Michael Koryta's novels have received the highest praise from critics and colleagues alike, and his stories have run the gamut from crime noir to thriller to straight-up horror. That being said, he has never created a character as unique as Tara Beckley ... Nothing will work out predictably, and readers will be glued to their seats and as powerless as the unmoving Tara Beckley while one explosive event after another plays out before them. If She Wakes is a clever thriller with a highly unique set of circumstances and characters that, in the hands of Koryta, makes for one dynamic read.
Koryta puts the reader in Tara’s shoes for some truly claustrophobic chapters in which her predicament is made all too clear ... While staying in Tara’s tortured mind is harrowing enough, Koryta throws in a few other characters and a half dozen plot twists to ratchet up the tension even further ... Koryta keeps the action fast and furious, tempered with his characters’ determination to persevere against all odds.
Koryta again shows his affinity for smoothly melding sophisticated action with solid character development — even when one of the individuals is in a coma ... not only works well as a quintessential thriller but also as a tale about rebuilding one's life and not giving up on one's self amid insurmountable odds ... Koryta is such a polished writer that his plots zip by as he delves into the amorality of Dax and the humanity of Abby and Tara, whose personality emerges, despite being paralyzed. Believable twists propel the tense If She Wakes as it moves to a surprising finale.
... intense, inventive ... Koryta makes clever use of technology ... He structures a plot that accelerates like one of Abby’s beloved race cars. But it’s the human element, the stories of two young women trying to reclaim their lives, that makes If She Wakes so compelling.
It's a measure of how good this book is that the chilling, masterfully sustained suspense is only one of its standout achievements. Koryta never brushes off anyone's death; he makes you feel for the victims. The relationship between Tara and her sibling is beautifully nuanced, full of revealing details going back to their childhood. And Koryta’s fans will surely appreciate the suggestion of a sequel ... Koryta has never been better than with this knuckle-biting thriller.
Tara, Shannon and Abby are interesting and vivid characters – strong, resourceful and flawed women capable of facing the worst adversity. Koryta gives each major female character at least one set piece in which they demonstrate their grit and courage. He especially imbues Tara with the right combination of fear and fortitude, as someone in terrible jeopardy but not succumbing to self-pity ... But the real star of If She Wakes is its villain ... Koryta keeps the suspense cranked high, but the narrative’s urgency spikes whenever Dax is in the scene. He’s charming, surprising and deadly, and Koryta puts him to good use throughout the entire thriller ... lays with a familiar thriller trope, the durable old MacGuffin. Rather than a device used to trap tigers in the Scottish Highlands, here the MacGuffin is a cell phone of some kind, one equipped with facial recognition features...As the phone moves from character to character, the game of high-tech hot-potato may grow a little tiresome for some readers ... [Koryta's] prose is engaging and well detailed, but still concise. He’s more than capable of eliciting a gasp with an unexpected, thoroughly logical revelation ... With its devious plotting, likable main characters and unconventionally frightening antagonist, If She Wakes may keep readers up well into the night.
