Are You Sleeping - Family Drama with a Twist of Murder
Are You Sleeping: A Novel
by Kathleen Barber
Gallery, Threshold, Pocket Books
01 Aug 2017

The summary blurbs about this novel don't do it justice. The story is more than one woman's challenge to return to her family despite lying to her boyfriend. Turns out there is a significant mystery yet to be solved, and deception from many family members about what happened complicates the story line.

What's different about this book
The author develops (albeit slowly) a genuine mystery about just what happened ten years ago. Rather than primarily a family drama, this book was enjoyable for the suspense and well-complicated plot line that kept the reader guessing.

What I'll do now that I've read it
This is a great read for a wide range of readers. I'll be able to share and book talk it with my young adult library patrons as well as my adult mystery aficionados. Clean yet compelling - this book is worth sticking with to learn all the hidden truths.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Are You Sleeping is a topical mystery about a podcast which reopens a decade-old case about the murder of a college professor. Podcast host and investigative journalist Poppy Parnell is unconvinced that the person convicted for the murder, Warren Cave, is actually guilty, and sets out to uncover the truth. Meanwhile, as the podcast gains momentum and becomes a nation-wide phenomenon, the victim's daughter, Josie Buhrman, is forced to return home and confront her twin sister Lanie whom she hasn't spoken to in ten years, in order to make sense of what happened that night. The entire conviction of Warren Cave hinges on a piece of evidence given by Lanie, who claims she saw Warren do it - but did she really?

I wanted to love this, and I was pretty sure I was going to, at first. It's snappy, fast paced, and the use of the podcast makes for a really unique and intriguing premise. I loved the inclusion of comments on various social media outlets; I really felt like I was involved in the case in some voyeuristic way. That was very well done. Unfortunately, there was also a lot that I didn't like.

First, the prose. It's very simple and readable, which can be good for this genre where you don't necessarily want your mystery to get bogged down in excessively flowery writing. So I didn't mind that at first, but it eventually started to feel a bit too amateur. The dialogue could have been straight out of a Lifetime movie, and there was this thing the author did incessantly that really started to bug me: someone makes some big declaration to Josie, like, "you abandoned me ten years ago!" (this is never actually said - I'm just making up an example.) And then instead of replying immediately, Josie pontificates for an entire paragraph: "I realized he was right. I did abandon him. Ten years ago this happened, and I reacted this certain way. I realize now I maybe shouldn't have reacted like that." And it goes on and on and on, like that particular thought hadn't occurred to Josie until right this second, and she has to take time immediately to reflect on it.... which would be okay once or twice, but I literally lost track of how many times a conversation was derailed by Josie randomly going into some deep introspection partway through it. It just felt unrealistic and melodramatic.

That isn't to say that I didn't like Josie. I did like her. I thought she was a well-developed character, along with nearly all of the rest of them. The huge exception for me was Poppy Parnell. If her name makes her sound like a villain from Harry Potter, that's probably appropriate, since she reminded me so much of Rita Skeeter. She embodies just about every negative stereotype you can think of about investigative journalists - insensitive bordering on cruel, intrusive, heartless. At first I liked Poppy's character for this reason, she did seem like the sort of person who would reopen a closed case without a second thought for the repercussions on the victim's family. By the end of the book, however, she started to feel like such a stereotypical villain that I was half expecting her to start twirling a mustache.

To switch gears a little bit, my other huge problem with this book was that there never felt like there was much at stake. The characters are investigating a ten-year old case, and none of the suspects are really in a position to cause further harm at this point. There's just a sense of urgency that's missing from this narrative; there's no 'this needs to be solved NOW because someone's in danger,' just... a reopened case that can be solved at the characters' leisure. I don't mean to imply that this was dull or tedious read. It wasn't; it was extremely fast and well paced. I just felt like there was some kind of tension missing throughout the whole thing.

And finally, the ending. No spoilers, but I can't remember the last time I read a thriller where I was this disappointed with how obvious I thought the ending was. Also, a huge reveal basically hinges on a character randomly remembering a repressed memory, which of course happens in real life, of course people are triggered by certain sounds and smells etc. to remember something they'd been repressing. However, in storytelling, it just comes across as a bit too convenient.

If this book interests you for its cool premise, I hope you give it a try when it's published. It's short and fast-paced, which makes for a really quick read. And I did enjoy reading it... at least for the first 80%. That's about when the rating really started plummeting for me. But based on other reviews so far, it looks like I'm going to be in the minority with this opinion!

And one final note: don't read this and Dead Letters around the same time. There are so many similarities that I actually started mixing up the characters in my head, which is something I never do. Seriously: protagonist is an identical twin sister, the 'good twin', her sister is the wild twin; protagonist is estranged from her family because she chose to leave them behind and go abroad following a betrayal by her twin sister; the mothers in both case have mental health issues; protagonist returns home following a long absence and is confronted with her high school love interest who's now involved with her sister... I mean, given their publication dates this has to be 100% coincidental, I don't mean to imply otherwise - but still!! It was hard to keep remembered details from Dead Letters from creeping into this story.

Decent enough murder mystery but fairly formulaic.

Are You Sleeping was a fun, fast-paced read, which had quite a few interesting commonalities with another book I recently finished, Ill Will. Both books involved old murders for which presumably (no spoilers) innocent men were convicted, based largely on the testimony of a teenage girl who was a twin. In both books, the twins were estranged, and their adult relationships formed significant sub-plots. There were even similarities between the convicted murderers. (A few differences in the specifics, but still . . . )

While Ill Will ended up being much slower and more psychological, Are You Sleeping was a traditional page-turner. When the podcast sparks renewed interest in her father's murder, it threatens the protagonist's carefully constructed life and forces her to confront the life from which she ran away.

The pacing was good overall, although flashbacks started to intrude toward the end. The characters were vivid and memorable, but I would have liked some more depth. Specifically, neither Poppy Parnell nor Lanie offered much in the way of redeeming traits. Also, a few loose ends/editorial inconsistencies bothered me, like the age of Lanie's daughter. (Her parents married 10 years ago because Lanie was pregnant, but she was only 8. Maybe it was technically possible according to the author's timeline, but the math took me out of the story.) Ditto for Josie's planned return to New York: She tells her aunt they can't afford last-minute fare so they'll stick around at least a few days; suddenly, she's planning to be back in Brooklyn the following evening.

These criticisms are nitpicks really. I genuinely enjoyed the book, and I often found myself reading just a few minutes longer than planned. The book is well written. The social media commentary and podcast excerpts are an effective addition. It's a successful debut novel and shows a lot of promise for the author's future work, which I look forward to reading.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this entertaining book.

Josie Buhrman’s secret past is exposed when an investigative reporter initiates a podcast examining the facts surrounding Josie’s father’s murder. Josie is forced to travel home and become reacquainted with her estranged twin sister, and the only witness to the murder. Together, they endeavor to find their mother, who left them for a cult after their father’s death. As the podcast stirs up the past, new facts come to light and causes further tragedy. The sisters are forced to painfully reexamine their relationship and their family dynamic, and determine whether the wrong person was sent to prison for the murder. Barber gives an exciting, well-crafted, twisty tale with a satisfying ending. Fans of women’s fiction or thrillers will enjoy this book.

This was fine. This was solid. This was unexceptional, but enjoyable.

If there had been more backstory to this, it might have been more captivating. I felt like the characters were pretty bland and needed some salt. Josie especially. She's gone and changed her name, completely reinvented herself. I want to know how this went about. I want to see her changing and know if that was hard for her. But we're kind of just thrown in the middle of things. I never quite understood why she couldn't forgive or at least talk to her sister.

I also felt like the women were angsty all the time and completely fell into a trope of being unstable. Her boyfriend, Caleb, could have made them angsty and could have caused a lot of conflict, but he and Josie just travel places and sometimes raise their voices a little but for the most part, skate by without the realistic drama I wanted to read about.

However, despite my issues with characterization, this was a pretty easy read and I enjoyed it all the way through. The podcasts were a lot of fun--I understand why so many people across the nation were captivated by them and drawn in.

There was a lot of telling to this story and I never quite felt very actively involved, which is a shame, because the plot was interesting enough and there was a pretty big mystery that should have had me flipping pages furiously.

If you're looking for a solid okay, this has a cool premise. If you want extraordinary characters, go somewhere else.

I really enjoyed this book. I read it in two sittings as I needed to know what was going to happen. I really enjoyed the modern style which included reddit and tweets.

What a fantastic read!!!! Are You Sleeping needs to be on everyone's reading list!! This fast paced mystery/thriller will have you gripping your kindle until the very last page!! I was immediately hooked by Kathleen Barber's brilliant storyline and fascinating characters!! When I was just a quarter into this book, I just knew I had to read all of Ms. Barber's prior novels and I was shocked to learn this 5+++ star book is her debut novel!! Talk about knocking it out of the park on your first try!!!! Needless to say, I am going to be 1-clicking anything and everything Kathleen Barber writes in the future!

As described, which is high praise considering the description that's noted here - definitely something that I'm glad to have read before anyone could spoil me, and something I look forward to hearing about all summer.

Addictive and compelling reading. Highly recommend to all

Wow, one of THE best books of this year so far! Gripping, edge of the seat kind of read. A well deserved five stars.

This book pissed me off!! It seriously did. I finished it two days ago but can't stop thinking about it.

Josie is happily living in New York with her boyfriend, Caleb who is an international aide worker. While Caleb is out of town, Josie's carefully constructed life begins to fall apart. A journalist by the name of Poppy Parnell has been discussing the murder of Josie's father on her podcasts. A young man by the name of Warren Cave was convicted of her father's murder, but Journalist Parnell believes Cave's assertion that he is innocent. To make matters even more upsetting, Josie receives a phone call from her cousin, Ellen telling her that her Mother is dead and that she will have to return home for the funeral.

The problem? Well, there are several. Josie has lied to her boyfriend about her past. A past that Josie wanted to keep hidden, she even went so far as to have her last name legally changed. Caleb has no idea that her father was murdered or that after his murder, her Mother abandoned her and her twin sister, to join a cult. He believes that both of her parents are dead and that she was raised by her Aunt Amelia. When Caleb returns home, Josie again lies to him and tells him her Aunt Amelia died and she needs to return home for the funeral.

Another problem? Josie's twin sister, Laine. Josie has not seen her twin sister after she betrayed Josie years earlier. Josie knows nothing of her sister's life and wants to keep it that way but unfortunately, the past rears it's ugly head when Josie returns home and learns not only is Lanie married (to Josie's high school boyfriend) but they have a child together. Can you guess what the betrayal was?

Confronting the past and dealing with the present are difficult enough by Poppy Parnell is still investigating the murder and trying to find out what really happened the night in question. The continued podcasts and attempts at gaining an interview are stressful and only serve to create more drama. Then Caleb, trying to be a loving and supportive boyfriend, shows up to be a support for Josie only to learn that she has lied to him about her past and who she is.

Lanie, Josie's twin sister, was not a very likable character for me. After betraying her sister when they were younger, I thought it was disgusting that she tried to confuse Caleb by pretending to be Josie. Plus, she has mood swings and has a penchant for throwing things at people's heads (lasagna, pitcher) Also, she is a terrible mother. In a way, she is very similar to her own Mother. She forgets to pack her daughter lunch, forgets to pick her up from school and even sends her on an "adventure" where the child talks the mail main into driving her somewhere. Boy, the mandated reported in me wanted to report her for neglect.

This story is told narrative, twitter messages, reddit threads, the podcast and comments from listeners to the podcast. If Warren Cave did not murder Josie and Lanie's father then who did? Plus, Lanie testified that she saw Warren being shot..was she telling the truth? If Warren is as innocent as he and his Mother claim...then who is the killer? Why would Lanie say she saw him shoot her father if he didn't do it?

This book was addictive and I could not read it fast enough. In the end we learn the truth and it was not so much of a stretch and explained a lot of strange behaviors. I really liked the characters in this book. I enjoyed Josie. I felt for her for most of the book. Although I did find it a little extreme that she changed her name and did not tell the truth about her life, I can appreciate her reasons for doing so. She never thought she would see Caleb again when she first told him both of her parents were dead. Once you start down a path of lies is it easier to keep walking along that path or do you come clean with the truth?

Speaking of the truth..if you question what you saw or what you believe you saw, shouldn't you tell the truth about that? How do you live with yourself and your actions when you know you are wrong? This book is about many things: dysfunctional families, sibling relationships, betrayal, lies, grief, moving on and finding the truth. This book had some twists and turns which kept the pace moving and things interesting. What pissed me off - the betrayal, the "sudden" remembering of events from the past. I kept thinking seriously?????? Is she just remembering now or does she HAVE to remember because there is a journalist investigating the murder so either "remember" or have the journalist bring things out in the open? The sudden remembering was a little too quick for me but overall a very enjoyable read that left me thinking about it for days.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review from the Publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Josie Buhrman's father was shot and killed 13 years ago, and Warren Cave - the goth teenage boy next door - was convicted of the crime. Afterwards, Josie's already troubled mother fell apart, and ran off to join a cult. To top things off, Josie's rebellious twin sister, Lanie, betrayed her in a very hurtful way. So at 18, Josie left a goodbye note for her beloved Aunt Amelia - with whom she'd been living - and left Elm Park, Illinois.

Josie backpacked and hitchhiked around the world, supported herself with low-paying food service jobs, and invented a fake history to tell new acquaintances. After years of roaming Josie met Caleb, a handsome international aid worker from New Zealand. They fell in love and eventually settled in New York, where Josie got a good job in a bookstore. Josie never told Caleb the truth about her past, which is about to come back and bite her in the butt.

A reporter named Poppy Parnell is making a podcast about the murder of Josie's dad, Chuck Buhrman. Furthermore, Parnell is questioning Warren Cave's guilt and looking at possible alternative suspects. The re-opening of the case generates a lot of interest among the general public, who proceed to talk and post comments about the case and everyone connected with it.

Josie is terribly anxious about Parnell's podcast, which reminds her of painful events. Additonally, the idea that Warren Cave might be innocent is anathema to her. After all, Josie's sister Lanie said she SAW Warren shoot her father. Who else could have committed the crime? Podcast groupies are ready with lots of suggestions, including Josie's mother, Warren's mother, Lanie, and others.

The podcast and the renewed publicity is apparently too much for Josie's mother, who commits suicide. As a result, Josie has to return to Elm Park, where she'll attend her mother's funeral, comfort her Aunt Amelia, and see her estranged sister Lanie. Caleb thinks Josie's mother is long dead, so she tells him it's her aunt's funeral, and convinces him to stay behind in New York.

Being back in Elm Park is very stressful for Josie. She's still furious with her sister; her cousin Ellen, a fashionista, is critical of her appearance; the viewing and funeral are difficult; and Caleb shows up and learns that Josie is big liar. Moreover, Poppy Parnell keeps trying to corner Josie, to get an interview for the podcast.

The story is told as a narrative interspersed with excerpts from the podcast, plus Tweets, Reddit threads, and comments from the public. This style works well for the book, and some of the 'messages' are very entertaining. (Sadly, it's a realistic portrayal of how insensitive people can be on social media.)

The basic plot - is Warren guilty? If not, who is? - is compelling. The main characters, though, are somewhat unsympathetic and/or unrealistic.

Josie, for one, is an irritating protagonist. She's whiny, overly emotional, and even after 10 years can't get past Lanie's 'betrayal' which - after all - wasn't that earth shattering. And Josie does some business with her hair - she has her luxuriant black tresses chopped into a bad pixie cut and dyed platinum.....then gets it fixed - which seems pointless. Also, in real life, men aren't as understanding or forgiving as Caleb.

As for Lanie, some of her obnoxious behavior as a teen - hanging with a bad crowd; using drugs; not showering; wearing dirty clothes; and so on - is understandable in the circumstances. However, one of Lanie's actions is a serious crime, and there are no appropriate consequences. I wondered what her family was thinking!

In a way Poppy Parnell is the most authentic character in the book. She's irritating but behaves like a real journalist - chasing people for comments; saying outrageous things for publicity; not caring about the harm she's doing to the families; and so on.

By the end of the book the truth about Chuck Buhrman's death emerges, which some readers may suss out long before the characters do.

Overall, this is an okay book that shows how 'true crime' stories can devastate the families involved.

Thanks to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher for a copy of the book.

Years earlier a man is murdered and his family disintegrates. His wife abandons her twin daughters and joins a cult. The girls finish high school while living with their maternal aunt. One, our protagonist, is the "good twin"; the other not so much. When she finishes school Josie, the good twin, leaves and loses contact with her family. She is living in New York when she learns that her mother has died and that she needs to return to her childhood home town for the funeral. Meanwhile a blogger has taken it upon herself to investigate the murder and subsequent conviction of a neighbor boy for it. All of this comes together in the small town where it all took place. It is the well written study of the disintegration of a family coupled with all the guilt that results from such disintegration. The characters are believable and well developed. All in all this was a novel well worth reading. Thanks to Net Galley and Simon & Schuster for an ARC for an honest review.

I haven’t read this book yet but it’s the kind of novel that I love; dark and suspenseful, maybe a little scary. If a book is compared to Gone Girl, In A Dark, Dark Wood, or Girl on the Train, chances are I am going to want to read it.

Here’s what you need to know about Are You Sleeping:

Josie Buhrman has spent the last ten years trying to escape her family’s reputation and with good reason. After her father’s murder thirteen years prior, her mother ran away to join a cult and her twin sister Lanie, once Josie’s closest friend and confidant, betrayed her in an unimaginable way. Now, Josie has finally put down roots in New York, settling into domestic life with her partner Caleb, and that’s where she intends to stay.

The only problem is that she has lied to Caleb about every detail of her past—starting with her last name. When investigative reporter Poppy Parnell sets off a media firestorm with a mega-hit podcast that reopens the long-closed case of Josie’s father’s murder, Josie’s world begins to unravel. Meanwhile, the unexpected death of Josie’s long-absent mother forces her to return to her Midwestern hometown where she must confront the demons from her past—and the lies on which she has staked her future.

Due out in August.

Oh my, did I love this book. I wasn't sure what to expect, and sometimes the intro paragraph is more of a tease when the book does not deliver. Not the case here.

The story was great; a nice life built on a foundation of tragedy and lies. All quite understandable as the story is told. But someone comes along to unearth secrets and questions from years ago, despite who it might hurt. This character is venal, I could find no redeeming qualities, and had one of those personas where they are very sanctimonious and made of teflon, nothing sticks to them.

As the story is told we get to see the various recollections of Josie's family of the same event, which is quite different for each of them. As the layers are peeled back, pieces of a puzzle she didn't even realize she was putting together being to fall into place.

The characters are well- described, the back and forth absorbing. How things could be so different than she thought? How could so many others have little pieces of the story, but they don't get put together?

I really enjoyed reading this book, and waited for my opportunity to read each night. It was engaging, easy to read; a good pace. I often find myself skipping to the end of a book, just to see what ultimately happens- and then going back and reading the whole thing- but I had no desire to do that here.

Looking forward to her next book.

This was a great thriller that I really enjoyed! Josie and Lanie are twins, estranged for years after the murder of their father and Lanie's eyewitness testimony that put a neighborhood teen in prison. When their mother runs off to join a cult, their lives fall apart and each twin begins a life of her own. Josie, intending to put the past behind her, changes her last name and lies to her boyfriend so she can start over. But when a rabid journalist re-opens the case with a podcast that goes viral, the family must come to terms with the truth. What is it and who has secrets? Is the man in prison really guilty or was Lanie's testimony false? Very current in terms of the social media presence, this novel kept me up at night to finish!

This fast paced read would be the perfect fit for high school students. Students with siblings will relate to the constant conflicting feelings that go along with having a brother or sister.

The pull of Kathleen Barber's Are You Sleeping is that the premise revolves around a true crime podcast, which, as most of us know, is a highly popular format these days. I myself listen to many podcasts, as the one mentioned in Barber's novel, Reconsidered, reminds the reader of Serial, with the ruminations of My Favorite Murder and its gossip-like tellings of popular murders. What could've easily been a thrown together mess of weaving a story around the latest "it" thing in popular culture, Are You Sleeping takes a different route, one where the narrative and the podcast transcript work off one another, leading the reader along a thrilling and page-turning story. Highly reccomended.

Deliciously creepy and utterly addictive, Are You Sleeping had me staying up late, reading "just one more chapter," because I couldn't wait to see what happened next. I kept thinking I knew whodunnit, only to realize I'd been led down a false path. The story kept me guessing right until the very end, and little breadcrumbs were dropped throughout without actually giving the ending away. Also, I *loved* the way Tweets, Reddit threads, and podcast transcripts were interspersed throughout the text; it was a unique structure and it kept the story flowing smoothly. I can't wait to read more from Kathleen Barber!