The premise was interesting and unique - when you have an MC with a very particular kind of amnesia with frequent resets, it leads to a lot of tension where the reader knows more than the character. However, I’ll be honest, it got old very quickly. I was much more interested in the flashbacks and the detectives, which were much more of a driving force of forward momentum.

But also take my review with a grain of salt because I don’t really enjoy thrillers anymore like I used to.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Netgalley and Megan Golden for letting me read Stay Awake early. This one hits the shelves August 9.

Ok, so I really enjoyed Stay Awake. This one really kept me entertained and it was hard to put down. Megan Goldin is super talented, that’s for sure. I loved her previous book, The Night Swim so when I saw this one coming out I definitely wanted to be an early reader. I loved these characters and the whole premise of this book. I didn’t even read the synopsis, I went in blind which I highly recommend. If you need more convincing read the next paragraph, if you trust me get your library holds and preorders ready for August 9.

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. Two years ago, Liv was living with her best friend, dating a new man, and thriving as a successful writer for a trendy magazine. Now, she’s lost and disoriented in a New York City that looks nothing like what she remembers. Catching a glimpse of the local news, she’s horrified to see reports of a crime scene where the victim’s blood has been used to scrawl a message across a window, the same message that’s inked on her hands. What did she do last night? And why does she remember nothing from the past two years? Liv finds herself on the run for a crime she doesn’t remember committing as she tries to piece together the fragments of her life. But there’s someone who does know exactly what she did, and they’ll do anything to make her forget―permanently.

Megan Goldin has given us another riveting, unputdownable story!
Liv Reese suffers from memory loss. She wakes up in a cab not remembering how she got there. She has a bloody knifes wrapped in a shirt and has no idea what happened. On her hands and arms are messages she’s written to herself, one being, stay awake!
This propulsive thriller is exactly what I needed when I started feeling like I was in a slump. I could not get enough of the story and at times this was creepy in a very good way! Cannot recommend this book enough!!
So thankful for this ARC given by netgalley and the publisher in return for my honest opinion.

“Wake up! Stay awake! Don’t go to sleep!” Liv Reese sees these messages scrawled on her hands and arms, but she can’t recall why. As she goes through her day, she can’t help but remain confused when nothing is as she remembered it. Simple things like returning to her apartment and her workplace remind Liv that she is no longer living the life she remembers. Liv is startled when she can’t get a hold of her boyfriend or roommate, who she hoped could give her answers. As she tries to piece together the events she has forgotten, she is entrenched in a murder investigation. Liv wonders if she may have actually killed someone, without any memory of it…

Megan Goldin’s <em>Stay Awake</em> has an interesting premise, yet the execution was unremarkable. Liv’s failing memory gets to be irksome as the book progresses, which left me frustrated waiting for tiny pieces of the plot to be revealed. None of the characters were especially likable, and I hoped for more intensity in the plot. The novel did pick in the second half, yet the ending was lackluster. Overall, <em>Stay Awake</em> was entertaining but not propulsive.

Stay Awake by Megan Goldin is another great book by this author. This story reveals the life of Liv who is in a bit of a time loop due to some traumatic events. This book has a dual timeline and dual perspectives. I really enjoy when the past and present come together. The characters are flawed and human. The ending was twisty and surprising! Highly recommend.

***** I received an ARC from NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my honest review. *****

I thought that Stay Awake was a slow burn for a good chunk of the book. The main character Liv suffers from memory loss every time she falls asleep. A lot of lines and small details were repeated unnecessarily. This book did pickup speed at one point and once it did it kept me interested until the very end. The author was creative with the storyline, I love when I’m not able to predict the twists and the author keep me guessing until the very end which is why I gave this book four stars.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for providing me with this ARC to read and review.

I was so excited to see a new Megan Goldin book! I loved The Night Swim, and was hoping for another great story. Stay Awake did NOT disappoint!

The book opens with Liv Reese waking up in a cab with no recollection of how she got there. Her purse and phone are missing, and it doesn’t take Liv long to figure out that something is horribly wrong. Everything she thinks she remembers seems to have changed, and soon Liv finds herself on the run, possibly part of a murder she can’t remember.

This book was gripping. It kept me guessing until the end. I was very invested in learning what had truly happened two years ago in Liv’s past, as well as finding out what was going on in the present storyline. I enjoyed the perspective of Detective Halliday too, and getting glimpses of information as the police worked on the case. I seriously couldn’t put this down once I got started!!!

If you liked The Night Swim, definitely pick this one up too!

The second I heard the synopsis of this Stay Awake by Megan Goldin I knew I had to read it. Unfortunately, this was one of the most boring thrillers I’ve ever read. The plot of this book was so interesting with a woman who loses the last two years of her memory every time she falls asleep. Instead, this book put me to sleep. I really just wanted something interesting to happen. The good news is this is a quick read so if you are interested in reading it then it won’t take you very long.
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Thank you to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to give my honest review. I wish it would have gone better. 😔

What a nonestop ride this book is, wow! Thank you Netgalley & St Martins Press for an advanced copy of this book, it’s sure to be a masterpiece!

I read this is roughly 24 hrs, I literally woke up in the night & couldn’t sleep, thinking about the story. I just had to know what was going to happen next.

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 claims to live in her apartment. She reaches for her phone to call for help, only to discover it’s missing. In its place is a bloodstained knife. Her hands are covered in scribbled messages, like graffiti on her skin: STAY AWAKE.

Two years ago, Liv was thriving as a successful writer for a trendy magazine. Now, she’s lost and disoriented in a New York City that looks nothing like what she remembers. Catching a glimpse of the local news, she’s horrified to see reports of a crime scene where the victim’s blood has been used to scrawl a message across a window, similar to the message that’s inked on her hands. What did she do last night? And why does she remember nothing from the past two years? Liv finds herself on the run for a crime she doesn’t remember committing. But there’s someone who does know exactly what she did, and they’ll do anything to make her forget—permanently.

This comes out August 9th!

Megan Goldin is very skilled in creating tense situations and page-turning scenes. In her latest, Stay Awake, the main character is very much an unreliable narrator due to an amnesia condition that causes her to reset to her life two years ago, every time she wakes up. The reader learns what led to this condition and why she is suspected of homicide through a combination of flashbacks and different perspectives. While the “unreliable narrator “ is overused in thrillers, the author does it in a unique way and with considerable skill. Thanks to NetGalley for this digital ARC.

Thank you to St. Martins for our copy of Stay Awake by Megan Goldin. This one is available on August 9, 2022.

Rating: 3⭐️
Genre: Thriller

Thoughts: I really enjoyed the over all concept of this story, it definitely kept me reading. I did struggle to follow the story as it jumped to different periods of time in a two year basis, just a bit hard to establish the timeline but maybe that was the point?

Read This If You Enjoy:
-Books by Megan Goldin
-Books that rotate between different timelines.

Liv wakes up in a cab not knowing how she got there or where she’s headed or even who she really is. All she knows is that the words “Stay Awake” and “Don’t Sleep” and several other disturbing notes are written all over her hands and arms. So when a news story appears that shows the killer laving the same message written in blood, she tries to figure out what it could mean to her. Then she finds a bloody knife in her pocket and she has to prove her innocence while trying not to fall asleep so she’s doesn’t forget whatever she’s able to uncover.
The story alternates between past when the events took place and the present where the detectives are working to solve the crime. If you don’t pay attention, you may have to do as I did and have to go back several times and make sure you don’t miss any details.
Now, im going to keep my negative stuff short, but…there are plot holes. There is a LOT of repetition. I get that it’s a Groundhog Day type situation, but there’s times that things are said twice in the same paragraph! Some of the dialogue is too dumbed down-especially the detectives. They come off as not super smart.
All that to say that while there are definitely some flaws, I still enjoyed this story and it kept me on my toes trying to see If she was going to figure it all out.
Thanks to St Martins Press and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review.

This book kept me engaged from the beginning- it was super fast paced. I did not see any of the twists throughout the book, finished it in less than 24 hours! This was the second book I’ve read from this author. I preferred this over “night swim” but enjoyed both books.

Stay Awake by Megan Goldin

I will say I have been reading a lot of books this year and well this book I will have to say is in my number two book slot for the second best book I have read this year. Interesting enough they both are thrillers. Anyways enough of that lets talk about this wonderful book called Stay Awake.

The book gets you right from the opening chapter where you meet the main character Liv Reese she is in a taxi cab and has blood on her and a knife in her pocket with stay awake marked on her hands. If this does not pull you in I don't know what else will. Oh did I mention she has lost years of time as well.

This was one of the best psychological thrillers I have read in a long time. You cannot help but wonder what is up with Liv and how is her boyfriend dead. The book was done so well and the issue with Liv and her sleep and forgetting information when she wakes up is just done so well. I like the complexity of the story and illness. Her trauma is so ingrained that she has memory lapse.

This is definitely a five star read for me and like I said this is my number 2 slot book it came close to knocking off what I put as my number one book so far this year and I am no slouch I have read well of 125 books so far so that speaks volumes of this book and story.

Megan Goldin keep writing books like this and you will continue to have a fan in me this was a book that you completely knocked out of the park. You have talent for making believable characters when they seem so unreliable.

What I think the biggest takeaway is trauma can do some weird stuff to people and I think this is what stuck with me. Her memory is the way it is because trauma brain has taken over. It is trauma that makes this book complex and Liv is knee deep in the experience of the effects of trauma on her.

Imogen Church; January LaVoy did a fantastic job of narrating the story they pull you in with the way they bring life to the characters. I recommend this book to all that like a good thriller. I cannot wait to read more from this author I will be watching for future books by this author.

Thank You to Netgalley, MacMillan Audio, and St. Martins Press for a free copy of the book and audio version of this story for an honest review.

Y’all…this book…had me in a chokehold lol! I was NOT able to put this down once I started. It has dual timelines and you’re never sure what’s going on and who to trust, even the main character, which are all things I LOVE in a thriller. I loved how we were really trying to get to the bottom of everything along with the narrator, since she suffers with a type of memory loss. Un-put-downable for sure! Highly recommend!

If the movie Memento was a riveting thriller novel, this would be it. It definitely starts off slow but picks up to breakneck speed after halfway the point. Once I got to that point, I raced to the ending so I could finish it that same day! I will definitely seek out other thrillers from this author in the future. I took off 1 star for the ending—some loose ends were left, but other than that, a great thriller!

I first want to say thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read and listen to this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was very pumped with getting the chance to read this book, especially with having such success with the author's previous book, The Night Swim, which was a five star read for me. This book immediately throws you into the story with very little information. This was a bit of surprise but I did enjoy that because it made you feel connected with the main character who is also trying to figure out exactly what's happened.

Unfortunately, I was not a big fan of this one and found it just be okay and slightly typical. I would recommend this for someone who is new to the genre or to Goldins writing but I wouldn't put this in my favorites. I will continue to read from the author in the future.

Stay Awake by Megan Goldin
This is the story about a woman named Liv Reese who seems to have a pretty wonderful life. She is an exceptional writer for a magazine called Cultura where she mainly does write-ups on food but her editor has really liked her work and has her branching out to do write-ups on art, mostly performance art. Liv has a boyfriend she’s madly in love with and I think she hopes to one day marry Marco, for now she’s happy just always being there for him while he seems pretty emotionally detached from her. It’s okay though, because she has her best friend in the world by her side. Amy is her roommate and best friend, she loves and would do anything for doctor Amy, even though Amy and Liv’s boyfriend basically hate each other and argue every time they’re around each other. Liv is busy with work so she hardly notices how strange Amy has been acting lately, secretive calls, and distancing herself from Liv just a little bit. Of course, Amy is a doctor with a busy schedule and a doctor boyfriend of her own, Brett, so that could be why she’s acting a little different. Brett is Amy’s super busy, supportive, self- absorbed boyfriend. Brett was cheating on his wife with Amy when they got together and he has a child from that marriage so he is mostly busy either at work (he’s a surgeon) or with his child so to make up for that he tends to buy Amy lots of expensive gifts to keep her around.

Liv’s world comes crashing down when she goes to a performance art show that kind of creeps her out, it was like the whole show was made to make her terrified, but she gets past it and goes to meet Amy at a bar for her birthday. Marco is already at the bar with Amy and for once they seem to actually be getting along for once, it's a bit suspicious but Liv doesn’t dwell on it. When she goes home that night, that’s when odd things start happening to her that make her suspect there might be someone out there stalking her, because there is definitely someone messing around in her apartment and making her look like she’s having a mental breakdown of some sort.

Then, one day while she is at work she gets a phone call, that’s where she loses her memory. She knows details about a terrible murder but she has a specific memory loss where she forgets the last 2 years every time she falls asleep. She’s be drinking caffeine and staying up for days, and now it looks like she might be a murder suspect in a new murder but she can’t remember anything. Detectives Darcy Halliday and Jack Lavelle are tasked with finding out who killed a man and Liv’s involvement. Did she kill someone and then fell asleep and forgot what happened? It sure looks like it.

My favorite character was Detective Darcy Halliday. I really loved seeing how compassionate she was and her passion for her work is something to be admired. Liv has always lived by the rule to never trust cops, they have never really helped her in the past. I think when Halliday comes along that changes, Halliday puts herself on the line and could have died saving Liv, she’s an absolute hero. I also love how she could have used deadly force but she didn’t because it wasn't necessary, that’s the way it’s supposed to be.

This was a very entertaining book, full of suspense that I stayed up late reading because I just had to know what happened in the end. This book was different in a good way because Liv’s condition really had me scared for her, I felt so bad for her and knew it must have been hard for her to go through all she’s went through, her memory loss was like nothing I've ever seen before in a thriller/ suspense novel and I liked it. There’s parts where it switches from the past to the present but it’s not jarring or anything and writing it that way makes the book flow perfectly. I really enjoyed this book!

I had previously read Goldin’s The Night Swim and *unpopular opinion alert* did not love it. I’m happy to report that I had the opposite reaction to Stay Awake - so good, couldn’t put it down!

My favourite genre (psychological thriller), unreliable narrator (amnesia), and short chapters (the best!!!) made this one an instant hit for me. I was invested from the opening chapter until the last.

Thriller fans - I think you’ll enjoy this!

Stay Awake, both the line repeated throughout the book and equally is what I'm telling myself while my eyes are threatening to close. I'm so engrossed in the story that I can't go to bed until I discover the truth.

Tiredly I soldiered on as Megan Goldin's novel has so many twists and turns that I'm paging through as fast as I can to keep up with the plot. The high-speed chase and is terrifying yet thrilling and forces the reader to straddle the line between believing Liv and doubting her actions.

Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for the early edition of 'Stay Awake' in exchange for an honest review. Friends on Goodreads were raving about this compelling read and now that I finished it, it's easy to give Goldin's murder mystery a 5-starred review.

From the beginning I was immersed in the story and the author brilliantly penned a fast-paced storyline with so many variables that it will leave readers second guessing everyone without having a valid lead. Get ready for a thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat so 'stay awake' until the very end!