A Long, Long Sleep

By: Anna Sheehan

Narrated by: Angela Dawe

Length: 9 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's Summary

Rosalinda Fitzroy has been asleep for 62 years when she is woken by a kiss. Locked away in the chemically induced slumber of a stasis tube in a forgotten subbasement, 16-year-old Rose slept straight through the Dark Times that killed millions and utterly changed the world she knew. Now her parents and her first love are long dead, and Rose -  hailed upon her awakening as the long-lost heir to an interplanetary empire - is thrust alone into a future in which she is viewed as either a freak or a threat. Desperate to put the past behind her and adapt to her new world, Rose finds herself drawn to the boy who kissed her awake, hoping that he can help her to start fresh. But when a deadly danger jeopardizes her fragile new existence, Rose must face the ghosts of her past with open eyes - or be left without any future at all.

©2011 Anna Sheehan (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Sleeping Beauty Sci-Fi Edition

This is a hard book for me to review. Although it is a very light and enjoyable listen it also has some depth and layers to it that will absolutely break your heart.

It’s a great story with tons of action and so many twists and turns that I didn’t see coming. Not to mention it has a killer ending. Yes folks, this book actually has an ending!

If like YA books like Cinder or Under the Never Sky then you will enjoy this one too.

4 stars

13 of 16 people found this review helpful

Amazing Story

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

At first, I wasn't such a fan of the narrator. Her voice seemed very old and adult for a 16 year old girl. But as the story went on, I became very drawn to the story.

It was extremely romantic - especially her romance with her first love. So be sure to bring along some tissues when you listen. The end is incredibly tear jerking. There is a sweet ending, or as happy as it could be given the situation.

Incredibly romantic.

You can really feel for her sadness and everything that she has lost.

I really enjoyed it, and this is the first YA novel that I've read in a while that actually made me cry.

6 of 7 people found this review helpful

Haunting, Beautifully Written Story!

This is a superbly written, bittersweet story that has moved and affected me like few others. The characters are full and complex, breathing and coming to life from the pages for us, the reader. I fell in love with Rose and Xavier, and am awed by the author's potrayal of the love between them. The nuances of her writing are sheer art and poetry, unique and fresh amid anything else I've read. She makes your heart ache for the consequences of choices and time lost between them. She makes you feel the characters' emotions and struggles, both internal and external.The ending is mostly satisfying, and completely bittersweet at the same time. For me, the change in dynamic made the relationship between the two main characters a lot more awkward at the end than it was in the beginning. That seemed so unfair, (for them!) but also resonated pretty realistically with me (true to life if such a thing happened in our real world) and I felt the author handled it with grace and good taste. This book is begging for a sequel...and I would have one main question: Can there possibly be more for Xavier's future?... Because as much as it seems like there's more to tell about other parts of the story, it just won't feel right to me if the answer to that is no.
I felt the narration is excellent, and very well suited to the characters.

7 of 9 people found this review helpful

Better than expected.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes - it held my interest all the way through and kept me entertained. I genuinely wanted to find out what happened.

Have you listened to any of Angela Dawe’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I had not, but would be happy with it in future if she happened to be narrating another book I wanted to "read".

Any additional comments?

I really liked this more than I'd expected to... mainly because every time something made me want to roll me eyes and think, "typical YA fiction, blerg" the author redeemed it. No, this is not great literature or serious sci fi or even the most shining example our world building and characterization... BUT. I liked the characters. I cared about them. Rose was very very passive at first but there turns out to be any number of good reasons for it - plus, her character arc is about her developing a sense of agency. I loved the arc of her relationship with Xavier, and her relationships with Bren and Otto.

The world building needed polish but it was functional and the romance was not overdone and not the focus of the plot. I enjoyed watching it play out in flashes through Rose's recollections and the realization of what had been done to her.

And finally, I like that the book had a proper ENDING even though it was kept open enough for a possible sequel.

4 of 5 people found this review helpful

What a suprisingly good book!!!!!

What made the experience of listening to A Long, Long Sleep the most enjoyable?

the narrator's voice fit the character for once

What was one of the most memorable moments of A Long, Long Sleep?

the twists

What does Angela Dawe bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

her voice is so fitting for what the character was experiencing at the time. Good choice!

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

yes!!!!

Any additional comments?

it will surprise you and then surprise you again!

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Poorly written, simplistic story, average reader

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

A better author. I'm honestly not sure how this author found a publisher. Her writing is rudimentary, her characters are shallow, and the dialogue is forced. The majority of the characters are teens, yet they all speak with the same voice - the voice of an older person with a Masters degree in English Literature. Furthermore, the dialogue attribution is atrocious. The abundant use of adverbs to "clarify" the intent of the dialogue smacks of an insecure author.

Has A Long, Long Sleep turned you off from other books in this genre?

No. This was simply a poorly written book.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

The rudimentary writing and simplistic story mostly sparked eye-rolls.

Any additional comments?

If you care about quality writing, quality characters, and quality dialogue please, please avoid this "book."

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Amazing

I really loved this book. I was reading it by myself at first, but I have been really busy lately. I needed to finish this book by a deadline and I was running out of time. Thankful I found this amazing audio book version on here, and I loved every second of it!

Not what I expected

Any additional comments?

This was a really great story but it was not at all what I was expecting from the description. It is sad, I cried through most of it. It is like a tale of futuristic child abuse.

Kinda a chick book blah!

Where does A Long, Long Sleep rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

With the twilight books but better than those

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The stasis tubes, the main character.

What about Angela Dawe’s performance did you like?

Was ok no problems.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No but I was a little put off by the main character being incredibly stupid even for a abused 16 year old girl, just seemed ridiculous, people are trying to kill her and shes worried about her damn love life c'mon .....

Any additional comments?

Its a chick flick but it was ok I guess

Where's Book II

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

I typically listen to books while driving in my car. I found myself not only listening to it in the car, but at home and at work when I could squeeze a few minutes in here and there.

Any additional comments?

I enjoyed this story so much that I would love to have a sequel. Story line and characters were engaging and interesting. Found myself wanting more when it was finished.