She is contacted by phone by a man identifying himself as Dt. Nash. Nash claims to be a specialist in psychiatry, with a special interest in memory loss. He wants to meet with Christine in hopes that he can help her recover her memory, but also to use what he learns in dealing with her to advance his knowledge in the field. He mentions no fee, but Christine assumes he will use her case in a well placed paper in a medical journal.

At their first meeting Dr. Nash suggests that Christine keep a journal of her daily activities. He thinks that she should keep the journal from her husband as it will upset him, but that her will call her each day and remind her where she has left the journal the previous day so that she can reread the previous day’s entry in hopes of building a memory store.

Gradually she begins to remember some events from her past but ones which occurred prior to the accident in which she was severely injured. He feeble attempts to question her husband, Ben about her past are quickly diverted by the man and Christine begins to suspect that he is not telling her the complete truth. For instance she vaguely remembers having a child but Ben denies that she did. Then later he admits she had a boy, but he died and he thought discussing the boy would distress her.

She finds that she (or perhaps Dr. Nash) has written on the first page of her journal “Don’t tell Ben.” She decides that the words are good advice, and, as she starts to remember more and more about her life those three words become almost a mantra. Whether her course of action will lead her to safety or disaster only time will tell.

Before I Go To Sleep is a first novel that was written as part of a course given in writing a novel by Faber Academy. The author’s interest in amnesia was piqued by a book written about the lives of several amnesiac patients. While this book is entirely a product of the author’s imagination, some of the behaviors outlined within its covers are typical of persons suffering from the malady.

One of the most intriguing aspects of Before I Go To Sleep is the method the author has employed to give his readers background information on Christine’s life. It is told in bits and snatches much as Christine begins to remember bits and snatches of her life after the accident until the present. This time period comprises a number of years rather than days. She learns that the accident happened when her son Adam was only a small child but he lived until adulthood. Although she has been married for many years and Ben has numerous pictures hanging throughout their home, there are no wedding pictures or photos of her child. The evasive responses that he gives heighten not only Christine’s anxiety, but the reader’s as well.

Christine’s dreams are an enigma. On the one hand she might be reliving events in her earlier life. On the other she might be imagining them as a life she wishes she had or wants to have. While the mystery of her accident and her life are the main plot focus of the book the various ways she learns about herself add great depth to the novel.

The story line and the approach are both a refreshing change from a typical mystery novel. Dreams might be considered a foray into the supernatural but the way they are employed by this skillful writer root them firmly in events of everyday life. The author is meticulous in attention to detail. When Christine imagines herself as a twenty year she thinks thoughts typical of a young woman of that age. When Christine was twenty years old the technology of the day did not include cell phones and the internet. In one sequence Christine is in a café and she notices a family with a handicapped child. She imagines herself as kind of a child in that she needs the extra care as well.

All these unique touches add up to a very special book. This is a novel that will appeal to readers with diverse interests. What each reader gets out of this book will be unique as well.

--Andy Plonka