ARC Audiobook Review: Stay Awake by Megan Goldin
Stay Awake
Author: Megan Goldin
Narrators:
Imogene Church
January LaVoy
To Be Published: August 9, 2022
Audiobook
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Read: July 19-25, 2022
Jessica’s Rating: 5 stars
Book Description:
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.
Jessica’s Review:
Whoa! Stay Awake was quite the ride to go on! It kept reminding me of the movie Memento, with some similarities and a murder mystery. I love that movie, though it has been many years since I have seen it. It might be time to watch that one again!
Stay Awake has dual timelines: present day and two plus years ago. It also has two narrators: Liv Reese, our main character with memory issues (every time she falls asleep she forgets everything from the past two+ years. We also have a female detective Halliday as our other narrator, who is trying to figure out a murder case and putting things together.
Once I realized we have an unreliable narrator with Liz I got nervous as those novels can be hit or miss for me. But it reminded me so much of Memento, I really enjoyed it! It was fast paced, intense and everything I love about thrillers! This is one you won’t want to put down because you just have to know what’s going to happen next!
I liked both Liz and Halliday. You can’t help but feel for Liz with her memory issues and not knowing what is going on, who to trust (basically no one!) and you just want Halliday to solve the case! The two narrations and dual timelines all come together to wind everything up in an intense conclusion.
The narrators are Imogene Church and January LaVoy, both whom I have listened to previously and also enjoyed. Imogene Church portrayed Liz perfectly with her confusion and LaVoy was just as good with portraying Halliday.
If you choose to read the physical book/kindle I can see a reader doing their best to stay awake and finish this in one sitting! I really enjoyed Stay Awake many thanks to Macmillian Audio for granting me an audio arc to listen to and review!
The Escape Room by Megan Goldin
The Escape Room
Author: Megan Goldin
Published: July 30, 2019
Audiobook
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Read: April 30- May 12, 2020
Jessica’s Rating: 4 stars
Book Description:
Vincent, Jules, Sylvie, and Sam are ruthlessly ambitious high-flyers working in the lucrative world of Wall Street finance where deception and intimidation thrive. Getting rich is all that matters, and they’ll do anything to reach the top.
When they are ordered to participate in a corporate team-building exercise that requires them to escape from a locked elevator, dark secrets of their team begin to be laid bare.
The biggest mystery to solve in this lethal game: What happened to Sara Hall? Once a young shining star—”now gone but not forgotten”.
This is no longer a game.
They’re fighting for their lives.
Jessica’s Review:
First, I have to say this: THERE IS NO ESCAPE ROOM in this novel! Our characters are trapped in a real elevator and they have to figure out answers to clues or die. Needless to say I have issues with the title of this novel. I was expecting something different, but other than this, I really enjoyed this novel.
We have two POVs and time periods for this novel: Sara Hall and the past, and present day with four investment bankers. Sara Hall is a recent graduate and trying to find a job in investment banking. Eventually she lands a job at Stanhope and Sons, which is where our four investment bankers also work. As we learn about Sara and her life we see just how tough and hard-hitting that investment banking would be; I would not want to have a job like this. The author apparently does not like investment bankers!
From the beginning of the novel, we know what is going to happen to the four in the elevator. It is not a surprise, but the mystery is seeing how past and present come together to give us our conclusion.
Though not a believable novel, it was a fun ride to go on. Once you finish reading, you might think twice before going in an elevator again, especially if you know the people going in it with you. Be careful who you go inside an elevator with!
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK