Don’t Open Your Eyes (by Liv Constantine)
I had the pleasure of meeting Lynne Constantine, one of the sister writing duo, Liv Constantine, during The Back Room author event in June 2025. Having previously enjoyed reading The Last Time I Saw You, I was excited for their latest book, Don’t Open Your Eyes.
Annabelle Reynolds, seemingly living the perfect life with her devoted husband, two wonderful daughters, and a fulfilling career, finds her idyllic world crumbling when she begins experiencing vivid, nightmarish dreams that eerily predict a terrifying future. These prophetic visions, which start coming true, force Annabelle to confront buried family secrets, unreliable perceptions, and a hint of supernatural dread as she races to protect her loved ones.
Unfortunately, I abandoned Don’t Open Your Eyes after listening to 20 percent of the book because I simply wasn’t captivated by the narrative. In the past, I used to read books in their entirety, regardless of how much I was enjoying the story. Fortunately, I have since realized that if I’m not loving a book, I need to move on.
As all reviews are subjective, my opinion of this book is highly personal. I enjoyed Annabelle, the main character, but I found the story from her teenage daughter’s perspective uninteresting. The girlfriend drama, concern with social media likes, and vaping problems didn’t captivate me. I’m sure the daughter’s perspective is relevant to the story, but I was only engaged when the mother’s perspective was being narrated. I appreciate the unique aspect of the story regarding dream premonitions. I thought it was a very creative angle to the plot, although it was a bit confusing. I believe this intentional confusion created a repetitive twist.
I’ll continue reading Liv Constantine’s books, but I believe this particular story is one of those outliers in an author’s list that simply didn’t resonate with me personally. The book isn’t flawed; it just didn’t align with my interests. As a kid-free woman in my 50s, the struggles of this teenage daughter didn’t particularly connect with me. In five glorious decades, I’ve learned to trust my instincts and stick with plots that bring me joy.
I borrowed the audiobook of Don’t Open Your Eyes from my local library using Libby. I enjoyed the performances of narrators Valerie Rose Lohman, Alex McKenna, and Christine Lakin.
Below are my review for The Last Time I Saw You and my blog post about the author event for The Back Room, where I had the opportunity to meet Lynne Constantine.
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