Friday, April 18, 2014

Review: Sleep No More by Aprilynne Pike

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I received this book for free from HarperCollins in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Review: Sleep No More by Aprilynne PikeSleep No More by Aprilynne Pike
Published by HarperTeen on April 29th 2014
Genres: Paranormal, YA
Source: HarperCollins
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three-stars

The blockbuster film Inception meets Lisa McMann's Wake trilogy in this dark paranormal thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Aprilynne Pike. This novel is also perfect for fans of Kelley Armstrong, Alyson Noel, and Kimberly Derting.

Charlotte Westing has a gift. She is an Oracle and has the ability to tell the future. But it doesn't do her much good. Instead of using their miraculous power, modern-day Oracles are told to fight their visions—to refrain from interfering. And Charlotte knows the price of breaking the rules. She sees it every day in her wheelchair-bound mother and the absence of her father. But when a premonition of a classmate's death is too strong for her to ignore, Charlotte is forced to make an impossible decision: continue following the rules or risk everything—even her sanity—to stop the serial killer who is stalking her town.

Sleep No More has some good entertaining content and an interesting Oracle premise, but there were many eye-rolling parts as well. I had mixed feelings even before I started this one. The mention of both Inception which I loved, and the Wake trilogy which I loathed made for an odd combination of expectations. Still, I was intrigued and it was fun while it lasted, but it’s not without a list of flaws.

The Oracle lore is what kept my interest the most. It takes a while to get a clear picture of the Oracle abilities and the history is weak at best, but the concept is fascinating and, in many ways, thought provoking. Changing someone’s fate does not come without consequences, thus giving the ability a very bittersweet feel. Seeing the future sounds great and all, but would you save someone’s life knowing another person is likely to take their place? And wouldn’t you feel just as guilty if you did nothing? Seeing as this book involves a serial killer, we get a good dose of situations just like this. Throughout the story, while we learn more about the rules, consequences, and complexities surrounding Oracles, we’ll get a few WTF moments that not only changes everything we thought we knew, but also makes the book exponentially more interesting from one page to the next. Unfortunately, there are also many frustrating parts that added up to make for a very love and hate kind of read.

For one, you just know from the very start when she talks of a guy she’s had a crush on for years, a guy who is on the top of the social ladder whereas she lies on the bottom, what kind of cliché romance we were going to get. To throw another wrench in this overused trope, after he develops a sudden affinity for the lone wolf he admits to only hanging out with her because she takes his mind off his dead girlfriend. And she’s just totally fine with this because he’s just so hot!! With no chemistry and no personality, the romance is definitely the weakest part of this book, and although it serves a purpose and eventually throws its own curveball, the lack of emotional depth made me indifferent to it all.

Then we’ve got a murder mystery in the mix which allows for a bit of suspense, but this is hindered by the protagonist’s obliviousness. Why she trusts certain people or decides to not get help from her aunt after a certain point is beyond me. She meets this creepy 30 year old dude who seems to know all about Oracles on top of him admitting he’s been stalking her for years, yet she immediately puts all of her trust in him, going off with him alone in the middle of nowhere with a serial killer on the loose. Um, oookay. Have fun dying!

In the end, yes I had a few qualms with this one, but its entertainment value is definitely decent and improves as the story progresses. I found myself more and more intrigued as we neared the end, compelled to keep reading by a few baffling occurrences that plays with your mind. It has its ups and down, but it’s an overall enjoyable read.

three-stars

3 Hot Espressos

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Giselle

Canadian blogger, wife, mother, coffee lover, and sarcastic at heart! She has had a love for all things bookish since before Amazon and eReaders existed *le gasp*. You can also find her organizing tours and other fun things at Xpresso Book Tours.

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16 Responses to “Review: Sleep No More by Aprilynne Pike”

  1. Nick @ Nick's Book Blog

    I haven’t had much luck with this author’s books before and your review just made me realize that this one isn’t going to work for me either.
    I hate the sound of the main character. She seems so dumb and clueless for trusting the creepy dude. Also, the romance sounds gag-worthy.
    I’m glad that there were still parts you enjoyed, Giselle! Lovely review! 🙂

  2. Vi

    Aw, boo. I was hoping this would be a little better. Good to know it gets better as it progresses, but with my attention span lately, I don’t know if that’ll hold me over. Great review!

  3. ShootingStarsMag

    Sounds the MC makes some dumb choices; that always throws you out of a book, especially in a mystery like this. Why can’t people use their brains? LOL Thanks for your thoughts.

  4. Christianna

    Yeah, I didn’t get this one. I like her writing okay, but it’s not my favorite. This sounds like it has a lot of potential though. Great review.

  5. kindlemom1

    I had a really hard time with this one as well. I wanted to like it for it’s uniqueness but could never really get into the story or care one way or the other about it.

    Great honest review!

  6. Ginny @ Gin's Book Notes

    Inception and Wake seems like an odd combination and I’m with you on Wake…I did not like it. So, I think I’ll pass on this one but I’m glad you were able to find it enjoyable even though you had some issues with it.

  7. Pili

    I wasn’t very much drawn to this book and although I’m really glad you found parts of it intriguing enough to keep your attention and making enjoyable enough, the type of romance you describe and my general “blah” feel about it… I don’t think I’ll be reading this one.
    Thanks for a great review as always, Giselle!

  9. Kayla

    I keep seeing mixed reviews of this book so I’m kind of iffy to read it. It’s too bad about the romance and the emotional depth since Sleep No More sounds very interesting. Thanks for your honest review, Giselle!

  10. Jennifer Bielman

    The whole Oracle idea really is different which I love.

    “yet she immediately puts all of her trust in him, going off with him alone in the middle of nowhere with a serial killer on the loose. Um, oookay. Have fun dying!”

    Love this. I mean, come on, how stupid, right?

  12. Melliane

    I confess I have only read a book by the author and it was Wings. I didn’t know this one but I was so disappointed by her book that I never tried another one. I think I’ll pass for this one as well.

  13. Rashika

    I am already cringing at the romance. *shudders*

    Yeah I definitely think I won’t be reading this one any time soon even though I love reading books that have Oracles (and even thought the concept sounds so intriguing), the romance WILL rub me in the wrong way and it’ll be all I can think about and I won’t be able to enjoy the interesting bits :/

    Great review as always, Giselle!! 🙂

  14. Neyra

    I’ve been in such a slump lately, I’m looking for something that will blow my mind and make me want to read every night again. I’m going to have to really consider this one before picking it up. Great review Giselle!

  15. Jessica @ Rabid Reads

    I’ve had a really bad run of luck lately where a premise that hasn’t been used much, and would ordinarily be highly refreshing, is NOT b/c I just read that same premise in another book. Seriously. This is like the third time in as many days. I just read the first book that had anything to do with Oracles in I don’t know how long, LAST NIGHT(Rebel Belle). I’ll wishlist this one b/c I do like this premise a lot–oracles are cool–but I don’t want to touch it too soon b/c I won’t be able to read it without unconsciously comparing the two, and I don’t want to do that.