Wednesday, May 11, 2016

#Wednesday Review - Dream a Little Dream by Kerstin Gier (Young Adult, Fantasy)

Series: The Silver Trilogy # 1
Format: Hardcover, 322 pages
Release Date: April 14, 2015
Publisher: Henry Holt & Co. (BYR)
Source: Library
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Mysterious doors with lizard-head knobs. Talking stone statues. A crazy girl with a hatchet. Yes, Liv's dreams have been pretty weird lately. Especially the one where she's in a graveyard at night, watching four boys conduct dark magic rituals.

The strangest part is that Liv recognizes the boys in her dream. They're classmates from her new school in London, the school where she's starting over because her mom has moved them to a new country (again). But what's really scaring Liv is that the dream boys seem to know things about her in real life, things they couldn't possibly know--unless they actually are in her dreams? Luckily, Liv never could resist a good mystery, and all four of those boys are pretty cute





Dream a Little Dream is the first installment in Kerstin Gier's Silber series. Gier is also the author of the Precious Stone Trilogy which I have read and reviewed in 2015. 16-year old Olivia "Liv" Silver, her sister Mia, and their Au pair Lottie, are moving to yet another city, another home, and another place that they will have to start all over again. This marks the sixth time in 8 years that the girls have been uplifted from their homes, and forced to start over again because of their mother's job. 

The girls have traveled to 6 different countries, over 4 different continents, and now, because their own mother has found a honeypot in Earnest Spencer, they find themselves in London, and at a new school called Frognal Academy for Boys and Girls. Frognal is an uptight school where the girls find themselves with "big sisters" who are to show them around. It also has a a strange yet telling blog that reveals secrets of everyone in the school, including Liv.

Liv, as I will call her from now on, loves to dream. A fact becomes all too real when she finds herself watching four unknown boys who she learns are from her school. Liv is able to do some amazing things in her dreams, including becoming an owl in order to spy on the four boys she's seen at school. The four boys, Grayson Spencer, Jasper Grant, Henry Harper, and Arthur Hamilton have apparently done something rather stupid and have need of a fifth person to prevent bad things from happening.

I do believe that Dream a Little Dream IS an interesting story. Liv and Mia are definitely the more interesting pair of sisters you'll meet and not at each others throats every 5 minutes. Liz loves logic and science, while Mia, who is the youngest, loves to play detective. You can't blame either sister for their sarcasm or behavior when you first meet them. After all, the sisters meet the man that their mother loves who just happens to have two kids of his own that don't like changes either. The the fact that all of their plans have gone up in smoke, just makes the entire situation laughable.

Reviewers have talked about the so called romance in this book, or the glaring fact that it takes a whole lot of time for it to get going. But, to say that Liv should end up with her soon to be step-brother just makes me want to hurl my dinner, and gag on a spoon. How very European of you folks! Now, Grayson and Liv should NOT be together except as friends. Now, Henry on the other hand is an interesting character and I am all for Henry and Liv finding a future together.

I do have a fondest for stories that take place in dreams. In fact, you should try watching the movie Dreamscape sometime if you really want to see dream sequences done right. Liv finds herself in a world where there are different doors, and different challenges, and a villain who isn't stupid by any means. My only regret is that I haven't discovered yet the person behind the Tittle Tattle blog and who Secrecy really is. Hopefully in the next installment.



2 comments:

  1. I have to look up this Dreamscape movie

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  2. Ooh nice! I still need to read this author! I have heard very mixed opinions on her books though. But I still think this one sounds intriguing! Mostly because of the dream aspect. Though the romance between the two soon to be step siblings is a little cringe worthy, I always try to tell myself they are not related by blood, but it rarely helps. I had that happen in another series, but it was a bit more cringing because they had been step siblings since they were kids. At least with them it's just something that's on the horizon if I am reading this right. Still, very nice review!

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