Debra Ginsberg

Like this author's earlier book The Grift, this one also represents an epistemological departure from the empirical realm. Normally I’m not big into the “woo-woo” side, but this author has now managed to rope me in twice!

Eden (“Edie”) Harrison has just been proposed to by her boyfriend Derek and is loving life in Portland, Oregon, when she develops heart disease bad enough to require a transplant. Just when she thought she would survive no longer, she gets a donor and has show more successful surgery. Afterwards, although Derek is attentive and patient during her recovery, Edie is no longer very interested in him. Nor does she even like Portland anymore, or the same colors, or music, or foods of which she used to be fond. She has troubling dreams, and feels an overwhelming compulsion to relocate to San Diego. She drops Derek, and moves.

Meanwhile, in San Diego, we meet Darcy Silver, the beautiful trophy wife of a manipulative, controlling, and rich older man. Darcy is having an affair, and desperately needs someone to talk to about everything. When Edie and Darcy meet, they feel an immediate empathic connection, and become each other’s only friend.

But a lot of things are wrong. Edie is not who she used to be. Darcy is not who she seems to be. Edie’s unbidden thoughts and dreams are getting stronger, and often involve Darcy. The tension in the book ratchets up as the suspense and danger build. And Derek still hasn’t given up on Edie, or at least the Edie he once knew. But can he help? Can anyone help?

Discussion: This story is based on the idea of “cellular memory” – the belief that, in this case, the heart is not “just a pump or a senseless lump of muscle,” but that it remembers.. Getting a transplant, according to this way of thinking, means that you get more than merely tissue; you also receive the consciousness of the donor, which then merges with your own personality. It’s a clever plot device, but you really have to suspend any scintilla of biological knowledge while you read! (Or I should say, I had to – there are many people in many professions who believe in cellular memory.) But Ginsberg manages to throw in enough suspense and interesting plot developments that it is an entertaining book no matter what your intellectual biases!

Evaluation: This is a fun summer read, by an author who is able to spin phenomenological notions into diverting suspense novels. show less

Now this is a book about being an insider that I can believe (mostly). It's about the world of publishing, and the crazy people in that world. How do people stay sane? Do they just give up after a while? Were they sane to begin with?

Blind Submission is the story of Angel who loves books and does not aspire to be a writer. When the bookshop she works for goes out of business, her boyfriend (the waiter/writer) convinces her to apply for a job with the world renowned literary agent, Lucy.

Angel show more gets sucked in so deeply, I actually started fretting for her. To say the place is dysfunctional would be like saying books are only good as decorations. Angel's co-workers live in fear of Lucy, and are generally paranoid about Angel.

Angel's good at her job, quick to develop good relationships with writers and their publishers. And that is highly resented. Discovering she actually likes the work, if not the hours and the pressure, she lets Lucy pile on.

And then, the Blind Submission appears in Angel's email, submitted by an anonymous author. It turns out the book is the book within the book and is about Angel's life, as can only be told by someone who is very intimate with her.

I found myself relating to Angel a lot. The crazy workplace, the exhilaration of doing something you're good at and love doing ... it's all there. Then, of course, the rug gets pulled out from under her and it's so funny, I almost cried. The hints are there and when the reveal occurs, there's the "AHA!" moment followed by the, "oh, now I see it and it makes complete sense" moment.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, although some of the characters fell a little flat for me. It was a good, engrossing read and reinforces what I already knew about Debra Ginsberg, she's a helluva story teller. show less

Marina Marks has been using her sharp powers of observation and finely honed intuition to convince willing clients of her psychic abilities ever since she was a small child and her drug-addicted mother used her daughter’s “gift” to make a little extra money on the side. As an adult, Marina makes a pretty decent living telling her clients exactly what they need to hear, but when she sets up shop in Florida, she soon finds herself being run out of town by the competing local voodoo show more queens and other assorted wise-women. Desperate, she convinces one of her wealthier little old lady clients that her son is in danger, and finds herself $3000 richer and in unwilling possession of a ruby ring—a gift to the client from her son. Marina uses the money she has extracted to move her operation to a paradise for psychics and other New Age grifters…Southern California.

Once settled into San Diego, Marina begins to build up a new client base. There is Madeline, a rich man’s wife who hires Marina for a lavish party and then retains her to provide guidance as Madeline frantically tries to conceive an heir for her bitter husband; Cooper, an attractive gay man desperately in love with a psychiatrist who is in deep denial about his own sexual orientation; Cassie, a hairdresser intimately involved with Eddie, a married womanizer; and Eddie himself, who is obsessed with Marina because she shows not the slightest hint of surrender to his charms. Marina is, if not happy, at least content with the life she is building, perfectly willing to continue serving as a mirror for her clients’ hopes and fears and making a pretty decent living doing so.

But then Gideon comes along. Handsome, evasive about his history, and an old-fashioned romantic, he swiftly finds his way into Marina’s heart. She begins to neglect her clients, and their resentment towards her grows as their lives continue to spiral into chaos. But Marina doesn’t care, because she is finally finding happiness—until the day she finds out just who Gideon is and what he wants. Her love life is in shambles, and her professional life is quickly approaching the same state. And then, to add insult to injury, Marina—a professional psychic who doesn’t believe in psychics—suddenly starts seeing ghosts, glimpses of the future, and the insides of peoples’ minds.


Fast-paced and whimsical, “The Grift” is a delightful and clever tale about learning to live with oneself and one’s gifts and the importance of being who you are rather than who other people may want you to be. show less

What the Heart Remembers is deliciously atmospheric. I was drawn in from the start and instantly immersed myself in this world of secrets, betrayals, broken hearts and a taste of the supernatural.

Cellular memory is a main theme in the story as Eden's new heart guides her. She feels, thinks and hears what the original heart owner did.

Each character was well developed in this multi-layered novel. Different aspects of the story and the characters were slowly revealed and as the book took show more twists and turns, I never guessed what was just around the next corner. The heart's original owners identity surprised me.

The story is alternately narrated by Eden, Darcy and Derek. I really got to peek into each of these characters heads.
Secrets kept coming to light, there was so much revealed just underneath the surface and I kept wanting to know more.

Author Debra Ginsberg does a fantastic job and keeping you hooked as you read, she gives you just enough to tease you, but you must keep reading to find out the rest.

The story really drew me in, I enjoyed the mix of mystery, romance and suspense in this novel. I recommend What the Heart Remembers if you are looking for romance with a twist of suspense and the supernatural that will draw you in and keep you guessing until the final page is turned. show less