The Sleepless by Jen Williams
on May 27, 2025
Published by Pan Macmillan UK Genres: Fiction / Fantasy / Romance, Fiction / Romance / Fantasy, Juvenile Fiction / Love & Romance, Young Adult Fiction / Fantasy / Epic, Young Adult Fiction / Fantasy / Romance, Young Adult Fiction / Monsters
Format: ARC
Pages: 300

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This one was tough for me. The Sleepless has a really interesting idea at its core, a poisonous girl who can’t be touched, a soul split between two people, and a world full of monsters and secrets. That should’ve been right up my alley. But honestly, the story felt all over the place, and I had a hard time staying fully locked in.

There were flashes of brilliance. Some of the imagery is beautiful, the cursed-skin concept is eerie and original, and the whole “sharing a body with something dark” angle definitely kept me curious. But the pacing dragged in spots, then suddenly jumped ahead, and I never felt as connected to the characters as I wanted to be. The love triangle had potential but didn’t quite spark, and a lot of the worldbuilding left me with more questions than answers.

So, middle of the road for me. Not bad, just uneven. I liked the bones of the story and I can see where Williams was going, but I wanted it to come together more smoothly. Solid 3 stars.

🫶🏼 - Ali

Source: NetGalley and the Publisher

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I received this book for free from NetGalley and the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Rating Report
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