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A review by eacolgan
The Sleepless by Victor Manibo
3.0
CBR Bingo #15 : Edibles
My main issue was that some of the relationships felt imbalanced without any emotional tension to drive them-- Jamie was a workaholic, sure, so it made sense that his relationships with his family were a little strained, but I didn't feel the oomph behind his regret about that fact, or about the push-pull between himself and his ex. His relationships with his coworkers were his driving force, I really felt it when he wanted to get justice for Simon, or when he dwelled on Elliot's betrayal. But his conflict over his other relationships felt like lip service. Again, part of this could for sure be due to the narrator.
I'm giving this 3.5 stars rounded down, might round up to 4 upon further reflection, but will definitely read more of the author's work. Just not on audio if they use the same narrator. :)
Spoiler
This was a cool and interesting read. I really didn't vibe with the audio narrator, which I think contributed to my feeling like I just wasn't as bought in as I wanted to be. The worldbuilding was really interesting, the plot and pace were great, I thought the process of Jamie finding out who was working with who and following the different clue threads was well done. The focus on capitalism as the big bad was great, I found the stuff about pro-sleepless extremism a little farfetched, but overall it was a believable world and the neo-noir style worked well. The ending was kind of bleak, but a "damn the man save the empire" ending would've felt unrealistic, so I'm not sure there was a way to thread that needle better than it did.My main issue was that some of the relationships felt imbalanced without any emotional tension to drive them-- Jamie was a workaholic, sure, so it made sense that his relationships with his family were a little strained, but I didn't feel the oomph behind his regret about that fact, or about the push-pull between himself and his ex. His relationships with his coworkers were his driving force, I really felt it when he wanted to get justice for Simon, or when he dwelled on Elliot's betrayal. But his conflict over his other relationships felt like lip service. Again, part of this could for sure be due to the narrator.
I'm giving this 3.5 stars rounded down, might round up to 4 upon further reflection, but will definitely read more of the author's work. Just not on audio if they use the same narrator. :)