DON'T WAKE UP is the stunning
debut from Liz Lawler that grabs you from the first to the
last page. It is
when Dr. Alex Taylor wakes up feeling drugged, lying on a
surgical
table, her legs raised in stirrups and her arms strapped
down that her
nightmare begins. Standing over her dressed in surgical
attire, his face
hidden behind a surgical mask is someone Alex does not
recognize. He
is threatening bodily harm and Alex is petrified. He tells
her he is
planning to perform a vulvectomy (remove her vulva) and
repeats again
and again "what does no mean?" When Alex answers him back, she
realizes that was the wrong move. He rolls a cart filled
with surgical
instruments and as he picks up an anesthetic mask and
prepares to
place it on her nose, she screams and blacks out.
When Alex awakens she is on a gurney, surrounded by her
colleagues.
As she relates what happened to her, she is faced with
disbelief and
excuses from her co-workers. They tell her she was found on the
grounds in a wind storm. She had a bump on her head and they
are
convinced she was hit by a falling branch. Her physical exam
showed
no rape or bodily injury and she was fully dressed. She must
be under
mental strain and is imagining things. When the police
arrive and
question Alex, they don't believe her story. The
investigating officer
Greg Turner is uncertain but his assistant, Laura Best wants
recognition. She decides Alex is a liar and is setting out
to find her
guilty.
Laura's boyfriend, Patrick is certain Alex is suffering some
kind of
breakdown and immediately takes her to the islands for some
fun in the
sun. During the trip and upon returning home, he continues
to make
excuses and discusses her issues with her friends and boss
behind her
back...
When two other murders occur to women in the area, Alex is
convinced
it is her attacker and he will be back again for her. Alone and
frightened, Alex begins to question her sanity. She begins
to drink too
much and take little blue pills to help cope. She befriends
Dr. Nathan
Bell and Dr. Margaret Fielding. Confused, she wonders who
she can
trust?
The stage is set for a scary and gripping finale. Alex
labeled as mentally
unstable by her colleagues, fights to discover who is doing
this to her
and why? While I wasn't completely convinced by the villain
or their
motives and the drastic actions against Alex, I do think
this is a story
that will make readers' hearts pound. I enjoyed Ms.
Lawlor's first
offering and look forward to her next. For readers who enjoy a
different-chiller-thriller,DON'T
WAKE
UP is definitely for you. Sleep tight but keep the
lights on!
A harrowing psychological thriller debut about a woman who
awakens after an assault with no physical proof of the
attack and who must try to convince everyone of what really
happened.
When Dr. Alex Taylor opens her eyes, she is hooked up to an
IV, is bound to an operating table, and her legs are raised
in stirrups. Disoriented and alarmed, she assumes she’s been
anesthetized and brought to surgery after being in an
accident. But the man standing over her, with his face
hidden behind a surgical mask and wielding instruments, is
no doctor she recognizes at the hospital where she works as
a successful and respected doctor. He’s a stranger—and he’s
calmly and methodically telling her how he’s about to attack
her. Before Alex can even scream for help, she succumbs to
another dose of anesthesia, rendering her unable to defend
herself….
When she comes to on a gurney, she finds herself surrounded
by her colleagues and immediately reports the attack and
rape. The police are skeptical of her bizarre story. And
after a physical exam reveals no proof of any attack, even
her boyfriend has doubts. Despite Alex’s adamant claims, no
one believes her, leaving her to wonder if she has, in fact,
lost her mind.
Until she meets the next victim…
An edge-of-your-seat psychological thriller, Don’t Wake
Up is also a provocative, timely exploration of
victimhood, abuse, and the discrediting of women in our culture.
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