Dreamfire

Kit Alloway

Josh is a dreamwalker – she enters the dreams of others to save them from her nightmares. On the eve of her 17th birthday, she still regrets and fears her relationship with others. Shackled with an apprentice that she doesn’t think she can care for, she needs to stop the men in gas masks while still holding up a facade of normality.

This novel was brilliant. Dreamwalking isn’t exactly a new concept, and neither is traits like this running in a family. But what is new is the idea of fates, and them being written down means they can be stolen. This novel combined so many good things, and scientific facts that when new things happened, they seemed quite believable.

The action sequences are breathtaking, and the possibility that people really do get hurt makes them all the more real. Once you’re attached to Josh and her apprentice (and her whole family), you can’t bear the thought of them being injured. When they are, it’s like a blow to your own heart.

I felt both satisfied and unsatisfied with the ending. Why did it have to end? And at the same time, it’s been left open for a sequel. For this to be a debut novel, it’s likely that Penguin was taking a chance on the author and not committing to a longer contract. But I sure hope they do!

A touch of romance is all a novel like this needs – not too cloying, and gritty instead. Josh isn’t a passive person, and she’s not a passive girlfriend. But when you look at her background, she was a bit needy. The only part that didn’t work for me was near the ending.

I felt pleasantly frustrated at times. I wanted to know Josh’s background in bigger chunks! I wanted more of everything! I wanted more nightmares! Sigh. I want more of these characters. They’re all built so nicely, their world is well-realised, and I couldn’t put it down.

What would I have liked to have done differently? Well, one niggly thing was that the ‘W’ names got me a bit confused at times. And swapping between the dreamweaver names and their ‘English’ equivalents sometimes left me feeling confused as well. It could be there was a connection between the two uses, but I’d have to reread to make sure.

I received this novel from Penguin – and I couldn’t have been happier that I had requested it. 5 stars – I can’t wait to read it again.