Review: Dream Keeper by Amber R. Duell

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Retelling

Pages: 360 ~

Expected publication: January 29th 2019 by The Parliament House

Synopsis:

The Sandman is seventeen-year-old Nora’s closest friend and best-kept secret. He has to be, if she doesn’t want a one-way ticket back to the psychiatrist. It took her too long to learn not to mention the hooded figure in her dreams to her mother, who still watches Nora as if she’ll crack. So when Nora’s friends start mysteriously dying gruesome deaths in their sleep, she isn’t altogether surprised when the police direct their suspicion at her. The Sandman is the only one she can turn to for answers. But the truth might be more than she bargained for…

For the last five years, the Sandman has spent every night protecting Nora. When he hid the secret to the Nightmare Lord’s escape inside her dreams, he never expected to fall in love with her. Neither did he think his nemesis would find her so quickly, but there’s no mistaking his cruel handiwork. The Nightmare Lord is tired of playing by the rules and will do anything to release his deadly nightmares into the world, even if that means tormenting Nora until she breaks.

When the Nightmare Lord kidnaps Nora’s sister, Nora must enter enemy territory to save her. The Sandman is determined to help, but if Nora isn’t careful, she could lose even more than her family to the darkness.

My Thoughts

Whoah! Fans of Neil Gaiman, Splintered [by A.G. Howard,] and Nightmare on Elm Street, look no further. Your next read has arrived…or sort of, coming to a bookstore near you in January ’19! ;D

A book about the Sandman, and the Weaver? Sign me up! I loved Sandy from Guardians, but my *favorite* was Pitch, and if you loved him too I can promise that you’ll love Weaver! I’m also a huge fan of Splintered by A.G. Howard and this filled a void for me, the world building is epic as well as eerie, and it is tangible at every twist and turn. I felt entirely immersed in this world, for better or worse [I’m thankful I didn’t have nightmares because I’m a wuss!]

Aside from the world, the characters were great, too, each of them had their moments of growth and they were easy to differentiate. Duell knows how to create characters with depth, which she uses to shatter your heart.

The over-arching plot is great, too. A girl who is left to guard something precious and believes herself to be insane as she escapes to the dream world to meet “The Sandman” and prefers to be in that world versus reality.

It’s fast paced, it’s romantic, it’s horrifying, and it is altogether a wonderful book.

Shelf it, squeeze it, and love it!