Customer Reviews

Sleepeasy

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Usually a hero's demise is a good indication that end of the story is near. That's not the case with Sleepeasy, as the chief protagonist's death is merely the beginning of one of the strangest road trips ever chronicled.

After passing away, Harry Briggs finds himself in another reality, which he slowly comes to realize must be the afterlife. Rather than heaven or hell or limbo, the hereafter seems to be what each individual makes of it, composed of the people and setting most important to that individual. It seems also that each person's afterlife is unique.

Breaking the mold, Harry becomes a distinct part of his deceased wife's reality. Already an anomaly, Harry creates further trouble when, pursuing his afterlife fantasy of becoming a private detective, he creates an unearthly serial killer so powerful that he is able to cross back into the "real" world, where he begins to fulfill his murderous destiny. Harry travels back to set things straight and subdue his creation.

It wouldn't be fair to reveal any more details about the book--I'll leave those pleasurable discoveries to you. Sleepeasy is a clever, witty, thoughtful novel if there ever was one, and finds the author at the top of his considerable form. Wright hooks his readers within the first four pages and never relinquishes his grip--the audience is ready to follow Harry anywhere, and that's just where Wright takes them, providing plenty of food for thought along the way. With its take on the afterlife as unique and powerful as Richard Matheson's What Dreams May Come, Sleepeasy is a book you'll hate to put down.

When Harry Briggs dies he finds himself playacting the role of hardboiled P.I. in the afterlife, searching for a 'missing' woman. But as Harry adjusts to the afterlife, his imagination begins to spice things up. It creates a super villain for his P.I. persona to track, a serial killer that looks like more than a bit like 40's noir character actor Sydney Greenstreet. Things take a turn for the worse when Harry's 'rat puppy' (read the novel and find out what it means) breaks its leash and crosses over to the corporeal world, racking up victims that begin clogging the engimatic afterlife Harry has stumbled into.

Sleepeasy is part of the slightly connected cycle of Dark Fantasy afterlife/ghost novels, which include A Manhattan Ghost Story and The Waiting Room, that T.M. Wright has been writing over the years. Each novel is a well crafted tale that is a delight to read (if you are in the mood for surreal, reality bending supernatural antics that walk the tightrope between playful and frightening that is), but gain more power when seen as a part of a larger, more complex vision. T.M. Wright is a dark fantasist that deserves a much larger readership than he has now. Highly recommended.

I was in the Delaware USO and stumbled upon this book. I read it straight through and have never read anything like it. Although there are disturbingly vivid scenes it reads more like a science fiction work than horror. I don't know what genre to place it, but this work of fiction is imaginative, original, and offers a different opinion (well based) on the afterlife.

Very quirky book. This is my first book that I have read by T.M. Wright. It starts out when Harry Briggs dies and goes to a town called Silver Lake. He will meet some very odd characters along his journey and learn some of the rules of being a ghost. Mr. Wright fails to tie up all the loose ends (almost like there may be a sequel) and leaves the reader hanging.I like the P.I. aspects of the book and the humor. If you like horror and do not like "blood and guts" this may be for you.

"Oh, Harry, my dolls weren't imaginary..."

After her earthly life, the world Barbara Briggs has constructed is filled with quirky characters, a lovely lake and the ability to control it all...until her dead husband Harry shows up. His consciousness (and subconsciousness) upsets the precarious balance and, now, life and death in Silver Lake take on new meaning. How can one possibly die if one is already dead; how could one possibly be dead if one feels alive?

These are just some of the questions in Sleepeasy.

Through deliciously dark humor and intriguing characters, Wright allows us to explore these issues while deftly navigating us through both the corporeal world and one not quite so.

If you like the challange of balancing several related plots and trust that Wright will creatively build the bridge between these worlds, you will absolutely love Sleepeasy.

And you also may never again look at a field of sunflowers in quite the same way.

Silver Lake is the perfect place for Barbara Briggs to spend her afterlife in since the town is her creation and is quiet, small, and friendly. When Bab's husband Harry barrels through town in a trench coat, a fedora, and a 38 to fulfill a dream of becoming a sleuth, he upsets the town's serenity. His subconscious sets Sydney Longstreet, a deadly serial killer, loose on the unsuspecting living.

Harry and a real private detective Sam have to stop Sydney because his victims are coming to Silver Lake upsetting the delicate cosmic balance. The duo crosses the lake by boat trying to reach the land of the living. Harry manages to return, but forgets that he is already dead while Babs using the name Amelia begins to watch her grip on reality slip.

T. M. Wright has written an atmospheric horror story populated by regular people who happen to be dead, but caught in a strange and dangerous situation. Even the dead have to be careful in Mr. Wright's world. The characters are believable and fascinating as their constricted world changes. Any moment readers will expect Rod Serling to shout about a signpost visited by a Mr. Wright.

Harriet Klausner

My only problem with this book was that I didn't read it sooner. This is an original, refreshing, and creepy novel by one of horror's veterans. There is no question T. M. is a great writer, but beyond that - and more importantly - he's a great storyteller. I breathed a sigh of relief after reading this book because I felt lucky that I stumbled upon his work. Many good authors get swept under the radar for whatever reason... bad marketing by publishers, readers not willing to take a chance on a new author, bad cover art, etc. But the good news is that I've found him, and that's all that really matters. Thank you, Mr. Wright. You are truly inspiring.

What a wonderful, unique, creative and enthralling work! It's not for everyone. If you're a fan of Dick Laymon, you won't like T.M. Wright. But if you like dark fantasy that makes you a part of the action, and characters who you really care about, and prose that's unbeatable in the field, then Wright is for you.
Sleepeasy is a gem!

What happens after we die? Where do we go?

This twisted tale is one you will not be able to put down. Mr. Wright is a master in his genre. Every turn leads the reader down another road full of questions.
While we are living, we learn to control our desires to shield the ones we love. After death, fantasy's of the deceased become exposed. We see how the main characters embark on a journey for truth.
Wright creates a world where potential is endless. Where the phrase "be careful what you wish for" becomes reality and true love is tested beyond this life. It is sure to leave you considering a new possibility of the hereafter.

This was an intriguing idea but it seemed to be more suited to a short story than to a full length novel. The characters all seemed to be brief sketches, almost as if it was a first draft. Not one seemed fully developed.

Finally I think it failed as a horror story because it failed to scare. No chills.