Before I Go To Sleep by S. J. Watson

Before I Go To Sleep by S. J. Watson
Genre: Thriller
Release Date: June 14, 2011
Publisher: Harper
Source: Bought
Add it: Goodreads
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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 only be telling you half the story.

Welcome to Christine's life.

I randomly picked up Before I Go To Sleep because I needed a book to read on the train home after I met up with Gaby in London. It was sitting on my bookshelf for quite some time, and I figured I could do with a quick thriller, so that was that. I read Before I Go To Sleep in about two days, which is quite impressive when you take into account the giant reading slump that I have been in since I binge-watched The 100. Luckily, Before I Go To Sleep was captivating.

I am a lover of all things to do with (fictional) memory loss. The main character of Before I Go To Sleep wakes up every morning without her memories – a phenomenon that has been troubling doctors ever since Christine’s accident about two decades ago, which caused the trauma to her brain so that it can’t retain new memories.

Christine wakes up every morning not knowing who her husband is, where she lives, or that she’s in her forties. In her mind, she’s usually in her twenties, although there’s little consistency on that front, and so looking in the mirror is a shock. This truly gave me goosebumps because can you imagine waking up next to a middle aged man that you don’t know? When you are (or you think you are) twenty two? It’s creepy as hell and it really freaked me out in the beginning.

The story is one big thrill ride, with Christine waking up every day to read her journal and discover new things about herself. The reader can start to piece together clues about a bigger mystery that’s playing out here, and this is something that I really enjoyed. I liked gradually finding out more and more about Christine’s accident, and I pretty much ended up suspecting every single character of foul play by the end.

Since I had so many theories, it was easy to have one that turned out to be right. That’s what happens when – and also why you should – cover all your bases when Sherlocking. The ending didn’t really shock me, but it did make me gasp and gave me intense goosebumps because it was just as creepy as I had imagined.

Overall I think Before I Go To Sleep is a great thriller, which is easy to read if you’re in the mood for something quick but pretty dark. It’s also been adapted into a movie, so that should make for an interesting Books in Motion post!