A review by cielosiluminado
Where Sleeping Girls Lie by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

The best liars … were the ones who were also lying to themselves in some way. They’d lie so much to others; it was too easy to also eventually convince their own minds of the lie.

was this story a perfect happily-ever-after masterpiece? no. but was it realistic masterpiece? i actually think, yes. it was a rollercoaster of emotion and i am still overwhelmed.

sade hussein was a biased, perfectly imperfect character and narrator of this story. she was constantly anxious, a little insecure in herself, and a lot guilt-and-grief-ridden after surviving and living through so much at such a young age. despite that, i found her to be an impressively profound main character because she was unapologetically herself throughout the story and stuck to her morals in finding out the truth about the darkness that lurked within the walls of the elite boarding school she enrolled in.

Keep swimming. Or if that’s too hard, at the very least, float.

this may be a controversial opinion but i did not hate the ending. to me, the ending of this book was a realistic representation of how the rich, powerful (white) privileged boys and men get away with atrocities while the girls and women, who are most often the victims and survivors, are either blamed, silenced, and left to float and go on about their lives on their own as if nothing happened; or all of the above.

it felt like the right way to end the book, because after such a compelling story—with so many complex and controversial side characters—intriguingly sinister and dark mysteries, it leaves you wishing everything could end perfectly, but like life, it doesn’t; and i find that to be more riveting.
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