Megan Goldin: Stay Awake

Megan Goldin shows how precious sleep and memories are when murder is a foot:

Every time Liv falls asleep, her memory is taken away from her, but she does know where she lives. So when a Taxi drops her off at her place she knows that Amy will explain everything that is going on. But when she arrives at her house, strangers are living there and Amy is gone. She tries to find her phone but it is gone too. That is when she starts to notice writing on her hands, telling her to Stay Awake, trust no one and other messages. When she catches the news later that day, there is a murder in a building with the words Stay Awake written in a red liquid on the window, the same words on her hands, that is cannot be a coincidence. Liv cannot remember anything from the day before, but could she have murdered a man. Could this man have held the key to her memory loss. Liv needs to retrace her life and steps in order to figure it out, but there is someone who knows everything and they want to make Liv forget permanently.

 

This is the third book that I have read by Goldin and I liked that it is a very different concept that the other two but has the storytelling element I enjoy of two timelines getting closer and closer together. If you have seen the movie Memento (by Christopher Nolan...highly recommended movie), and this is book has very similar elements in it, with Liv loosing her memory every time she falls asleep. Due to the fact that Liv looses her memory every time she falls asleep the book can read a bit chaotic (and redundant) at times, as Liv goes through several of the same thoughts and moments each time. I am happy that Goldin decided to introduce another time frame as well as character to help balance the chaos.

I enjoyed that there were several cat and mouse aspects throughout the book; You have Liv and her memory, Liv and Det. Halliday, as well as more information is revealed to the reader you realize that there is a third cat and mouse game afoot as well. However, I did think that Goldin revealed some information too early on in the book, and I was able to predict the twists that were coming.

I really enjoyed Det. Halliday's POV. I thought that it was well thought out and her as a Det. did not want rush to any judgement, even when pushed by a more senior detective to change her mind. While Det. Halliday was pressured to make some moves that she did not think was right she always challenged the order, in a respectful way. I liked that she was not a push over. I will say the shooting scene would never ever ever happen in real life. That is not what any officer, military training or not is taught. I would read another book that had Det. Halliday either as the main character or in the mix some how.

This was a good book and I have enjoyed all three of the Goldin books that I have read so far. I am very much looking forward to what she comes up with next.

Enjoy!!!

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