S J Watson

'Mesmerising and unsettling . . . The best debut thriller for years' Sunday Times Now a major film starring Nicole Kidman, Colin Firth and Mark Strong Over 7 million copies sold worldwide ____________ 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. ____________ Readers are obsessed with Before I Go To Sleep: ***** 'A genius plot with an incredible twist. Before I go to Sleep is one of the best books I've read in a very long time.' ***** 'The book had me gripped from the very beginning . . . a real can't-put-it-down-till-the-last-page read.' ***** 'It's dark, fascinating, original and addictive - l read it in a day.' ____________ Final Cut, the unputdownable new thriller from S. J. Watson, is out now.

The no. 1 bestselling Richard & Judy Book Club thriller

Before I Go To Sleep

S. J. Watson

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.

A Novel

Before I Go to Sleep

Ofelia

** spoiler alert **
           3.5/5

Mi sembra ingiusto dargli solamente tre stelline, e devo ammettere che sono stata combattuta parecchio tra le tre e le quattro stelle quindi credo che una via di mezzo sia la cosa migliore.
Comincio col dire che i thriller non sono esattamente il mio genere, più che altro perché spesso li trovo scontati sopratutto nel finale. Purtroppo anche questo libro un pò lo è, anche se ha qualche guizzo interessante nel finale purtroppo io ho trovato che le carte in tavola fossero troppo facilmente leggibili. Me lo aspettavo però, perché la persona che me lo ha consigliato ha subito messo in chiaro che conoscendomi avrei individuato il "colpevole" prima della fine del libro, e anche se sotto sotto speravo che non sarebbe successo purtroppo è accaduto.
Il finale mi ha fatto per lo meno rivalutare Christine, che fino a quasi la fine del libro mi stava quasi antipatica. Tradisce il marito "perfetto" (che perfetto sicuramente non sarà stato ma da come viene descritto da tutti e dalla stessa Christine quando se ne ricorda aveva davvero pochi difetti, era veramente innamorato di lei e faceva un pò di tutto per accontentarla) con un completo sconosciuto solo perché dopo la maternità si annoia e si è stufata della vita fatta fino a quel momento, insomma ha bisogno di un'avventura. Ora, che si sia andata a prendere un pazzo psicopatico che non la vuole più far tornare dal marito e tenta anche di ucciderla non è colpa sua ma, come si dice, chi è causa del proprio mal pianga sè stesso. 
Insomma, già a metà libro io mi sono ritrovata a sentire più pena per Ben e Adam che non per lei, e avevo intuito che quello che diceva di essere suo marito potesse essere qualcun altro dal sogno che lei fa (quando è convinta di essersi innamorata del suo dottore) e dalla lettera che l'amica le consegna. Ma come prima le dici che sparirai dalla sua vita, che te ne andrai e per il suo bene non la vedrai mai più e poi invece ci torni a vivere assieme? La cosa non aveva molto senso, e mi sono insospettita sopratutto quando precisava che aveva vietato anche al figlio di tornare a vederla in qualsiasi occasione, cosa che veramente strideva troppo con il comportamento del "finto" Ben.
Il libro merita di essere letto, solo speravo in qualcosa di più nel finale.

“Thebest debut novel I’ve ever read.”—Tess Gerritsen,bestselling author of the Rizzoli & Isles series “Anexceptional thriller. It left my nerves jangling for hours after I finished thelast page.” —Dennis Lehane, New York Times bestselling author of Moonlight Mile S. J. Watson makes his powerful debutwith this compelling, fast-paced psychological thriller,reminiscent of Shutter Island and Memento, in which an amnesiac who,following a mysterious accident, cannot remember her past or form newmemories, desperately tries to uncover the truth about who she is—and whoshe can trust.

Sonja H

Ich hatte mir etwas mehr von der Auflösung des Rätsels versprochen, aber es ist dennoch ein sehr gutes und spannendes Buch

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. Now a major film starring Nicole Kidman, Colin Firth and Mark Strong. In Cinemas' now.

Karlyn S

It kept me on the edge of my seat constantly! I love SJ Watson’s writing style a lot, and enjoyed every minute reading this book! I literally did not want to put it down! I have recommended it to so many people! Highly suggest! Plus a MAJOR twist to look forward to!

Steven J. Watson

Christine wakes up every morning in an unfamiliar bed with an unfamiliar man. She looks in the mirror and sees an unfamiliar, middle-aged face. And every morning, the man she has woken up with must explain that he is Ben, he is her husband, she is forty-seven years old, and a terrible accident two decades earlier decimated her ability to form new memories. But it's the phone call from a Dr. Nash, a neurologist who claims to be working with Christine without her husband's knowledge, that directs her to her journal, hidden in the back of her closet. For the past few weeks, Christine has been recording her daily activities -- tearful mornings with Ben, sessions with Dr. Nash, flashes of scenes from her former life -- and rereading past entries, relearning the facts of her life as retold by the husband she is completely dependent upon. As the entries build up, Christine asks many questions. What was life like before the accident? Why did she and Ben never have a child? What has happened to Christine's best friend? And what exactly was the horrific accident that caused such a profound loss of memory? Every day, Christine must begin again the reconstruction of her past. And the closer she gets to the truth, the more unbelievable it seems.

Britney Ly

The novel really makes the reader change their opinions about characters quickly as the plot progresses. It's quite engrossing because these things are a reality for some people and that's the frightening part. Although Christine is an amazing character, she was too forgiving and reverted back to old feelings way too quickly, and although the story wouldn't have turned out the way it did, from a logical standpoint, it would have solved many issues had she been less adamant about everybody's innocence. Also it's a bit hard to follow since the form in which the perspective is give jumps from time to time. Overall, I would definitely recommend this to some friends who like suspense.

Morgana

** spoiler alert **
           Non è male, ma credo che mi sarebbe piaciuto molto di più se non avessi intuito la maggior parte delle cose a metà libro. Credo di aver visto/letto troppi thriller ( e dire che non sono neanche il mio genere, è colpa di mia madre che ne va matta ) ma spesso riesco a capire chi è il killer e cose così. In questo il killer non c'è ( uhm..quasi ), ma avevo intuito che il marito non era il marito ma l'amante, alcune cose ancora non mi tornavano del tutto, ma quando Mike ha ammesso di non essere suo marito e tutto il resto, per me non è stata affatto una sorpresa. Avrei voluto dare 4 stelle a questo libro, perché è scritto bene e la trama non è malaccio, però senza colpo di scena finale sento che ha perso qualcosa di fondamentale. Non credo di essere l'unica ad aver intuito il finale ( nè accuso chi non lo ha fatto, ovvio :D ) ma se l'ho intuito io, vuol dire che era "banale" come scelta e credo che questa sia la vera pecca del libro. Se alla fine avessi scoperto che Claire era associata in qualche modo con Mike, che lui non era semplicemente folle e basta ma si era fatto aiutare da altri ( magari il dottor Nash, quello sì sarebbe stato un colpo di scena ) ma visto che la trama ha semplicemente fatto il suo corso, uhm.. ha perso qualcosa. Comunque un libro che si legge bene, interessante e tutto il resto, non penso di aver perso ore a leggerlo XD E' una trama molto "da film", quindi se dovessi vedere prossimamente nelle sale una cosa simile o proprio la trasposizione cinematografica di questo libro, non me ne stupirei.

María Belén

Actual rating 4.5

I just finished it and I'm still in shock. This is so good. So, so, good. I read through my linguistics class all morning. I just couldn't stop reading, I had to know what the hell was going on.
The writing is very good, very compelling. It flows perfectly and you feel everything Christine feels: doubt, fear, anticipation. A real page-turner. 
The only thing I didn't like was Claire and Ben's backstory. It was a bit dramatic for my liking, I found it unnecessary. That's why I give the book 4.5 stars. 
All in all, it's an amazing story. I enjoyed thoroughly.

Jordan Robinson

Nona G

I'm surprised by how much all over the place the reviews for this book are. A lot of people loved it, but there's also so much gratuitous hate. I feel like a 1* review can only be given to really, really, really bad, self-published books by authors nobody has ever heard of, that you can find only in the most obscure bookshops... Anyways.

Before I Go to Sleep is basically Memento with a female protagonist and less killing. Christine has an accident which causes her to gradually lose her memory and also developed retrograde (?) amnesia which causes her to forget everything that happens to her during the day when she goes to sleep at night. That's the extent of the spoilers I'm going to give.

The book is split into two parts. Most of it is Christine's diary that she keeps on a daily basis, while the last few pages describe her life after she stops writing the journal.

It's a thriller and I will say a pretty entertaining one. I think (don't really remember) I say the movie a while ago and had a feeling about what was going to happen (the fact that the book is pretty predictable does not help either in maintaining the mystery until the end), but I was still engrossed in the action until the very end. I found the rhythm quite alert, I didn't get bored, though Christine tends to repeat herself while writing her journal. But, come on, it's a journal! Everyone repeats him/herself when writing their diary. Plus, we know from the beginning that Christine is an unreliable narrator, it's absurd to expect a logical and consistent flow.

I spoke about predictability. Signs of what was going to happen in the end are clearly given from the first pages, and more along the line. The perceptive reader will figure everything out quite early and might get bored. I personally didn't, though I sort of knew what was going on, because the action kept me engaged. What I liked less - and the reason why this book doesn't get a higher rating from my part - is Christine's writing style. I know she is supposed to be a writer, but the language feels forced, unnatural, especially for someone who is supposed to write frantically and on the rush.

There are a lot of inconsistencies in the book, stuff that is absurd if you dissect it and compare to real life (like the fact that a chronic amnesiac was able to check herself out from a hospital). I'm not particularly into the side characters either, they feel underdeveloped and unrealistic ((view spoiler)[Ben and Adam, even Claire, are probably the worst support system any ill person would want in their life (hide spoiler)]). However, I would not categorise this as a bad novel. I can pretty much ignore, or at least diminish the importance of the inconsistencies, if the action keeps me engaged, which is what this book did, in the end.

Diana


I didn't hate this book, but didn't love it either. Looking back after having read it months ago, I mostly just feel disappointment. I expected one thing and got something else entirely. That being said, I did enjoy the characters and the unfolding of the plot was done well, if not semi-repetitive at times.

Luca Conti

Christine wakes in a strange bed beside a man she does not recognise. In the bathroom she finds a photograph of him taped to the mirror, and beneath it the words 'Your husband'. Each day, Christine wakes knowing nothing of her life. Each night, her mind erases the day. But before she goes to sleep, she will recover fragments from her past, flashbacks to the accident that damaged her, and then—mercifully—she will forget. Chilling, exquisitely crafted and compulsively readable, S. J. Watson's debut novel Before I Go to Sleep is a psychological thriller of the highest order. It asks primary questions. Are there things best not remembered? Who are we if we do not know our own history? How do we love without memory? S. J. Watson’s brilliant novel is now a major motion film directed by Rowan Joffe (Brighton Rock), starring Academy Award winners Nicole Kidman and Colin Firth.

leah

Hanna 

blue

Christine wakes up every morning in an unfamiliar bed with an unfamiliar man. And every morning that man must explain that he is Ben, he is her husband; she is forty-seven years old; and a terrible accident two decades earlier decimated her ability to form new memories. But it's the phone call from a neurologist named Dr. Nash that directs her to her hidden journal. For the past few weeks, Christine has been recording her activities and rereading past entries, learning the facts of her life as retold by the husband upon whom she is completely dependent. As the entries accumulate, Christine finds herself asking more and more questions-about what she missed and what Ben might not be telling her...

Charlie

Lorraine

"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.

Before I Go To Sleep The no. 1 bestselling Richard & Judy Book Club thriller

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