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3.66 AVERAGE
3.66 AVERAGE
I wasn't quite sure what to expect from this book, which I bought on a whim from an Audible "surprise" sale. What I got was an interesting blend of fairy-tale retelling (Sleeping Beauty) and science fiction futuristic dystopia. Rosalinda Fitzroy is found in a stasis tube in a storage room, where she's been for the past 62 years. Her parents are dead, and she had few friends since she was frequently taken in and out of stasis. She has a lot to adapt to, including high school (where they're conveniently studying the time just after she was put into stasis, known as "the dark times" due to the plagues that devastated the world). There were twists that I didn't see coming (and a few that I did), but all were done well. I wasn't expecting a lot, but was impressed and engrossed enough that I wound up with a late night because I just couldn't go to bed without getting the rest of the story.
Separate note - I listened to the audiobook for this one, and the narrator did a great job. Even when Rose was acting like a whiney teenager, she didn't sound so much like a whiney teenager, which would have gotten annoying.
Separate note - I listened to the audiobook for this one, and the narrator did a great job. Even when Rose was acting like a whiney teenager, she didn't sound so much like a whiney teenager, which would have gotten annoying.
Have you ever read one of those books that makes up its own lingo but doesn't do a great job at telling you what some of the words mean? So you're struggling to figure it out on your own. Yeah.....this is one of those.
Now I'll give it to Sheehan, we're probably supposed to be as confused by that as the main character, make it immersive. But for me, it was more just annoying especially since the main character used some of the lingo herself. Which is surprising after being in a preserved state for over sixty years.
The synopsis of the book was good overall. Humans have discovered a way to put a body in stasis, a time out if you will. This helps with travel and other such things. Unfortunately for Rose it was used a little more than that (those with abusive family members should be forewarned about this book, it has a lot of sensitive topics). Waking up in a world she doesn't know, with everyone she loves gone, she has a hard adjustment to go through (which the timeline is rather fast on, but I digress). To make matters worse, it seems like someone wants to kill her.
Again, the overall premise and concepts of this book were really interesting. I liked the ethics conversations and the different technologies that were introduced. It was just the characters that were lackluster and unbelievable for me. I just don't think anyone would act like that or have that type of motivation.
I know there's a sequel, but I probably won't get to it any time soon (it's supposedly able to be read as a stand-alone anyway). This one just didn't quite do it for me.
Review by M. Reynard 2024
Now I'll give it to Sheehan, we're probably supposed to be as confused by that as the main character, make it immersive. But for me, it was more just annoying especially since the main character used some of the lingo herself. Which is surprising after being in a preserved state for over sixty years.
The synopsis of the book was good overall. Humans have discovered a way to put a body in stasis, a time out if you will. This helps with travel and other such things. Unfortunately for Rose it was used a little more than that (those with abusive family members should be forewarned about this book, it has a lot of sensitive topics). Waking up in a world she doesn't know, with everyone she loves gone, she has a hard adjustment to go through (which the timeline is rather fast on, but I digress). To make matters worse, it seems like someone wants to kill her.
Again, the overall premise and concepts of this book were really interesting. I liked the ethics conversations and the different technologies that were introduced. It was just the characters that were lackluster and unbelievable for me. I just don't think anyone would act like that or have that type of motivation.
I know there's a sequel, but I probably won't get to it any time soon (it's supposedly able to be read as a stand-alone anyway). This one just didn't quite do it for me.
Review by M. Reynard 2024
Read my review here: http://jenpaul13.wix.com/makinggoodstories#!Staying-Awake-for-A-Long-Long-Sleep/c1mnn/3F19EFF6-05FA-439A-84E1-4BE63D32BB32
When I first saw A Long, Long Sleep I honestly wasn't sure I would even like it. As I started reading it I thought, "Cool, it's Sleeping Beauty meets Terminator (There is a cyborg trying to kill her)." But as I got even further into it I realized that this wasn't just a sci-fi retelling of Sleeping Beauty. This was a book about neglect and abuse. Not the physical kind, unless you count that her body has been harmed by being in stasis so much and has not been allowed to age, but the emotional kind. That abuse is told through memories of her life. As those memories slowly unfold throughout the book, we come to realize the magnitude of that abuse. What happened to her was truly heart breaking and I had tears in my eyes through a lot of this book. I know I may be making this book sound depressing, but it really isn't.
The book also explores the different types of love, from friendship, to romantic, to brotherly. There is some romance in the book, but not the way you would expect. Most of the romance is told from her memories of the past. I felt like the romance side of this book was handled very well and made sense to the story and her emotional state.
Overall this book was a bit different and I liked the ideas that went into it. This was the first book by this author and I look forward to seeing what else she writes.
The book also explores the different types of love, from friendship, to romantic, to brotherly. There is some romance in the book, but not the way you would expect. Most of the romance is told from her memories of the past.
Spoiler
She does not end up with anyone at the end of the book, but there are a couple of friends that she could eventually have a romantic relationship with. I thought Otto was wonderful and found myself hoping that she would one day end up with him. I know a lot of people may be disappointed in the way it ends butOverall this book was a bit different and I liked the ideas that went into it. This was the first book by this author and I look forward to seeing what else she writes.
I gave it 5 stars because I really enjoyed it. I want to read the sequel too and it's about Otto!
Creepy. Weird. Mushy. And the most annoying protagonist ever. "I'm so stupid! He's so dreamy!" Ugh. "Oh Hi baby that I changed your diapers but because of some weird cryogenic thing we're now the same age - let's hook up!"
this a a bittersweet sc-fi re-telling of sleeping beauty. You feel so sorry for the mani character as she struggled to accepted her place in the new time that she has been thrust into.
A Rip Van Winkle sort of tale for the young adult fantasy sci-fi set.