I liked the literary, dark, unsettling vibes, though it lost me near the end when that was replaced with high-stakes faster-paced thriller chaos. Once I got into the flow, it was okay, but I think this one is best suited for those who appreciate dark, complex narratives and can roll with its quirks.

 

Energy: Imperious. Condescending. Perverse. 

 

🐺 Growls The narrators do a great job, but the audio-transcription app used in the story introduces intentional mistakes and cuts off, so the audiobook was hard to understand in those parts. 

 

🐕 Howls Trying to do too much in one story. Seems like it’s trying too hard to shock or be edgy sometimes. The heavy-handedness near the end clashed with the subtler, slow-burn tone established early on. Don’t overanalyze - these characters are supposedly hand-writing novella-length letters to each other  😂. 

 

🐩 Tail Wags Piecing things together as I progressed through the book. The stream-of-consciousness style letters. Some of the dark twists. How it captured arguments, passive aggression, and pettiness with excruciating precision. Intriguing exploration of deeply flawed humans. The atmosphere. 

 

Scene: 🇬🇷 An unnamed Greek island 

Perspectives (3): Two spouses writing to each other, but almost in a way where they don’t expect the other person to read them (more of a cathartic exercise?). The sleepwalker’s wife. And transcripts from recordings.

Time: Current (2020s). ☀️ Summery. 

🔥 Fuel: How did these two end up married? Why is their marriage falling apart? What happened with the sleepwalking couple? High stakes action and questing. Can one of the characters find what they’re looking for? 

📖 Cred: Plausible with emotional hyper-realism

 

Mood Reading Match-Up:

Soft heat. Underripe melon. Pomegranate. White-washed buildings. Distant lightning. Howling winds. Singing goldfinches. 

 

Content Heads-Up: Classism, entitlement. Marriage troubles (dismissive, arguments, name-calling, demanding). Intrusive in-law. Sexual content (consenting, fantasizing). Hospice (recall). Sexual grooming (preteens/teens). Voyeurism of minors. Non-consenting sex (intoxication). Drugging. Trafficking. Refugee camp, status. Vomit. Dieting (food restriction). Fatphobia. Homophobia (prejudice, persecution). Sexual violence. Excrement (brief). Covid (fatal; very brief mention).

 

Rep: British. Greek. Turkish. Cis. Hetero. White, olive, tan, and ambiguous skin tones. 

 

📚 Format: Everand Audio