Full Review by Lupe Farkas • Spoiler Free

WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL DID I JUST READ?

Seriously, Lisa, WHAT WAS THAT?

I finished If I Die Before I Wake, put the book down and stared into space for a moment because I genuinely needed to understand what had just happened to my brain.

What an absolutely chaotic reading experience!

I’m the kind of reader who enjoys being surprised. I love opening a book and having absolutely no idea where the author is taking me. I love questioning everything, suspecting everyone and occasionally wondering whether I’ve completely lost the ability to understand what I’m reading.

Well, Lisa certainly gave me plenty of opportunities to do all three.

Every time I thought I was beginning to understand where the story was going, something else happened. At some point, I stopped trying to predict anything and simply accepted that Lisa was driving and I was sitting in the passenger seat without a seat belt.

Good grief, woman!

The funniest thing is that I kept reading with the same three words going around in my head.

And I mean that in the best possible way.

Because here’s the thing: I was never bored. Hours disappeared while I was reading. I would tell myself I’d finish one more chapter, and suddenly I’d read another ten because I needed to know what was coming next.

There are so many moving pieces, emotions and unexpected developments that occasionally I wondered how Lisa managed to keep track of everything while writing it.

I certainly struggled to keep track of my own reactions.

One minute I was curious, the next I was concerned, then confused, then shocked, and occasionally I wanted to look directly at the author and ask whether she was having a particularly dramatic week when she wrote this.

And then came the ending.

I’m keeping my mouth firmly shut because this is one of those books where the less you know going in, the better. But I understand why people have so much to say about that ending.

Was the book perfectly structured? Probably not. There were moments when I wished certain developments had a little more room to breathe, especially toward the end.

But here’s something I’ve been thinking about since finishing it.

A book can be wonderfully organised, beautifully paced and technically excellent, and still leave me checking how many pages I have left.

This one did the opposite.

And for me, that’s worth a great deal.

I love an author who isn’t afraid to take risks and trusts readers to come along for the ride. Lisa certainly isn’t lacking imagination, and her ability to keep me wondering what could possibly happen next deserves recognition.

Four stars.

For the madness, the surprises, the imagination and those hours that disappeared without me noticing.

If you’re the kind of reader who enjoys a perfectly predictable journey, this might test your nerves.

But if you’re the kind who loves turning a page and shouting WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED?

And Lisa, I have just one question.

How on earth did you sleep while writing this?