one of megan’s best. it kept me hooked the entire way through. I was all in when I read escape room and megan keeps getting better! I never saw the ending coming. i’m looking forward to more from her!

Wow! What a thrill ride of a book!

Liv wakes up in the back of a cab completely disoriented, with writing all up and down her arms and a bloody knife in her pocket. She arrives at her home only to find strangers live there now. Her phone is missing. The last thing she remembers is answering the phone at work.

The story is told from different viewpoints, including that of the officer investigating a murder that Liv may or may not have committed.

Love the premise, but was disappointed in the delivery. Just didn't seem realistic for Liv to be wandering around aimlessly. But overall, it was a quick and entertaining read.

Ahh, New Thrillers! 😱
Friends! I recently finished these two and I thought they were both so good! Come along with me as I tell you a little about each…

‘Things We Do In The Dark’ by Jennifer Hillier is out TODAY! This was my first Hillier book and it won’t be my last- you must pick it up. It was a twisty ride of false identifies, murder and revenge. The only thing that upset me was that I don’t have the glow-in-the-dark hardback. Woe is me. 😔

This one almost felt like two stories in one, but in a good way! Paris is arrested for killing her famous husband, and she knows she didn’t do it. She doesn’t want the publicity because of a troubled past that still haunts her… she doesn’t want to be found.

——

‘Stay Awake’ by Megan Goldin is out August 9th. I really loved ‘Night Swim’ so I was excited about this one! While I liked the story, it really stressed me out. It was like 50 First Dates + Russian Doll + murder. Eek!

When Liz wakes up on a park bench with no recollection of the last two years, she starts to freak out. Rightfully so. She also has the words Stay Awake written on her hands… same as what’s written on the window of the guy that was just murdered… 🤔

Thank you @netgalley & @stmartinspress for both of these digital copies! I also listened to a lot of SW on @librofm and the narrator is laughably terrible. I suggest NOT listening to audio on this one! Unless you like bad accents, bad pacing, and fake laughing. 🫣

🖤🖤🖤

Thank you, NetGalley, and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC of Stay Awake. Megan Goldin does not disappoint with this psychological thriller. This is a faced paced book with many twists and turns. It’s difficult to put down! There are some implausibilities, but overall it was a fun ride.

Stay Awake by Megan Goldin kept me on the edge of my seat. The twists were unexpected but perfect. I listened to the audiobook, and the narrator did a great job as well.

Fun & original! Stay Awake was an amazing psychological thriller. I was truly confused and left on the edge of my seat for most of the book. What was going on? Is our FMC a killer? Is she being hunted? Framed? So many questions! All answered through a wild ride.

How did I ever miss reviewing this book?!?! I absolutely loved it and I am such of fan of Goldin's writing. Loved the pace of this book, the twists, and loved hownshe wrapped the story up!

I gave this book a chance. It was not for me. I will not be reviewing it on my bookstagram account or goodread page. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read it.

At first this one was a DNF. But then I decided to pick it back up and give it a try. And then... I was hooked. I'm so glad I started reading this one again!

It seems Megan Goldin does not disappoint.

The suspense every time Liv, the main character, was piecing things together and had to pause to sleep... it was maddening and exciting all at the same time.

My only challenge with this book was I had a hard time keeping up with timelines. There were moments I had to re-read certain sections to make sure I was understanding correctly.

Overall LOVE.

Plot and characters were well developed but I had a hard time following the timeline. I really liked the short chapters; it always helps me read faster.

I thought this was a really unique thriller, and I loved the concept - we have Liv, an unreliable narrator who has no idea why she wakes up with bloody knife in her pocket and the words "stay awake" on her hands. I got sucked into the story right away and was really kept guessing throughout the book. Megan Goldin is a great writer and spins a great mystery!

I really enjoyed this book in the beginning, it had my hooked straight away. However; it didn’t quite live up to my expectations in the end, I found it a little far fetched at times and I still don’t really understand why what happened, happened.
A well written, interesting story with some really good characters.

iv has a medical condition that causes her to lose all her memories for the past two years every time she falls asleep. She finds messages writing all over her arms urging her to STAY AWAKE -but obviously she can't remember why. She wakes up at the scene of a crime and determines that a murder has occurred. When she finds a knife in her possession and a familiar message at the scene - STAY AWAKE - she assumes that she must be involved but she can't remember how… Unfortunately, I've ready too many books over the past few years using amnesia as the main plot device. I'm totally over it. This book did keep me guessing as to the overall plot and identity/motivation of the villain. However, it was very repetitive and there were some large plot holes that I struggled to get past. I'm going to try very hard to avoid any further books using the amnesia trope because I just can't do a single one more. Between the good and the bad, I thought it averaged out the 3 stars. Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an e-galley of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

I really liked this one and the pacing of it made it hard to put down. Having a main character with amnesia really made the whole story unravel in an interesting way.

Traveling With T’s Thoughts:

Stay Awake is the third book I have read by Megan Goldin- her other 2 being The Escape Room and The Night Swim (which I enjoyed quite a bit!)

So when I was sent the e-ARC of Stay Awake, I eagerly started reading!

What I liked:

Well the cover. I love that bold red.

The plot of the book. A woman who loses her memory every time she falls asleep? Oh that sounded intriguing.

How Megan tied all of this book together!

However, I will say that as much as I enjoyed it- there were times it was hard to read. Sometimes Liv frustrated me. Sometimes I felt frustrated by the fact that I was only able to read a few pages each night- this book needs to be read in longer time frames to really get sucked into the book.



Bottom line: Not as good as her first 2 (to me anyway) but still worth checking out!



*This book was sent to Traveling With T for review consideration. All thoughts and opinions are mine alone.*

I had so much fun with this. I read it in under 24 hours. Megan Goldin is a MUST read for me now.

I have not read a lot of books under the amnesia trope and I am not sure overall it is for me, but they way it played out in this story was so compelling. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. There were some predictable plot lines but this did not take away anything for me. I was 100% invested from page one and could not put it down.

Liv wakes up in the back of a taxi with zero memory about how she got there. She gets dropped off at her apartment, only to find someone else is living there now. She reaches in her bag to grab her phone, but it is missing. Instead of finding her cell phone, Liv finds a bloody knife. Her arms are covered in writing that says, "Stay Awake".

Liv catches a glimpse of the news, only to see a crime scene where the victim's blood is used to spell Stay Awake. What did Liv do? Did she kill someone? Any why can't she remember the last two years of her life?

Wow, what a great twisty read! It is super quick and easy to read, filled with twists and turns that keep you wanting more. It is addictive and action packed. The unreliable narrator trope always makes for a fun and mind-bending read - which is exactly what the author did here. Character development was excellent. The dual timelines and POV's were done well.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the copy in exchange for an honest review. Forgot about posting this review after reading!

I couldn't put this one down. Such a fantastic thriller: I rarely give 5 stars to thrillers because I often catch holes, feel like I've read it before, felt like it was too unbelievable, etc. Not this one! This may have pushed me to be a Megan Goldin superfan...I'll def be reading more of hers!

I always enjoy Megan Goldin’s books. She writes fast pace thrillers and there is always an interesting curve ball. In this case a woman who doesn’t have memory every time she wakes up from sleeping. The back and forth timeline and multiple view points makes the plot even more engaging.