Wishing half stars were a thing on Goodreads because this one isn't a 3 but it's not quite a 4.

The Edge of Sleep as an audio book was challenging for me because there were so many characters and things happening, and with narration, ya really can't go back a few pages to clarify if you missed something. Apparently this book is from a podcast which, to its credit, I now want to go listen to the source material - I love that. I love when one piece of material turns me into Nancy Drew and I go looking for more information even when I've finished the book.

Give this one a listen when it releases in June of 2023, but do pay attention.

This one was a tough one for me. The story rambles and gets a little to “out there” for me. I honestly do not know what else to say about this one. I could not connect with this story.

First off, I love the narrator! He does fantastic voices. Really enjoyed it.

Part apocalyptic, part Nightmare on Elm Street, part sci-fi, with hints of Stranger Things and Resident Evil. I feel like I just went on a wild trip lol. We start off like any good apocalyptic origin tale, with normal people doing normal things, but they slowly realize that anyone who falls asleep never wakes up. Thus starts a race against the clock (there's just only so long one can stay awake) to figure out what in the world is going. I don't want to say too much to spoil anything but let me just say, I'm still not really sure exactly what is happening lol. The end is clearly setting us up for more to the story. And I am def interested to see where the story is going. However, things were a bit slow for me for a good chunk of this book. The last half went by so much faster as the action picks up. I will say listening to the audio while doing other things I did have to go back and physically read the last couple of sections just to wrap my head around the end. Which isn't a bad thing!

I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley.com.

The following review gives away no more than what's in the book's official book description, but if you want to go in without any knowledge about the plot, don't read on.

This book has some good suspenseful elements; the fact that the characters can't sleep without rising death is an effective mechanism for ratcheting up tension.

One of the most successful parts of the book are the vignettes describing various deaths that occur as the strange sleep deaths happen around the world. The authors imagine several interesting possibilities and implications of their conceit.

The voice acting by the narrator in the audiobook is superb, really embodying the characters and bringing the story to life.

However, there are also some issues with the book. It ignores the reality of time zones and that people around the globe don't all sleep at the same time. That may be pedantic, but it seems critical to the plotline, given everyone is supposed to be caught unaware and affected all at once with no warning.

Another issue is that, even when the story reaches is climax and denouement, a lot remains unresolved and unexplained. This doesn't appear to be intentional as an artistic choice, but rather just a matter of hand- waving around details that might not have been clearly refined in the authors' own minds-- perhaps a symptom of team writing? I was left with questions and a sense of incompleteness that was ultimately less than satisfying.

Overall, the book was an original suspenseful thriller, but it didn't quite stick the landing.

I switched between listening and reading. I’ll be honest, I don’t know how to rate this book. Some parts were so mind bending and interesting that I was thinking, THIS is a 5 star read. Then other parts I was thinking more along the lines of, “this takes away from the book. Now it’s a 3 star read.” The ending had me feeling like I wanted to go down to a two star based on how almost cheesy? it became. Then I honestly thought the epilogue was too drawn out. Personally, when I read an epilogue I want it to be one chapter summing up the story or adding that extra post note that further opens your eyes (an ohhhhh moment) to what you just read. I definitely did not expect 5 sub chapters within the epilogue. Sadly, this was my least favorite part of the book.

I will say some of the characters in audio weren’t what I expected them to sound and listening to them speak took away from the story for me, which is when I preferred to read along.

All in all, the story was very interesting! I found the storyline unique and fun to follow along with. I’m settling on 4 stars which was more of a 3.5 rounded up.

Thanks so much Macmillan Audio and NetGalley!

Don't fall asleep for if you do, you might not wake up ever.

Poor Dave, plagued by nightmares, and the only way out of this horror is to self medicate. When Dave awakens the day after Independence Day, he finds his town and all in it dead, lying where they fell, and sending Dave into a nightmare that becomes a daymare. Dave, along with his girlfriend Katie, his friend Matteo, and Linda must find out together what is going on for if they sleep, they will suffer the same fate as others.

Is the secret concealed in Dave's dreams? Sounds like a very interesting premise bu the whole book often turned into a descent into crazytown. All the friends must keep each other awake, as they search for answers. The initial chapters were captivating, but the ending was beyond bizarre.

I listened to this story and perhaps a hard copy would have been a better fit. However, for those who like a mixture of sci fi, dystopian, and crazy, this one might be for you.

Thank you to Jake Emmanuel, Willie Block, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the ability to listen to this book due out in June of 2023.

I'm only going this low in my ranking because there was so much going on that I was confused for a large portion of the book. Still, I feel like if a random pandemic sparked up where people died in their sleep or rather in their dreams, there would be a lot of stress, chaos, and confusion- so perhaps it's well-assigned.

Dave has been having some weird dreams lately, especially where he has a seemingly deep conversation with a whale, but everything gets incredibly weird when people start dying in their sleep and dropping like flies. Unable to make sense of these tragedies and struggling to stay awake, Dave binds with his ex-girlfriend Katie, his friend Matteo and Linda, a nurse they just met, to get to the bottom of these random deaths.

I listened to this one on audio, but I would encourage you follow along with a physical or digital copy, because like I said, there is a lot going on.

I am so thankful to NetGalley, Jake Emanuel, St. Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio for granting me a physical and digital copy, along with audiobook access. The Edge of Sleep is set to publish on June 20, 2023.

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.

How many times have you lain awake, looking at the clock, just wishing you could fall asleep? In this story, being an insomniac may very well save your life. As Dave, the insomniac night watchman, and others suffering from sleep deprivation watch, people fall asleep and never wake up. Why? And how do they prevent this from happening to themselves? I understand this was based on a podcast, maybe that’s why some of the characters are a little underdeveloped. The ending was less than satisfying. Is there a sequel in the works?