The Edge of Sleep by Jake Emanuel

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

5/5 Dystopian horror at it's best.

Whoever falls asleep this night, doesn't wake up. In the span of a few hours a majority of the population is dead. We're following a rag-tag crew of leftovers who share sleep disorders and overnight shifts as they scramble to figure out what's happening and how to stop it.

I don't want to give too much away because the book moves at a break-neck pace (in the best way possible). You can tell the two writers are screenwriters because this plays out like a movie in your mind. What elevates this from your run-of-the-mill dystopian story to an instant classic is the characters. They are well developed, smart, sympathetic while still flawed. Additionally our characters, especially Matteo, have an absurdist comedic timing to them which keeps the story from being drowned under the weight of the enormity of this disaster.

Tip for all readers/listeners. Listen to the end. And by the end I mean follow the epilogue to the VERY END. I was **gasping**, mouth open. texting my brother immediately.

Let's also take a moment to celebrate the amazing narration done by, Franz Drameh, who plays Matteo Leon in the upcoming TV series of the same name. He flawlessly switches between narration and multiple characters of different genders, ages and accents so convincingly I had to double check that there was only one narrator. I honestly thought there were at least two if not more. As far as I can tell this is the only narration work Franz has done, but I'd listen to him read a menu.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this advanced listener copy. We can only hope the TV show is just as good as the book.