Laura Elliot’s Awakened is a gripping and unsettling exploration of the devastating consequences of scientific overreach. In a world where sleep has been stolen in the name of progress, humanity has crumbled. The result is not a utopia of productivity but a dystopian nightmare, where those affected—known as the Sleepless—have become violent, unrecognisable shells of their former selves.

The story follows a group of scientists trapped within the Tower of London, burdened by guilt and clinging to the desperate hope of finding a cure. When two miraculous survivors appear, their arrival sparks more questions than answers. Are they a beacon of salvation, or do they signal an even greater catastrophe?

Elliot masterfully weaves themes of morality, consequence, and the definition of humanity into a deeply thought-provoking narrative. The ethical dilemmas at the heart of the book challenge both the characters and the reader, forcing reflection on the cost of ambition and the fine line between progress and destruction.

With its compelling premise, richly drawn characters, and a hauntingly atmospheric setting, Awakened is a must-read for fans of intelligent dystopian fiction. Chilling, thought-provoking, and utterly immersive, this is a book that lingers long after the final page.

Read more at The Secret Book Review.

Where do I start?
I rated it 5 stars because I couldn't put it down for a second. So so good. I totally recommend everyone to read this book as fast as they can because it's really good and the characters are fantastic.

If you enjoy an end of the world story, where the survivors, racked with guilt, try to fix the mistakes of the past and right the wrongs that ended the world, then this is the book for you.

Set in London, in the Tower of London, where the whole site was once outfitted to become a lab to work on something that would change the human race for the better, a group of survivors work to live, connect and try and fix the wrongs to the rest of the humans that they themselves brought about. The concept: what if you did not need to sleep? How much more could you get done? Work, play, and military applications, this new chip could have changed the world. And it did. But alas, not for the better. Everyone equipped with a chip has become Sleepless, humans that have forgotten what it means to be human, as they run on instinct to simply continue, and attack those different to them. The survivors of the Tower, who created the chip, try to fix what has gone wrong. Then one day two people walk into the Tower, one chipped but not yet as mindless as the rest.

This was a great end of the world book, told from the perspective of one of those who had caused it. It is twisted, scary and brilliantly written, showing the degrading psyche of those who were spared.

I would like to thank Angry Robot and Laura Elliott for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. What drew me to this book was the whole idea that humans can exist without sleep but of course there are consequences. It’s told from the viewpoint of one of the scientists and their philosophical and moral code/order we all follow and our need to explore and exist is all called into play.

The plot sets its own pace which I liked as there was a lot to describe and a lot of the characters to write about. I loved the science aspect it was specific but not overwhelming. There’s a sense of foreboding and horror which gradually creeps in throughout the story which I thoroughly enjoyed this is helped along by the author’s ability to create a very believable post apocalyptic world in vivid detail. Her writing style flows easily and is very engaging. I was surprised to know this is her debut novel as her writing feels like she’s been doing it for years.

I especially loved the main character and how she explains the science, the project and her own life experiences which have led her to this point and what she is doing in the present. All the characters are compelling but she is one of the most outstanding as it’s through her we discover what is happening.

Overall I found it a very addictive and thoroughly absorbing read. If you enjoy post apocalyptic settings, believable, rich characters and a plot that is nothing short of outstanding look no further than this book it won’t disappoint. I look forward to further books by this author as I was blown away by this one..

Dystopia science fiction, and a strong female main character. This book is a bit of a slow start, but picks up the pace as it gets going. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in return for an honest review of the book.

It's nice to enjoy a book when reading something from an author for the first time.

The FMC tells the story in first person, and it takes place in a futuristic London where times are bleak, to say the least. The first half of the book is a bit of a slow burn with a lot of back story on the FMC and the Dystopian situation the world is in. There is a lot of medical-related info, which I assume is from real-life to make the story seem more believable. The second half gets more interesting as the story develops. Some new characters play much bigger roles. It has good dialog with some 'Interview with the Vampire' vibes.

First person stories can be more intimate and highlight the struggles of the storyteller. This is true in Awakened. What's missing is scenes from the outside environment, as the entire story takes place in a very small subsection of the city.

I finished the book in two days, which says something. The ending was different than I expected.

This book had a great plot with intriguing characters. I’ll definitely be looking out for more from this author.

Science fiction dystopian world of a man made disaster. Based in London, strong female lead. Great book, very reflective and thought provoking. Thank you to the author. Thank you to # netgalley and the publisher.

Great book. Was up all night reading it. I loved the characters & the storyline. I totally recommend reading this book ASAP. Definitely 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I recently finished reading Awakened by Laura Elliot, which will be released June 2025. This book centers around a world in which people are implanted with chips that allow them to function with very limited sleep. The chips malfunction and people with it do not sleep at all and become animalistic. The story follows Thea, a scientist who helped create the technology, grappling with her current reality and working to fix the situation. A man and woman arrive at the facility that Thea lives in - their arrival change everything. I appreciated the writing style as well as a majority of the pacing in this book. The author allowed you to truly understood Thea’s thought process and reasoning as she is faced with ethical dilemmas. The ending was a bit confusing for me and felt too rushed, but overall I enjoyed reading this as the concept was fascinating!

This book is more like a journal which I usually like but for some reason the whole concept and story didn’t really fit in together. The overall theme of the story is nice and for trying something different I will rate it 3 out of 5.

This was an interesting story. It kind of reminded me of the movie Awake. I did like the science and research aspects of the story.

Found this dull, confusing and uninvolving. I gave up after 18% as I struggled to engage with the story of a group of scientists trying to navigate an apocalypse brought on my sleep problems.

This is a very well written book.

I was initially afraid it was going to be very zombie - and if you want very zombie, you might be disappointed.

Instead, it was a book that very much dealt with consequences, despair, and how we define humanity.

There are a lot of ethical and moral quandaries in this book and, while I didn't always agree with our characters and how they saw things, it was interesting to contemplate and there were very few easy answers.

A challenging and good read.

Thanks to Angry Robot and NetGalley for this ARC of 'Awakened' by Laura Elliott.

I went into this one expecting it to be a fairly standard dystopian zombie-adjacent book set in London but believe me when I say this is nowhere near your run of the mill, zombie apocalypse, survivorship outing.

I would liken it more to original Gothic masterpieces Frankenstein or Dracula (both mentioned in the book) where there's a deep and consistent musing about deeply philosophical matters - what it is to be human, what is the mind and where does it/should it live, medical ethics.

We get sketches of what London outside the Tower of London might look like and we know how the Sleepless got that way and how they behave but here is very little 'action' in this novel - although the blurb refers to it, I would say '28 Days Later' this is not but I can see the comparisons with 'The Girl With All the Gifts.' Much of the narrative happens in the form of conversations between characters within the Tower and internal conversations and memories that the main character, Thea, has with herself. And it requires you to really concentrate on and engage with what's being said.

Throughout the book there's a really illuminating thread about ME/chronic fatigue syndrome. As someone who has had a passing acquaintance through friends and family of those debilitating conditions, I learned more about their roots and how they and they've been demoted in some medical quarters to all being in the mind and sufferers demeaned as virtual hysterics - it's no coincidence that most sufferers are women and most doubters are not. It's really disgusting and heart-wrenching.

There are no easy answers or tidy outcomes in this book. The writing is intense and extremely well done and, as I mentioned above, despite the different era in which it's set, does really have the lofty sound and feel of those original masterpieces.

Congratulations to the author and the publisher.

WOW. I AM BLOWN AWAY.
This was psychological, existential, tense, emotional, probing.

If you liked Bird Box, Annihilation, Black Mirror - try this!

It is 2055. There’s an apocalypse. Civilisation has ended following an outbreak of the Sleepless - humans turned into feral monsters. To keep up with modern life, science designed a way to go without sleep. The small group of scientists responsible are trapped in the Tower of London, dealing with guilt, doubt, and desperately searching for a cure.

This is told from Thea’s perspective in dusty-like entries. Her path has been paved by her need to help her mother who has suffered from chronic fatigue.

When doctors don’t believe you, who else can you turn to for help?

<b>We all live with the awareness that we’re housed inside a perishable flesh sack that will one day rot away from us, leaving us with nowhere to go.
</b>
The writing was incredible: switching from introspection, records, memories, stream of consciousness….

The writing is intimate and emotional. The characters are panicked, flawed, scared, resilient.

There wasn’t a great sense of place. Similarly, the going-ins outside of the Tower was absent which could have been scary and fascinating. This did create claustrophobia and immediacy, yet made it more a character story than a true end of the world horror or thriller.

I also was not a fan of the last 20%. This was close to being a five stars before this.

<b>“Not just sleep, but rest. Sleep. Rest. Freedom. They are the same things. Those who would steal your rest would steal the very soul from within you. The means by which you exist as an autonomous creature. The means by which you become more than a machine, more than a mere organism, but an individual capable of life.”</b>

Physical arc gifted by Angry Robot.

Awakened by Laura Elliot @tinymeetsworld

Thank you to @netgalley , the author and @angryrobotbooks for this amazing ARC ♥️

As both a scientist, a chronic pain sufferer and a mother who is getting no sleep with a baby, this book hit me emotionally hard!! I was instantly completely immersed and nodding my head at so many parts.

Just the way in that science is portrayed, as both being clinical but managed by a human who has emotions, was done absolutely perfectly. I rarely reread books, but I’ll be getting a physical copy of this because I feel that I’ll get so much out of it on future reads also.

The writing style is fascinating; you’re very much in the mind of the main character Thea, who is an interesting persona to say the least, and I just loved that she battled with trying to advance science/research with ethics. People can view scientists as cold, uncaring and clinical but we are really not; we care about what we are doing and want to help people, and I love that the author recognised this and addressed it (thank you!).

It addresses chronic fatigue syndrome empathetically and people with pain conditions. So many quotes stood out to me. I loved this one “the problem with the pain scale and an outside perspective is that it presupposes a starting level of zero pain… from that starting point we then assume that anyone who’d suddenly found themselves at a pain level of nine would be screaming. But what happens when the starting point is a six or seven? What would be the point in screaming? Where does tolerance diminish and animal instinct kick in?” - Love this!!! As someone who has a damaged nervous system and my body doesn’t understand normal pain stimulus, I’m in constant pain. But I’m used to it, so I can manage life with it. Does it mean I’m not in pain? No! Like I said; this was an emotional read for me, even before I get into saying how exciting the premise is, the twist at the end and the on point character development.

I will end my ramble here, but it’s a 5 star from me, and if any of the above resonate with you, please do read it. And if not, then you’ll want to read it for the plot anyway!