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AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: None Shall Sleep by Ellie Marney

Blue cover as background, an illustration of a bloody knife with the reflection of the murderer mirrored in the blade, blood dripping from the black titlesNarrated by Christine Lakin, Maxwell Hamilton, Zach Villa & Jake Abel

Why I listened to it:  It was recommended to me by a friend and I’ve enjoyed other books from this author too.

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) In 1982, two teenagers—serial killer survivor Emma Lewis and US Marshal candidate Travis Bell—are recruited by the FBI to interview convicted juvenile killers and provide insight and advice on cold cases. From the start, Emma and Travis develop a quick friendship, gaining information from juvenile murderers that even the FBI can’t crack. But when the team is called in to give advice on an active case—a serial killer who exclusively hunts teenagers—things begin to unravel. Working against the clock, they must turn to one of the country’s most notorious incarcerated murderers for help: teenage sociopath Simon Gutmunsson.

Despite Travis’s objections, Emma becomes the conduit between Simon and the FBI team. But while Simon seems to be giving them the information they need to save lives, he’s an expert manipulator playing a very long game…and he has his sights set on Emma.

Captivating, harrowing, and chilling, None Shall Sleep is an all-too-timely exploration of not only the monsters that live among us, but also the monsters that live inside us.

What worked for me (and what didn’t): None Shall Sleep is a YA crime thriller set in the 1980s – a mix between a kind of Mindhunters and Silence of the Lambs with teenage main characters. The primary POV character is Emma Lewis. She’s 18 now but when she was 16, she was abducted and held by a serial killer. She was the only one who escaped. She is approached by Agent Cooper from the FBI for help in researching serial killers for the fledgling Behavioural Analysis Unit. There are some teen serial killers who won’t talk to the FBI; will Emma be perhaps able to get through as a fellow teen?

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