Nod: What happens when no one in the world can fall asleep?

The answer is pretty simple: You get a terrifying book (and a good concept in general).

Nod is Adrian Barnes debut novel which fundamentally led me to read more science fiction thanks to his portrayal of a dystopian world where no one is able to fall asleep. Set in Vancouver and told from the perspective of Paul, a writer, who watches a sleepless society crumble - this novel is short but startling.

The book gets straight into the action. Allowing us to see what happens to a world where humans have gone without sleep for 18 days. Imagine how tired you are after pulling an all-nighter just once - now imagine that 18 times over, and no matter how hard you try - no amount of drugs, exercise, alcohol or sex will knock you out. You are permanently awake.

It's a terrible sight. It's apocalyptic. It's psychotic.

But, although I say *no one* can sleep, that's not entirely true. Our main character Paul is one in ten thousand people who is still able to sleep, unaffected by whatever is causing the plague of insomnia. Paul is forced to watch his partner Tanya, who is unable to sleep, slowly disintegrate into madness with the rest of society.

Just to give some context, here is what happens when you are left without sleep:

After 4 to 5 days without sleep, expect extreme irritability, hallucinations, and delusional episodes. A study in rats showed that going without sleep for two weeks can led to death. After 32 days of total sleep deprivation, all the rats were dead.

There is almost nothing anyone can do to prevent the inevitable. In the beginning, hospitals are crowded with the sleepless searching for answers. Governments decide to shut down all phone networks, thinking technology may be to blame. It's slightly biblical.

I loved the idea behind the novel. I felt exhausted reading it, genuinely heavy-eyed by the images of zombie-like people wandering the night, their red eyes wide open, arms limp and minds dazing in and out of reality.

However, I can't say I was always rooting for Paul. Despite being an adult writer, he reminded me of a 15-year-old goth kid who hated the world and everyone in it (no offence to any 15-year-old goth who feels attacked right now). It was quite frustrating and even cringey when he spoke about how he didn't fit in or didn't understand other people. It felt out of place and a little arrogant of him. None the less, I came around to wanting him to survive, mostly for the abandoned young girl, Zoe, he is looking after who can also still sleep.

Another thing I had to point out was how the novel only focused on a small part of Vancouver. Fascinating as it was to see a city fall apart, I was curious about the whole planet. How were governments functioning? What were other sleepers doing? Were they preparing to start the new world after all the non-sleepers perished?

There were hints to how the rest of the world was doing, but I was insatiable for more.

Despite this, I genuinely enjoyed it. I would love to see it on screen, especially for the horror aspect. If you're like me, looking for a more commercial science fiction read, this is a good start. If you can stay awake.