I quite enjoyed both the premise and the pace of Stay Awake. This was a dual POV novel with the main storyline associated with Liv Reese, a food writer for Cultura magazine who, due to a significant trauma event, wakes up having forgotten everything in the last two years. The other point of view is from the perspective of the police detectives investigating a murder that Liv is suspected of perpetrating.

This was an enjoyable thriller which left me guessing as to who the villain was but whose motive, in the end, is never quite fully explained. Still, I would definitely recommend this book. Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an advance copy.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher St. Martins Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This is a great thriller. The murder mystery and Liv’s inability to remember what happened is compelling. The detectives investigating and the New York setting are interesting and provide a rich layer to the story.
It is a quick read and is reminiscent of Criminal minds or an Law and order type of show. If you enjoy those shows you will enjoy this book.

This was such an original and engaging read! It was very well-written - my heart was racing as the plotline unfolded. The character development was somewhat stiled, but partially due to the main character's memory issues which did not allow her character to progress. I enjoyed the two timelines and thought they were well-connected at the end of the story. Overall, I had a fantastic time reading this book!

ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Murders, Mystery, and total confusion. And yet it had me from the very beginning. I listened to it on audio while I worked and read from my kindle when I got home. I suggest both but I loved the audiobook because of Imogen Church narrating it. She’s so good. And January LaVoy was also narrating and I’m a huge fan of both of them.
I read The Night Swim and really liked it so I was excited about this.
The author did an excellent job laying out the plot and kept me guessing. I didn’t find it predictable and I stayed interested in the side characters. What was happening? Who was dead? And why?
Highly recommend it, overall this is a high 4 ⭐️ for me.
Thanks Macmillan Audio and St. Martin’s Press via NetGalley.

Liv Reese is disoriented when she wakes up in a cab and asks the driver to take her to her apartment. She notices writing on her arms and hands. She also notices she doesn’t have her keys. She figures her roommate, Amy, will let her in but an unfamiliar couple comes out instead. Stumbling around the city, Liv tries to piece together what she last remembers, which is receiving a call at her desk at work. When she goes to her office building, she doesn’t recognize anyone but they recognize her. She sees a news report about a murder that shows a window at the scene has STAY AWAKE written on it, the same message on her hands.

Through past and present perspectives, we begin to unravel the truth of what has happened to Liv, and her understand the trauma of her past. We also get the perspective of the detective investigating the murder, which works to increase the tension in the novel.

This is an edge of your seat kind of thriller. I was so anxious for Liv. Her condition puts her in constant danger. I think the various perspectives contributed to the overall story. I liked the detectives and the way the investigation intersected with Liv’s storyline. A few times, I was a little lost in the timeline but that’s a product of reading too quickly. Some of Liv’s actions and thoughts are repetitive as she tries to figure out what happened but I think it’s a case of her returning to the familiar as she is lost and alone without two years of memories. She is scared and worried and doesn’t trust anyone, which she reminds us over and over.

I think this is worth your time if you like thrillers and are willing to go along with explanations where you may need to suspend some disbelief. I couldn’t stop thinking about this story and I needed to know what happened. I think the ending is satisfying and I can’t wait to see what Goldin writes next!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of Stay Awake by Megan Goldin. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing an ARC to review.

Stay Awake was such a fun thriller. For once, I felt there was a legitimate reason to go back and forth in time, which was appreciated since flashbacks usually become annoying. The mix of the past story and the present worked well. My single complaint is, if you were paying attention, it was pretty easy to guess the killer. But I could ignore that while I enjoyed the story unfolding. I give Stay Awake 4/5 stars.

Talk about a book dragging you into the pages and making you feel as if you're in the story! Goodness but this book did just that. I was so afraid to fell asleep reading and think I would forget...

I won't go into a lot of detail about the book because I think just reading the blurb is enough. I absolutely enjoyed this well written, plot driven, twisted, engaging, sometimes a bit over the top but all together fantastic thriller with a slightly unique bullet point to our unreliable narrator.

I could go on for a ridiculous word count of a review telling you how this book was everything I was looking for and more, but I will leave it at that.

I do have to say one thing, that end did leave me with a smile. I was SO hoping that would happen. When you read it, you'll know what I mean.

Megan Golding is becoming an auto buy/auto request author for me and putting that level of trust in an author is a big deal.

Just do yourself a favor.
Read this.

Out August 9, 2022 [Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review!]

Rating: 2.5/5 stars

When Liv Reese wakes in the back of a cab with no memory and a bloody knife in her pocket, she must piece together how she got there—if she can.

I really loved Goldin’s previous novel, THE NIGHT SWIM, and I really wanted to love this one too. Unfortunately, it missed the mark for me by a lot. I found the constantly changing perspectives jarring, the characters tiresome, and the plot unnecessarily confusing (though the concept is original and definitely part of what drew me to the book in the first place!) Most upsetting for me is the fact that we’re left with, in my opinion, more answers than questions, as well as some wholly unbelievable plot events/resolutions.

This said, I know some people who have really enjoyed this one, and I think it will be a hit for a lot of people. It’s relatively fast-paced (set over the course of roughly a day, and with short chapters), the premise is, as I mentioned, pretty unique and interesting, and the main characters (Liv and Detective Halliday) are both pretty fun. I’ve also heard that the audiobook is excellent and adds a lot to the story, so that might be a way to go if you’re looking to pick this one up!

Recommended if you like: amnesia tropes; multiple POVs/timelines; short chapters.

CW: Blood/death/murder; stalking; mental illness/memory loss; infidelity.

Hi everyone! Today I'll be reviewing the thriller Stay Awake by Megan Goldin.
Every time Liv Reese wakes up, she realizes she has forgotten everything that happened to her in the past two years, and when she is found as the prime suspect in a murder case, she is utterly confused. Did she actually commit the crime? She doesn't remember. But there is someone following her steps, someone who is afraid that she will recover her memory, and wants to make sure that her mouth is shut. Forever...
Wow, I really liked this book. It's quite a page turner, I couldn't put it down. It has an amazing premise, and from the start I could tell it would be an incredible book. Liv is a great character, and it was very interesting and really entertaining to see her development throughout the book. And, though I guessed who the killer was about ten chapters before it was revealed, I really enjoyed discovering little bits of information along the way that confirmed my theory.
You will absolutely love this book if you like mystery books and thrillers.
I’d like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 founded to 4.
Liv wakes up not knowing where she is, how she got there, or why things seem to be different. She is shocked to see on tv someone was murdered and she looks a lot like the girl fleeing the crime.

I haven't read too many books with memory loss before, especially one that restarts itself every time someone falls asleep. I thought it was an interesting concept. I did think the book was a bit slow at times, especially with Liv repeating the same day over. At times Liv drove me crazy.
The character I liked most was Halliday. I liked having her POV in the book. I also liked her narrator! She did such a great job.

One thing I really liked about this book was I didn't see some of the twists. I thought I had everything figured out, but I was wrong. I also liked the short chapters and the different POVs. Some stuff I didn't like...the dual timelines started to blur together, especially since she was repeating herself. I also think some things didn't add up.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Macmillan Audio for the ebook and audiobook!

Liv wakes up. All she's got are notes on her hands, including STAY AWAKE, and a bloody knife. This is the setup for Stay Awake, and it works in some ways. There's heightened suspense because of the bloody knife and mysterious messages, but there's also sluggishness in how Liv resets every time she falls asleep. Readers are forced to go through things again with Liv as she must figure them out every time. This makes the book move a lot more slowly.

The police officers whose chapters alternate with Liv's help move the story along, and give the reader more information than merely Liv can provide. The ending was also a surprise,which is always nice. I just wish the buildup had been a bit more exciting.

Liv woke up in the taxi with no memory of where she is, how she got there and why instead of her cellphone in her pocket she has a bloody knife. She has no recollection of the last 2 years of her life and her hands are covered with different notes and the main one says “STAY AWAKE”.


Sounds intriguing right? I liked the synopsis and idea for this book, but the execution.. ah. I regret that I didn’t DNF this book. It was soooo much repetitiveness, that I just skim through some pages as it was a word for word what I read 40 minutes ago.

I guessed the culprit quickly, but didn’t find an explanation and motive for all his actions in the book, only partially, which is a huge plot hole. The writing was just not good. I am sorry to say, it was a huge NO for me.
2⭐️/5

Thank you @netgalley and St. Martin’s press for Advance Readers Copy.

I was provided a print and audio arc of this book via Netgalley. I alternated between both formats as I was reading this book. As always all opinions are my own.

This follows two perspectives, main character Liv Reese and the other of Detective Darcy Halliday. Liv wakes up in the back of a taxi with no idea how she got there. She has lost her purse and phone, and there are strangers living in her apartment. She is completely disoriented and there is writing all over her hands indicating that she should "stay awake". Detective Halliday is first on the scene of a murder that unbeknownst to her is somehow tied to Liv. In the audiobook each perspective is portrayed by a different narrator, which I enjoyed. You can tell when the chapters switch from Liv to Halliday. Both narrators did a great job with their characters/chapters.

It has been a long time since I've read a thriller that had me so engaged. This started out slow for me, but once it got going I had a hard time putting it down. I also did not see the twist coming. That is so rare. Who I thought was the bad guy, and who it really was were not even close. The author does a really good job leaving several red herrings to mislead the reader.

I will say at first I found it hard to empathize with Liv, when she finds out she has lost 2 years of her memory and she keeps insisting that people should be in a certain place or that things should be a certain way. It was a bit repetitive, then I realized as the book went on that if I were in her shoes and couldn't remember anything and nothing in my life was the same, I'd probably be in a bit of a panicked state myself. As we get to know Liv and what happened in the two years prior leading up to the present day, I slowly started to connect with her as she and the detectives slowly start to put the pieces together of what really happened. I really liked Halliday. She is no nonsense, willing to speak up when she has something to say, and willing to challenge the seasoned detectives to make sure they get the case correct. I also felt like the author did a good job with her research into the life of a female veteran and detective.

This does have a funky timeline that alternates between the present and the past. I'm not usually a fan of disjointed timelines, but this is an example of a book that does it right. This was done so well to put all the pieces together of Liv's missing memory and the events leading up to the murder. The author gives you just enough without giving away too much until the final reveal.

If you are looking for a good thriller, I highly recommend this one!

Every time you wake up you don’t remember anything from the recent past, including where you are and how you got there. This is the nightmare that makes up Liv’s life.

This story is told over a day but has flashbacks to 2 years ago, the last time Liv remembers anything. The author artfully uses the flashbacks to develop the story and gives the reader little tidbits about Liv’s past. I loved the premise of the book and the constant guessing. I like books that I don’t know the ending until the end and this is one of those books. I highly recommend it!

What a ride! Looking for a thriller that will make you want to "stay awake" to read it...pick this up and make sure you have some coffee near you!

Liv Reese is having some memory issues. Actually, that's an understatement. She has basically lost 2 years of her life. Liv wakes up in a taxi, having no recollection of how she got there. This begins a string of events that makes Liv realize she not only has no memory of the last 2 years of her life, but that she's on the run for a crime she doesn't know if she committed. But are the detectives the only ones she should be hiding from?

As far fetched as this book is, I could not put it down. The writing is so well paced and thought out that you start to feel just as exhausted and crazed as Liv does. I wanted to scrawl STAY AWAKE on my hand so I would keep reading.

I highly recommend if you are looking for a thriller that will keep you turning the pages to the end.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC. I am leaving this review voluntarily. This is a tense thriller that will have you racing through the pages because you will be so engrossed in the mystery that you will you have to finish it as quickly as possible!

Liv Reese has lost two years of her life. She wakes up in the back of a taxi that deposits her to her "home", or what she thought was her home, only someone else lives there now. She has strange things on her hand that are written in pen which state "stay awake". She then finds a bloody knife in her pocket with absolutely no recollection of how it got there. She then hears that a man's body has been found and he died from being stabbed. This book gives new meaning to the genre known as "psychological thriller" because this one will also mess with your mind as the reader. I have to confess that I never saw the exact ending coming. I had some suspicions, but the real culprit shocked me! Can you say paranoia times ten? Wow! I need a break now! I need to watch cartoons to flush my mind! Readers who love psychological thrillers will inhale this book!

Stay Awake by Megan Goldin is a psychological thriller as Liv Reese wakes up in the back of a taxi with no clue how she got there or where she was. When she is dropped off at her New York City brownstone, a stranger answers and informs her she no longer lives there. As she leaves, she realizes she doesn’t have her phone and her hands are covered in black ink. Messages scribbled like graffiti telling her to STAY AWAKE. Her last memory is from two years ago when she was living with her best friend, Dr. Amy Decker, dating a new man, Marco, and has a thriving career as a successful writer for a trendy magazine. Now she’s lost, disoriented and unsure where to turn and who to trust. At the same time, police detectives are investigating the brutal murder of an unknown man and their lone clue is the fuzzy security camera image of a woman leaving the building. Is Liv connected to the murder? Is there someone who is trying to make sure she doesn't remember anything?
After reading Ms. Goldin’s The Night Swim (2020), I was excited at the chance to read Stay Awake. Right away, Stay Awake reminded me of Christopher Nolan’s cult classic movie, Memento (2000) and the memory loss of 50 First Dates (2004). Told between the present and the events from two years ago, the reader is taken on a roller coaster of twists and turns. It was a fast paced story as Liv is an unreliable narrator as she can’t remember anything from the last two years and she is afraid to fall asleep. I enjoyed Detective Darcy Halliday who wasn't ready to make snap judgments. She knows there’s something about the evidence that doesn’t make sense. Stay Awake wasn’t as thought provoking as The Night Swim but it was as attention gripping. About two-thirds into the story, I had a feeling about who the killer was and even though I had a clue, the reveal was thrilling. Overall, I enjoyed Stay Awake and look forward to future books by Megan Goldin. If you enjoy psychological thrillers, I recommend Stay Awake.

Stay Awake is available August 9, 2022 in hardcover, eBook, and audiobook

Stay Awake is said to be one of the most complex thrillers hitting shelves in 2022 that will keep you up all night reading. The storyline was very interesting, as Liv wakes up in a cab at 2 AM with no recollection of how she got there. Liv is dropped off at what she believes is her apartment complex, only to not have access and be greeted by a couple who is not thrilled for her visit. With no phone, but a bloodstained knife, Liv is questioning what happened…not only that night, but for the last 2 years that she has somehow lost.

The book has alternating timelines, jumping from a span of 24ish hours to 2 years prior. I did get a little confused sometimes on who’s POV we were hearing from when new chapters started, but realized quickly once it got going whether it was Liv or the detectives. As a Mystery/Thriller, I will say some of the twists I was able to call early on, but there were definitely others I would not have guessed.

The book ending was pretty dang good, although I do wish we got a little more background on WHY. With giving no spoilers away, I think the wrap up could have been better if that question was answered…I was also fairly surprised that for a thriller, which I normally cannot put down, it took me a little longer to get through.

4 ⭐️’s

Thank you NetGalley, Megan Goldin and St. Martins Press for allowing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This is one of the rare books that I was desperate to plow through but also never wanted to end! I loved every single page! It’s unique and fascinating! I loved the first person perspective and the nonlinear timeline as it jumped back and forth sometimes present day, sometimes a day or week ago, and sometimes years ago. It all came together at the ending in the most perfect way! This is a book I’ll be recommending forEVER!

Megan Goldin hits it out of the park once again with this thrilling book! I have been a fan of Ms. Goldin since the beginning........and this is an example of what keeps me coming back!! From the very first page the reader knows something just isn't right....and by the end of the first chapter the mystery will draw you in. Liv Reese is a very likeable character with a major problem....she doesn't remember things. Such as.....is she a killer? The dual-timeline of present time (by day/hour/minute) and her story from two years ago keeps the reader guessing at what's to come. Its the in-between that fills up the story and keeps the pages turning until the timelines crash together! What happened two years ago? What is happening now? Liv is in danger and her boyfriend Mario and best friend Amy can't be reached to fill her in...and what is all this writing all over her arms and hands?? Detectives Halliday and Lavelle are searching for a murderer - a woman who fits her description. But young Detective Halliday has her concerns over whether or not Liv is really a killer. This is a book that is worth reading and you'll be glad you did! Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and review this advance reader copy. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. #StayAwake #NetGalley.