Stay Awake: A Novel
Stay Awake: A Novel book cover

Stay Awake: A Novel

Hardcover – August 9, 2022

Price
$14.69
Format
Hardcover
Pages
352
Publisher
St. Martin's Press
Publication Date
ISBN-13
978-1250280664
Dimensions
6.65 x 1.4 x 9.55 inches
Weight
1.19 pounds

Description

New York Post 's "Best Books of Summer" “Highly diverting…Goldin disorients the reader by deploying multiple timelines.” – New York Times Book Review “Goldin ― writing in sharp, uncluttered prose ― cleverly keeps us guessing.” – The Washington Post “Goldin seamlessly ups the tension… Stay Awake will have readers staying awake to the last page.” – South Florida Sun-Sentinel “An adrenaline-fueled thriller…Shocking twists and resourceful, well-drawn female characters keep the pages turning as the clever mystery unfolds. Goldin reliably entertains.” – Publishers Weekly “Misdirection has always been a key tool in [Goldin’s] toolbox, and she uses it to perfection in this beautifully conceived and executed thriller.” -- Booklist Praise for The Night Swim :*A Book of the Month Club Book of the Year Nominee* “Goldin’s prose is inviting, at times electrifying, and always sensitive in dealing with hot-button issues…well done.” ― Booklist (starred) “Outstanding…[Goldin's thriller] casts a searing light on small-town politics.” ― Publishers Weekly (starred) “Remarkably strong.” ― Kirkus Reviews “A blistering plot and crisp writing make The Night Swim an unputdownable read.” – Sarah Pekkanen, bestselling author of The Wife Between Us Praise for The Escape Room : “The pages turn themselves…a sleek, well-crafted ride to a surprisingly twisty conclusion.” ― New York Times Book Review, Editor's Choice “THE ESCAPE ROOM works as the ultimate locked-room mystery…Goldin excels at illustrating the pressures of a Wall Street career.” ― Associated Press “Addicting.” ― Time Magazine "High wire tension from the first moment to the last. Four ruthless people locked in a deadly game where victory means survival. Gripping and unforgettable!" ― Harlan Coben "Fantastic. One of my favorite books of the year." ― Lee Child "Amazing...a thriller set in an elevator [that explores] the vast territory of people's worst natures. A nightmarish look inside ourselves. Simply riveting." ― Louise Penny “A shrewd, brilliantly structured thriller doubling as a takedown of corporate culture.” ― Shelf Awareness “There is clearly no happy ending likely for the four colleagues trapped inside [the escape room]; but fans of JP Delany and Ruth Ware will want to be right in there with them…a nail-biting tale of a corporate team-building exercise gone horribly wrong.” ― Booklist “Riveting…[a] tale of greed and revenge set on Wall Street…Thriller fans will eagerly turn the pages to see what happens next.” ― Publishers Weekly “Cancel all your plans and call in sick; once you start reading, you'll be caught in your own escape room―the only key to freedom is turning the last page!” ― Kirkus Reviews (starred) “Smart and compelling... I devoured this novel!” ―Karen Cleveland, bestselling author of Need to Know “A sharp, slick, utterly engrossing thriller. This knockout debut hooked me from the first page and didn’t let go.” ― Cristina Alger, USA Today bestselling author of The Banker’s Wife MEGAN GOLDIN, author of THE ESCAPE ROOM and THE NIGHT SWIM, worked as a correspondent for Reuters and other media outlets where she covered war, peace, international terrorism and financial meltdowns in the Middle East and Asia. She is now based in Melbourne, Australia where she raises three sons and is a foster mum to Labrador puppies learning to be guide dogs.

Features & Highlights

  • 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.
  • 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.A complex thriller that unfolds at a breakneck speed,
  • Stay Awake
  • will keep you up all night.

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
30%
(641)
★★★★
25%
(534)
★★★
15%
(321)
★★
7%
(150)
23%
(491)

Most Helpful Reviews

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A bit tedious.

I did not finish the book. I found myself skipping entire chapters from the police POV and then skimming through the other chapters. I finally gave up and quit reading when I realized I didn’t care how it ended.
4 people found this helpful
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Couldn't put it down!

4.25/5 (rounded down)

Megan Goldin quickly became an autobuy author for me after I read The Escape Room (I still need to read her debut The Girl in Kellers Way), so it really isn't a surprise to me that I loved Stay Awake. I saw a lot of reviews that mentioned repetition, but I didn't have that issue, and it is my thought that you are going to have some of that anyway when you have an amnesia story. I was completely GLUED to this book, and I didn't put it down once after I started it. The book alternates between Liv's viewpoint both in past and present as well as Darcy Halliday who is on a temporary transfer to the homicide department of the NYPD. Technically her viewpoint isn't always her since at times we had another detective in there, but for the most part, it was her and I loved her character. Series spinoff anyone??

I also think that the preferred way of reading Stay Awake should be listening to the audiobook since it was amazing. It had 2 of my favorites, Imogen Church & January LaVoy, and they definitely killed it (no pun intended). They are brilliant narrators, and I was exceedingly happy to have 2 narrators for the 2 different main viewpoints. I haven't listened to them narrate a book together before and let's just say I really hope they do it again someday. I thought the pacing moved really quickly, and the viewpoints along with the dual time periods for Liv helped keep me engaged even more. I honestly wanted more out of Darcy's viewpoint since she added a nice procedural feel to the story, but since this was really about Liv, I understand why she had a smaller part. I am going to be holding onto the copy of Stay Awake that I purchased and will definitely be doing a reread in the future! Read this if you like the amnesia trope, want a quick read, and a story that will keep you guessing.
4 people found this helpful
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You will Stay Awake to finish reading this!

I just finished reading Megan Goldin’s latest masterpiece, Stay Awake, and HOLY CANNOLI what an incredible, creepy, suspenseful story she weaved!! Megan’s storytelling pulls you right in to this murder mystery. I couldn’t read this fast enough! Wanting to know who did it and what was happening to Liv Reese. As the story unfolds between present time and flashbacks you get to see how the puzzle is put together. Will Liv remember what happened? I was thinking several different scenarios along the way. You have to read Stay Awake to find out! I also really liked the character development of detective Halliday and would love to see more stories in the future with her.
4 people found this helpful
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maybe you can suspend disbelief more than me

45 pages. That's how long I made it into this book. If you kept waking up with no memory but gained info throughout the day, would you not write yourself more than "stay awake" all over your hand? Like would you not get some paper and write down what you discovered and put it in your pocket for you to read and build on? If you thought you killed someone, would you not consider taking a train to another city? Do you not have a single relative or friend anywhere in the country to call/text/email? I could not get past any of these plot holes and gave up on this novel. After Memento and 50 First Dates this was not going to cut it.
3 people found this helpful
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Too Long. Meh

I agree with Alexa and Nicole. Unsatisfying characters. Too many holes in plot. Liv never thought to Google anything when she was awake to find out why Alice and Marco not answering their phones? And killer had very little time in the book so feel author just plucked him with no explanation as to why. While it was suspenseful and kept me reading for sure, it was only to find out who did it. Didn’t care about any of the characters.
3 people found this helpful
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An entertaining amnesia thriller but underwhelming climax

3.5 stars

I was really excited to read Stay Awake because amnesia is one of my favorite thriller tropes. I enjoyed the story and mystery behind Liv’s amnesia and it made sense why she was having these bouts of amnesia as well. I felt just as stressed and panicked as Liv was each time she woke up with no memory and no clue where she was. It also gave me slight Memento vibes with how she was writing on her body things to remember.

What I didn’t like was the underwhelming reveal of the killer and the multi-POV’s. I don’t have an issue with the identity of the killer but I found the climax and aftermath to be lacking. Maybe if we had seen this character more and had more of an explanation for why they did what they did I wouldn’t have been as underwhelmed. I also strongly dislike multi-POV’s because often times I find one POV uninteresting. I felt the same way here. I didn’t care for the POV of the detectives and I rather have had it focused on Liv only. Between the flashbacks of the past and the multi-POV’s it felt like too much. Overall though, I enjoyed the story and thought it was a decent amnesia thriller.
3 people found this helpful
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Had Potential, Didn’t Deliver

As a big fan of both The Night Swim and The Escape Room, I had high hopes for Stay Awake. I don’t know what happened to the author with this book, but unfortunately it just wasn’t up to the same level as the other two books. While the idea for the plot was intriguing, the execution turned out to be rather bland and I never really bought into any sense of danger or urgency for the main character.

My thanks to the the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and honestly review this book.
3 people found this helpful
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Thank goodness for libraries

This book was boring and predictable, with equally boring and predictable characters. I think if I read it (versus listening to the audiobook), I would've given it 3 stars...but the narration was HORRIBLE. That being said, if you've ever read more than a handful of mysteries, you will guess what the big mystery is by Chapter 4 and who the killer is by 5. The writing is so repetitive, everyone is beautiful, and suspension of belief is needed to buy into a story that should've felt more realistic. A previous reviewer said the book needed a different editor and author. Agreed. Great storyline; horrible execution. This is the second book I've read from this author and have determined she's not my cup of tea. But some people did like it, apparently, so if you're looking for a quick, predictable read with meh characters, this would fit that bill.
2 people found this helpful
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Don’t waste your time on this book

Loved Megan Goldin’s Escape Room. So looked forward to Stay Awake. Really no story, just repetition of same information from first paragraph . And no motive or reason as to why a murder occurred. So glad I finished this waste of time. Don’t botter
2 people found this helpful
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Not that thrilling

Needed more editing for consistency. I had several issues with this book. I don't care if the amnesia thing is real or not, it's fiction, so I'm okay with that. But finding out the killer was meh and a fairly pedestrian motive. The impetus for her memory loss is pathetic. All the people she's coming contact with do nothing to help her. The so-called memory expert is useless. The red herrings are way too elaborate... I just couldn't like it the way I did her previous work.
2 people found this helpful