Source of book: NetGalley (thank you)
Relevant disclaimers: None
Please note: This review may not be reproduced or quoted, in whole or in part, without explicit consent from the author.

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I don’t quite know how to talk about this novella. Because, on the one hand, it’s Nghi Vo and she is one of my absolute favourite authors. She simply isn’t capable of writing something that doesn’t scintillate. That doesn’t fascinate. That doesn’t slice your heart open, only to re-shape into something rarer, more tender, and more special.

And this holds true for Don’t Sleep With the Dead.

It’s just … the book feels unnecessary. And I guess that’s its own conversation about, like, is necessity even a vital component of art. Must art justify its own existence or is it okay simply to exist? I mean, I’m glad Don’t Sleep with the Dead exists because it’s Nghi Vo, and I will celebrate anything she puts in the world. But I fear, much like Nick himself, Don’t Sleep with the Dead might be a piece of beautiful nothingness.

The story picks up some twenty-something years after the end The Chosen and the Beautiful. Nick, still living the same stifled, shame-saturated half-life he was in Chosen, has published a successful book about Daisy, Gatsby, Jordan and himself (implied to be The Great Gatsby itself). But the world has changed in so many ways since that time. And, don’t get me wrong, it was fascinating to see Vo take her story beyond the boundaries of the original text. To see the implications of story and world elements only hinted at in Chosen. But Nick’s place in that world--
his on-going pursuit of selfhood, self-destruction and Gatsby— was to me, unsatisfyingly unrevealing. Then again, we know from original book that Nick is a shit narrator. Though at least this version of Nick isn’t a shit person. I did feel a tremendous amount of sympathy for him (as I did in Chosen)--he’s literally the only version of Nick Carraway I can stand--but I missed Jordan. And while she does have a few scenes with Nick, each over the telephone, she felt diminished by them, though I think that was also about narration, rather than Jordan herself. After all, the version of Jordan Baker who exists in The Great Gatsby of Nick’s creation (whether it’s this Nick of Fitzgerald’s) presents us with a diminished version of Jordan Baker, even if he does also profess to love her, and even if that love is sincere.

I think the other reason why these glimpses of Jordan ended up making me slightly sad was because, with Chosen being somewhat open-ended, I had hopes of a better future for her. Maybe naïve hopes, given who she is and the world she lives in. Or perhaps some of those hopes had, in fact, been fulfilled for her and Nick was too partial, too self-absorbed narrator to witness them.

I did appreciate learning a little more about Nick, how and why he came to be, and the painfully conflicted nature of his identity (the original Nick Carraway is if anything, a piece of work more piecier and workier than even the Fitzgerald version--damnably plausible though). But I also think much of it was implied from what Jordan learned about him in Chosen, so it was more like a confirmation of things, than a revelation of them. As for Gatsby, I think the whole point of Gatsby is that he’s unchanging--unchanging and empty--so I found it hard to care, even for Nick’s sake.

The writing, it can surely go without saying when it come to Nghi Vo, is exquisite. Ditto the character-work. This is--necessary or not--a devastating portrait of the version of Nick Carraway she first introduced to us in Chosen--damaged, achingly lonely, imprisoned by shame and self-loathing, and still coherently connected to the original.

"A new heart hadn’t freed me— that kind of surgery only gives you time unless you are willing to free yourself, and I had never wanted to. Even now, I still didn’t know if I did."

I’ve written before (in my review of Siren Queen most notably) that my pervading sense of Nghi Vo as a writer, even beyond her brilliance, is her kindness. My personal theory regarding Don’t Sleep With the Dead is that it is a story that exists, not because it was necessary, but because the author was too kind for it not to. I think, unlike Jordan, she could neither leave Nick with his new heart nor trust him with it. I’m not sure we leave him in better hands, or even a better place, by the end of this book, but he has, at least, dared to make some choices of his own. A gift from his writer.

So I guess while Don’t Sleep With the Dead doesn’t, ultimately, tell us much about Nick, Jordan or Gatsby that we didn’t a already know or couldn’t work out for herself, it does tell me something about Nghi Vo. Obviously texts are not authors, and authors are not texts, but I can’t not love an author who couldn’t leave one of her characters lost, irrespective of that character’s capacity to find himself.

Nick Carraway and Jay Gatsby (dead or not) are back in this standalone companion to The Chosen and the Beautiful, which I do own but have not yet read. Good thing it's a standalone because I definitely read this one first.

Carraway is great at watching. And pretending. But now, in his late 30s, on the eve of World War II, someone has been watching him, and Gatsby may be dead, but he's not done with the old boy just yet.

This one made me push The Chosen and the Beautiful higher up on my tbr. It is such a cool Gatsby retelling (?), follow up (?). I love the characterization and am always here for further queering narratives. It's a quick read, so if you're in the mood to revisit an old classic with a twist or two, this one should be on your list.

In this queered, supernatural retelling of _The Great Gatsby_, Vo reimagines the tale of love and the American Dream. She retains the unreliable narrator, but adds zombies (or reincarnated souls? That part wasn’t clear). Regardless, I enjoyed it.

Don’t Sleep with the Dead is a novella following Nick Carraway years after the happenings of The Chosen and the Beautiful.

I loved the The Chosen and the Beautiful when I read it in 2021, so I was excited to come back to this world. I did not reread the original novel before jumping into this novella and that might have hindered my enjoyment a little bit, but in the end I will read anything and everything Nghi Vo releases and will most likely enjoy it.

In Don’t Sleep with the Dead, Nick is being haunted by Gatsby which takes him on a dark journey through New York City. Vo’s storytelling is so unique and this novella is just another example of that. This was weird (in the best way) and I never knew what was going to happen next or what Nick would find as he searched the city looking for answers.

If you also enjoyed The Chosen and the Beautiful and want to see where Nick and Jordan are years after that story wraps up, I would recommend picking this up! I will be rereading The Chosen and the Beautiful and coming back to this in the future.

Synopsis: On the eve of WW2, the paper soldier turned author Nick Carraway keeps seeing Gatsby who died during that summer of 1922.

My thoughts: this was an interesting short story follow up to The Chosen And The Beautiful. Technically this could be read as a standalone but I highly recommend reading The Chosen And The Beautiful before attempting this, because it makes all the nods and references easier to understand. I enjoyed reading.

Don’t Sleep with the Dead is a standalone companion novella to this author’s book The Chosen and the Beautiful (her acclaimed reimagining of The Great Gatsby). This novella is from Nick Carraway’s perspective many years after the events of The Great Gatsby on the eve of the second world war. Nick sees a familiar face one night… leading him to believe that Jay Gatsby is back from the dead and isn’t done with him. The writing is beautiful and haunting and this author is clearly a talented storyteller. I was hooked from the very beginning but some of the story jumped around so the scenes did not always flow smoothly and the paranormal dark fantasy aspects were a bit confusing and never fully explained. I felt this novella was missing something for me and would have appreciated more clarity at the end. I did not know this novella was a companion work to another book when originally requesting it on NetGalley. Although it is listed as a standalone novella, I feel it may have helped to read the other book first to better prepare and connect with this one. I do really love the author’s writing style and plan to read her other work in the future. Thank you to NetGalley, Nghi Vo, and Tor Publishing Group for the gifted ARC. This is a voluntary and honest review.

This is said to be a standalone companion novella, but I think it would be best to read this after the related work or The Great Gatsby. Although I have read The Great Gatsby, it was years ago, and I don't remember much. Because of this, I think my enjoyment of this novella was impacted.

Despite everything, I enjoyed the writing style storytelling. The ending was interesting, and overall, this was a quick and engaging read.

Short but punchy novella. I read this maybe twice to figure out if I was reading everything correctly. I loved spending more time with a character from The Chosen and the Beautiful. That book was probably my favourite Nghi Vo book and this was a beautiful follow up. I loved that the main character was unreliable and in fact, I'm pretty sure he says it multiple times through out the novella. I loved the magically elements which was part of the Chosen and the Beautiful. This was a great follow up and I'm hoping for more!

A quick read taking us back to the world of Nick Carraway that Vo so masterfully retold in The Chosen and the Beautiful. This novella is beautifully written and really makes you question Nick’s reliability - whether you can believe anything he says. The imagery from Vo is so vivid!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a digital ARC of this title!

3.5 ⭐️

Thank you so much to tordotcom for the finished copy and the ARC. All views are my own.

Okay, I LOVE Nghi Vo’s writing. Don’t Sleep With the Dead features gorgeous prose, sharp sentences, and so much angst and longing it’s achingly good. That’s what I love about her work. Don’t Sleep With the Dead is a standalone novella that follows her Gatsby retelling The Chosen and the Beautiful. I hadn’t read the first book, and while I got through this follow up nicely, I think I would have benefitted from reading the first one for a familiarization with the characters and the plot of book one.

That said, if you love deals with demons, ghosts coming back from the dead, women made of wax and men made of paper, the search for what we miss and love, then this is the book for you. Nick Carraway thinks Gatsby has come back from the dead and is on a quest to find him or what he loved about him. It’s poignant, clawing, and visceral. I really enjoyed it.

Let me preface by saying The Chosen and the Beautiful (which you don’t have to read before this) left me a little confused so I shouldn’t have been surprised that this didn’t fully click. One of the best things of this book was that we really got to see a lot of tangible elements of Nick’s queerness and the implications in the period that he lives in. Also the bit about who he is because what?? (I was still confused though). Overall, it’s a fascinating concept that just isn’t fully for me. And yet, it’s the kind of book that you can’t really stop thinking about. The novella length really suited it though, and I think if you like a slightly eerie queer story or any of Nghi Vo’s other standalone novels you’ll enjoy this one.

I liked this novella that is part of the same universe as The Chosen and the Beautiful by the same author! Beautiful writing and a compelling story

“Don’t Sleep with the Dead” by Nghi Vo is a dark, magical novella that reimagines The Great Gatsby. The story was very unique and twisted, and unlike anything I have ever read.

I don’t believe this book should be advertised as a standalone. The background and plot does not have enough substance to stand on its own. Unfortunately, because I had not read the companion novel, I was very lost and confused throughout the story.

I highly recommend this novella if you enjoyed its companion novel! I strongly urge anyone interested in this novella to read The Chosen and the Beautiful first, and not make the same mistake that I did.

Thank you NetGalley, Tordotcom, and Nghi Vo for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

4.25 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and Tor Dot Com for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Don't Sleep with the Dead can be read as a standalone novella, however it is a spinoff of the reimagined The Great Gatsby, by the title of The Chosen and the Beautiful. This story takes place following the events that took place in The Chosen and the Beautiful, and the MMC Nick Carraway is being haunted by Jay Gatsby.

I think if I had read the original novel first, I would have had a better understanding of the characters in this story, but overall it was still enjoyable. I do have to say that having read The Great Gatsby decades ago helped with the basic understanding of who the main characters were, even without reading The Chosen and the Beautiful. I love the writing style, it was beautiful and gave very vivid imagery. It was dark, brooding, and gory. I honestly wish this was longer, I finished it in one sitting and wanted more of these characters.

This would be great if you love historical fiction mixed with a little bit of fantasy, along with unlikable characters.

Published by Tordotcom on April 8, 2025

Don’t Sleep with the Dead is marketed as a companion to Nghi Vo’s The Chosen and the Beautiful, a book that allows F. Scott Fitzgerald’s character Jordan Baker to provide a woman’s perspective on The Great Gatsby. Before I read Don’t Sleep with the Dead, I was unaware of its companionship with The Chosen and the Beautiful, a novel I didn’t read. That’s what I get for paying little attention to marketing materials when I choose books. I’m certain that a familiarity with the earlier work would have enhanced my incomplete understanding of this novella.

Nick Carraway is on “the wrong side of forty.” He’s living in New York City, working as a columnist at the Herald Tribune, and trying to put 1922 behind him. Jay Gatsby died that year but when Nick finds himself in an alley where gay men congregate, about to be stomped by the police, he believes he is rescued by Gatsby.

When Nick calls Jordan in Paris to tell her that he saw Gatsby, she’s not surprised. She tells him that the dead are coming back in France. “Old soldiers, mostly.” They can’t speak because their throats are blistered by mustard gas.

And then, as if Gatsby’s reincarnation isn’t sufficient, the story becomes strange. Nick tells a story about his grandfather’s brother, who came to America and was drafted into the Civil War. “In the two-room shack with the river roaring in the spring flood, Leith Carraway used his old Sheffield razor to loosen his face from his head and traded it for another.” Nick’s mother gives him a less glamorous explanation for his granduncle’s slashed face, but Nick believes “that was where it started, the Carraway belief that duty could be put off on someone else, and that if you only made the right sacrifice, spilled the right blood using the right name, that fate might be delayed or even distracted.”

We then learn that this Nick is also an imposter. Nick went to Canada when he was conscripted to fight in the first World War. A talented relative cut out a paper doll and turned it into a replacement Nick. The paper doll Nick went to war in Nick’s place. The original Nick died in a car accident shortly after the war ended and the paper Nick took over his life.

Strangeness abounds in the novella. Nick bargains with the devil because he wants to learn what happened to Gatsby in Hell. The devil sends him to a woman made of wax. And so on.

The devil alters its appearance at will and Nick’s granduncle is not the only character who swaps faces. “One night, drunk, I’d met March at the Morocco and he’d put on Gatsby’s face for me.” All this was a bit much for me, although I appreciated the imaginative take on Fitzgerald’s novel and the urgency with which the story is told. Still, unless wielded by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, I’m not a fan of magical realism.

I credit Vo for her creative and elegant prose style. Unfortunately, the novel makes so many references to events and characters in The Chosen and the Beautiful that I became quite lost. I can’t judge the story fairly as a companion to the earlier novel because I lack the necessary context. I'm reviewing it as a standalone work, perhaps unfairly, because that is how it is marketed. My guess is that readers who enjoyed The Chosen and the Beautiful will enjoy the companion novella. For other readers, I can only recommend reading The Chosen and the Beautiful first (if you’re a fan of magical realism) and, if you enjoy it, moving on to Don’t Sleep with the Dead to learn the rest of the story.

RECOMMENDED WITH RESERVATIONS

Don’t Sleep with the Dead by Nghi Vo
Companion Novella
Genre: Reimagining I Queer I Character Driven
Setting: 1922
Length: 101 pages
Release Date: April 7, 2025

First, I’d like to thank Colored Pages Booktours, Tot dot com, and Nghi Vo for the finished copy of this novella.

When I found out that this was a companion novella, meaning it can be read on its own but best read following the author’s debut. The Chosen and the Beautiful, which is another Great Gatsby reimagining, but from the perspective of Jordan as a Vietnamese orphan turned golf star. It chronicles her friendship with Daisy and the queer relationship between Nick and her. I highly recommend reading The Chosen and the Beautiful before jumping into the novella because it lays the ground work for which Don’t Sleep with the Dead expands on.

While it’s not necessary, it made the reading experience so enjoyable jumping back into the decadent setting of 1922. I love the reimagining of Jay and Nick as a queer couple and the magic system is quite interesting. I enjoyed this novella but I’m hoping we get more POVs in the future.

I recently found out it was a few days ago that F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby turned 100. What a milestone. The film adaptation is one of my favorite movies I’ve ever seen.

This historical fantasy novella weaves magic, horror, and the glamour of New York City on the eve of World War II, into a creepy allegory of what it means to quite literally be made of stories. Nghi Vo creates an alternate 1939 New York City in which magic and demons roam the wintry streets, tormenting Nick Carraway—the fictional narrator of The Great Gatsby—with memories of his lost love, Jay Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald’s title character). In Vo’s world, Nick is the author of the celebrated novel and is himself a supernatural being originally constructed, Golem-like, from paper.

A cynical survivor of World War I and of the traumatic events of The Great Gatsby, Nick learns that Gatsby has escaped Hell and is haunting him. This outlandish premise yields a short but intense series of encounters with uncanny demons and eerie settings that Vo describes unforgettably. Nick must bargain pieces of himself to obtain the information about Gatsby he desperately seeks, and readers need to have a taste for body horror to be entertained by what he goes through. This novel will appeal most to fans of queer fantastical horror, with plenty of gore and non-graphic erotic longing to propel Nick’s journey into his own hellish past.

I don't love Gatsby, but love Nick and I loe Nghi Vo, and Don't Sleep with the Dead is the best Gatsby adaptation I've read. THIS is what should be taught in schools.

Having read and enjoyed quite a few novellas by Nghi Vo, I was happy to receive a copy of this one. Her writing is consistently beautiful, and this novella is no exception: it is poetic, atmospheric, evocative. The unreliable narration is effective, and the combination of historical & fantastical elements is interesting. Yet... I can’t say I loved this. If anything, it feels rather forgettable.

I read this book without having read The Chosen and the Beautiful first, but having read The Great Gatsby. I do question how well this works as a standalone – it was certainly comprehensible, but I cannot help but feel that I missed out on some character development by reading this novella first/only.

Content warnings: violence, blood, injury detail, murder, rape (not on-page), police brutality, homophobia, death

Thank you Tor Publishing Group / Tordotcom & NetGalley for providing me with an ARC to review.

A companion novella to the queer great gatsby retelling The Chosen and the Beautiful? Yes please. It was an extended epilogue you didn’t realize you needed but once you have it you can’t envision not having it. 4 stars.