dean Hughes, who have written about this same era.

Several of the threads of this novel, particularly the romance element, are not resolved at the end of the book. I suspect that Bell has yet another sequel in the works. I commend her and her publisher for the willingness to tackle difficult subjects and look forward to the next installment.

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Jana Remy
September 9, 2005