Review: Sleepless

Sleepless

Cyn Balog

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Release Date: July 13, 2010

Pages: 224

Ratings: 3.5 Stars

Summary (from Goodreads):

Eron De Marchelle isn't supposed to feel a connection. He is a Sandman, a supernatural being whose purpose is to seduce human charges to sleep. While he can communicate with his charges in their dreams, he isn't encouraged to--after all, getting too involved in one human's life would prevent him helping his other charges get their needed rest.

But he can't deny that he feels something for Julia. Julia, with her fiery red hair and her sad dreams. Just weeks ago, her boyfriend died in a car accident, and Eron can tell that she feels more alone than ever. Eron was human once too, many years ago, and he remembers how it felt to lose the one he loved. Eron has always felt protective of Julia . . . but now, when she seems to need him more than ever, he can't seem to reach her . . .

Sandmen are forbidden from communicating with humans outside their dreams. But will Eron be willing to risk everything for a chance to be with the person he loves?

In a genre dominated by vampires and werewolves, Sleepless was a refreshing and unique read. Cyn Balog takes the commonly known legend of the Sandman and adds to that legend with her own twist.

I loved the alternating point of views in this book. A lot of times, I feel, that alternating point of view takes away from the story, but I believe in this case it enhanced the reading of the story. I loved reading Eron point of view and seeing what it was like to be a Sandman, and learning from him, the difficulties of being a Sandman.

Cyn Balog did an excellent job of making me want to read more about these characters and the plot. There were many small mysteries, such as what happened to Julia when she was seven, that made me want to continue reading. The threat of danger to Julia also kept constantly shifting, making me want to keep reading to see who was actually the one who wanted to hurt Julia.

My only complaint was that this book was too short! I wish it was longer! Towards the end I felt the plot was a bit rushed and I just wanted to read about these characters and the world Cyn Balog created with the Sandman. I also must say too that at times I was frustrated with Juila for not seeing that her boyfriend was not as good as she thought he was and that he was a bad boyfriend. Overall though, Sleepless was a book that kept me turning the pages until the end and left me wanting more, always a good sign.