I read The Night Swim by Megan Goldin and loved it, so I was excited to get my hands on a copy of her new book Stay Awake. The book's premise was promising and I was hooked for about 50% of the book. After that, the storyline was redundant. I understand the main character loses her memory every time she falls asleep, but too much time was spent rehashing the plotline. I did enjoy the detectives and following their stories, but I think more time could've gone into their pasts and more about them. There was no real "bang" of an ending, but I did not guess the killer correctly, so that's a plus. I think some readers will definitely eat this up, but it was not my favorite thriller.


Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a copy of this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Liv Reese is a successful journalist who works for Cultura Magazine in New York. She lives with her best friend, Amy Decker, and has an attractive Italian boyfriend named Marco Reggio. Liv is happy and healthy until one day everything changes. Liv has lost two years of her life due to a traumatic event that caused her rare memory loss. She finds herself in New York lost and confused. Who is living in her old apartment she shared with Amy? Why isn't Amy and Marco taking her phone calls? Why can't she remember what she did after she falls asleep?

"Stay Awake" is one complex thriller. There are a lot of characters, alternating timelines, and just a whole lot going on with Liv's memory loss! It was a little hard to keep track, but I enjoyed every moment of this book! I loved Liv's character -- her determination, her strength, and her persistence. Before reading this book, I had never read a book by Megan Goldin. Her writing was excellent! I'm going to add her other books to my TBR.

Highly suggest reading this adrenaline-rush of a thriller!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.
Do you have any irrational fears? Onne of mine is experiencing a dissociative fugue - when you wake up and don't know who you are or even how you got where you are.. Why do I have this fear? Who knows! But it's what happens to the main character in Stay Awake every time she wakes up, so I read this one with equal parts of anticipation and fear.
This is a twisty thriller that kept me engaged as the suspense built throughout. Unlike Milo, the pup I’m dogsitting, who has trouble staying awake, I was riveted to finish this one. The New York setting was fun, too, since I just returned from a short trip there.
Stay Awake publishes on Tuesday, 8/9. It was my first read by Megan Goldin, and I’m intrigued to explore more of her books.

I was very excited to start this thriller as it was highly recommended. I had trouble getting into it as it started slow and a bit repetitive. It reminded me of the movie Memento where the Leonard uses post its to remind him of everything affected by his memory loss. As she went to her office and it became obvious to her that sh had a time lapse I got more connected, Goldin does a great job of weaving the story together with 3 POV's - past, present, and the detective's view. It is all and all a clever mystery with lots of twists and turns.
.

Wow what a crazy book! This book is definitely psychologically messed up and it is very entertaining.

I can't imagine being the MC Liv and not understanding what is happening every time she wakes up. Then to hear that you are a murder suspect is even crazier.

I know this isn't a new concept for a storyline, but it was written very well and it was fairly fast paced. The twists were a surprise and I didn't see them all coming.

Thanks Netgalley and publisher for the digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

Stay Awake was unputabledown!

I can already imagine the movie or a limited Netflix series.

Liv Reese was living a normal life. She had a good job as a writer for a magazine, a good roommate/best friend, Amy and she was falling in love with the man she was dating, Marco.

Then everything changes when she wakes up in a taxi and arrives at her apartment early morning. The people who answered her apartment door are strangers. Her best friend Amy is not there, her things are gone and her cat is missing. Nothing makes sense. Worse, she finds writings all over her hands and arms, and on her knuckles, the words STAY AWAKE are spelled.

Of course, she starts to freak out and while looking for her cellphone, she finds a knife with blood in her pocket.

What is going on? What did she do?

And this is all I'm going to say about the plot. I believe it's best to go in blind.

I will mention that besides Liv's POV, we also get the POV of the detectives following a crime. Darcy Halliday and Jack Lavelle. Their timeline is in the present while Liv's is both past and present.

I'm not sure why this book reminded me so much of Memento since they are not at all alike. Maybe it was because of the sense of urgency I felt while I was listening to it. I knew time was running out for Liv. The audiobook narrated by Imogen Church and January LaVoy did a great job at wanting me to keep on going and finding out the truth.

Did I guess the ending? Nope. Looking back it was so easy to know. One more reason to make me like this one a lot.

As for the characters, I liked Liv and felt horrible for her. I also like Darcy a lot. I do hope we can get to see her character in another book. She was smart, resilient, and resourceful.

This is the second book I read by Megan Goldin (Night Swim was my first) and I'm now a confirmed fan.

Sign me up for her next novel!

Cliffhanger: No

4.5/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by St. Martin's Press/Macmillan Audio via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC. I enjoyed this book. However the beginning fell a little bit short for me as it was a little slow and took a bit for me to get interested in it. But once I started getting deep into it OMG i was eating it up! This story is about a woman named Liv Reese who has amnesia whenever she wakes up and is now a murder suspect to a crime she doesn’t remember committing. This thriller was quite intriguing and enjoyable and I do recommend it.

I very much enjoyed this book. Meg Golden takes the along the same journey that the main character protagonist is on, namely, one to discover her memory of critical occurrences within the last few years—her memories are critical to saving her future. Though each chapter, we learn more and more about the main character, who she is, and what occurred in her past. This is a fascinating and compelling read that I recommend for lovers of mysteries and thrillers. Many thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin's Press!

My feelings on this book are all over the place. It was definitely a fast-paced thriller/mystery that compelled me to keep reading to see what would happen next. Some parts were pretty repetitive, and even after I got to the end, I still felt like there were a few loose ends that weren't really explained. I also felt it was pretty clear early on who the murderer was, but wasn't sure how it would all come to light. This book was certainly interesting, and a fun read, but if you have yet to read The Night Swim by this same author, I'd go get that one first.

I would give this book 10 stars! I'm not a fan dual time periods, but that was used to perfection in this book. One time period's POV was Liv Reese which bounces back and forth between two years ago and the current time period. The other is Darcy Halliday's POV always in the current time period, she and her new partner Lavante are investigating a murder. The author gives each time period larger chapters at the beginning and they get shorter as you progress through the book, at the same time, the time periods are getting closer together. The author pulls you through the book and you start reading faster and faster as she funnels you into the conclusion. She also threw out red herrings, just little tiny dabs here and there, and you're reading faster, so you focus on them in the moment. It was truly brilliant writing.

Liv Reese suffers from amnesia every time she sleeps. The only thing that gets her through is her massive caffeine intake and notes written on her hands and arms. Mainly, STAY AWAKE. She is disoriented and frantic to learn what is happening to her. The problem is her body shuts down and she wakes on subway cars, park benches, etc. And she has to start all over again. She can remember everything from two years ago like it was yesterday and she slowly (and we the readers) learn things about Liv in real time with her and start over with her every time she falls asleep.

Darcy Halliday is investigating her first murder, and as she and her partner investigate, we learn about the man murdered and with fuzzy CCTV see a woman leave the premises. As the media reveals details, Liv learns more, but when she sees herself in the video, she starts to wonder if she murdered someone.

I cannot stress more that this is the best book I've read in ages! I believe this is a standalone book, but honestly, I think Halliday and Lavante could be the beginning of a new series and wish it was true. So Megan, if you're reading this - please consider a series with those characters.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this! This is told over three POV and two timelines. We have Liv in the past, Liv in the present, and our detectives as one POV. Because Liv loses her memory, the two different timelines are crucial to understanding the full story. I was on the edge of my seat waiting for the moment when the past and present would meet.

I went with four stars because the ending was a bit predictable but I enjoyed everything leading up to the big reveal. I think the author did a great job throwing in some clues that ended up being pointless but kept me on my toes throughout.

I received an advanced audio and digital copy. All thoughts are my own.

“Homicide cops served a much more important purpose in society than just putting killers behind bars. ‘Homicide detectives,’ he said, ‘are what keep us civilized. We are the last line of defense against the barbarians.’”

Liv Reese wakes up in the back of a taxi with no idea where she is or how she got there. Two years ago she was dating a new guy, thriving as a successful writer for a trendy magazine, and living with her best friend Amy in NYC. Now, she’s lost and disoriented in a city that looks nothing like what she remembers.

This book is told from three perspectives: Liv Reese now, Liv Reese two years ago, and homicide detective Darcy Halliday. While I do enjoy dual timelines, this one was a bit difficult to follow initially. It wasn’t until about 1/3 of the way into the book that I was able to truly get into the story. Prior to that I found it hard to follow who was killed when, who remembered what, and who all of these men were. It was just a tad disjointed, but it came together nicely as the story progressed. The mystery elements were good and kept me guessing.

As for the audio, I may have squealed out loud when I heard that January Lavoy was one of the narrators. She is one of my absolute favorites and just makes every book she narrates better. So obvi I loved this one!

Thank you to Netgalley, Macmillan Audio, St Martin’s Press, and the author for the ARC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Not sure where to begin with this review. Started slow and pretty repetitive throughout…which almost had me not wanting to finish. But based on the premise of the book, repetition is kind of a given. From my perspective there was one pothole that never got answered which was pretty frustrating, but the ending tied up the majority of loose ends. It was thought out pretty well to seem somewhat realistic enough. Pretty entertaining read overall.
I haven’t read other books by the author but I’m tempted to try another.

Admittedly, this took me a bit to get into, but I was hooked after the 30% mark or so. I liked the alternating chapters, and the story definitely kept me guessing until the end. I'm not sure I enjoyed this as much as Night Swim, but I do think this will be a popular end-of-summer book.

I'm starting to think that maybe thrillers aren't for me. I thought this was a smart story but I guessed the villain early on and didn't really buy the motive. Maybe I need to be better about suspending disbelief. That being said, I loved the procedural aspects of the book and how fast-paced it was.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press for the copy to review.

✨ Liv wakes up with writing on her hand and a bloody knife in her pocket - with no memory as to why.

💥Liv is wanted for murder, but she doesn't remember doing it. In fact she can't remember anything since 2 years ago and every time she falls asleep, her short term memory erases. When I tell you this book was un-put-down-able, it's totally true. Very intense as well! There were some extremely minor plot holes but over all this book was so satisfying.

My face at the end: 🤗

🍪 I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to @netgalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read this ahead of publication.

💯 For more details on the books we read, be sure to follow me on TikTok (@zaineylaney). I will give you a list of reasons to read! Or listen to our podcast, Elated Geek, wherever you subscribe.

When I started Stay Awake, I felt like I knew I was going to do an all-nighter to finish. I read Goldin’s Night Swim and loved it. Stay Awake is Fast-paced with short chapters, engaging characters, and a mystery to solve. Liv Reese wakes up on a park bench with writing all over her hands. Last thing she remembers is sitting at her desk at Cultura Magazine. Chapter headings let you know whether you are current day or two years earlier. I could not read the first half of the book fast enough as I followed her life from two years ago and as she tries to navigate her present life. The second half slowed down for me as I felt there was a lot of repetition. I am glad I did stick with it as the last 15-25% had a satisfying finish. One question I have is if this book could be the start of series for Detective Darcy Halliday? My thanks to St Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an ARC of this book. The opinions in this review are my own.

Liv Reese wakes up in the back of a cab with no recollection of her night. the last thing she remembers is answering her phone at work on a sunny day.

she makes it back to her apartment, only to find out that there are other tenants living there. confused & desperate for answers, Liv looks for her phone in her pockets—instead to find a bloodied knife wrapped in a blood-stained T-shirt. she then notices all the writing on her hands & arms, messages urging her to “stay awake”, “you forget everything when you fall asleep”, and to “trust nobody”.

throughout the story, Liz tries to piece together the last two years of her life while desperately trying to stay awake. meanwhile, the police are investigating a brutal murder that seemingly links back to Liz. they track down information about their suspect, leading them to insight on Liz’s rare illness connected to a trauma she endured several years ago, causing her to have severe memory blocks.

Liz can’t remember anything that happened the night before, but surely she is not capable of murder? she is desperate to find answers before the police catch up to her, before she falls asleep and forgets everything all over again, or worse; before someone dangerous from her past catches up to her.

this book had me HOOKED. it was told from alternating perspectives of the police during their investigation, present-day Liv, and Liv two years prior. these different POVs were crucial in creating a suspenseful atmosphere with grim foreshadowing.

readers begin the book w/ as little knowledge as the police and Liz; but gradually, we know more & more while Liz continues to fall asleep and forget everything once more, eventually giving readers a gripping & anxiety-ridden audience advantage.

i flew through this book because I was so eager to figure out Liz’s trauma & how it connected to the murder investigation. it had the perfect amount of scandal & suspense without being too far-fetched. thank you to @megangoldinauthor for this new must-read suspense! definitely a new favorite of mine!

thanks to @netgalley & @stmartinspress for my advanced reader’s copy. this book is out on August 9th!

I loved the novel, but not the audiobook. There were parts that were spoken very oddly, super slow in parts and fine in others.
But as far as the book itself goes, it was fantastic! Fast paced and clearly thought out.

Thank you to NetGalley for the prerelease ebook.

This book was crazy. It has a LOT going on and is pretty impossible to sum up succinctly without sounding insane. Suffice it to say you need to suspend a hefty dose of reality to read this one, and be prepared to slow down - this is not one that you can speed through. It was good, but damn, it was a lot. 4 stars.