Childhood was a happy, carefree time for Joseph Ramirez. At least that's how he used to remember it. But since the near-fatal traffic accident that landed him in the hospital with brain trauma, he's not so sure. Along with physical pain, Joseph now suffers recurring nightmares. Each night the heart-wrenching dreams grow increasingly vivid and graphic�to the point that Joseph's hospital roommate reports that Joseph talks in his sleep, often crying out in anguish and remorse. To complicate matters, a ruthless lawyer is challenging Joseph's innocence in the traffic accident. When defense attorney Michelle Haas comes to his aid, they discover they knew each other as children, and soon another forgotten experience comes into play�one that goes deeper than simple friendship. Are Joseph's night terrors actually repressed memories? Does he speak the truth during his unconscious midnight hours? And if so, what will that mean when Joseph's hospital roommate claims he confessed to murder? Soon Joseph realizes there's only one way to uncover the truth about his family and himself�involving reliving a past he has unknowingly worked all his life to forget. I had such hopes for this book. I had heard it was fabulous, and I'll admit that the first four chapters had me convinced those readers were right, but by chapter five the book began to slow down and get off track from the real story, and that was very disappointing. (Spoiler alert) However, that is not the only reason I gave the book only 2 stars. I was shocked and offended by the cliched use of dialect for both the Hispanic and German/Scandinavian characters. I've known lots of people from both these cultures, and none of them have ever spoken like this--only poorly acted TV or movies depict these people in this manner. I had a great deal of trouble believing most of the story. No one--under hypnosis or not--remembers repressed dreams in such detail, especially not enough to write them down in the way this character does. A school lawyer would not be handling a case such as this, especially if she has a romantic interest in her client. The police seem to be totally inept at handling anything that might potentially go to court, and the hospital roommate was an unreliable plant by the author to add suspense. A good lawyer would NEVER have spoken to her client about these types of things in front of him. A psychiatrist would not make the value judgments he does. An the main character would not go running off at the end to investigate, thinking only I can buy my way out of the 25 years in prison. I always admire those who have books accepted for publication, but I hate it when I feel cheated by the unbelievable manner in which what could have been a great story ended up being told.
What do You think about Blink Of An Eye (2010)?
I am about 2/3 the way through the book and enjoying it!
—joeyg
A very good book, sad in areas but the ending is great!
—maggie
