Dreamwalker Blog Tour: Review & Giveaway!!

Thank you A Tale of Many Reviews for the opportunity to be a part of the Dreamwalker Tour. Also a big thank you to Andrea Heltsley for stopping by and for providing the book to read and review. Make sure to check out the Linky below to see the other stops on this tour.

Dreamwalker

Persephone's League of Immortals, #1

by Andrea Heltsley

Published May 23, 2012

Formats Available: Paperback, eBook ~434 pages

Synopsis:

Noel Kennedy lost her boyfriend, her job and her dignity all in one week. Then something happened and she began to dream of this stranger she had never met. She couldn’t resist the man of her dreams named Jared especially when she met him in real life. Entranced, she slowly unraveled a world she was meant to stay out of. Her life was not what she thought it was once a sexy Boone stepped into the mix and shook things up. Can she escape a life of servitude or immortality for a chance at love?

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My Thoughts:

First, let me say how gorgeous this cover is! I have a love affair with all of Andrea's books. The cover makes me swoon; it sparkles and is ethereal and I just want to pet it. Another beautiful creation by PhatPuppy. 

After having read another book by Andrea Heltsley, I was hesitant going into Dreamwalker. Boy were my fears unfounded! While I couldn't get into the last book, I was instantly sucked into Noel's story. Just within the first chapter Noel's heart is broken and I felt every bit of her hurt. Noel is told by her boyfriend - of three years - that she just isn't the one for him. He wants someone more adventurous and she just doesn't cut it. Understandably, Noel spirals into a deep depression, even ditching work. One night Noel starts having these really crazy, vivid dreams. A sexy man who is the epitome of her dream man. She even thinks that she sees the man in her dreams on the street, but when she looks again, he is gone but a coin is left in his place. That coin turns out to be a magical item of protection. One that Noel needs, but why?

Then, while Noel and Autumn were out blowing off steam, Noel meets him, Jared, the man from her dreams. But then he disappears. Then a new totally sexy man, Boone, (Jared's partner) shows up and asks Noel if she knew where Jared went. After that the plot really starts to unfold. Not to mention a love triangle, that will have you choosing teams! Noel is part of something bigger and more important than she could have ever imagined. And her dreams? Not really dreams, but real events. She is a Dreamwalker and can enter into people's dreams. A whole new world is opened up and supernatural creatures are everywhere and they are out to get her because Persephone wants her for her Dreamwalking abilities. 

Noel is not who she thought she was either. Not only is she a Dreamwalker, but she has a life that doesn't remember because her memories were wiped by a witch (who is someone she knows) when she was just a girl. She also has a sister that she hasn't seen in years and is reunited with. Along with some rogue agents from Persephone, Noel, her sister and the witch work together to win their freedom from the underworld and from becoming a slave to Persephone herself. Wow! There is so much going on in this book and I could not put it down until I knew what was going on!

There were a few quirks that could have been fixed; grammar issues, POV changes were not clear, and dialogue was lacking. Another problem is that characters are not fully fleshed out, but they were so much better than the first book I read by the author. Despite the cons, I still felt that Andrea created a very imaginative twist on the Persephone myth. Where most of them are focused on Persephone's plight, in Dreamwalker we see the Queen of Hell that she really is. I loved that there were so many types of supes used in the story: witches, fae, goblins, greek mythological creatures and so many more. I can't wait for more! I really found the imagery, especially that of the underworld, breathtaking. 

★ ★ ★ ★ ½

I am totally Team Boone!!

FTC Advisory: I was given a copy of this book from the author for an honest review as part of a blog tour. No backroom deals or whispered promises were made.

About the Author:

I am a biology nerd who decided it was more fun writing than dissecting. I have written two novels and my third will be out this summer. I live on coffee and read like a robot. My husband and two italian greyhounds usually have to tear me away from the computer...imagine that. :)

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Review: Before I Wake

The Before I Wake Mini-Reading Challenge is hosted by Rachel @ Fiktshun. Review below is of the sixth book in the Soul Screamers series and has spoilers from the previous book If I Die. 

Before I Wake
(Soul Screamers #6)
by Rachel Vincent
Published by: Harlequin Teen
Publication Date: June 26, 2012
Format: Paperback ~339 pages
Source: Library Loan

Synopsis:
I died on a Thursday-killed by a monster intent on stealing my soul.

The good news? He didn't get it.

The bad news? Turns out not even death will get you out of high school...

Covering up her own murder was one thing, but faking life is much harder than Kaylee Cavanaugh expected. After weeks spent "recovering," she's back in school, fighting to stay visible to the human world, struggling to fit in with her friends and planning time alone with her new reaper boyfriend. But to earn her keep in the human world, Kaylee must reclaim stolen souls, and when her first assignment brings her face-to-face with an old foe, she knows the game has changed. Her immortal status won't keep her safe. And this time Kaylee isn't just gambling with her own life....

Cover: Beautiful cover as usual! The pink dress that swirls around her like smoke tendrils reminds me of the ways the souls travel from their bodies when Kaylee sings for them.

My Thoughts:

Kaylee Cavanaugh’s death was fated to happen, but being dead doesn’t mean she has to go gently into the good night. Kaylee still has a life to live…even if she isn’t technically ‘alive’. She has eternity to look forward to, but she can’t seem to get through the first month without feeling what death is really like…lonely. And even though she has Tod, the one person that makes her feel alive, she can’t stop the all-consuming hopelessness that seeps into her mind every night.

At the end of If I Die Kaylee is offered the chance to work for the soul retrieval department where she will work recapturing souls from rogue reapers. On her first assignment Kaylee is shocked to find out exactly who the rogue reaper is, but that is just the beginning of the shocking revelations that Kaylee will encounter. Kaylee can’t fight everything alone – even though she may try- and will need the help of her friends and family, but Nash isn’t exactly speaking to her and refuses to be anywhere near Tod. Frenemy Sabine’s loyalty is subject to her feelings for Nash and Kaylee’s best friend Emma is just human. Luca, a necromancer is sent in to help out, but no one could guess what they are about to face.

Before I Wake is the best book in the Soul Screamers series thus far, in my opinion. I could not put this book down and read it in one night – sleep be damned! When I finished the last book If I Die, I thought that it was the end of the series. I was ecstatic to see that I was wrong plus two! Since this is the second to last book, the stakes are raised for Kaylee and friends. This book is the epitome of a rollercoaster read. I laughed, cried, and was completely heartbroken.

Rachel Vincent not only wrote about the characters, but delved into their psyches too. She reveals so much about each character that I would never have thought of or looked past the surface to find. I feel sorry for Nash. He has lost so many people in his life and while he made mistakes, I wish he would stop punishing himself. I want him to turn to Sabine and find happiness, but like he said, he can’t turn feelings on and off. I appreciate that characters evolve in the Soul Screamers’ world slowly and deliberately; not having instant feelings or actions.

The heat level is turned up a notch…times 10! My knees went weak reading the swoony scenes between Kaylee and Tod. The love they have for one another is a beautiful and satisfying selfless love. Without being too overt and wordy, we can see and feel the chemistry between the couple. Neither one wants to spend the rest of their forever without the other and they would happily die for each other without a thought of themselves. I never thought too much of Tod’s character before, but he is the kind of man that every girl deserves.

Before I Wake is a gut-wrenching, suspenseful, thrilling book that will surprise readers with all the twists and turns. To those who lost their lives, you will be missed. I don’t want to think about what may happen in the next book, but I am excited to read the series finale knowing that it will be that much more heart-stopping than this one. Ms. Vincent has created a world that is terrifying and alluring; one that will be missed. Before I Wake left me breathless and in anticipation of being completely blown away by With All My Soul.

Favorite Quote:

“It’s just… I feel so good when I’m with you. I feel alive, and normal, and real. But then you go to the hospital every night, and my dad goes to bed, and I can’t sleep, and I start feeling like I’m all alone, and that feeling gets stronger and stronger. It feels like the air around me is heavy, and it takes too much effort to breathe, much less move. I don’t want to do anything. I don’t want to watch anything. I don’t want to eat anything. I’m alone with my thoughts, and my head feels like a radio playing at top volume, while everything else around me is just…dead.”

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

One of the best series ever! Before I Wake is a must read!

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