Insomnia: A Novel

Description

Named One of the Best Thrillers by the Washington Post

"Possibly my favorite of Pinborough's yet, and that's saying something. It's an absolute rollercoaster of a ride: twist upon twist, expertly handled. I actually gasped out loud several times. So atmospheric and sexy... A triumph!" -- Lucy Foley, New York Times bestselling author, on Dead to Her

In this mind-bending thriller from the bestselling author of Behind Her Eyes, Emma Averell worries that her sudden insomnia is a sign that she's slowly going insane--like the mother she's worked so hard to leave in her past, soon to be a series on Paramount+

In the dead of night, madness lies...

Emma Averell loves her life--her high-powered legal career, her two beautiful children, and her wonderful stay-at-home husband--but it wasn't always so perfect. When she was just five years old, Emma and her older sister went into foster care because of a deeply disturbing incident with their mother. Her sister can remember a time when their mother was loving and "normal," but Emma can only remember her as one thing--a monster.

And that monster emerged right around their mother's fortieth birthday, the same milestone Emma is approaching now.

Emma desperately wants to keep her childhood trauma in the past, but as she stops being able to sleep, she also can't stop thinking about what happened all those years ago. Is the madness in her blood? Could she end up hurting her family in her foggy, half-awake state, just like her mother? Or is there another explanation for the strange things that keep happening around her? Emma must unravel the dark strands of her past to protect the people she loves... or risk losing it all, including her sanity.

Unsettling and utterly addicting, Insomnia is a heart-pounding thriller that will have you up all night.

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329 pages

Average rating: 6.54

56 RATINGS

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3 REVIEWS

Community Reviews

JHSiess
Feb 03, 2024
8/10 stars
Bestselling author Sarah Pinborough says her inspiration for Insomnia was a desire to explore sleepless nights that often prove frightening and the resultant paranoia. The story opens twelve days before Emma Averell's fortieth birthday. Emma, a divorce attorney, awakens at 1:13 a.m., convinced that someone is in the home she shares with her stay-at-home husband, Robert, and their children, five-year-old Will and Chloe, who is seventeen. After she...read more
KaitBoyd
Apr 18, 2023
10/10 stars
I watched the Netflix Series 'Behind Her Eyes' and loved the suspense and supernatural themes. So, when I saw that Sarah Pinborough wrote Insomnia I knew that I had to read it!

The story itself reminded me of 'Behind Her Eyes' and the movie 'Hereditary'. You have a mother as the main character who is doing everything she can to find out about her estranged mother's life as she tries to uncover family secrets to protect her family. But, is she pro...read more
Writer13
Jan 18, 2023
4/10 stars
This book creeped me out but in a good way. It was fast paced enough and had short enough chapters to keep me entertained. I don’t believe in people knowing the future, but I did like the way it was set up. The connections made sense. The one thing that irritated me was the muttering of the numbers. I wish we had more clues concerning that part. Although I understand she was in pain Caroline’s hatred of Emma made no sense to me. Emma was five fo...read more

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