Review and Giveaway of K.M. Weiland's Dreamlander!

When I first read the blurb for K.M. Weiland's newest release, an epic time travel adventure/romance, I was immediately intrigued. It reminded me vaguely of the premise behind the NBC show, Awake, which was one of the greatest shows cut short on television. (Did a review of that show here.)

Here's the blurb from Katie's website:

What if it were possible to live two very different lives in two separate worlds? What if the dreams we awaken from are the fading memories of that second life? What if one day we woke up in the wrong world?

Every night, a woman on a black warhorse gallops through the mist in Chris Redston's dreams. Every night, she begs him not to come to her. Every night, she aims her rifle at his head and fires. The last thing Chris expects—or wants—is for this nightmare to be real. But when he wakes up in the world of his dreams, he has to choose between the likelihood that he's gone spectacularly bonkers or the possibility that he’s just been let in on the secret of the ages.

Only one person in a generation may cross the worlds. These chosen few are the Gifted, called from Earth into Lael to shape the epochs of history—and Chris is one of them. But before he figures that out, he accidentally endangers both worlds by resurrecting a vengeful prince intent on claiming the powers of the Gifted for himself. Together with a suspicious princess and a guilt-ridden Cherazii warrior, Chris must hurl himself into a battle to save a country from war, two worlds from annihilation, and himself from a dream come way too true.

What if your dreams came true?

Dreamlander is different from other time travel novels in that Chris is dreaming as he time travels back and forth between Earth and Lael. When he is asleep on Earth, he is awake in Lael and dreaming about life in Lael (at least, that's what he thought). Vice versa.

Wouldn't be so bad, except Chris has got a man out to kill him on Earth, and when he's sleeping in Chicago, he's at his most vulnerable. Some of the most intensely suspenseful scenes are the cliffhangers as Chris makes himself go to sleep in Lael to get something from Earth only to have him waking up to the most recent drama.

There is a learning curve to any speculative novel, but I never got bogged down in learning about the storyworld of Lael and Gifteds. The details are weaved in seamlessly.

K.M. really nailed the psychological factor, as well. I was impressed with how realistic she made the reactions of Chris's friends. They were ready to send him to the loony bin when he started trying to communicate to them about his dreams being real. Several diagnoses were bandied about, which I found could definitely be true if some guy came to my office saying what Chris was.

Since I don't read books without a romantic element, I have to say that the story of Chris and the princess is one worth mentioning. Weiland doesn't go over the top with melodramatic moments, which makes the strides the two make all the more compelling.

K.M. advertised this book as an "epic fantasy novel," and the epic portion managed to keep my interest, as well. All the side stories, in particular the "guilt-ridden Cherazii warrior" storyline, added so much to the book. I keep tabs of my emotions when reading, and this book certainly managed to make me run the gamut between love/hate and delight/disgust in the characters.

And the ending is worth waiting for. That's all I'll say about that. I was extremely satisfied on the adventure/time travel wrap up and especially happy with the how romantic thread ended. In truth, for a book that absolutely could not happen, it rang with realism.

Watch the trailer here, read an insert here, or just buy the book in whatever format you like: 

Amazon Paperback / Kindle / Nook / Kobo / PayPal

Giveaway Details

K.M. has graciously agreed to offer a digital ebook copy of Dreamlander for one lucky commented below. The giveaway is open outside the US, too.

I like for giveaways to be a perk for my readership, so I'd greatly appreciate it if you'd click "follow" in the Google Friend Connect box or subscribe to my blog feed.

Let's Analyze

Are you a time travel fan? Why or why not?

Weekend Funnies: Let Your Fruitcakes be Few

During this Christmas season, steer clear of the one gift people can't even re-gift.

Are you ready for the next holiday? I am!

Friday Free Association Chain

The word is....

DELUGE.

RULES: First commenter free associates (writes the first word that comes to mind) with the above word. Second commenter free associates to the first commenter's word, and so on. Remember - the FIRST thing that comes to mind.

Go!

Fascination Trigger #7: Rebellion

This Wednesday I'm focusing on the last of the seven triggers that authors can capitalize on to fascinate readers. The idea for this series came from Sally Hogshead's book, Fascinate: Your 7 Triggers to Persuasion and Captivation. See the bottom of this post for links to the other 6 triggers.

People with Rebellion as their primary trigger are the people who follow the beat of their own drum. They are creative types, coming up with inventive, unconventional solutions to their problems.

Randy Ingermanson mentioned George Carlin as a great example of Rebellion. In 1972, he created a comedy routine around the "Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television." Brilliant, really, because he was instantly fascinating with his own version of the forbidden fruit.

Ingermanson also indicates Marilyn Monroe as being a Rebellion personality. When she sang "Happy Birthday" to John F. Kennedy in her breathy, sexy voice...this was definitely edgy and unpredictable (see below).

According to Hogshead, there are 5 defining personality characteristics of Rebellion folk:

1) Innovative - these folk can generate ideas like nobody's business. They don't necessarily plan and deliberate, but have sudden flashes of insight. Deadlines aren't really problematic for them.  

2) Independent - autonomy is preferred over group collaboration, though Rebellion people can definitely work with others. The preference is for their freedom to flex their creative muscles and make their own decisions.  

3) Entrepreneurial - trailblazing isn't unusual for Rebellion personalities. They can self-start, and rather enjoy not feeling hedged in. They might be more likely to start their own venture.  

4) Edgy - cleverness and ability to grasp alternativ eviewpoints and perspectives are strengths of Rebellion people. Most are quick-witted, ironic, or sarcastic.  

5) Unpredictable - ever unorthodox, they enjoy the surprise in others when they do something unexpected. Traditional ideas and actions aren't their strong suit. 

One author that came to mind as having many of these traits is Truman Capote. When he wrote In Cold Blood, he really deviated from the genre of true crime by making his book read like a fiction novel. Instead of a journalistic style, it was very narrative. Capote said that he created a new genre of the "nonfiction novel." Based completely in fact, he helped the reader get into the minds of the victims and the killers, and really feel empathy for their plight.

Then Capote ends his career with a dark, insider look into his own life, with thinly veiled portrayals of his acquaintances and the pathos he encountered in his own society. Talk about throwing a curve ball.

I hope you've enjoyed the series! For those interested, you can find the introduction here, the Power trigger here, the Passion trigger here, the Mystique trigger here, the Alarm trigger here, the Prestige trigger here, and the Trust trigger here.

Let's Analyze

Who else comes to mind as pushing the envelope literary-wise?

A Therapist's Take on Brave: Not Disney's Typical Princess Movie

Over Thanksgiving, I was finally able to watch Brave, thanks to some major sales on DVDs at Target during Black Friday. My daughter and I watched it together, which is something I highly recommend mother-daughter pairs to do.

Merida was such a refreshing take on Disney princesses. She's got the unruliest red hair, and her brogue is thick, certainly unrefined by Cinderella and Snow White standards. She likes to ride horses and can shoot a mean arrow. She's independent and strong-willed, and actually has a mother in her life. To me, she's a great role model for young girls as far as image goes because she's more real.

Now her mother, Elinor, is quite the refined queen. She loves her daughter and husband very much, but she has the highest expectations for her daughter. At one point in the film, poor Merida is subjected to the ministrations of her mother as far as her schooling, ladylike hobbies, decorum, social graces, manners, walking style, and tone of voice.

Soon the heart of the film is unraveled...a true mother-daughter feud/disagreement over expectations due to tradition that clash with Merida's inner desires and goals. This is as age-old as it gets. Audiences from every culture and even gender can identify with Merida's struggle to meet parental hopes while not squashing her own.

Ironically, they both "practice" what they want to say to each other, but end up saying little of it because they end up fighting. Merida slashing a tapestry Elinor has been working on, which separates the mother figure from the rest of the family in the picture. In anger, Elinor throws Merida's bow into the fire.

So when Merida makes a rash decision that alters her and Elinor's destiny via a magical spell, she must seek to make things right. Half of the movie is spent with Merida trying her best to undue what she has done. Elinor and Merida must learn a new way of relating, and I found myself teary-eyed over the intimate, personal way Disney conveyed this message.

What mother and daughter don't need to learn this lesson, especially as daughters grow up and sprout wings of their own to fly? Learning to see the strengths of our children individually apart from what we had hoped their strengths would be, as well as children understanding that parents simply want the best for them, but might not always know what that is. This shift within the family system is so important, and yet no one knows how to navigate it correctly.

Merida and Elinor learn to appreciate aspects about each other they had previously been blind to, and they see facets of each others' lives that they realize aren't all bad. They take to heart the
cautionary rhyme given to them by the witch who cast the spell: "Fate be changed, look inside.  Mend the bond torn by pride."

Ah, pride. Perhaps nothing separates us from more relationships than this. What a universal lesson for everyone. I highly recommend this movie for families.

Let's Analyze

Have you seen Brave? How did you think Merida compared to other Disney princesses? What about the heart of the story being the age-old struggle between mother and daughter?

Weekend Funnies: An Idea for Next Thanksgiving

Genius. Sheer genius. With Christmas coming up, still sounds like a great idea. Hope your holidays were wonderful!

**cartoon by Nick Galifianakis**

Friday Free Association Chain

The word is....

BLACK FRIDAY.

(which I am currently participating in...)

RULES: First commenter free associates (writes the first word that comes to mind) with the above word. Second commenter free associates to the first commenter's word, and so on. Remember - the FIRST thing that comes to mind.

Go!