I love books that take a unique approach to a story. Liv wakes up in the back of a taxi with no idea how she got there. At first, she thinks she must have drank too much the night before and blacked out but when she arrives at her apartment to find someone else living there she knows it's worse than she thought. In fact, Liv cannot remember any of the past two years, and every time she falls asleep she wakes up believing it’s the same day two years ago. In the meantime, she comes to find that she is the prime suspect in a murder.

This was such an interesting premise and it was carried out well. I really felt the impossibility and terror of Liv's situation right along with her. It was hard to imagine how the problem could be resolved in the end. Goldin does a great job of keeping you wondering whether Liv really was guilty of the gruesome murder. The other characters were well-written and added a lot to the narrative. Overall, this is a great suspense thriller and kept me engaged the entire time. The ending is super satisfying. I look forward to future books from this author.

What really worked for me with this book was the format. I loved how the story was told through not only multiple perspectives, but also multiple timelines. Between those two aspects and the shorter chapters, I was left wanting more, and found myself quickly flipping the page to find out what would happen next!

As for the actual plot, it was fairly different compared to anything I’ve read before. It really was captivating and held my attention throughout.

Overall, I would recommend this book to someone who likes a good mystery, especially one which is told through multiple perspectives.

Stay Awake uses the unreliable narrator trope (think Girl on the Train or Woman in the Window) well enough to pull readers in from the beginning. No one can stay awake indefinitely, so what is going to happen when Liv inevitably falls asleep? A great psychological thrillers to add to your to-be-read.

A murder she doesn’t remember committing. A killer she doesn’t remember meeting. Megan Goldin’s Stay Awake is an electrifying novel that proves memory can be deadly. I really enjoyed reading this. First time author for me.It was definitely a page turner.Find the time to read it.I think this would be a great movie

The plot of this novel had me hooked and I enjoyed this one. Full of twists and turns, a lot of suspense it will have you reading all night. Highly recommend this one.

actual rating: 4/5 stars

this was such a captivating thriller for me and kept be reading despite the plot being fairly repetitive due to the amnesia trope. as soon as i read the synopsis, i was drawn in and megan did not disappoint. not only does she write compulsively readable thrillers that dives into drama between individuals, but she also brings in important topics that make it seem more realistic rather than some outlandish thriller.don't get me wrong there's a time and place for outlandish, ridiculous, fun thrillers but megan strikes the perfect balance between tea and realism.

our main character liv was super interesting to follow and had a well formed personality despite us "restarting" with her multiple times. we also followed a female detective which i really loved because that storyline was almost giving criminal minds.

the one thing that was a bit off for me was the time line. this book took place over a day but it felt like at least a week and every time i reminded myself it was in a single day, i would feel disorientated. maybe that was part of megan goldin's point, to create that disorientation to relate to liv more but it just felt not at purposeful.

i loved the twist and turns and the end reveal was amazing. obviously, i cannot go into it too much but if you enjoy jennifer hiller endings/style of writing as well as the last housewife by ashley winstead, i think this could really work for you.

thank you to st. martin’s press, megan goldin, and netgalley for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I love a good amnesia trope! Liv wakes up with writing on her hands and arms telling her to stay awake and trust no one. I felt like the ending wasn't quite what I was looking for. I'll read anything by Megan Goldin, but I will say this wasn't my absolute favorite. I feel as though this would be a good thriller/mystery for a beginner.

This one started out with a bang! With multiple POVs, a nonlinear timeline, and a questionable main character, I was hooked from page one 👀⁣
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The mystery starts with Liv, who wakes up disoriented in the back of a cab. She finds notes all over her arms saying to STAY AWAKE and a bloody knife in her pocket. She drives home only to find that her apartment is occupied by total strangers. After wondering around NYC, she catches the news and is horrified when a murder has been reported and the victim’s blood has been used to write STAY AWAKE on the windows…⁣
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Yeah this one was a wild ride! I guessed the twist pretty early on but I still enjoyed it till the end. I highly recommend this one to anyone who likes true crime and wants a dark thriller read

Could not put down this book. It was one of those books that I just absolutely inhaled because I had to find out what happened to the main character. The need for answers was intense as was the palpable feeling of paranoia I had with the main character.

Liv Reese wakes up in the back of a taxi with no idea where she is or how she got there. When she's dropped off at the door of her brownstone, a stranger answers-a stranger who now lives in her apartment and forces her out in the cold. She reaches for her phone to call for help, only to discover it's missing, and in its place is a bloodstained knife. That's when she sees that her hands are covered in black pen, scribbled messages like graffiti on her skin: STAY AWAKE.
I loved this book so much! I had a lot of fun reading it.Although the amnesia theme is a little played out these days, "Stay Awake" doesn't follow the traditional memory loss storyline.

This was a fast-paced psychological thriller that I couldn't put down. A book which makes the reader feel as involved as much as Liv. Megan Goldin writes a great thriller that keeps you wanting to read. You feel as though you are just as frustrated as Liv is when she wakes up not knowing what is going on.

A twisty psychological thriller all the way.

Thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for sending a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I wasn't a huge fan of this book. It pains me to say how dissapointed I am with this book, because O just loved the previous book ''The Night Swim''.

The idea of the book was great, but there was too many plot holes, that I just couldn't look past it. The main issue was the things that Liv made, or in this case - didn't make. If I woke up without any memory of past few years, without home or money, I would seek proffesional help, instead of wondering arround.
Also the pase of the story was very stagnant, at the 30% of the book I still felt like we were at the point zero.
In the end I just had to force myself to pick this book up, but the final straw was when it put me in a reading slump.
I don't recommend reading this book.

I had so much anxiety while reading this - in a good way! The lost memory trope has been done a lot, but this still felt fresh and exciting. I couldn’t put it down.

A failed attempt at a memento done in a book.

The repetitiveness was too much, even for a book where the main character is stuck in a time loop. She cannot remember the last two years, and the author makes that very evident to us the reader. The ending wasn’t enough for the slow and long book, in my opinion.

Great, fun thriller! Love Liv! Easy read, which I appreciate. If a book can keep us moving through it, we can read and enjoy more! Some of the twists I could see coming but I like to think I’m a creative intuitive also. The end felt a little packed in all at once but still a great read for me.

This is another fantastic Megan Goldin book! Stay Awake had me hooked from the start, and had lots of "wow" moments that had my head spinning. I loved this one!

Sooo good! One of my faves to read! Definitely would recommend picking this one up if you see it in the store!

Huge fan of of this author, and I really enjoyed the opportunity to read this story. It was a fast paced, mystery, and believe it or not I was unable to put a finger on the “villain “.

Wow! I always wonder what gives authors their ideas, and this one is definitely one of those books that had be wondering, what on earth is wrong with this author?! Kidding!
But seriously! The premise is so unusual and I liked the build up of suspense in the characters!

In this gripping thriller, every time magazine writer Liv Reese wakes up, she finds herself confused about where she is—and it quickly becomes clear that she has no memory at all of the last two years. She tries to understand her own situation while vaguely realizing that something seriously bad is going on, whether it’s something she did or something that’s threatening her. Meanwhile, an appealing duo of homicide detectives try to figure out whether she is a suspect or a victim. The clues in this story are well placed, and although a seasoned mystery fan can probably figure out what’s going on well before the authorities, that doesn’t make the book any less compelling. There’s plenty of suspense, and it’s fun and satisfying to see how everything turns out.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for a digital advance review copy.

Liv Reese wakes up in the back of a taxi, completely in the dark as to who she is or where she is going. Someone else is living in her home, having moved in long before. With no phone and a gruesome reminder of the night she does not remember in her pocket, Liv can only look at the graffiti on her skin for answers. When a news report gives Liv the feeling that she has done something terribly wrong, who can she turn to when she remembers only the life she had two years before?

I love mystery thrillers and, though I did figure some of the ending out, I still enjoyed reading this novel. Characterization was very strong and the plot had some good twists and turns. I liked how there was not a rush to judgment by the police, that they investigated the crime instead of the suspect. Though the back and forth in time did help to build suspense, I would have preferred a more linear story. Overall, Stay Awake was a good mystery thriller and one I would recommend to those who like the genre.

Disclaimer: I was given an Advanced Reader's Copy by NetGalley and the publisher. The decision to read and review this novel was completely my own.