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gillianw's review against another edition
4.0
4 stars
Oh gosh, this book is hard on the heart. It's angsty as all hell and you'll spend most of your time reading it with a small measure of dread, but it is really well done. If you're in the mood for something dark and emotional, you'll find this one fits the bill quite nicely. It gets really heavy at times and it verges on the edge of too much, but there is always this glimmer of hope that keeps you reading to find out how it all ends.
Oh gosh, this book is hard on the heart. It's angsty as all hell and you'll spend most of your time reading it with a small measure of dread, but it is really well done. If you're in the mood for something dark and emotional, you'll find this one fits the bill quite nicely. It gets really heavy at times and it verges on the edge of too much, but there is always this glimmer of hope that keeps you reading to find out how it all ends.
raynebair's review
3.0
I enjoyed this but I didn't connect with the characters much. And I didn't connect Daniel and Bel as a couple.
mikibooks's review against another edition
4.0
Soy medio masoca, sí. Me gustan las historias duras. No necesariamente que sean exageradamente sufridas, o tortuosas o angustiantes porque sí. Pero sí que los personajes vivan cosas, les sucedan eventos particulares. Para que un libro con una trama simplemente costumbrista me atraiga tiene que estar muy bien escrito y tener al menos algo que lo haga especial . Esta novela parte de una premisa compleja, y su desarrollo sigue la misma línea. Sé por experiencia personal que el sonambulismo no tiene cura ni medicación específica para tratarlo y controlarlo. No hay nada que hacer y cuando un ser querido lo sufre es desesperante. Lo que le sucede a Daniel es verosímil, real y completamente posible. Sí, en este caso hablamos de una novela por lo que las situaciones están un poco...exageradas...o llevadas al límite de lo creíble. Pero vamos, es un libro, es entretenimiento. Si nos es posible creernos la existencia de vampiros, cambiaformas, seres no humanos, mundos distópicos o universos apocalípticos, podemos aquí recurrir un poco al tropo de "suspension of disbelief". Y no es tanto sobre una persona sufrida que necesita sentir dolor, sentirse dañado para expiar sus faltas (premisa muy recurrente en la literatura que toca temas de BDSM, y con la que tengo mis reparos...), sino sobre un tipo con un trastorno serio que afectado por el accionar de personas horribles y la incomprensión de quienes deberían cuidarlo, termina peor que antes y con sus síntomas multiplicados. Hasta que alguien con un mínimo de empatía logra pensarlo a él como persona primero, y como víctima luego. La ignorancia, el desprecio y la falta de amor que sufre el protagonista es dolorosísima. Dan ganas de llorar, gritar y atravesar las páginas para darle un abrazo. Quienes se quejan de que el libro no tiene suficientes escenas sados no entendió nada. El punto es cómo dos personas pueden hacerse bien en las peores circunstancias. No crear milagros, no cambiar lo que llevó al punto álgido, sino simplemente hacerse bien. Y la construcción literaria de este libro logra navegar hacia buen puerto un barco tan pesado, en el medio de la peor tormenta, como si fuera seda. Daniel no tiene cura, no tiene un milagro posible que lo saque de esos síntomas. Y sus autoras así lo dejan en claro. Pero mientras haya alguien que aún crea en vos, todo es mas fácil.
riniaaa's review against another edition
5.0
*wipes tears* okay wow…first book of June and it’s set the standards pretty high.
everything about this was so smooth and seamless it honestly almost felt too good to be true at times. I really liked how they both grew at the same time along side each other because they really needed each other whether it was real or not or whether Daniel was asleep or awake.
I really hate to say this but Kenny deserved to die. Just because someone provoked you doesn’t give you the right to beat someone within an inch of their life. And don’t even get me started on Clayton. I wish Daniel would’ve told the whole story from the beginning but I understand why he didn’t. I am not excusing Daniel being a murderer but good for him.
Bel was so patient with him even though he blew up on him but everyone has their breaking points. I was so glad when Daniel finally cried because something crying helps it won’t fix everything but you need to let it out.
They both were willing to try for each other and that’s all that matters. Bel trusted Daniel and Daniel trusted Bel, they’ll be alright, they’re in LOVE your honor!
everything about this was so smooth and seamless it honestly almost felt too good to be true at times. I really liked how they both grew at the same time along side each other because they really needed each other whether it was real or not or whether Daniel was asleep or awake.
I really hate to say this but Kenny deserved to die. Just because someone provoked you doesn’t give you the right to beat someone within an inch of their life. And don’t even get me started on Clayton. I wish Daniel would’ve told the whole story from the beginning but I understand why he didn’t. I am not excusing Daniel being a murderer but good for him.
Bel was so patient with him even though he blew up on him but everyone has their breaking points. I was so glad when Daniel finally cried because something crying helps it won’t fix everything but you need to let it out.
They both were willing to try for each other and that’s all that matters. Bel trusted Daniel and Daniel trusted Bel, they’ll be alright, they’re in LOVE your honor!
lezreadalot's review against another edition
3.0
“It’s all about pain with you, huh?”
“It’s gotta be,” Daniel said. “That’s all that keeps me awake.”
Mixed feelings! This was sad and poignant and hurt-y in some ways, while being overdone and weird in others. The premise and the characters were interesting (and I did like a lot of their romance) but I didn't really like the way it was written about? I guess a lot of it, the way Daniel's somnambulism was treated and talked about, stems from the fact that they live in a very small, mostly close-minded town, and both the main characters have internalised some terrible shit about mental illness (not to mention victim blaming) but man. Even though I understood that, and where it came from, it was not fun to read.
Also, I really hated the way the f-slur was thrown around in this book. It deals very heavily with homophobia and gay-bashing, and the word is used in a derogatory way by both queer and straight characters, which I suppose can be expected in a book that deals with such themes. But the sheer frequency of its use was imo unneeded and bordering on gratuitous. And again, uncomfortable, since (unless I'm mistaken) this book isn't own voices.
And I'm beginning to think I don't have much luck with co-authored books. None of the ones I've read ever seen to work ideally for me. I've read and very much enjoyed J.A. Rock's writing before (her f/f YA novel most of all) but this was my first experience with Henry and... meh. Nothing wrong with the writing of the book on a whole, just a lot of incoherence and back and forth that I didn't enjoy.
Quick sidebar @ myself: uh Laura maybe now, In These Times, wasn't the best time to read a romance where one of the main characters is a fucken cop lol. Bel was fine, but also I was hyper aware of every tiny abuse of power, every small power trip, every little remark that popular culture has trained us to think is normal from cops, but is actually really insidious and gross! I'm pretty good about being able to enjoy fiction even if it contains things I don't enjoy IRL but oh man, a couple (relatively minor!) things in this book made me want to Go Off. Lol.
But honestly, there was a good deal to like in this. Mostly the romance, and the negotiation, the taking care of each other, the daily texts. And I have to say, while I've been slogging through books lately, I zipped through this one, so the reading process itself was enjoyable.
Okay, all in all.
“It’s gotta be,” Daniel said. “That’s all that keeps me awake.”
Mixed feelings! This was sad and poignant and hurt-y in some ways, while being overdone and weird in others. The premise and the characters were interesting (and I did like a lot of their romance) but I didn't really like the way it was written about? I guess a lot of it, the way Daniel's somnambulism was treated and talked about, stems from the fact that they live in a very small, mostly close-minded town, and both the main characters have internalised some terrible shit about mental illness (not to mention victim blaming) but man. Even though I understood that, and where it came from, it was not fun to read.
Also, I really hated the way the f-slur was thrown around in this book. It deals very heavily with homophobia and gay-bashing, and the word is used in a derogatory way by both queer and straight characters, which I suppose can be expected in a book that deals with such themes. But the sheer frequency of its use was imo unneeded and bordering on gratuitous. And again, uncomfortable, since (unless I'm mistaken) this book isn't own voices.
And I'm beginning to think I don't have much luck with co-authored books. None of the ones I've read ever seen to work ideally for me. I've read and very much enjoyed J.A. Rock's writing before (her f/f YA novel most of all) but this was my first experience with Henry and... meh. Nothing wrong with the writing of the book on a whole, just a lot of incoherence and back and forth that I didn't enjoy.
Quick sidebar @ myself: uh Laura maybe now, In These Times, wasn't the best time to read a romance where one of the main characters is a fucken cop lol. Bel was fine, but also I was hyper aware of every tiny abuse of power, every small power trip, every little remark that popular culture has trained us to think is normal from cops, but is actually really insidious and gross! I'm pretty good about being able to enjoy fiction even if it contains things I don't enjoy IRL but oh man, a couple (relatively minor!) things in this book made me want to Go Off. Lol.
But honestly, there was a good deal to like in this. Mostly the romance, and the negotiation, the taking care of each other, the daily texts. And I have to say, while I've been slogging through books lately, I zipped through this one, so the reading process itself was enjoyable.
Okay, all in all.
divapitbull's review against another edition
5.0
I was a little leery of reading When All The World sleeps because of reviews describing it as dark, depressing, bleak and angsty – but I guess, like anything else – it’s all in perspective. Yes there was a lot of trauma which definitely lends itself to dark and angsty overtones – but all in all – I found it more uplifting and hopeful. I felt Daniel’s story more than anything was one of resilience, survival, redemption and healing. I did get frustrated at times that he was so negative; but given everything he’s been through and the messages he got (and internalized) from everyone around him; it was a testament to the strength of his character that he didn’t actively sabotage his relationship with Bel and that he was genuinely open to things getting better for him. And they were awfully cute together – especially at the end – when more of Daniel’s authentic personality started to come out.
Daniel’s had a tough go of it; his (extremely rare and highly improbable) sleep disorder leaves him walking around and doing all sorts of stuff in his sleep that he doesn’t remember when he’s awake. Things take a turn even further south when – as a young man – he makes the mistake of propositioning (in his sleep) a rather homophobic former classmate; who’s solution to this obvious slight of astronomical proportions is to gather 3 friends –to torture and beat him to death (except that they get interrupted otherwise it would be a different story). Now here comes the perplexing part – when Daniel (in his sleep) retaliates by burning down the house (and killing) the main perpetrator – people in his little southern town – are upset. It seems that it’s apparently bad form when someone tries to kill you to retaliate with actual (but unintended) murder – who knew? I seriously was sick of listening to the whole little town piss and moan about how “poor Kenny didn’t deserve it” – like he was some innocent guy picked out by a serial killer while squeezing melons at the supermarket. “Poor Kenny” set events in motion and karma’s a bitch.
Meanwhile, Daniel has served his time and is living as the town pariah, attempting to get through one night at a time without doing something he regrets and into his life (or burning cabin, second attempt on his life) walks young officer Belman – the Harnee’s kid - who crushed on the slightly older Daniel in school. Their romance develops slowly and there’s a good degree of caretaking on Bel’s part – but as he says later on – they’re a good fit for each other. Of course there’s lots of trials and tribulations to get them to their HEA – but I was satisfied with it.
Daniel’s had a tough go of it; his (extremely rare and highly improbable) sleep disorder leaves him walking around and doing all sorts of stuff in his sleep that he doesn’t remember when he’s awake. Things take a turn even further south when – as a young man – he makes the mistake of propositioning (in his sleep) a rather homophobic former classmate; who’s solution to this obvious slight of astronomical proportions is to gather 3 friends –to torture and beat him to death (except that they get interrupted otherwise it would be a different story). Now here comes the perplexing part – when Daniel (in his sleep) retaliates by burning down the house (and killing) the main perpetrator – people in his little southern town – are upset. It seems that it’s apparently bad form when someone tries to kill you to retaliate with actual (but unintended) murder – who knew? I seriously was sick of listening to the whole little town piss and moan about how “poor Kenny didn’t deserve it” – like he was some innocent guy picked out by a serial killer while squeezing melons at the supermarket. “Poor Kenny” set events in motion and karma’s a bitch.
Meanwhile, Daniel has served his time and is living as the town pariah, attempting to get through one night at a time without doing something he regrets and into his life (or burning cabin, second attempt on his life) walks young officer Belman – the Harnee’s kid - who crushed on the slightly older Daniel in school. Their romance develops slowly and there’s a good degree of caretaking on Bel’s part – but as he says later on – they’re a good fit for each other. Of course there’s lots of trials and tribulations to get them to their HEA – but I was satisfied with it.
a_fret_argent's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Hate crime, Homophobia, and Mental illness
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, and Murder
sasreadsthings's review against another edition
5.0
I was a little worried heading into this, everyone had been all !!! about it.
But you know what? It's probably one of the most convincing love stories I've read recently.
It's a lovely meandering journey as two men fall in love.
The writing is well done, the scenes are visceral and the character dynamics are lovely.
Be warned, this is not a positive, healthy take on BDSM, but it's acknowledged that it's not by the characters and they do seek to change this.
But yes, lovely read in the end.
But you know what? It's probably one of the most convincing love stories I've read recently.
It's a lovely meandering journey as two men fall in love.
The writing is well done, the scenes are visceral and the character dynamics are lovely.
Be warned, this is not a positive, healthy take on BDSM, but it's acknowledged that it's not by the characters and they do seek to change this.
But yes, lovely read in the end.