Yesterday

By: Felicia Yap

Narrated by: Rory Kinnear, Indira Varma

Length: 10 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

In this heart-pounding mystery, a woman is found dead—but in a society where only the privileged have memories longer than a day, the chances of solving the crime seem futile.

Imagine a world in which classes are divided not by wealth or religion but by how much each group can remember. Monos, the majority, have only one day's worth of memory; elite Duos have two. In this stratified society, where Monos are excluded from holding high office and demanding jobs, Claire and Mark are a rare mixed marriage. Clare is a conscientious Mono housewife, Mark a novelist-turned-politician Duo on the rise. They are a shining example of a new vision of tolerance and equality—until...

A beautiful woman is found dead, her body dumped in England's River Cam. The woman is Mark's mistress, and he is the prime suspect in her murder. The detective investigating the case has secrets of his own. So did the victim. And when both the investigator's and the suspect's memories are constantly erased—how can anyone learn the truth?

Told from four different perspectives, that of Mark, Claire, the detective on the case, and the victim—Felicia Yap's staggeringly inventive debut leads us on a race against an ever-resetting clock to find the killer. With the science-fiction world-building of Philip K. Dick and the twisted ingenuity of Memento, Yesterday is a thriller you'll never forget.

©2017 Felicia Yap (P)2017 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"To tantalizing degrees, Yap reinvents the unreliable narrator by ingeniously weaving together true, imagined and fabricated back stories."—Lloyd Sachs, Chicago Tribune

"If you're into salacious plots, clever twists, and a mysterious murder, search no more."—Marie Claire

"Suspenseful, thought-provoking and uniquely relevant as it explores the pliability of memory, fidelity and factuality"—Family Circle

a great thriller

I enjoyed it. I typically don't enjoy thrillers about mystery murders. This book has the ingredients to keep you interested and also surprised. you won't believe the last bit of chapters. Stick with it!

Good, under-developed story

What an awesome idea: a world full of Monos and Duos! In this alternate universe, the world would be a far different place than what was portrayed in this book. it was a copout to have the only difference be the existence of iDiaries. With my disbelief unsatisfyingly suspended, the story was just interesting. I liked the twisty ending. The author could have had a lot of fun developing the sociological and technological differences of such a world. How about an explanation of how Duos and Monos came to be? I kept waiting for more. It never happened.

Tedious and boring

What would have made Yesterday better?

Indistinct plot complicated by needless detail, drawn out far too long, for far too meaningless of a payoff. With such a great base premise, why not include some of the intricacies of short memory? Sad to see a good idea flushed so thoroughly.

What was most disappointing about Felicia Yap’s story?

Painfully boring plot that drags, and drags, and drags, ignoring the most interesting facet aside from diving headfirst in the tedium of diary maintenance. Listening to a blow-by-blow of an HR meeting would be more entertaining.

Would you be willing to try another one of Rory Kinnear and Indira Varma ’s performances?

Can't blame the performers -- they had terrible material to work from.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Yesterday?

That whole section between chapter 1 and 31. The story gimmick is a great one. Perhaps the writer should work to to make it a central part of the plot instead of some side distraction.

Any additional comments?

Great idea, poorly executed.