Oh my freaking god. What a novel! This thriller had you guessing until the end and even until it was revealed I never knew who patient x was. I really enjoyed the concept of the book, the short chapters and the diary extracts really kept the pacing spot on. Very enjoyable read

Regrettably, "Anna O" by Matthew Blake did not manage to capture my interest in a substantial manner. The narrative, to put it frankly, seemed to meander excessively, unfolding as if it were an academic textbook dedicated to the realm of sleep, replete with numerous references and an inundation of technical terminology. While undoubtedly informative, this surplus of information on the mechanics of sleep overshadowed what I had anticipated – a compelling and engaging storyline.
The emphasis on the intricacies of sleep, rather than on developing a gripping plot, left me feeling somewhat disillusioned. I found myself yearning for more narrative substance and a deeper exploration of the character's experiences and emotions. Unfortunately, Ben Prince, the central character, emerged as disappointingly sedate, lacking the dynamism necessary for a reader to form a genuine connection.
The novel's promising premise hinted at the potential for an intriguing tale, but the execution, in my estimation, fell flat. The disparity between expectation and reality left me with a sense of dissatisfaction, as the novel failed to deliver the immersive experience I had hoped for. While the technical details on sleep may appeal to some, for me, the overarching focus on this aspect overshadowed the potential for a richer and more emotionally resonant narrative. In essence, "Anna O" turned out to be a literary journey that did not align with my preferences, and I found it to be a rather lacklustre read.

A decent enough high-concept literary thriller that I'm sure lots of people will enjoy. Not quite as good as I was hoping for, if I'm totally honest, but others will no doubt love it, as the hype surrounding this novel would suggest.

'Was she guilty?' my date asks, or the woman who was formerly my date. I am nothing but a ghoul to her now, an anecdote for Christmas, or New Year. 'When she stabbed those two people. Did she really get away with murder?'

Anna Ogilvy has been asleep since August 2019 but her name is on everyone's lips.

Four years ago Anna was found asleep at an exclusive retreat called The Farm. She was in bloodstained clothes, holding a knife, and her the bodies of her two best friends lying next to her. She hasn't woken up since.

Those who believe she is innocent call her Anna 0, those who believe she is guilty call her Sleeping Beauty.

Anna O was a good concept and well executed on the whole. I didn't like any of the characters but I was interested in the mystery. However, I felt like the last third of the book I was rapidly losing interest in the outcome of the book. I felt like some of the later twists were a little implausible.

This book gripped me from page 1! Anna has been in a deep sleep for four years, after murdering her two friends in her sleep. Dr Ben Prince is a sleep psychologist challenged with waking her up, but the case of Sleeping Beauty isn't as straight forwards as it seems... This had twists and turns that actually (surprisingly) shocked me. I was not expecting the ending, though I wish the end was as fleshed out as the rest of the book. I still thoroughly enjoyed it. If you're looking for something with suspense and surprise, this is the book for you!

A unique thriller with a sleepwalking murderer at its core. A devastating event which has a massive impact on a number of lives and gains notoriety in the media. The question is, did she do it? Will Anna O ever wake? Will the mystery ever be solved? This book has plot twists at every corner that kept me hooked. Each time I thought I had it sussed, I ended up second guessing myself.

So many thought provoking questions and they just keep coming as the book continues. For me, the story raises questions on morality; culpability and more - some of which are still going through my mind. If you like a bit of a fast paced thriller then this is for you, it was certainly one I didn't want to put down.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I went into this book feeling more optimistic than I probably should have. I saw it described as “Sleeping Beauty meets The Silent Patient” - which although sounds amazing in theory did not work for me in practice. I think one of the main problems for me where the characters; there is no way that the Deputy Minister for Justice would make a Harry Potter reference at work (or really anywhere in 2022, when this was written). The writing (and multiple more Harry Potter references), made this book feel dated and uncool in a way which I’m sure the author did not intend.

Now, the plot. Or lack of it really - this book was all over the place and very hard to follow for me personally. Everything is repetitively described in minute detail which led to an “all show, no tell” mystery that fell really flat for me. The writing style and plot were both incredibly repetitive, which led to me skipping pages and skim-reading just to get to the end, which was also all too predictable.

I loved the idea of this story but sadly I found it a bit long winded. It also wasn't completely clear when the story changed narrator/timeframe which I found confusing at points.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

Arc review

Anna un-alived two people one night with no apparent motive. Anna hasn't woken up since...
Only Anna knows the truth of what happened that fateful night.
THE WORLD WILL KNOW HER NAME...

This book is known as The Silent Patient (which I haven't read yet,) meets sleeping beauty.

The author done alot of research for this book in relation to "resignation syndrome." (Sleep related crime's.)
This book for me wasn't gripping but it made me want to continue reading in order to find out what actually happened on the night she un-alived two people. I did find the book an interesting read for the psychology side of things.

Book contained short chapters and written in multiple POV which contain diary entries.
Overall 3.5 stars ⭐⭐⭐.✨

I want to thank the #NetGalley and publisher/author for this advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review. #AnnaO

Loved this thought the concept was unique and executed well, great tense thriller that had me gripped from the start!

This was an interesting book , loved the idea of it but I found it a bit slow in places at the beginning. I stuck with it and the tension grew gradually until the ending that I wasn’t expecting. I would recommend this book but it just wasn’t quite there for me .

Anna O is notorious as she is suspected of committing a double murder. The twist- she was asleep! Told through diary entries with the psychologist investigating this phenomenon.
This has such a hype but for me I didn’t really gel with it. I’m sad as it was such an exciting premise. That said my review is only one and I’m sure those that love it will outweigh those that don’t. Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this book, as despite the fact that I do not often read mysteries or thrillers, I found myself drawn in by the story of Anna O, and wondering if she really did commit the crime she was accused of. I was interested in the sleep psychology aspect of things, and found it added a really fascinating element to the story. I would definitely recommend this book to any fans of psychology or mysteries, or just someone like myself, looking to try something completely new.

This book for me was a 2.5 stars, rounded up to 3. The premise started well, but I found the storytelling somewhat repetitive, and could have been a shorter, but more engaging read. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

We spend an average of 33 years of our lives asleep. But what really happens, and what are we capable of, when we sleep?
Anna Ogilvy was a budding twenty-five-year-old writer with a bright future. Then, one night, she stabbed two people to death with no apparent motive—and hasn’t woken up since.

I was hooked into this book by the blurb and the cover, seemed like just the type of psychological thriller that I’d be into. And it was in a lot of ways, there were just some issues.

I found it hard to keep up with the plot flicking between narrators and timeframes. That being said the plot was slow and could have skipped chunks out without it affecting the storyline too much. The book was much better while Anna was still asleep!

Great idea just not the best execution.

2024 52 Book Challenge - 37) Palindrome On The Cover

This book had me so hooked that I stayed up until 2.30am to finish reading. I think the premise is really interesting and while I guessed one of the major twists early on, the second one had me guessing until the last 10% of the novel.

I really liked how you read parts from Anna's Diary, allowing you to see the past events from Anna's perspective in the lead up to the events, as you read the present events from primarily Ben's perspective.

I did find the final 20% to be a bit of a drag, because the main mystery had been solved, and you're waiting around for the secondary mystery to be solved, and it was just a bit of a slow because there was a lot of talking about events.

That being said, this book is all I've talked about for two days, and even my friends who haven't read the book have become invested in finding out the ending.

That was a mind blowing journey!

The characters and story lulled you into a sense of security. Reading this felt like a leisurely stroll as you were guided along, with hidden clues peppered throughout, making you feel like you knew where the story was heading but never really understanding why until the last possible second.

The plot was very complex and psychology theories heavy. I got lost and had to stop and reflect on the ramifications of what I was reading, but this was necessary, while making it feel a little long-winded.

However, what truly gripped me was the reveal upon reveal leading up to the unexpected twist that made my skin crawl!

ANNA O by Matthew Blake
DEBUT NOVEL
Publish date: 01 Feb 2024
Publisher: HarperCollins

I am not quite sure what I think of this DEBUT novel, as there was no information given regarding its plot,

The 400 page book begins slowly and builds as the plot continues. With twists & turns on every page and red herrings thrown in for good measure the story confused me. I enjoyed the writing style, descriptions and vocabulary.

The story is about this date & location, 30th August 1999, The Farm, Oxfordshire (described as a cross between Go Ape and Centre Parcs). Anna O, who sleepwalks, has been charged with the murder of two people at The Farm. Since this event, Anna has been asleep for the past four years, in a secure hospital ward awaiting trial. What follows is a series of investigations by Dr Benedict Price, forensic psychologist, tasked with finding the truth about Anna O and awaken her, to allow Anna to stand trial for the murders.

Each chapter is told by a different character and timeline. The character development is believable but I thought the plot to be confusing at times.

I give a 4 star rating, but only as the writing was excellent.

I WANT TO THANK NETGALLEY & HARPERCOLLINS FOR THE OPPORTUNITY OF READING AN ADVANCED READING COPY OF THIS NOVEL IN RETURN FOR AN HONEST REVIEW

When this book first came on my radar, there was very little in terms of blurb telling what the story was about. The mystery surrounding it intrigued me, and so I was excited to pick it up.
Unfortunately, the reality of this book did not live up to the mystery that the author and publishers wanted to convey. I found it to be a little disappointing, mainly because there was nothing original.
As other reviewers have commented - the staggering amount of references to Harry Potter was embarrassing. Seriously, could this author not have included any other pop culture references to get his point across??? It came across as juvenile and annoying.
Another thing that annoyed me about this book, was the americanisms. The main narrator of this story was meant to be an English person, living and working in London, and yet uses phrases like "public defender" and "district attorney" - which do not exist in the English legal system! A quick google of the author revealed a very basic history of him being English educated - so one would surmise that he would know that these americanisms out of place. I would imagine that this was something added in during the editing process to make the book better to be spoon-fed to an American audience, but unfortunately it makes the book feel like it lacked any surface-level research.
The story itself is, as I have said before, completely unoriginal. The same type of story can be seen in other, and in my opinion, better executed novels such as The Silent Patient and Verity, to name just a couple of popular books with the same type of plot.
The "twist" of this book can be seen a mile away - I myself knew who the "killer" was only a couple of chapters in. I also found myself a little bored towards the last 30% of the book.
Unfortunately I don't think this book is the "masterpiece" that the author or the publishers believe it to be.

I really liked the premise of this book and actually quite enjoyed the twists and turns of the story but I found it a bit tedious in the middle. The book could have done with being a bit shorter and the ending felt really rushed.