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The Sleepwalkers

THE MIND-BENDING BEACH THRILLER THAT WILL KEEP YOU UP ALL NIGHT

Scarlett Thomas

$24.99

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English
Simon & Schuster
21 November 2025
From 'one of the UK’s most interesting authors' (Kirkus Reviews), Patricia Highsmith meets White Lotus in this surprising and suspenseful modern gothic story following a couple running from both secretive pasts and very present dangers while honeymooning on a Greek island.

Still reeling from the chaos of their wedding, Evelyn and Richard arrive on a tiny Greek island for their honeymoon. It’s the end of the season and a storm is imminent. Determined to make the best of it, they check into the sun-soaked doors of the Villa Rosa. Already feeling insecure after seeing the 'beautiful people,' the seemingly endless number of young models and musicians lounging along the Mediterranean, Evelyn is wary of the hotel’s owner, Isabella, who seems to only have eyes for Richard.

Isabella ostensibly disapproves of every request Evelyn makes, seemingly annoyed at the fact that they are there at all. Isabella is also preoccupied with her chance to enthral the only other guests — an American producer named Marcus and his partner Debbie — with the story of 'the sleepwalkers,' a couple who had stayed at the hotel recently and drowned. Everyone seems to want to talk about the sleepwalkers, but  what at first seemed eccentric, decorative, or simply ridiculous, becomes a living nightmare. Evelyn and Richard are separated the night of the storm and forced to face dark truths, but it’s their confessions around the origins of their relationship and the years leading up to their marriage that might save them.

Exhilarating, suspenseful, and subversively funny, The Sleepwalkers asks urgent questions about relationships, sexuality, and the darkest elements of contemporary society — where our most terrible secrets are hidden in plain sight.
By:  
Imprint:   Simon & Schuster
Country of Publication:   United Kingdom
Dimensions:   Height: 198mm,  Width: 130mm,  Spine: 18mm
ISBN:   9781398528420
ISBN 10:   1398528420
Pages:   304
Publication Date:  
Audience:   General/trade ,  ELT Advanced
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active

Scarlett Thomas was born in London. She is the author of the Worldquake series. She is also the author of nine books for adults, including PopCo, The End of Mr. Y, which was longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction in 2007 (formerly known as Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction), and Our Tragic Universe. She teaches creative writing at the University of Kent. Find out more at Worldquake.co.uk.

Reviews for The Sleepwalkers: THE MIND-BENDING BEACH THRILLER THAT WILL KEEP YOU UP ALL NIGHT

‘Clever, emotionally resonant, packed with startling twists and dark turns and very funny indeed, this is fiction roaring on all cylinders.’ Guardian 'Gloriously dark and tangled . . . clever . . . I highly recommend it.' Observer 'A dark, twisty, savagely humorous plunge into a cauldron of toxic relationships . . . as well as a mystery loaded with menace, this is a smart, layered, stinging look at power and its abuse.' The Times ‘Through her bold storytelling, “The Sleepwalkers” becomes a work of peculiar, gonzo genius. … Thomas takes a glamorous late-capitalist setting, with rosé and catamarans, and shreds, twists and warps it into a story that is surprising, humane and political to its bones.’ New York Times ‘Thomas tells her story with the craft and cunning of an Aegean sorceress. … [S]he can make metafiction not just smart but fun. Once more she earns her place in a postwar British canon of playfully serious mavericks that runs from Muriel Spark and Brigid Brophy to Nicola Barker and Ali Smith.’ Spectator ‘Like a darker, funnier The White Lotus, The Sleepwalkers is horrifying in the best possible way. I loved every moment of it.’ James Smythe   ‘The Sleepwalkers is brilliant, savage and hilarious. The voice is so strong and so distinctive from the get-go, so bold and pitilessly funny. There is no whingeing here, just a fearless takedown which I read through in a single streak of pure delight. This is Scarlett's best yet, and I don't say that lightly.’ Bidisha Mamata 'The Sleepwalkers is never-endingly surprising and full of keen observations on relationships, politics, and art. Thomas makes real life so fraught with meaning, it feels hauntingly supernatural. A twisty Gothic tale of vertiginous depths and haunting power.' Sandra Newman, author of Julia 'This original thriller has plenty of surprises.' Good Housekeeping  'An attractive summer holiday read', Independent ‘Muriel Spark’s disreputable niece.’ Spectator  ‘She's a genius.’ Douglas Coupland   ‘Thomas has the mesmerising power of a great story teller.’ Financial Times   ‘One of the most startling, unpredictable writers of her generation.’ Scotsman


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