Wake Up and Open Your Eyes, Clay McLeod Chapman
Wake Up and Open Your Eyes, Clay McLeod Chapman
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Wake Up and Open Your Eyes

Author: Clay McLeod Chapman

Narrator: a full cast, Cary Hite, Soneela Nankani, P. J. Ochlan, Neil Hellegers, Joe Hempel, Megan Tusing, Noah Levine, Marni Penning, Kelli Tager, Charlotte Moore-Lambert

Unabridged: 11 hr 11 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 01/07/2025

Synopsis

From Vulture’s “master of horror” Clay McLeod Chapman, a relentless and emotionally charged social horror novel about a family on the run from a demonic possession epidemic that spreads through media, for fans of The Last of Us and Where Evil LurksNoah Fairchild has been losing his formerly polite Southern parents to far-right cable news for years, so when his mother leaves him a voicemail warning him that the “Great Reckoning” is here, he assumes it’s related to one of the many conspiracy theories she believes in. But when his own phone calls go unanswered, Noah makes the long drive from Brooklyn to Richmond, Virginia. There, he discovers his childhood home in shambles, a fridge full of spoiled food, and his parents locked in a terrifying trance-like state in front of the TV. Panicked, Noah attempts to snap them out of it and get medical help.Then Noah’s mother brutally attacks him.But Noah isn’t the only person to be attacked by a loved one. Families across the country are tearing each other apart—literally—as people succumb to a form of possession that gets worse the more time they spend watching particular channels, using certain apps, or visiting certain websites. In Noah’s Richmond-based family, only he and his young nephew Marcus are unaffected. Together, they must race back to the safe haven of Brooklyn—but can they make it before they fall prey to the violent hordes?This ambitious, searing novel from “one of horror’s modern masters” holds a mirror to our divided nation, and will shake listeners to the core.

About Clay McLeod Chapman

Clay McLeod Chapman writes novels, comic books, and children’s books, as well as for film and TV. He is the author of the horror novels The Remaking, Whisper Down the Lane, Ghost Eaters, and What Kind of Mother. He also cowrote Quiet Part Loud, a horror podcast produced by Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw for Spotify. Visit him at claymcleodchapman.com

About Cary Hite

Cary Hite has performed in several theaters across the country as a cast member in the longest-running African American play in history, The Diary of Black Men. He also appeared in Edward II, Fences, Macbeth, Good Boys, Side Effects May Vary, and the indie feature The City Is Mine. He has voiced several projects for AudibleKids, including Souls Look Back in Wonder, From Slave Ship to Freedom Road, and Papa, Do You Love Me?

About Soneela Nankani

Soneela Nankani is an award-winning narrator with over three hundred titles in many different genres including Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Sci-Fi, and Nonfiction. She has garnered sixteen Earphones Awards, nominations for Audie and SOVAS awards, and was recently awarded AudioFile magazine’s Golden Voice Lifetime Achievement Honor. Her audiobooks have been featured in Best Audiobooks lists by AudioFile magazine and the Washington Post, among others. In her spare time, she loves to read (yes, really), learn languages, try new recipes, and travel. She lives in the DC area with her husband and two mischievous daughters.

About P. J. Ochlan

P. J. Ochlan is an Audie Award–winning, multiple Earphones Award–winning, and Voice Arts Award–nominated narrator of hundreds of audiobooks. His acting career spans more than thirty years and has also included Broadway, the New York Shakespeare Festival under Joseph Papp, critically acclaimed feature films, and television series regular roles.

About Neil Hellegers

Neil Hellegers grew up in New Jersey and attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned a BA in theater arts and a minor in psychology before getting an MFA in acting from the Trinity Rep Conservatory in Providence, Rhode Island. He moved to New York City in 2003 and, since then, has made a career of theatrical performance, percussion, theater education, and audiobook narration. He currently lives in Brooklyn with his wife and son.

About Joe Hempel

Joe Hempel, best known for his rich narrations, has entertained listeners with over one hundred audiobooks in genres ranging from horror and mystery to science fiction, romance, and personal development.

About Megan Tusing

Megan Tusing is an actress, known for The Beginning and the End, The Share, and Odd Jobs. She has a bachelor’s degree in theater from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. 

About Noah Levine

Noah Levine, M.A., has been using Buddhist practices to recover from addiction since 1988. He is the founding teacher of Against the Stream Buddhist Meditation Society.

About Marni Penning

Marni Penning co-founded Fahrenheit Theatre Company in Cincinnati, Ohio, which was renamed the Cincinnati Shakespeare Company in 2006. While she also performs in contemporary plays and comedies, her stage career has included more than fifty productions of Shakespeare’s plays.

About Kelli Tager

Kelli Tager is an award-winning narrator and longtime L.M. Montgomery fan. A classically trained actor, she earned her MA in Shakespeare Studies in the UK, then worked in theater/film for many years before discovering the world of voice-over. Now she only works behind the mic. Audiobooks are the perfect marriage between her love of performance and her love of literature.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Sydney Books on February 10, 2025

This book was horrifying.......more

Goodreads review by Katie on February 05, 2025

This is extreme horror. Please be aware of that before reading. I'd hate for anyone to read this and give it a bad review because it's violent and frankly disgusting. It absolutely is both of those things. This was as unsettling as it was harrowing. The way the author depicts our main character slow......more

Goodreads review by Brandon on March 31, 2025

Edit: the more I think about it, I’d probably rate it like 3.5 ⭐️, maybe like 3.75 ⭐️ which might be kinda pedantic but this is my review so I’m allowed to overthink things 😂 farther out from it I’m more thinking about the things that worked as opposed to all that didn’t. This was right in the middl......more

Goodreads review by JaymeO on January 07, 2025

HAPPY PUBLICATION DAY! “This is not our horror story. This is your f-ing horror story. An American Horror Story . . . But whose America, am I right?” Disclaimer: The plot of this book will be extremely offensive if the narrative doesn’t fit your political viewpoint. Wake up and open your eyes…The Grea......more

Goodreads review by Rachel (TheShadesofOrange) on February 09, 2025

4.0 Stars Some people say that authors should keep social commentary out of horror books. However, I strongly disagree. If you look at the history of the genre, you will see that it has always been used as a way to comment on our world. And sometimes those nuggets are reality are more terrifying than......more

Quotes

“If talking politics with family has become a horror show, this book’s for you.” New York Times

“Digs a scalpel point into the exposed nerves of Trump’s America…As chilling and oppressive as contemporary horror comes.” Vulture

“P. J. Ochlan’s calm juxtaposed with the cast’s panicked voices creates an unsettling experience that is perfect for horror.” AudioFile

“With the help of a stellar cast of narrators, takes listeners not only on Noah’s journey but through a social media house of mirrors reflecting society’s collapse…For fans of socially conscious horror, as well as those seeking the grisliness of possession and psychological horror.”  Library Journal (starred audio review)

“Will hijack readers’ nervous systems…A compelling, cinematic, visceral, and disturbing tale.” Booklist (starred review)

“Readers may think they know where the book is heading, but Chapman offers more surprises as he ventures further into the apocalypse…This work is his most terrifying yet.” Library Journal (starred review)

“Likely to be one of the most unforgettable reads of the whole year.” BookRiot

“A profoundly terrifying, riveting, intense, nerve-shredding modern horror epic.” Rachel Harrison, author of So Thirsty

“The proximity of Chapman’s demons is enough to make one lock the doors, turn off the television, [and] curl into a ball in the dark… A sparkling variety of narration, mad vivid energy, and even brilliantly funny bits.” Josh Malerman, New York Times bestselling author

“Supercharged, gloriously maximalist, terrifying, and disgusting. But mostly it’s tragic, and hits much closer to home than any of us want it to.” C. J. Leede, author of Maeve Fly

Awards

  • Books, Bones & Buffy Pick
  • Publishers Weekly Pick
  • Paste Magazine Pick
  • Vulture.com Pick
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