Before I Go to Sleep

A Novel

By: S. J. Watson

Narrated by: Orlagh Cassidy

Length: 11 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's summary

"As I sleep, my mind will erase everything I did today. I will wake up tomorrow as I did this morning. Thinking I'm still a child. Thinking I have a whole lifetime of choice ahead of me...."

Memories define us.

So what if you lost yours every time you went to sleep?

Your name, your identity, your past, even the people you love - all forgotten overnight.

And the one person you trust may be telling you only half the story.

Welcome to Christine's life.

©2011 S.J. Watson (P)2011 HarperCollins Publishers

Mystery and suspense with a twist

Christine is a woman with a past--unfortunately one she can't remember. When she wakes up each morning she has to be told where she is, what's happened in the past twenty years, and who the people are in her life now. She starts remembering things and then the pattern changes. It's a mystery with a little suspense. Different than I thought it would be but I was hooked very quickly by the plot. Truly a page-turner and a fascinating story. I wish I didn't know what happened so I could read it again!

Surprisingly good

I wasn't sure I could listen to this groundhog day scenario for 11 hours but after she starts writing in her journal about what she remembers from day to day it really picks up. The twist was pretty obvious but that didn't make it any less harrowing or exciting. I ended up really liking this book.

WOW!

This was a great book! I thought I had guessed the ending then ended up second guessing myself until I just wasn’t sure. It was very easy to listen to

Like nails grating on a chalkboard

The story is just ok so far (less than halfway through). I find it drags a little. But hardest for me is the narrator’s voice. Don’t know why but I find it quite annoying, especially when she reads voices other than the main characters. If I quit this book before finishing, this will be the reason!

Not a bad little thriller

I enjoyed this little tale. Unfortunately, I had seen the Nicole Kidman movie first (and didn't really realize it was the same story until a little way in), so I never really experienced much suspense, and that probably affected my take on things.

The setup is very good, very interesting, and the heroine is sympathetic, smart and engaging. The plot does bog down in the middle though, and the ending is cheesy -- somehow more cheesy than the movie, I think, maybe because the movie had good actors to pull it off. There's also a little bit of an unpleasant moralistic undertone to what happens to the heroine that bugs me some.

But overall, an enjoyable listen. The performance is good; nothing special.

OK....but then, not OK.....

This was an interesting story that began well and had a nice quick pace, then really drug along quite a bit in the middle. I found myself tuning out a lot in that area, and discovering I missed very little when I did. The narrator was good, but several phrases she used repeatedly got right down into my nerves! The worst of these annoying phrases was the way she spoke"I love you." and how she portrayed Clare and used the same grating tone when Clare would say "Chrissy." The way the narrator spoke these lines, over and over in the same tone, the same feel, the exact same way, didn't show a lot of depth to me, and really drove me nuts. However, overall, she did a good job with a storyline that was just ok. I didn't dislike this book, but it definitely isn't one I will remember in the long run, and it really is simply a dark 50 First Dates.

Well written and very good performance.

What did you love best about Before I Go to Sleep?

Good solid story that grabbed me at the beginning. I liked how the author pieced together the story without being repetitive. I was interested in the characters and was made to understand how the main character felt about her memory and her past.

Would you recommend Before I Go to Sleep to your friends? Why or why not?

Yes it is good story and the narrator is very good.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I listened to this in three or four days and it's about 12 hours.

Any additional comments?

The story wrapped up quickly and kinda left the listener hanging on the main character's future. But I think that was the point, so it was good and my credit was well spent.

Story draws you in

I started listening to this story as it was picked for my book club. Once I started I could not stop until I finished it. Narrator is very good and there is an interesting twist at the end that I did not see coming.

Entertaining

The story is well read. But I didn’t find the plot that great. A bit plodding in the way the story unfolds. And I wasn’t surprised by the ending. Had been guessing it for a long time.

Very intriguing plot!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would recommend this audio book as the reader is great and the story line really keeps your attention. It's a very interesting discussion that centers around who a person can trust.

What did you like best about this story?

I enjoyed the pace of the story plus the reader. She did a great job.

Have you listened to any of Orlagh Cassidy’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Have not.

If you could take any character from Before I Go to Sleep out to dinner, who would it be and why?

I would take Dr. Nash to dinner. This is a fascinating premise and based on a true condition I think. How would one cope I wonder?