If I Die Before I Wake

Everyone in our group except one enjoyed this thought provoking book. Individual reviews below.

This book had me on edge from start to finish. I found myself shouting at the book in the hope of Alex learning what had happened to him and being able to tell people he could hear them. A great read that I couldn’t put down.

This book had so many twists and turns I couldn’t put it down. An excellent read.

Extremely well written and gripping story that I was unable to put down. From the start the author made you feel sympathy and empathy for Alex. It also gave insight of how it is for those who are in a coma. The whole story came to a climax – very surprising – and at the end Alex was free, on more than one level.

Original crime mystery delivered by rock climber Alex who is in a coma. He is aware of what is going on but unable to communicate with hospital staff or family and friends. Through visits he tries to work out what happened and is desperate to protect his girlfriend. An interesting read and I would look out for more books by this author in future.

An engaging first chapter that hooks you in and makes you want to read more. I read the book in one sitting. An excellent and unique perspective with twists and turns along the way. Only one section where the story loses its energy but it soon returns!

I thoroughly enjoyed the perspective of this book, with the story being told by Alex who is in a coma after a rock climbing fall, which initially was thought to be an accident but as Alex pieces together snippets of conversation and visitors talking to him it appears not to be the case. I enjoyed the way the story was told only through what Alex heard and felt rather than what he could see. You could feel his frustration and emotions yet his visitors couldn’t which made it frustrating to read – in a good way. It also made you think, particularly about what it is like to be in a coma and how people treat you. I found the book gripping from start to finish and would definitely recommend it to others.

Loved this book. Was gripped from start to finish!

I am sorry to say that this book did not grab me and I found it a struggle to make myself read to its conclusion. I found the pace far too slow and meandering which, while it reflected the prolonged, drawn out time scale within the brain of the main character, just plain irritated me. It at once taught me a bunch of facts about rock-climbing which I found mildly interesting, (although I quickly decided I was never going to take up that activity and therefore had limited interest in the subject detail). At the same time I spent much of my nights after turning out the light reliving appalling scenarios in which I suffered from locked in syndrome myself. Everyone in the health service should read this book as a warning about the horrific condition and unwitting possible abuse. How I longed for someone to pull the plug on this poor lad. It prompted me to consider telling my own family to just get on with it if I so happened to share this ghastly fate on day. Unusually, I did not find any of the characters sympathetic, although I felt empathy for the protagonist, Alex. I thought Bea was a bit of a pain and an unbelievable red herring. There were too many obvious dramatic Deus ex Machina’s for my taste especially the creepy ‘doctor’s unveiled involvement. REALLY? It is the book I have enjoyed least over the last academic year although I have spoken to others who really enjoyed it very much. Isn’t it good that we are all different in our tastes.