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diduzza's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
phantasmaboo's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Sleepless by Romy Hausmann follows the story of Nadja, who is asked by a friend to help bury a body. Nadja was previously convicted of a murder, losing her friends and family in the process. Still, when her friend asks for help, Nadja is willing and begins to go down a dark path.
I really wanted to like this book more than I did. Honestly, I thought that the plot was strongest for the first half, but then it quickly derailed toward the midpoint of the story. Not only did the pacing begin to falter, but I also began to dislike the characters, which is never a good sign. Instead of seeing Nadja as a potentially dark, unreliable narrator, I began to increasingly see her as pathetic and a tool used to tell the story of the other main cast. Furthermore, as the story continued, I believe the author really glamorized abusive and unhealthy relationships by making them seem romantic and desirable. Ultimately, the ending fell flat and the character development just didn’t follow through all the way to the end.
Overall, Sleepless was a decent story, but it is let down by poor character development and a plot that plods along at the end. I am convinced if 50-60 pages of this book were removed, not much would actually change.
I really wanted to like this book more than I did. Honestly, I thought that the plot was strongest for the first half, but then it quickly derailed toward the midpoint of the story. Not only did the pacing begin to falter, but I also began to dislike the characters, which is never a good sign. Instead of seeing Nadja as a potentially dark, unreliable narrator, I began to increasingly see her as pathetic and a tool used to tell the story of the other main cast. Furthermore, as the story continued, I believe the author really glamorized abusive and unhealthy relationships by making them seem romantic and desirable. Ultimately, the ending fell flat and the character development just didn’t follow through all the way to the end.
Overall, Sleepless was a decent story, but it is let down by poor character development and a plot that plods along at the end. I am convinced if 50-60 pages of this book were removed, not much would actually change.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Murder
hilarylouise's review
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Death, Infidelity, Death of parent, and Murder
travelseatsreads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I was very excited when the team at Quercus got in touch to do a review for Sleepless, the new release from Romy Hausmann. Dear Child (her English-translation debut) was easily one of my favourite books of 2020.
Sleepless is a dark, twisty, multi-layered, complex thriller which revolves around Nadja Kulka, a young Polish woman living in Berlin. At the beginning we see many different threads which appear to have nothing to do with each other meander through the pages. There came a point where I almost put the book down thinking 'huh, what's going on here'. Once I got past that part it was easy to see these seemingly disparate threads be slowly woven together to form a very clever and intricate plot.
The book is set in Berlin for the most part and that was always going to be a winner for me. Berlin is easily one of my favourite cities so I loved the descriptions of the areas within the city that perfectly built the atmosphere and allowed me to feel like I was almost back there.
I think Romy is an absolute genius when it comes to creating characters that we actually don't like but still feel the need to root for. This book is full of them. It takes a very gifted writer to be able to make those characters maintain a reader's interest and Hausmann kept me hooked right until the very last word.
Unreliable narrators, a multifaceted plot and whiplash-inducing twists made this a thriller I could not put down.
Sleepless is a dark, twisty, multi-layered, complex thriller which revolves around Nadja Kulka, a young Polish woman living in Berlin. At the beginning we see many different threads which appear to have nothing to do with each other meander through the pages. There came a point where I almost put the book down thinking 'huh, what's going on here'. Once I got past that part it was easy to see these seemingly disparate threads be slowly woven together to form a very clever and intricate plot.
The book is set in Berlin for the most part and that was always going to be a winner for me. Berlin is easily one of my favourite cities so I loved the descriptions of the areas within the city that perfectly built the atmosphere and allowed me to feel like I was almost back there.
I think Romy is an absolute genius when it comes to creating characters that we actually don't like but still feel the need to root for. This book is full of them. It takes a very gifted writer to be able to make those characters maintain a reader's interest and Hausmann kept me hooked right until the very last word.
Unreliable narrators, a multifaceted plot and whiplash-inducing twists made this a thriller I could not put down.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, and Toxic friendship