Review: Before I wake ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ | 4 ★
Author: SM Thomas
Publication Date: 02 September 2023
Publisher: BooksGoSocial
Historical Fiction | Women's Fiction
Mystery & Thrillers
I received this book from SM Thomas and BooksGoSocial, as an advanced eArc for my honest review any opinions that come from this review are my own. Thank you to both the Author and the publisher and Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

This book was a page-turner and it took me on a ride that had me guessing at every turn of the page. This is a fast-paced and action-packed thriller that will leave you wanting more. I loved the writing style of this author as well. The character was annoying in some parts of the book and others had you feeling love and sympathy for her. This was a great read.

I honestly struggled getting into this book. It got better after awhile, but there were several moments where I almost DNF'd. I just wasn't the target audience for this one, I think.

Man did a lot happen on these pages. I'm not sure what kinda craziness book 2 is gonna have when like 57 plots ran thru book 1.
It almost doesn't work so much happened.
But the dystopian vibe blended with COVID parallels was too interesting not to keep reading.
I hate hate hate the cliffhanger ending tho.
And find the main character completely dislikable until the last couple pages. Redemption at the end tho.

Thank you for writing this. While reading I had so many thoughts going through my mind. I love a book that makes me think of the reason it was written, what are the plot twists and so much more.

I can see what this book was going for. And it did hit the mark, however, for me, I found the language quite stiff.
The title is modern, set in modern times, however the stiff language use really dated it overall and took some of the focus for me.

That being said, overall it is a good read that keeps you on the edge of your seat.

This was not my usual genre but the description really intrigued me. This story felt a little close to home due the recent pandemic. The story really kept me wanting more. The characters were well drawn and kept me reading.

This is a novel written with great narrative assurance and told from the point of view of Dr Paige Hanson, a research scientist, suffering from amnesia following an accident.
The author takes us to Earth Two, the planet to which the human race has relocated after the climate failure of Earth. This is a bleak dystopian world with race segregation and a totalitarian regime.
The writing is wonderfully evocative and atmospheric with homage paid to such giants of the genre as George Orwell and Margaret Atwood.
This is a frightening vision of a future where one world has been destroyed in an apocalypse and the new world is plagued with a deadly virus and anarchy. A tremendous and visionary achievement.

Domestic thriller? Medical thriller? Sci-fi? A little bit of all of the above. I was intrigued by the cover and the premise of the book, but it ended up hitting too close to home with the pandemic and the government. Also, I was confused on where the setting was until it was confirmed in the book. Was it fast paced? Yes. Was it twisty? Yes. Would I read the sequel to this book? No.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
🫑

What would you do if you woke up and the first thing you’re asked is “where is your husband?” This is what Paige Hanson is asked as she struggles to remember her last encounter with her son and her husband on their anniversary. Try as she might she can’t remember their last conversation either.. With Paige’s memory becoming hazy and the government officials constantly on her tail she must do whatever it takes to find out where her husband is- even if that means relying on someone she swore to never rely on again. Just as Paige comes to terms with everything happening around her, she starts to become wary of everyone interested in his disappearance.

Overall, this was a thought provoking thriller that had me second guessing every step of the way. I really loved the character building in the story. I really felt I knew what made Paige tick and why reacted or didn’t react the way she did. And since this is the beginning of a trilogy I wasn’t expecting a completed ending but I also didn’t expect the ending I was given!¡! Felt very similar to the shatter me series set up but with no live interest lmao.

I wish the author had put a notice that this was supposed to be a thriller version of COVID-19 in the summary. I don’t typically like to read about Covid in my fictional books because I’m reading to get away from reality and Covid is just too much you know🥴 Even though the health crisis was more of a background story, Paige is one of the main scientists for finding a cure makes it a main plot point for a good chunk of the book. However, that aside the thriller take on this story was so good there were parts where I had to go back and say no way did that actually happen? 😂 I also loved to see Paiges feelings and her motherly protection of her 6 month. ALL HERE FOR IT💗

While I don’t think I’ll read the second and third book since the thriller/mystery part is basically solved (🤣lol) I do recommend this book for those who love Sci-Fi, dystopia, medical & techno thriller!

Thank you #Netgalley, A.R Hurne Publishing, and S.M. Thomas for a copy of #TheDiseasedAnaddictivepageturningthriller

My thanks to the Author publisher's and NetGalley for providing me with a Kindle version of this book to read and honestly review.
A quality start to this series, well written character driven story engaging from first to dreaded last page. Starts of as a seemingly simple mystery, our heroine wakes in hospital with her son but a missing husband, run of the mill right WRONG, from the moment we find we are on EARTH TWO.
Add science fiction to mystery thriller, and from there on the surprises and twists seem never ending. Clever descriptive imaginative intelligent intriguing, full of strong female leads until you turn the page to the dreaded ending:
TO BE CONTINUED, that had me cursing my poor defenceless Amazon Fire Tablet.
How long to book two?
Completely and utterly recommended.

This book is different to the average thriller. It brings in sci-fi and does it really convincingly. I liked how current it felt - it seemed very modern and set within the experience of the pandemic and lock downs. Paige is an interesting character who grew on me and I liked watching her reactions as her personality emerged throughout the book. The book touches on some tough issues and does so with appropriate care.

So, the cover of this book is what caught my eye. Dark, brooding, creepy…..everything about it screaming Horror (Which I love).
When I read the synopsis it sounded more of a sci-fi read (Again, I love this genre).
So between the two, it caught my attention enough to want to read. So firstly, thank you to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for my arc.

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect with this book when I started it, so went in with an open mind.
Truthfully, it started off quite slow. It’s not a story that you can jump into from page 1 it’s definitely a slow burner.
However…. this gives you the opportunity to get to know the characters and understand them.
Also upon reading the story, it becomes a lot harder to “pigeon-hole” the genre. If somebody asked me how I’d classify it, I’d have to say it’s an amalgamation, of the above with the bonus of some mystery/thriller mixed in.
This book is enjoyable and shows promise. The author has a talent for writing and I feel like they will only grow in their works the more they write.
This is a 3.5 out of 5 stars for me. I’m looking forward to reading more about this character in the future.
My advice to anyone who’s reading this book is to keep going. Don’t be tempted to give up at the beginning, there’s far more to come.

You awake in a hospital be and the first thought is where is my husband? What has happened to Paige's husband, Leo?
This book is set on Earth Two where the new regime has complete control over who can live where. Who can work where. Where you can drive your state owned car for one journey a year.
Is this world Utopian or Dystopian- who will find out and what will the outcome be? Will Paige ever find out what happened to her husband?

A virus breaking out. Paige was never meant to leave the hospital. Her son taken away, husband missing..After an accident Paige remembers nothing and as she tries to piece everything things keep escalating. Paige needs answers, what did happen to her husband and what worked?

I didn't realise this book was a mix of genres - Sci fi with a bit of mystery around it.
It was really slow in parts and even considered not finishing it. However it picks up at the end and it's clear that the book is getting better.

I freaking loved this book! Crime/domestic thriller set in a sci-fi world... *Chef kiss*

I'm a big near future, techno thriller sci-fi lover and this setting added an unusual layer to the crime/domestic thriller storyline. Very clever. Very effective.

The book also touched on a range of different human elements as the story progressed. Motherhood, loyalty, family, commitment to work, racism and homophobia etc. It was interesting to see Paige's character development as she was faced with different challenges, especially by the end (#nospoilers).

The book was a little heavy on the crime aspect for the first half and the sci-fi/dystopian aspect for the second half... Evening this out is my only suggestion for improving the overall flow of the book.

Thank you to Netgalley and the author for allowing me to read and review this book. I'd also be very happy to review the next book in the series when it becomes available... I need to know what happens next!!

Let's start with the positive. The basic premise of this book, the first in a series, is interesting. The story held my attention. There are plenty of unanswered questions that could lead to interesting storylines.

But now for the negatives. The blurb says, "Set on Earth Two, this novel has been described by readers as a genre mix of medical, psychological, techno thriller with a hint of sci-fi dystopia."

I wouldn't call it a genre mix - rather a genre mess. Let's take them one at a time. As a medical thriller, it's incoherent - there's a subplot around a virus but it's totally unclear what is going on beyond the facts that there's a lockdown, people die, and the protagonist (Paige) works in a lab and is involved in work to find a cure.

As a psychological thriller, it's a mess too. Not one character has a clearly defined and consistent personality, motives, or patterns of behaviour. They continually change - these changes are presented as plot twists but they come across as just cardboard, clichéd characters being mercilessly twisted to suit the next step in the storyline.

As a techno thriller... well, I don't know why they threw that in there....Huh?
Sci-fi dystopia? Check. It's set on another planet and the government is nasty.

Which brings me to my biggest problem with this novel. The catastrophically poor worldbuilding. The reader is expected to believe that humans have colonised another planet (Earth Two) after Earth one was destroyed. Eight thousand humans arrived some 50 or so years ago. Now there are roughly 45,000. Including children. Babies.

Yet this alien world has hospitals, labs, schools, universities, paved streets, vehicles, phones, tablets and laptops, internet and social media. Lasagna, wine, cigarettes, vapes and chocolate. Baby bottle sterilisers. Lawnmowers, and... oh for pity's sake give me a break.... - lawns. All created, maintained and run by a total population of 45K people. Including the babies. While - wait for it - an unstated number of those people are living 'in the wild', outside the civilised area of the new world, and another unstated number of people are pursuing a war against the native population.

Did I mention 'just 45K people'? That's roughly the number of employees of The Cheesecake Factory. Or Rolls Royce Holdings. Companies that make (or assemble) just one type of product. Without (presumably) babies.

I was also irritated by the countless paronyms throughout the book. Emerge instead of immerse. Abscond instead of absolve (twice!), infliction for inflection, and so many more.

Finally, it all revolves around a profoundly narcissistic, self-pitying, unlikeable heroine. Towards the end, she actually says that 'all this' (every aspect of the entire dystopian world she is living in) is 'all her fault'. Really. Woe is me.

A really good editor could make a world of difference and make the changes necessary to turn this into a good series. It has potential. For the sake of the potential, I'll stretch my original 1 star assessment to 2 stars.

My thanks to the publisher and author for providing an ARC of this novel.

The first 25% was kinda slow really picked up after 30% and got most interesting. There’s always an inner monologue with our MC trying to remember a very important thing that happened on a fateful night I personally was invested from the first little bit, it’s really good. Our MC seems to be a little sneaky and I like that. I really had some covid vibes from this book talking about lockdowns and stuff lol but it was so interesting and fun! It took me a long time to finish this because I was so busy but I loved it throughout and the ending was so great! I wasn’t expecting it. I always wanted to know what happened to the MC’s husband and we kinda get to know a lot more. 4.5 stars

Addicting? Yes, entirely. Thrilling? Holy crap, so !ugh yes! Mysterious? Indeed.

This book was so twisted in every definition. I couldn't put it down, dying to find out what was going with the husband. There were so many shocking turns and the sci-fi elements were fantastic.

Very interesting and intense! Couldn't put this one down. This book had me hooked from the first page! Very much worth the read! Highly recommend!

Once I read the description and the genre of this book, I was sure that it would be a perfect read for me. The setting of the book and sci-fi/fantasy connection did not become clear until a few chapters in. Not the normal genre for me, I wasn’t sure how long I would be able to stick with it. However, the plot kept twisting to keep me somewhat interested. The mystery around the husband, in my opinion, took a few too many twists and kept the reader quite confused. Also, the ending was an abrupt “to be continued.” I would have preferred at least a bit of closure with some unknowns to keep the reader coming back for more.