Scan barcode
A review by camicapa
The Insomniacs by Marit Weisenberg
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Probably a hidden gem. This book follows Ingrid, a teenage star diver, after an accident. She is recovering from a concussion, and the doctor has prescribed that she sleep to heal. The problem is that Ingrid can't. She can't seem to remember something related to her diving accident and the reason she made a mistake when she jumped. This keeps her up at night so, during these, she becomes overly aware of the abandoned house in front of hers and can't figure out if the lack of sleep is playing games with her mind or if something is really happening there.
When her ex-BFF, next-door neighbor, and long-time crush, Van, realizes she can't sleep either, he decides to join her and investigate together since he also suspects weird things are happening at the abandoned house.
Throughout this book, Ingrid confronts her past in the form of her childhood friend group and her relationship with the day her father abandoned her.
For some reason, it made me incredibly uncomfortable how every boy/man was described as incredibly attractive. And I just wish Van were more........ normal, or real. At times he felt like a fantasy: omgg soooo hot, and in love with our main girl since they were kids, HE IS IN A BAND!! He is the lead singer!! He is dating the hottest girl in school and everyone is in love with him! He is also the best football player in school, he is the most popular guy at school but also the nicest kid as well. AND RICH. But oh no! He is half Japanese and his dad died, and he is the black sheep of his ansambled family.
I can't explain it but it was too much. I wish he was just a really nice kid. Leave his family conflict, but no need to make him popular, etc.
At times I enjoyed their realtionship, some others they made me cringe hard. But that's on me i guess.
I liked that the mystery was simple, no murders, no real danger.
I just read a review that said the following: "The overall story was interesting, but not a single character had any depth. It’s like she drew adjectives to define each character and stayed completely committed to that one idea. It’s hard to develop any attachment to characters you don’t empathize with. "
And i have to agree. This book has a lot of characters and most of them feel either one-dimensional, and when they give you their sob story I felt nothing.
Ingrid is a character I really did enjoy and empathize with. Her relationship with Mike at first really moved me. I related to her struggles, her incapability to share her feelings, her no-sleep rush, and her sleeping in class problems.
But Van.... i simply did not care for his problems. Or Max's, etc.
When her ex-BFF, next-door neighbor, and long-time crush, Van, realizes she can't sleep either, he decides to join her and investigate together since he also suspects weird things are happening at the abandoned house.
Throughout this book, Ingrid confronts her past in the form of her childhood friend group and her relationship with the day her father abandoned her.
For some reason, it made me incredibly uncomfortable how every boy/man was described as incredibly attractive. And I just wish Van were more........ normal, or real. At times he felt like a fantasy: omgg soooo hot, and in love with our main girl since they were kids, HE IS IN A BAND!! He is the lead singer!! He is dating the hottest girl in school and everyone is in love with him! He is also the best football player in school, he is the most popular guy at school but also the nicest kid as well. AND RICH. But oh no! He is half Japanese and his dad died, and he is the black sheep of his ansambled family.
I can't explain it but it was too much. I wish he was just a really nice kid. Leave his family conflict, but no need to make him popular, etc.
At times I enjoyed their realtionship, some others they made me cringe hard. But that's on me i guess.
I liked that the mystery was simple, no murders, no real danger.
I just read a review that said the following: "The overall story was interesting, but not a single character had any depth. It’s like she drew adjectives to define each character and stayed completely committed to that one idea. It’s hard to develop any attachment to characters you don’t empathize with. "
And i have to agree. This book has a lot of characters and most of them feel either one-dimensional, and when they give you their sob story I felt nothing.
Ingrid is a character I really did enjoy and empathize with. Her relationship with Mike at first really moved me. I related to her struggles, her incapability to share her feelings, her no-sleep rush, and her sleeping in class problems.
But Van.... i simply did not care for his problems. Or Max's, etc.