While the Others Sleep

Tom Becker's 'While the Others Sleep' is a gripping psychological thriller for middle-grade readers, following Alfie Mandeville, a boy whose chronic insomnia leads him to Scarbrook House, an unsettling sanatorium. Far from finding rest, Alfie's condition worsens as he encounters a charismatic bully and begins to see strange creatures in the dark. He soon learns these entities are hunting a demon, and being awake is no longer just a nuisance, but a deadly vulnerability. This book explores themes of fear, anxiety, and the blurred lines between reality and hallucination, making it a suspenseful read for children aged 9-12 who enjoy a good scare and a compelling mystery.

Alfie Mandeville suffers insomnia and is sent to Scarbrook House, a sanatorium for wealthy children. Troubled by the eerie atmosphere and skittish patients, Alfie's condition gets worse, not better. As he lies awake one night, Alfie is haunted by visions of a strange creature moving through the darkness at the edge of the patients' beds. The creatures are hunting a demon escaped from the depths of Hell - and that the only protection against them is to be asleep. Suddenly, insomnia becomes the most dangerous condition of all.