#BookReview-‘Sleep’ by C.L Taylor

My thanks to Avon Books and Netgalley for letting me read the quite brilliant, ‘Sleep’ by CL Taylor prior to its release on 21st March in hardback.

It should come with a warning that you may  lack sleep whilst reading it-‘Sleep’ is 100% one of those novels that you can put down when it is finished with you, not the other way around.

‘Sleep’ cements CL Taylor’s reputation as one of the UK’s foremost weaving of psychological thrillers, it is a highly personal novel and I defy anyone to read the afterword without tearing up.

Anna is trying to recover from a work bonding expedition gone horribly wrong. A car crash, 2 deaths and a possibly paralysed colleague have left her nerves in tatters, wrecked her relationship with boyfriend Alex and unable to sleep.

The ensuing court trial and funerals are where Anna sees the first messages relating to sleep-the word is written in dirt above one of her car wheels, a card is slipped into her pocket with the famous speech from Macbeth on it-but no one really pays much attention beyond Anna herself who becomes increasingly scared for her sanity.

Blaming herself, she decides that a job as a receptionist for the Bay View hotel in a remote part of Scotland, Rum, will not only keep her away from media attention but also she won’t have the responsibility of driving again. The remoteness, lack of social interaction and anonymity just might allow Anna to sleep again .

But one weekend, one that no one will ever forget, 7 people turn up to the hotel and not all of them are as they seem. 1 of them has murder on their mind….

A beautifully constructed story of guilt, conscience,revenge and grief, this is nuanced and layered with plot twists and turns which keep the reader guessing, this is CL Taylor’s best novel to date. If you sign up to her website -link below- you can read a free short story ‘The Lodger’!

http://www.avonbooks.co.uk/

https://cltaylorauthor.com/