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cloreadsbooks1364's review against another edition
dark
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
"Boys with everything. The world had been and always would be theirs for the taking.
Sade had learned to fear the men who had everything, because even the moon, the skies and the earth could not sate them."
Where Sleeping Girls Lie
By Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
5/5⭐️
Genres: Young Adult, fiction, contemporary, mystery
In this book, our protagonist Sade Hussein starts at a new expensive boarding school, Alfred Nobel Academy, and is shocked when her roommate Elizabeth disappears soon after. She and her new friend Baz must discover what happened, amidst learning all about the students' shady secrets.
Alfred Noble is a school containing a bunch of rich privileged boys and a headmaster who'd happily let them do as they please, as long as the public don't hear about it. Fortunately, it also has some very great characters who are not misogynistic bigots.
Sade is such an amazing protagonist! She was brave, not hesitating to face anyone who she suspected of doing something sneaky. She was able to have moments of fun with Baz and Persephone amidst the mystery and fear, which made her seem very realistic. I enjoyed how swimming was a refuge for her, where she could be peaceful. One of my favourite things about her was how when anyone mispronounced her name, or got it wrong entirely, she would immediately correct them. I'd be much too awkward to do that, so I admire her for it. Sade was not just a good character, but a good person, even when she didn't think she was. Faridah, thank you for creating such a perfect protagonist.
Basil, or Baz, was so loyal! He would help his friends without question. He was probably the most lovable character, especially when he adopted Muffin the guinea pig and cared for her so much. His ability to stand out from everyone else without fear was so admirable.
Elizabeth, who we didn't meet for long, was clearly a brave person.
Persephone was certainly my favourite character. She was sharp, speaking her mind, but also seemed such a safe person. Someone you could trust, and run to in times of fear. She was also one of the "Unholy Trinity", a Mean Girls-esque group of three beautiful popular girls. Unlike Regina, Gretchen and Karen, April, Persephone and Juliette were not self-centered, but actually nice people who might've deserved the popularity, though I don't think any school needs to have one clique who reign above everyone else.
There were so many characters, I can't share my opinions on the rest without spoilers. But I'll tell you this: my opinion of August changed so rapidly throughout the book, I loathed Jude, and I liked Miss Blackburn from the scene where she bought Baz and Sade chips onwards.
The romance in this book wasn't a main focus, so I'll let you enjoy the slow burn without telling you whose involved :).
This book is quite big, 567 pages, but it felt extremely short. This delighted me, I dislike when books drag on and this one was the ideal length for its plot.
If you read this book because you liked Ace of Spades, the two are very different but in both every event could, horrifically, occur in real life as people that disgusting; and in AOS's case, racist; unfortunately do exist. AOS is a thriller, which did lead to me expecting this one to have that fast-paced heart-racing climax which most thrillers contain, my mistake, this is not a thriller, but it is a fantastic mystery that will keep your mind running in circles until the end!
By the way, this book has a map of the school at the start! Usually when a book has a map I have to flick back to it whenever any location is mentioned, but here everything was described so well I didn't need to use the map at all!
Overall, I think this book is a masterpiece, and when Faridah's next book is released I'll get my hands on it as soon as possible! I highly recommend Where Sleeping Girls Lie!
I'm finishing this review with some of my favourite quotes from this book:
"But there was nothing comforting about the stronghold of delusion or false hope."
"She had just about had it with boys who thought they could do whatever they liked because they knew how to charm and gaslight."
"Keep swimming. Or if that's too hard, at the very least, float."
Queer rep:
Sapphic protagonist
Lesbian sc
Achillean scs
TWs: sexual assault, rape, suicide, murder, drug use, alcohol, parent death, lesbophobia, misogyny, sexism, grief, gaslighting
Sade had learned to fear the men who had everything, because even the moon, the skies and the earth could not sate them."
Where Sleeping Girls Lie
By Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
5/5⭐️
Genres: Young Adult, fiction, contemporary, mystery
In this book, our protagonist Sade Hussein starts at a new expensive boarding school, Alfred Nobel Academy, and is shocked when her roommate Elizabeth disappears soon after. She and her new friend Baz must discover what happened, amidst learning all about the students' shady secrets.
Alfred Noble is a school containing a bunch of rich privileged boys and a headmaster who'd happily let them do as they please, as long as the public don't hear about it. Fortunately, it also has some very great characters who are not misogynistic bigots.
Sade is such an amazing protagonist! She was brave, not hesitating to face anyone who she suspected of doing something sneaky. She was able to have moments of fun with Baz and Persephone amidst the mystery and fear, which made her seem very realistic. I enjoyed how swimming was a refuge for her, where she could be peaceful. One of my favourite things about her was how when anyone mispronounced her name, or got it wrong entirely, she would immediately correct them. I'd be much too awkward to do that, so I admire her for it. Sade was not just a good character, but a good person, even when she didn't think she was. Faridah, thank you for creating such a perfect protagonist.
Basil, or Baz, was so loyal! He would help his friends without question. He was probably the most lovable character, especially when he adopted Muffin the guinea pig and cared for her so much. His ability to stand out from everyone else without fear was so admirable.
Elizabeth, who we didn't meet for long, was clearly a brave person.
Persephone was certainly my favourite character. She was sharp, speaking her mind, but also seemed such a safe person. Someone you could trust, and run to in times of fear. She was also one of the "Unholy Trinity", a Mean Girls-esque group of three beautiful popular girls. Unlike Regina, Gretchen and Karen, April, Persephone and Juliette were not self-centered, but actually nice people who might've deserved the popularity, though I don't think any school needs to have one clique who reign above everyone else.
There were so many characters, I can't share my opinions on the rest without spoilers. But I'll tell you this: my opinion of August changed so rapidly throughout the book, I loathed Jude, and I liked Miss Blackburn from the scene where she bought Baz and Sade chips onwards.
The romance in this book wasn't a main focus, so I'll let you enjoy the slow burn without telling you whose involved :).
This book is quite big, 567 pages, but it felt extremely short. This delighted me, I dislike when books drag on and this one was the ideal length for its plot.
If you read this book because you liked Ace of Spades, the two are very different but in both every event could, horrifically, occur in real life as people that disgusting; and in AOS's case, racist; unfortunately do exist. AOS is a thriller, which did lead to me expecting this one to have that fast-paced heart-racing climax which most thrillers contain, my mistake, this is not a thriller, but it is a fantastic mystery that will keep your mind running in circles until the end!
By the way, this book has a map of the school at the start! Usually when a book has a map I have to flick back to it whenever any location is mentioned, but here everything was described so well I didn't need to use the map at all!
Overall, I think this book is a masterpiece, and when Faridah's next book is released I'll get my hands on it as soon as possible! I highly recommend Where Sleeping Girls Lie!
I'm finishing this review with some of my favourite quotes from this book:
"But there was nothing comforting about the stronghold of delusion or false hope."
"She had just about had it with boys who thought they could do whatever they liked because they knew how to charm and gaslight."
"Keep swimming. Or if that's too hard, at the very least, float."
Queer rep:
Sapphic protagonist
Lesbian sc
Achillean scs
TWs: sexual assault, rape, suicide, murder, drug use, alcohol, parent death, lesbophobia, misogyny, sexism, grief, gaslighting
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Death, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Rape, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Death of parent and Child death
Minor: Lesbophobia
evelynyle_88's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Another review come up!
Well, at first... I was still trying to understand what the story was about. So many things made me confused at first, but I feel intrigued and attached to this new book. As I tried to deep dive and understand every parts, characters, plots and discover more to the story, then...
BOOM!🤯
I felt my head explode. This book is one of a kind. Similar to Ace of Spades but different, I think Where Sleeping Girls Lie showed how dark the secrets could be. It was more terrifying while I was reading with my own voice (not in silent way).
Where Sleeping Girls Lie succeed to make me feel scared and eerie; also triggered by some scenes at some points! And of course my love for the characters are overload; especially Elizabeth, Baz and Persephone.
For Sade Hussein, our main character? I can say sometimes she's a little shady... but we can say that she is a morally grey main character, can't we? And I love her for it. Thank you Faridah for this book. Another brilliant story from how we see real community around people nowadays.
This story raise my awareness of how cyber world and social media world are cruel to people; even horrifying. Straight 5⭐!
Well, at first... I was still trying to understand what the story was about. So many things made me confused at first, but I feel intrigued and attached to this new book. As I tried to deep dive and understand every parts, characters, plots and discover more to the story, then...
BOOM!🤯
I felt my head explode. This book is one of a kind. Similar to Ace of Spades but different, I think Where Sleeping Girls Lie showed how dark the secrets could be. It was more terrifying while I was reading with my own voice (not in silent way).
Where Sleeping Girls Lie succeed to make me feel scared and eerie; also triggered by some scenes at some points! And of course my love for the characters are overload; especially Elizabeth, Baz and Persephone.
For Sade Hussein, our main character? I can say sometimes she's a little shady... but we can say that she is a morally grey main character, can't we? And I love her for it. Thank you Faridah for this book. Another brilliant story from how we see real community around people nowadays.
This story raise my awareness of how cyber world and social media world are cruel to people; even horrifying. Straight 5⭐!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Rape, and Suicide
Moderate: Death of parent, Murder, and Drug use
Minor: Lesbophobia, Alcohol, and Animal death
lovelikethiswillendintragedy's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Absolutely wonderful :0
I was worried for a bit that a trope that I *despise* ( A male love interest that’s covered in red flags but still ends up with the main character ) would happen, but nope! The guy is actually a creep, and way worse than what she thought. I feel kind of bad for being relieved, because the outcome was way worse for the characters that were involved, but I am just so damn tired of the alternative where the guy is really such a good guy and everything’s fine with him.
But enough about that. The characters are wonderful, I thought it was interesting that the iconic popular girl trio wasn’t mean like I was preparing for them to be. They’re actually really sweet and it reminds me a lot of my school!
I loved Baz’s reactions to things, he managed to be the lighthearted “funny character” while still being down to earth and bringing the focus back to Elizabeth when necessary. Absolutely wonderful chaotic good boyo and I love him with my entire heart.
All in all, this book wasn’t what I expected. (Don’t get me wrong, I expected to love it, just not for it to play out the way it did.) The themes the author intended were strong throughout the book, and I read it in like a week, it was so good. 10/10, Baz can steal my soul if he wants, he deserves it
I was worried for a bit that a trope that I *despise* (
But enough about that. The characters are wonderful, I thought it was interesting that the iconic popular girl trio wasn’t mean like I was preparing for them to be. They’re actually really sweet and it reminds me a lot of my school!
I loved Baz’s reactions to things, he managed to be the lighthearted “funny character” while still being down to earth and bringing the focus back to Elizabeth when necessary. Absolutely wonderful chaotic good boyo and I love him with my entire heart.
All in all, this book wasn’t what I expected. (Don’t get me wrong, I expected to love it, just not for it to play out the way it did.) The themes the author intended were strong throughout the book, and I read it in like a week, it was so good. 10/10, Baz can steal my soul if he wants, he deserves it
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Misogyny, Sexism, Drug use, Death, Cursing, Rape, Murder, and Grief
Moderate: Addiction, Alcohol, Death of parent, Blood, and Kidnapping
Minor: Lesbophobia, Racism, and Mental illness
naisdayz's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I'm going to write a proper review on this later, but I just finished it and need to get some of my thoughts down.
Where Sleeping Girls Lie is, no doubt, a very important story. Men are assholes.
The execution fell a little flat for me, though. First and foremost, it's too long. Period. This could have easily been 150-200 pages shorter without losing anything significant. I shouldn't have to die from boredom while reading hundreds of pages without anything majorly relevant.
There were also many repetitions and overexplanations written down, which reminded me a lot of fanfictions I used to read (alias books that haven't been edited properly).
Some examples:
"The local town was close enough to the school that it didn't take them long to get there."
"It was weird that Sade didn't recognize her at first, given that she saw her on a regular basis. She realized that not only was this the first time she had seen Persephone on a weekend, but also the first time she had seen her out of uniform, which probably explained how long it took to figure out it was her in the first place."
Despite this, it also underexplains actual important stuff. I wish things would have been discovered rather than showed to us. Sade could have also used a few more brain cells, honestly -e.g. how come she didn't try the uv lamps earlier?
Once it does actually get going, it gets really intense and twisty fast, which I enjoyed. The author did a good job describing the grief and trauma Sade is going through.
There were also some really beautiful quotes in here (I'll quote some later).
Where Sleeping Girls Lie is, no doubt, a very important story. Men are assholes.
The execution fell a little flat for me, though. First and foremost, it's too long. Period. This could have easily been 150-200 pages shorter without losing anything significant. I shouldn't have to die from boredom while reading hundreds of pages without anything majorly relevant.
There were also many repetitions and overexplanations written down, which reminded me a lot of fanfictions I used to read (alias books that haven't been edited properly).
Some examples:
"The local town was close enough to the school that it didn't take them long to get there."
"It was weird that Sade didn't recognize her at first, given that she saw her on a regular basis. She realized that not only was this the first time she had seen Persephone on a weekend, but also the first time she had seen her out of uniform, which probably explained how long it took to figure out it was her in the first place."
Despite this, it also underexplains actual important stuff. I wish things would have been discovered rather than showed to us. Sade could have also used a few more brain cells, honestly -
Once it does actually get going, it gets really intense and twisty fast, which I enjoyed. The author did a good job describing the grief and trauma Sade is going through.
There were also some really beautiful quotes in here (I'll quote some later).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Violence, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide, Blood, and Death of parent
Minor: Lesbophobia
ghostlyprince's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Child death, Death, Bullying, Gaslighting, Grief, and Rape
Moderate: Addiction, Sexism, Stalking, Death of parent, Dementia, Drug abuse, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Confinement, Child abuse, Eating disorder, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Classism, Drug use, Suicide, Emotional abuse, and Misogyny
Minor: Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Body shaming, Lesbophobia, Animal death, and Physical abuse
mals_reads's review against another edition
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
okay so the content was fantastic i love these stories that take from the abusers and give power and hope to victims BUT it feels like it could have just been… shorter.
i think àbíké-íyímídé had the characters down already by the first third of the book — there were a few scenes that just felt unnecessary and like they were meant to fluff up the content of the book? i think some of the slower scenes could have been edited down or combined elsewhere and would have gotten the same info across.
so it was this combination of slower scenes in the middle of the book followed up by punch after punch after punch at the end of the book as everything is explained — so i should say pacing was a little iffy for me.
loved the characters and their development tho persephone is my girl ily
i think àbíké-íyímídé had the characters down already by the first third of the book — there were a few scenes that just felt unnecessary and like they were meant to fluff up the content of the book? i think some of the slower scenes could have been edited down or combined elsewhere and would have gotten the same info across.
so it was this combination of slower scenes in the middle of the book followed up by punch after punch after punch at the end of the book as everything is explained — so i should say pacing was a little iffy for me.
loved the characters and their development tho persephone is my girl ily
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Rape, Sexual harassment, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Lesbophobia
lailajm's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Drug abuse, Grief, Sexual assault, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Death, Rape, Suicide, and Death of parent
Moderate: Lesbophobia
lucy__342's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Where sleeping girls lie is a slow-paced mystery compared to Ace of spades being a fast-paced thriller. Sade is definitely one of my favourite MC to ever read about. I loved that the author subtly incorporated the mental health representation throughout without making it seem overwhelming. I thought the mystery was intriguing and the very, very slow-burn romance was just perfect. My only complaint would be that I think the book could have been condensed into probably 400pgs instead of the almost 600pgs. However, because I loved the characters so much I was happy to read the extra 100pgs. I will read everything this author writes. And I hope there is a sequel!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Murder, Rape, Sexual assault, and Death
Moderate: Drug abuse and Drug use
Minor: Lesbophobia, Racism, and Xenophobia
bloodmaarked's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
2.5* rounded up. i truly hate that this is my rating but it didn't hit the same as ace of spades. still love faridah though
✧ full review on my tumblr ✧
✧ full review on my tumblr ✧
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Death, Death of parent, Suicide, Animal death, Blood, Sexual assault, and Child death
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Gaslighting, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, Cursing, Murder, and Addiction
Minor: Medical content, Lesbophobia, and Islamophobia
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