Nod

by Adrian Barnes

Overview

Dawn breaks over Vancouver and no one in the world has slept the night before, or almost no one. A few people, perhaps one in ten thousand, can still sleep, and they’ve all shared the same golden dream. 

After six days of absolute sleep deprivation, psychosis will set in. After four weeks, the body will die. In the interim, panic ensues and a bizarre new world arises in which those previously on the fringes of society take the lead. 

Paul, a writer, continues to sleep while his partner Tanya disintegrates before his eyes, and the new world swallows the old one whole.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781783298228
Publisher:	Titan
Publication date:	09/01/2015
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	239,426
Product dimensions:	7.90(w) x 5.10(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Adrian Barnes was born in Blackpool, England but moved to Canada in 1969. He teaches English at Selkirk College, British Columbia. He is married with two children. He received an MA in Creative Writing from Manchester Metropolitan University and Nod is his first published novel.

Editorial Reviews

10/12/2015
Despite some memorable phrases along the way, Barnes' (A Grin Without a Cat) take on the end of life as we know it follows a predictable course. One morning, Paul, an etymologist living in Vancouver, awakes to find that he is one of the very few humans in the entire world who slept the previous night; the vast majority of mankind were suddenly and mysteriously unable to. Their ranks include his partner, Tanya, whose anxiety ratchets up after hearing on television that after six days of constant wakefulness, the brain stops functioning. Things only get worse when the International Microwave Communication Ban takes effect that renders cellphones and computers useless, in an effort to facilitate sleep by bringing "down the walls of static that permeated" people's lives. Food becomes a scarce commodity, and violence escalates as the city's denizens abandon civilized behavior in an attempt to survive. Some Vancouverites come to believe that Paul himself predicted the phenomenon through his latest book project, a history of "orphaned and deformed words." Ultimately, the story arc is too familiar to truly resonate. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

Violent, frightening, textured, and dystopian are words that aptly describe the short-lived world that Barnes has created. Barnes’ writing is beautiful” - Quest For Sleep

“Barnes’s prose is full of surprising figures and flourishes” - Kenyon

"I loved the premise and enjoyed both the story and Barnes’s rich prose." - Craig DiLouie 

“Thought provoking and utterly engrossing, NOD is a science fiction tale of horror unlike any I have read before.” - Count Gore

“The creepiest book of the year” - Slate

“I could see what the new world of Nod looked like, could easily picture the slow collapse of Vancouver and its people thanks to Barnes’ close attention to detail. At times I could even smell the death and decay it so vividly described.” - Project Fandom

"Debut author Barnes has written a completely original twist on the subject of insomnia. His apocalyptic thriller will appeal to fans of Christopher Galt’s Biblical and other dystopian and sf thrillers as well as readers with an interest in mythology" - Library Journal

“I have never read anything quite like this book. It’s the perfect blend of heady existentialism and dystopian nightmare. The grand scope of the many ideas and themes, including anti-establishment, anti-consumerism, and the very nature of good and evil, is balanced out by fast-paced events that play on a micro-level...Nod is horror born of the unflinching and uncompromising detail that dissects what it means to be human.” - Dread Central

"Nod brings a refreshing perspective to the horror/zombie genre." - Pop Kernal

"Graphically violent, but gleaming with gems of sardonic prose and clever phrases, this is a book I would read again just for the writing." - St. Louis Post-Dispatch

From the Publisher