Before I Go To Sleep

By S. J. Watson
(Harper, Hardcover, 9780062060556, 368pp.)

Publication Date: June 2011

Other Editions of This Title: Google eBook, Paperback, Paperback, Paperback, Paperback, Paperback, Paperback, Paperback

Categories: General

Selected by Indie Booksellers for the July 2011 Indie Next List

S. J. Watson lives in London and worked in the National Health Service for a number of years. In 2009 Watson was accepted into the first Faber Academy Writing a Novel course, a rigorous and selective program that covers all aspects of the novel-writing process. Before I Go to Sleep is the result.

“Imagine drifting off every night knowing that your memories will be wiped away by morning. That’s the fate of Christine Lucas, whose bewildering internal world is rendered with chilling intimacy in this debut literary thriller. . . . You’ll stay up late reading until you know.”
-People (4 stars)

“Brilliant in its pacing, profound in its central question, suspenseful on every page and satisfying in its thriller ending.”
-Anita Shreve

“Quite simply the best debut novel I have ever read.”
-Tess Gerritsen

“Watson’s debut novel unwinds as a story that is both complicated and compellingly hypnotic. . . . Watson’s pitch–perfect writing propels the story to a frenzied climax that will haunt readers long after they’ve closed the cover on this remarkable book.”
-Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“A deft, perceptive exploration of a fascinating neurological condition, and a cracking good thriller.”
-Lionel Shriver

“This mesmerizing, skillfully written debut novel works on multiple levels. It is both an affecting portrait of the profound impact of a debilitating illness and a pulse-pounding thriller whose outcome no one could predict.”
-Booklist (starred review)

“An intriguingly fresh look at the amnesia-focused psychological thriller. . . . A captivating and highly suspenseful read, populated with believable characters who lead the reader through a taut, well-constructed plot.”
-Library Journal

“An exceptional thriller. It left my nerves jangling for hours after I finished the last page.”
-Dennis Lehane

“Memories—real, false, and a bit of both—are at the heart of Watson’s haunting, twisted debut…. Watson handles what could have turned into a cheap narrative gimmick brilliantly, building to a chillingly unexpected climax.”
-Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“The summer’s single most suspenseful plot belongs to BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP. . . . pure page-turner.”
-New York Times