by D.S. Murphy | Book Reviews
Dreamland by Robert L. Anderson is a novel about Odea “Dea” Donahue, who has been able to travel through people’s dreams since she was six years old. Her mother taught her three rules of walking, and the story is about the fine line between dreams and reality. This page is the book’s summary plus a first reaction to the cover, not a full review.
The three rules of walking
- Never interfere.
- Never be seen.
- Never walk the same person’s dream more than once.
Those are the rules from the book’s own description, which is quoted below. The publisher compares the book to Maggie Stiefvater’s The Raven Cycle.
The book’s description
I love this cover, which reminds me of the movie poster for Upside Down. Dreamland by Robert Anderson is about a girl who can walk through other people’s dreams. She’s not supposed to stick around to get involved, but she does. Full review as soon as I get a copy, here’s the summary.
From immensely talented debut author Robert L. Anderson comes a stunning, complex, and imaginative story about the fine line between dreams and reality that will appeal to fans of Maggie Stiefvater’s The Raven Cycle.
Odea Donahue has been able to travel through people’s dreams since she was six years old. Her mother taught her the three rules of walking: Never interfere. Never be seen. Never walk the same person’s dream more than once. Dea has never broken the rules.
More book pages
Other book reviews and book pages on Urban Epics are collected in the YA book reviews section.
by D.S. Murphy | Book Reviews
About Ice Like Fire by Sara Raasch
Ice Like Fire is the second book in the Snow Like Ashes series, “A striking fantasy of dark magic, dangerous politics, and discovering your true self.” It’s set in a magical fantasy world, and Meira needs to find new sources of magic to continue the battle. As one reviewer says,
“SNOW LIKE ASHES was a magically enchanting world, that I fell in love with! I was swept into a world of magic, lies, destiny, raging war, an evil ruler, determined refugees, slaves bound by chains, and one girl with a light so bright that burned within her like the raging storms pulsing to be let out and unleashed on evil! To say SNOW LIKE ASHES was magical, would be an understatement! It was breathtakingly beautiful!”
by D.S. Murphy | Book Reviews
Walk on Earth a Stranger is the first book in Rae Carson’s new series, the Gold Seer Trilogy. The premise is brilliant: a historical fiction set during the Gold Rush, featuring a young adult protagonist with one extremely timely supernatural power – she can sense gold around her, like a human metal detector.
I was actually planning to go to the Yukon this summer to look for gold, so I’m already hooked into this story. Of course, such a talented gift would be valuable to a prospector… valuable enough to kill for. Walk on Earth is a clever YA novel with romantic and paranormal proclivities, but it’s Old West setting and theme is sure to be satisfying.
The open, harsh landscape and long distance roaming is common in dystopian or postapocalyptic fiction, but the same mood will be reached in uncivilized America.
What Walk on Earth a Stranger Is About
Leah Westfall can feel gold in the ground. In a country rushing west to dig it up, that makes her the most valuable person in any room, and the most hunted. The book follows her as she heads toward the California goldfields, hiding what she can do while the people around her chase the same metal for very different reasons.
It is a YA historical fantasy: real Gold Rush history, a supernatural gift, and a heroine who has to decide how much of herself to keep secret.
The Gold-Sensing Power
Sensing gold does not make Leah a superhero. It makes her a target: in the Gold Rush, her gift is valuable enough to kill for.
The Gold Rush Setting
As I said above, the open, harsh landscape and the long miles of travel give the book the same mood you get from dystopian and post-apocalyptic fiction, just moved into an uncivilized America.
Romance and the Paranormal Thread
The book has romantic and paranormal threads.
Where It Sits in the Gold Seer Trilogy
This is book one, so it is the right place to start. It sets up Leah’s world and her secret; the later books carry the story forward. You do not need to have read anything else by Rae Carson first.
For more like this, head back to our YA book reviews. For more picks in the same vein, see our best YA scifi and fantasy books for teens.
