Reviews

Truth be Told by Kathleen Barber

aprescriptiontoread's review against another edition

dark sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

cinlovesbooks's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

4.0

vacantbones's review against another edition

5.0

"My mother could not be dead, not before I had the chance to tell her I was sorry. I was sorry I wasn't a better daughter, I was sorry I didn't protect dad, I was sorry I didn't know how to help her when she needed us."

As I searched through Are You Sleeping for a quote to start this review off, started typing it up, I had intentions of giving this book 4 stars. I mean, this wasn't a perfect book, surely. It's hard to be a perfect book. But I had so much fun reading this one that I said "screw it, first 5 star of 2022, let's GO."

Are You Sleeping examines the world of true crime as a form of entertainment by giving us the story of Josie, returning for the first time in a decade to the town where he father was brutally murdered. Her mother joined a cult soon after, her twin sister went off the rails, Josie ran away from her problems, and now an "investigative journalist" has launched a shiny new podcast reexamining the case.

This was the most captivated that I've been by a thriller in a long time, and the story is truly devastating. These are flawed characters, but it makes for a read that you cannot put down. Aspects of the story are comically exaggerated (celebrity sun cult, cartoonishly despicable journalist, etc.) in a good way and the insertion of podcast transcripts and Reddit threads helped hold my attention. I really just did not want to let go of Josie and Lanie by the time I was wrapping this one up.

It's also a fascinating critique of the world of true crime as we know it. So many of us indulge (I'll openly admit that I binge watch the ID channel and pay money to listen to a questionably lighthearted true crime podcast), but it would suffice to say that that the field isn't perfect. Armchair detectives are like vultures in many ways. But this book also had an interesting twist to the narrative:

Spoiler

Poppy is a cold-hearted, emotionless person exploiting a tragedy for her own benefit, but ultimately it is her exploitation that frees an innocent man

. I think this helps guide us towards a more nuanced view of the matter - clearly, there are things to be changed, but there are also good things that come out of it.

I read Barber's Follow Me at the very beginning of the pandemic and did not care for it. I remember thinking that the premise was crazy (in the *best* way!) but weakened by a flimsy plot and so-so writing. It makes me wonder what changed between the publication of these books, as Are You Sleeping was published 3 years prior, but I'm so happy I picked this one up despite my reservations.

5 stars for how delightfully good it was.

mattrw88's review against another edition

3.0

3.5 Stars

lara_mac's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious 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? Yes

3.75

This was an entertaining book that I definitely wanted to keep reading to see what I could find out next. The characters were pretty difficult to like for the most part, and the podcast journalist was portrayed more like a paparazzi, which I found pretty annoying, but all in all I enjoyed this one.

mira_mudblood's review against another edition

emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

sarahusterg's review against another edition

4.0

I have not been captivated by a thriller in a long time, but this book was such a page turner. I loved the writing. I loved the mystery and the relationships. The fact that it was told half through social media/podcast was also an amazing add-on. It’s so close to being five stars but I was a little bit disappointed with the ending I was hoping it would’ve been more of a twist, but still an amazing read.

lovelykd's review against another edition

4.0

I received an ARC of Are You Sleeping? from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Imagine a reality built on a lie, then take said reality and smash it wide open with a hammer. Once you've done that, be ready to pick up all its broken, jagged, ready-to-cut-you-open pieces ....by hand.

That's what reading Are You Sleeping? was like for me.

Josie has spent the better part of her life trying to hide her past. She did what she felt was necessary to protect herself from whatever version of the truth existed. However, a tragedy pulls her back into the fray of chaos she willingly abandoned.

This book was a page-turner. Even once I felt comfortable that I knew where it was headed, I was so consumed with the characters in the story I simply couldn't stop turning pages.

Kathleen Barber did a wonderful job writing each character and making you intimately aware of their place in the story. Even characters with a peripheral role were given enough space to breathe and move within the action.

While I won't pretend the ending wasn't a bit anti-climactic, the journey to get there was nothing short of a thrill to read.

megkbrown's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

emkral22's review against another edition

4.0

Mostly enjoyed this book, was a little frustrated by Jo sometimes, and wasn’t particularly satisfied with the ending. I believe this book was released first, but I much preferred the book Sadie, which I read earlier this year, with a similar framed by podcast narrative.