Before I Wake is a psychological thriller that had me hanging on to every page. Split between past and present, you get the thinking behind present actions explained by experiences of the past. It keeps you questioning right to the very end and sheds light on the damage caused by an abusive relationship while at the same time keeping you on the edge of your seat. A real page turner.

Story was OK but gave me a bad feeling, not something I would want to read again.

This was an okay kind of book? Well, okay.. more like an okay you're super predictable kind of book?
Yeah, more like that.

The Accident is about 15 year old Charlotte and how she is currently in a coma after walking in front of a bus. Her mother and father don't know why she hasn't woken up yet or the doctors. However, they still have faith that she will wake up on her own but the lingering question is: why the hell did this crazy bitch walk in front of a bus on purpose?

Now going through her parents minds: Sue, her mother, is basically engulfed in guilt. Her and Charlotte didn't have the best relationship before the accident and now she is absolutely certain there's a reason behind her walking in front of that bus. Well, no shit Sue. Obviously something happened to your daughter that made her feel like she needed to do that. BUT WHAT?

Then there's her dad, Brian, who just thinks it was all one big freak accident. Way to go dad. Major props for using your brain.

Of course you get some suspects:
Keisha, Charlotte's supposed best friend that her parents didn't know about.
Liam, Charlotte's now ex-boyfriend.
Ella, who was Charlotte's best friend but now they are frenemies.

Besides all of that, her mom basically goes crazy while trying to figure out what happened to Charlotte. Sue is freaking crazy and lived a crazy life way before all of this crap went down. Honestly, I was scared for and of Sue.

Now I'm not going to spoiler anything else about this book, like the ending. Just go read it for yourself if you want to.

The front cover is nice and dark and screams mystery and twists. It's not the prettiest but it does make you want to pick up the book.
The storyline is brilliant, I was hooked from the first few pages and couldn't put this book down.
You really get attached to the characters and feel the main character's frustration with her husband and how he treats her that way.
There's plenty of twists and the author keeps you guessing until the end. I never even pictured what happened in the end.
It's an easy read and the chapters are the perfect length.
I'd definitely recommend you this book :)

It was so gripping. I guessed what or who was the one threatening the family but it was still a wild ride to see how. Seeing the past and present alternate gave me an idea of why the little things were affecting Sue the way they did. A lesson everyone needs to learn is that a mama bear will go to any length to protect her family. One thing I see often in thrillers is women being dismissed. In this book Sue wasn't taken seriously at all. She provides facts and even evidences but still everyone is convinced that she's mentally unstable and is just 'obsessed'. That's why I knocked a star off. Silly reason I know but it still irritates me.
Trigger warnings- domestic violence, r*pe, humiliation ( I skipped some parts of the flashbacks since it got too much for me, so I don't know the rest of the trigger warnings if there are any.

A fast paced psychological suspense and debut novel by C.L. Taylor.
Susan's teenage daughter Charlotte lies in a coma after seeming to throw herself in front of a moving bus. Everyone seems to think it was an accident but after finding her daughters diary and reading what she wrote the night before Susan is sure it was on purpose. What would cause her daughter to do something so horrendous ? Susan feels that if she can find the answer to that question then maybe she can help pull Charlotte out of her coma.
Intertwined in this story are flashbacks from Susans life 20 years before and the small clues and unwelcome gifts that seem to be linking her past to her present life.
Is the life Susan fled from finally catching up with her and if so is her daughter the one paying the price for it ? Unfortunately with Susans history of mental breakdowns no one believes her as she starts putting it all together. Is she crazy ? Was it just an accident or is someone really out to destroy her family ?
You will not want to put this one down till you know all the answers !

Before I Wake started of a little slow for me. But before you know it, I couldn't out it down. Susan is a 40ish married mother of two. Her biological daughter Charlotte is laying in the hospital in a coma. She stepped in front of a bus. Throughout the book, Susan is trying to learn why. Even after everyone else has their own explanations as to what would drive Charlotte to do such a thing, Susan knows better. She's read her daughters diary and there is a line that seems to lead to it not being an accident. Susan and her husband Brian are going through a strained patch. She is somewhat over him cheating on her. But, he's behaving oddly in the beginning of the book. A red herring, obviously. Through diary flashbacks we learn that she was once in a horribly abusive relationship with a man named James. The journal entries were dead on. How victims of domestic violence alienate their real friends and family and are isolated by their abuser, etc. As Susan gets closer to why her daughter tried to kill herself, she starts getting sinister "gifts". They all point to James. The only problem I had with the book (besides the ending) was Susan's behavior in her quest for the truth. Most parents would do anything possible to help their child. But acting crazy never gets you anywhere. Or so I think? I would just think that people thinking you're crazy kind of ruins your credibility? Her own husband and stepson thought she was crazy. There probably is a sane way to go about getting the answers you want. The ending was... Maybe not predictable exactly. But how did I know that Susan would be somehow incapacitated when James attacked? Plus, his breaking Charlotte's bones was a little unnecessary. I also found it odd that there was all this stuff going on in a hospital. All in all though, very good. It really does build suspense.

This book was interesting

I enjoyed this book

Overall, a pretty decent read. The suspense throughout this book did have me on edge and ensure that I was turning every page extremely quickly. Whilst the ending felt too fairytale I enjoyed the suspense of not knowing what the secret was, the secret did seem to be a little PG.