Rounding up from 3.5 stars. This was a solid psychological thriller. The author puts a lot of red herrings in the book but I still was able to figure who did it in the end. It was a little surprising that Jane was so oblivious to the things that were going on in her husband Leon's life and with their finances. I hadn't read anything by Paula Daly before but will definitely be reading more of her books when I am looking to for a quick and enjoyable thriller.

So many stories, so little time. Jane Campbell wants to be a writer, but has been struggling for over a decade to get her work published. Meanwhile, her husband, Leon, is an acclaimed crime novelist with an extensive fan base. Together, Jane and Leon are raising their two young children and juggling both of their careers. A team, two pieces of a whole. But that was before Leon was brutally attacked in broad daylight. And before Jane realized that Leon had secrets. Secrets that could destroy their family and possibly end their lives, if the culprit isn't brought to justice before it's too late.

4 Stars

Open Your Eyes is the first book I've read by Paula Daly. I thought I'd start by Just What Kind of Mother Are You? because it was the one that appealed to me the most, but Open Your Eyes became available to me, so here we are.

First and foremost, I need to say that I haven't read a book in less than 48 hours in a while. But, Daly's Open Your Eyes is just that enticing, gripping. I couldn't tear myself away from it. The plot, upon first reading it, seemed pretty ordinary. I didn't expect anything from it, considering I'd read a lot of domestic thrillers lately who didn't live up to the hype. But, with Open Your Eyes, I was pleasantly surprised.

I responded very well to the characters, and the atmosphere of the book. Jane Campbell, the main character of Daly's novel, is a housewife and an aspiring author. She's a complicated and layered character. I didn't always agree with Campbell's choices, but I felt like I understood her. She was a great protagonist and I happily followed her around the 3 hundred page of this novel.

Along with Jane is an interesting set of character. Leon, Jane's husband, was a bit of a question mark. He wasn't boring, at least, though I bit unlikable at times. But, I guess that comes with the type of character Leon is. So, it worked out for me.

There was plenty of twists and turns throughout Daly's novel. Some were really good and actually surprising, but others fell kind of flat. The chapters are short and effective, easy to get through. I thought that Daly was quite good at keeping her readers entertained.

I felt that Open Your Eyes worked well because it is so interesting. Daly's novel covers a lot of different themes, each one detailed and fleshed out. I've already mention this, but I really like the whole literary universe. I also enjoyed the bits about publishing. And the family life of Jane and Leon was just as equally interesting. However, I would have loved to read more about Jane's job as a teacher. And to get more details about Leon's novels.

Overall, I thought that Daly's book, Open Your Eyes, is a thrilling and gripping mystery with an endearing protagonist and just enough surprises to keep you on your toes. I'll definitely read other books by Daly.

This is fast paced. Interesting and sure to suck you in from the very 1st page. Just what you need. It had a very good plot that kept you on the edge of your seat wanting more

This is the first time I’ve read eighty percent of a title and had no interest in the denouement.....Mostly because the crime seemed
ludicrous/ strange. I did like the facets that dealt with head injury and could see the parallels to dealing with dementia care. page
turning components were all there.

Interesting. Compelling storyline. Good twists. But I just didn't really connect with any of these characters. I'm giving 4 stars though because the story did hold me enough to read till the end.

I have a new author to follow. I really enjoyed Open Your Eyes. What a thrilling read. Thank you for letting me read.

Daly does a great job with the now familiar trope of a wife finding out that her husband may not have been the man she thought he was. But in this instance, the husband has not disappeared, he has suffered a traumatic brain injury after being shot in the head with a nail gun. But who did it, and why? Was it the feuding next door neighbors or their creepy son? Or was it something darker? Was husband Leon actually involved in some sort of criminal enterprise that led to this warning (or revenge)? As wife Jane tries to hold everything together after Leon is attacked, she faces the difficulties of raising two very young children on her own with the added burden of a brain-addled husband who does not even recognize her. Jane struggles to hold down a much-needed job while realizing that the threat is still out there and that she must protect herself and her children. Daly puts together an excellent and suspenseful plot that kept me turning the pages and the villain is definitely not someone I suspected. Good read!

Wasn't sure if I would like this book, but it really came together! This had a bit of everything in it, some intrigue, some family drama, and it really was a fun book to read.
Thanks to author,publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book. While I got the book for free,it had no bearing on the rating I gave it.

3.5/5 stars

I am in a huge mood for thrillers/suspense/mystery books! So when I saw the description for this book I was more than intrigued. Open Your Eyes has everything you want in a good thriller - pace, suspense and a good dose of daily life. It was also an extremely fast read. But it also falls short on many other things.

The main character, Jane, is compelling and I sympathized with her a lot, but she's also not very bright. There were some things she did in regards to her family and kids that left me thinking "no way a mother would ever act like that".

I also had trouble connecting to the age of kids, her daughter was supposedly 3 years old, but in the book she was left to act as if she was at least 5. I just thought that it was a big disconnect in that sense and therefore the novel didn't feel authentic and real life like.

The first 10% of the book were also very, well not good. The writing felt childish and the dialog ridiculous - I almost gave it up. But I'm so glad that I didn't, because from then on I couldn't put it down.

​The plot was limpy at times as well - there were some things put in there that didn't have any significance whatsoever to the main story, and while sometimes a secondary story line works - it just didn't in here. But only because in a thriller I want every little detail to matter, every little noose to come unraveled - and when I get led on by secondary plot lines I just get fidgety because I just want to know how the story will end!

Despite that Open Your Eyes was still a compelling, quick and quite thrilling read. I felt fear at times and I was a bit surprised at the outcome of the mystery, but I definitely wasn't wowed. I'm happy I picked it up, but I wouldn't re-read it or anything.

Big thanks to NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for a digital advanced reader copy provided for a review. All opinions are my own, honest and come from the heart.

3.5

A bit of an unfinished feeling as I wrapped up this one. You find out the culprit of the crime but things still feel rather bleak. I guess that’s real life where there isn’t always a happily ever after, people don’t always get what they want, blah blah blah

The story itself is interesting and the characters were fully fleshed out. The writing was good and the twist was unexpected. That being said, I didn’t love it. I try to stay away from stories about writers or reporters. For some reason they just don’t generally work for me. Please keep that in mind as you read this review. I will check out other work from this author as I liked the style this just wasn’t the story for me.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and Grove Atlantic for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

An interesting story about the impact on a head injury on a family as well as a 'whodunit' around the crime. I found this a 'steady away' book rather than a page turner but I thought it was written well and had a good range of character development. Always interesting when an author writes about being an author and the challenges that go with it!

I received a complimentary copy of this novel from publisher Grove Atlantic through my membership of NetGalley. Thank you for my copy sent in return for an honest and unbiased review.
Leon is a famous author. He’s married to Jane and they have two young children. They met when aspiring author Jane went to a book signing and found herself in the shortest queue, Leon’s queue. She has had novel after novel of her own turned down but still wants to persevere and achieve her ambition. The family are on their way out one day when their neighbour collars Leon and begins another trivial argument. Jane slips out of the car for a moment and returns to the house. She hates confrontations and knows Leon will get really wound up. Minutes later she hears a terrific crash and finds Leon has reversed into the neighbour’s wall. The minute she sees Leon she knows something is very wrong. He is totally unresponsive and Jane suspects that he has had a stroke. An ambulance arrives and Leon is taken away to a specialist hospital where he undergoes an emergency operation. Luckily the two children are unhurt but naturally very frightened, as is Jane.
Over the next few days a nightmare scenario unravels and it becomes obvious that Leon has been savagely attacked in his driveway. During the surgery he is placed in an induced coma with a very worrying brain injury. He may never fully recover. The police investigation begins and Jane’s life is turned up-side-down. Leon has been keeping secrets from her that may be the reason for the attack on him. All their money has gone and she wants to know what has been going on. She must also step up and become the breadwinner, but is still filled with determination to solve the mystery of Leon’s attack. So she begins investigations of her own, even after she is warned off.
All the way through this excellent story there is a brooding intensity and feelings of menace. You don’t know what is going to happen or when, but you definitely know it is going to be something bad. Jane feels threatened even in her own home. She worries about the safety of her children as well. I loved that edgy feeling and kept turning the pages eager to find out who had attacked Leon and why. I admired Jane’s tenacity and loyalty, but I felt as though I had never really got to know much about Leon. His motives were shrouded in secrecy which made him even more interesting. It was a compelling read. The suspense and tension of the superb storytelling never once waned and I never once guessed the reason why Leon was attacked. I thought the story development was very cleverly managed to achieve and maintain maximum interest. I think also this novel is her best yet and I have read them all. It’s a 4.5* review from me and a recommendation that this is a wonderful read.

WOW, having not read anything by Paula Daly before I had no idea what to expect going into this.

This story kept me riveted from the very first page right to the end. It shows you how much you never really know somebody no matter how much you love them and how close you are to them. The mystery as to who would hurt Leon and why kept me guessing leading up to a surprising ending.

Aquired brain injury is a serious thing and this story shows just how serious and how much it can change lives.

Totally entertaining read

4+ enthusiastic stars

Ok, this book definitely kept my attention. I've been in a bit of a reading slump, but fortunately have found a few decent mysteries recently to keep me interested in reading. Open Your Eyes is definitely one of them. It's the second book I've read by Paula Daly and by far my favourite. Jane lives in Liverpool with her husband and two young children. One day, her life is turned upside down when an attempt on her husband's life leaves him brain damaged. Jane then has to deal with a husband who doesn't recognize her and doesn't remember what happened to him, the fear of not knowing why someone tried to kill her husband and all of the other ordinary life stresses of family, work and small children. I liked Jane as a character. She comes across as a normal person dealing with extraordinary circumstances. I also liked that both Jane and her husband are writers. This fact plays an interesting role as the story unfolds, and especially at the end. Low on violence and high on interesting smart human interaction. My kind of mystery! I now want to go back and read some of Daly's other books. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an opportunity to read an advance copy.

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

Jane’s husband Leon is attacked with a nail gun while he waits for her in the car on the driveway of their house with the children in the back seat. This is part mystery novel, as the police and Jane try to work out who might have done such a thing, and part novel about what it is like to live with some one with a brain injury.

I enjoyed the beginning, but the middle dragged a little. The brain injury parts read as if the author had researched the situation thoroughly, but I was in it for the crime elements really. As Jane discovered that Leon had been keeping things from her the plot thickened a little, but the resolution left Jane with a husband only recovered to an extent and who had done some morally unacceptable things. Given his current inability to remember doing them, there seemed no way for her to gain “closure”. The very ending - Jane has written her own novel! - struck a false note for me.

A woman enjoys her life, her husband and children, without looking too deeply into reality, gets a dose of it when her husband is attacked and left for dead in their driveway. While he lies in a coma, she has to wonder what brought the attack on and what it means about her perfect life