The Insomniacs

By: Marit Weisenberg

Narrated by: Angela Dawe

Marit Weisenberg's The Insomniacs is “a deeply beautiful story of yearning, heartache, trauma, and love” (Jennifer Niven, number one New York Times best-selling author of All the Bright Places) about two teens who discover the secrets of their neighborhood after everyone else turns out the lights.

Ingrid can’t sleep.

She can’t remember, either.

A competitive diver, 17-year-old Ingrid is haunted by what she saw at the pool at a routine meet before falling off the high dive and waking up concussed. The only thing she remembers about the moment before her dive is locking eyes with Van - her neighbor, former best friend, and forever crush - kissing his girlfriend on the sidelines. But that can’t be all.

Then one sleepless night, she sees Van out her window...looking right back at her. They begin not sleeping together by night, still ignoring each other at school by day.

Ingrid tells herself this is just temporary, but soon, she and Van are up every night piecing her memory back together. As Van works through his own reasons for not being able to sleep, they’re both pulled into a mystery that threatens to turn their quiet neighborhood into a darker place than they realized.

A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books

©2020 Marit Weisenberg (P)2020 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

“The Insomniacs is a novel about what we see and what we think we see - and what we remember and what we can’t bear to remember. It’s about the things that frighten us in our own neighborhoods, and about wanting someone who is so close and yet feels impossibly far away. It’s a novel about love and secrets and bridging the divide between. Weisenberg speaks so beautifully to the risks and dangers of all sorts of yearning - readers will want to embrace her heroine.” (Peternelle van Arsdale, author of The Beast Is an Animal)

“The Insomniacs totally captures the itchy thrash of insomnia, and the secret exhilaration that comes from staring into the darkness to find someone staring back. And if that someone is hot, well, then.... Not surprisingly, I stayed up way too late to finish this book!” (Kate Williams, author of The Babysitters Coven)

“The Insomniacs is a deep dive into the inner workings of anxiety and how pressure and past trauma can swallow us up. And then, outside of that intimate internal with the very human Ingrid, the external world is alive with the complex stories and pasts in a neighborhood and friend groups and teams. The interweaving is intricate and realistic. The romance is palpable. Weisenberg does not shy away from the tough topics, and everything about it feels real and raw.” (Bonnie Pipkin, author of Aftercare Instructions)

Really cool adventure!

Really good book. I normally take a pass on YA books, just because, so I was unaware of the nature of the story I was embarking on. That was no problem tho because this book was so well written. Let me say 1st off it was pleasantly reminiscent of Hitchcock’s Rear Window! And I’m sure I’m not the first to reference this in their review! Lol. I loved it! For the. 1st 1/3 of the book it felt very surreal. To the point I was wondering if any of what was happening was really happening at all. Was hoping this wasn’t the case and I’m glad straightened itself out. It felt very dark most of the way, all the way up until the point where the pieces starting fitting together within the plot and at that point was just enthralled in how everything would play out. The characters were really strong, vivid, and easily introduced. I was on board with this story and everyone involved rather quickly and I can struggle with that at times. Lol! I would classify this book in the category of “books containing characters i now miss that I’ve finished the book!” I was all-in on the story, what was happening, and what to expect next. There was zero eye-rolling at any point in the story too. Very believable throughout, and I couldn’t wait to jump back into this baby as soon as I had the chance. I really cared about the main characters and what was going on. This book had it all. Kept me guessing, entertained, and invested the whole way thru. I would def recommend it to anyone I know as a really solid story. You should check it out!!!

Quite enjoyable

The story had the typical happy ending. The story was uniquely different than an average story. I like that the young girl was successful without a night in shining armor. Good friends should be appreciated. The importance of communicating is an undertone and a good lesson. We are not always right when we think we know what is going on.

Fun beach read

Spring of junior year in high school story has interesting themes, relatable characters and a happy ending