E.V. Fairfall
YA Contemporary Romance
February 14, 2015
Amazon | Goodreads
Hitchhiking is a bad idea but Caden is desperate.
When she accepts a ride from the first car to come by she meets Gabriel. He’s her age, hot, and the closest thing she has to a savior. Problem is, he is a total jerk. With nowhere to go, Caden convinces Gabriel to let her stay with him for one night. He reluctantly lends a couch.
That night Caden wakes up to strange noises. Concerned, she rushes into Gabriel’s room, already anticipating his bad temper. Instead, he’s kind, sweet, and suspiciously harmless—nothing like the man who gave her a ride. He seems like a different person altogether, and claims he is. By night he is Tom, and by day he is Gabriel. Caden finds herself drawn to the mysteries hidden in his eyes.
For Gabriel, Caden is an annoying mistake. One night turns into many, and despite all his anger towards her, she stays. She even seems to accept him and his flaws, but he still doesn’t trust her—is she staying for him, or has she already discovered more than he’s willing to share?
My Review: I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review
Emotionally charged and sometimes draining, Sleeping Tom pairs two psychologically scarred people together in an angst-filled YA romance. Well-written and deeply descriptive, this novel will touch the reader, and make them wonder about the characters long after they finish reading.
It was somewhat ironic-- the night Rebecca's psyche broke from an abusive relationship, and she decided to become Caden (in an effort to become a new, better person), was the night that she met Gabriel/Tom, a person with a true dissociative identity disorder. The fact that Caden wasn't scared away when she discovered the boy, Tom, who only came out at night, made her an impressive character. Confused? Gabriel was himself during the day, but at night the persona Tom, a younger version of Gabriel, took over.
I'm still processing my feelings about this novel. I loved the plot, it was unique and intriguing. The story itself was realistic-- no happy ending at the end of this one-- but not tragic either. I normally hate cliffhangers, but this is a rare instance where it worked. Any other ending would have ruined the story for me. I enjoyed watching Caden become stronger as she spent more time away from her abusive ex. Caden was an aspiring chef, and I adored the cooking scenes where her true personality really shone through.
Ms. Fairfall did a great job marking the sections between day and night (Tom and Gabriel) to avoid confusion. I also enjoyed the shifting POV between Caden and Gabriel. Be warned, this isn't a light read, so be sure to have tissue handy. Oh, and don't plan to read in a doctor's office like I did. I'm looking forward to finding out what happens to Gabriel/Tom in Waking Gabriel.
About the Author
I
love to write just as much as I love to read. I try to read a book per
week, which doesn’t always work out, but it’s the thought that counts.
Aside from all that I am a huge animal person.Transformed is my first novel, but it isn’t my first publication; I’ve had several short stories published over the last two years. My main goal as a writer is to explore humanity and to give people something fun to read.
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I'm a huge fan of well-crafted cliffhangers, normally! I'm curious about this one it sounds intense! Great review! :)
ReplyDeleteCliffhangers are the bane of my existence. But this one was actually well-written.
DeleteI have actually read one other book by this author - I was part of her blog tour for Transformed! I really liked the cover of that one :3 I think I would like to try another one of her works, and this feels like a very emotional one!
ReplyDeleteDefinitely emotional. I read Transformed too, and it was more my type of story. This did have an interesting plot though.
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