Casee‘s review of Sleep No More by Susan Crandall.
The night was always Abby Whitman’s enemy. As a young girl she walked in her sleep, and one night, she started a fire that scarred her sister for life and left Abby with unbearable guilt . . . and a loneliness that echoes within her. Now Abby has begun blacking out again-with apparently fatal results. A car accident has killed the son of a prominent family. Even though the evidence seems to exonerate her, Abby is plagued by doubts-and soon by mysterious threats. Psychiatrist Dr. Jason Coble is intrigued by Abby and offers to help her explore the dark recesses of her mind. Through this terrifying journey, Jason’s interest turns to passion, and he yearns to give her the love she craves. But first, Abby must trust him-and shed light on secrets that will rock this Southern town and reveal a danger that threatens them both.
Susan Crandall has been hit and miss for me. Pitch Black was so-so, but I really enjoyed Seeing Red. So it was a 50/50 chance that I would like Sleep No More. This one is going to be put under the column “It was okay but not great and I didn’t really like the heroine”.
When Abby was a young girl, she had a problem with sleepwalking. One night, she set the house on fire which almost killed her younger sister. Abby has lived with that guilt and vows that she will never put someone in danger again. The night of the fire was the last night that Abby sleepwalked. Until now. She wakes up and finds her muddy foot prints leading from her yard up into her bedroom. She is seriously disturbed, but unsure of what (if anything) should be done.
The meeting between Abby and Jason was just weird. First of all, it was at a funeral. Imagine telling your children “When our eyes met over the casket, we knew it was true love.”. That night Abby wakes up in her car, which has been in an accident she doesn’t remember. Even worse, there was another person involved that is dead. When Jason sees her at the hospital, Abby confides in him.
There were just too many things going on at once. Jason had an alcoholic ex-wife that may or may not have fallen off the wagon. Jason’s step-son (that he raised) thinks his mom might have been involved in the accident, but he’s not sure. He’s also trying to get his parents back together and sees Abby as the obstacle. There’s a priest and his niece with down syndrome that play into it. Then there’s Abby’s dad who may be showing signs of early Alzheimer’s. If that’s not enough on Abby’s plate, add into it her sister, Courtney. Just hearing Courtney’s voice makes Abby feel guilty b/c it reminds her that she’s to blame for the way her sister is.
Abby needs help to figure out what happened the night of the accident. While she’s at it, she might as well figure out why she started sleep walking again. Oh and someone is trying to kill her.
2.75 out of 5.
This book is available from Forever Publishing. You can buy it here or here in e-format.
The heroine made me cringe…I really don’t like heroines who have this pity, yet I am going to be the perfect person vibe about them..blah.
I did like Jason and his relationship with his ex and his son with her.