Some secrets never die. They're just locked away.
Alex Dale is lost. Destructive habits have cost her a marriage and a journalism career. All she has left is her routine: a morning run until her body aches, then a few hours of forgettable work before the past grabs hold and drags her down. Every day is treading water, every night is drowning. Until Alex discovers Amy Stevenson. Amy Stevenson, who was just another girl from a nearby town until the day she was found after a merciless assault. Amy Stevenson, who has been in a coma for fifteen years, forgotten by the world. Who, unbeknownst to her doctors, remains locked inside her body, conscious but paralysed, reliving the past.
Soon Alex's routine includes visiting hours at the hospital, then interviews with the original suspects in the attack. But what starts as a reporter's story becomes a personal obsession. How do you solve a crime when the only witness lived, but cannot tell the tale? Unable to tear herself away from uncovering the unspeakable truth, Alex realises she's not just chasing a story she's seeking salvation.
Shifting from present to past and back again, Try Not to Breathe unfolds layer by layer until its heart-stopping conclusion. The result is an utterly immersive, unforgettable debut.
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(Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd, 21 March 2016, audiobook, 11 hours 6 minutes, narrated by Jot Davies, Lucy Middleweek and Katy Sobey, Audible)
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I loved listening to this audiobook. I was gripped from the first word until the last heart-felt speech by Alex. I thought the premise was excellent, quite original. I've read books before with similar themes but not tackled in quite the same way. The narrators are excellent and really bring the book to life. I enjoyed the chapters narrated by Amy when she's in a coma. These are handled really well. Such an unusual perspective could have been clunky and awkward but the author nails it. I thought the characters were spot on. Alex is brilliant, she's tough and vulnerable, determined to fix the mess she's made of her life even when she finds out just what her drinking might cost her and determined to try and help Amy, the girl who's been forgotten for the most part. Outstanding stuff. I had no idea who'd attacked Amy until this was revealed a couple of chapters from the end. I love books and authors who flummox me. Try Not to Breathe is addictive. I loved it.
