A Long, Long Sleep by Anna Sheehan

A Long, Long Sleep

by Anna Sheehan

Rosalinda Fitzroy had been asleep for 62 years when she was woken by a kiss. Locked away in the chemically-induced slumber of a stasis tube in a forgotten sub-basement, sixteen-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.

Reviewed by nannah on

5 of 5 stars

Share
(4.5)

Book content warnings:
child abuse

Before I get into anything here, I just have to say how much I dislike the packaging for this book. The rose fading to white and the title font makes it appear to be some run-of-the-mill YA romance, when it's so much more smart and rich and diverse and (to be quite honest) enjoyable.

A Long, Long Sleep is a retelling of Sleeping Beauty, but the way things fall into place isn't quite what you'd expect. Rosalinda Fitzroy has been asleep and preserved for sixty-two years. When she wakes up (and yeah, from a kiss), she discovers the world has aged without her: her parents and boyfriend are gone, the world has passed through the Dark Times and its plague, and she's the heir to her parents' UniCorp empire. Rose wants to start fresh, but if she already felt like a freak back in her own time, being thrown into a strange one isn't helping.

What I noticed right away is that the style of prose is very nice to read. I love the words and the flow the sentences have. It's personal preference, of course, but I was immediately taken by her writing. It's so polished, especially for a debut.

Secondly, several characters of color!! In a YA romance?! Not only that, but a black man is a love interest? I think I fell in love already within the first couple pages.

A lot of the beginning is backstory, which is usually sluggish and awful, but I really found myself absorbed in it, and I didn't care that the plot wasn't rushing forward. Much of the book is character-driven, and Rose finding out who she is and that it's okay to be who she is. Which . . . is why I fell in love with it, to be honest. Don't expect some action-driven futuristic plot. There's plenty of futuristic atmosphere and cool technology, but the real deal here is Rose and her personal growth.

The book wraps up really nicely and works perfectly as a standalone. I had to check back on goodreads to make sure it wasn't one, because I really want to read more from this world and this author.

Last modified on

Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 7 January, 2016: Finished reading
  • 7 January, 2016: Reviewed