• The Sleeping Doll

  • A Novel
  • By: Jeffery Deaver
  • Narrated by: Anne Twomey
  • Length: 15 hrs and 40 mins
  • 4.0 out of 5 stars (1,475 ratings)

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The Sleeping Doll  By  cover art

The Sleeping Doll

By: Jeffery Deaver
Narrated by: Anne Twomey
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Publisher's summary

Ten years ago in California, Daniel Pell, a self-styled Charles Manson, was sentenced to life in prison for murdering an entire family: husband, wife, and two children, plus one of his young male followers. He is brought to Salinas, California, to interview with Kathryn Dance after he is implicated in yet another killing.

Things go terribly wrong during an interview break, and Pell, after badly injuring Dance's fellow California Bureau of Investigation agent and murdering several bystanders, escapes. The murder was just one of his many schemes to allow him to travel outside of his high-security prison - and to continue to kill on the outside.

It's up to Dance, aided by her CBI partners, a Monterey County detective, and a brilliant FBI agent specializing in cult mentality, to stop him before he kills again. Hungry on his trail, Dance enlists three of Pell's former female followers, now raising families and leading normal lives, as well as the one surviving family member from the initial killing. Only eight years old at the time, she was asleep in her bed and obscured by her toys and stuffed animals, prompting the press to call her "The Sleeping Doll". Now 18, this girl may have essential clues about Pell.

©2007 Jeffery Deaver. All rights reserved (P)2007 Simon and Schuster Inc. All rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"Deaver digs into his bottomless bag of unexpected twists and turns, keeping readers wide-eyed with surprise, and leaving them looking forward to more of the perspicacious Dance." ( Publishers Weekly)

What listeners say about The Sleeping Doll

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    515
  • 4 Stars
    592
  • 3 Stars
    255
  • 2 Stars
    63
  • 1 Stars
    50
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
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    364
  • 4 Stars
    298
  • 3 Stars
    92
  • 2 Stars
    24
  • 1 Stars
    15
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
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    345
  • 4 Stars
    286
  • 3 Stars
    117
  • 2 Stars
    26
  • 1 Stars
    19

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Really enjoyed this book

Where does The Sleeping Doll rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Ranks very high on my list of audiobooks.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Sleeping Doll?

The twist(s) at the end or what I thought was the end.

Which character – as performed by Anne Twomey – was your favorite?

I liked them all.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes

Any additional comments?

I downloaded the next two in the series.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Bad Narration

I couldnt get past this narrator to be able to enjoy the reading of this book. I found myself daydreaming or simply not listening because this woman told such an incredibly boring tale, that I lost interest. I can only tell you what the beginning is about ( before I lost interest), some of the middle ( which I tried to focus on and get past the narration to enjoy the story. I spent the money after all..) but none of the ending ( because I never made it that far.). Still don't know what happened. I honestly don't care. I would rather not know than to listen to her again. For me, I am disappointed that I wasted the credit ( darn you little sample clip) and am pretty sure I will never buy another book that is narrated by Anne Twomey.

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Interesting twists

I really enjoyed this book. It had been awhile since I had listened to a murder thriller and this was very good. A Manson-like murderer escapes from prison and brings panic and bloodshed where ever he goes. There are a lot of twists and turns that make sense and keep the reader's interest.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

too much psychobabble

Story is pretty good .. characters are pretty real ... but all the "insight" into the mind of this "expert" just made the book drag on hour beyond what could have/should have been the end.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent and entertaining

Outstanding story and narration. You do not want to stop listening. Thoroughly enjoyed - one of the best from Jeffery Deaver.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Lots of Twists and Turns

This is the first Jeffery Deaver I have read and I enjoyed all of the twists and turns. I particularly liked the narrator, Anne Twomey. She has a low, soft voice which is suitable for both genders and she gave a very thoughtful, low-key reading. I didn't think I would like it at first, but as I kept listening, I thought her voice very suitable for this book.


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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Well paced

I really enjoyed the listen; the story was interesting and kept moving, never stagnant. The narration was done well, good tone.

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Save your credit, save your time

Because of the money I spend for audiobooks, I commit to listening to the whole thing. In this case, I wish I hadn't. I thought the end would never arrive. For the last two hours, you begin to woner if Mr. Deaver wasn't contracted for a set number of pages and had to come up with a few 'extra twists" to meet his publisher's requirements. Next time Mr. Deaver, please consider using the old high-school essay trick and increase the margins and the font before dragging out the misery any longer than necessary.

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  • Overall
    out of 5 stars

Very good

I thoroughly enjoyed this story.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • KR
  • 07-21-07

Intelligent

Fantastic Book! Delivers quite an entertaining as well as educational experience. Very real, an intelligent read.

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