The Waking Dreamer by J.E. Alexander

The Waking Dreamer

by J.E. Alexander

 

Emmett’s dream is always the same. Tingling with half-forgotten memories, he stands in an unknown room surrounded by mirrors, curio cabinets, and nesting dolls. A painting, Belshazzar’s Feast, hangs on the wall, its disembodied hand numbering the King’s final days. Then comes the stranger, the serpent-wielding young woman with the glittering amber eyes. Her words are always the same. Emmett will soon save her. Then the supposed hero awakens to his unremarkable life, awaiting the next night and the same maddeningly familiar dream.

Seventeen-year-old orphan Emmett Brennan remembers nothing of his past—not the boiler room in which his needle-ravaged mother gave birth to him, nor the Druids who tenderly delivered him. He can’t remember the cabal-summoned Revenant that clawed itself from shadow to hunt him, or why his mystical midwives hid him from the necromantic creature. Approaching adulthood, he is unaware of the dark forces that still search for him or the mysterious sentinels who secretly protect him, but on the eve of his eighteenth birthday that will change. The Revenants will find him. Only the young woman from his dreams can help him confront all he was once made to forget. Together, they will brave the nightmarish landscape Emmett’s waking world will soon become.


I received a free copy for review from Netgalley.

I really wish I could have gotten into this book more.  The writing style was ok and I liked the pop-culture references.  I just couldn't get into the story at all for some reason and I lost interest fairly early in the book.  I couldn't connect with any of the characters and because of that I didn't care about what was happening to them.  I think it may be a good read for anyone who likes a book with more outward focus and interesting monsters.  But don't expect huge amounts of character development. 

Open and Shut by David Rosenfelt

Open and Shut

by David Rosenfelt

Whether dueling with new forensics or the local old boys' network, irreverent defense attorney Andy Carpenter always leaves them awed with his biting wit and winning fourth-quarter game plan. But Andy prefers the company of his best friend, Tara, to the people he encounters in the courtroom. Tara, a golden retriever, is clearly smarter than half the lawyers who clog the courts of PassaicCounty. However, just as it seems Andy has everything figured out, his dad, New Jersey's legendary ex-D.A., drops dead in front of him at a game in Yankee Stadium. The shocks pile on as he discovers his dad left him with two unexpected legacies: a fortune of $22 million that Andy never knew existed . . . and a murder case with enough racial tinder to burn down City Hall. Struggling to serve justice and bring honor to his father, Andy must dig up some explosive political skeletons-and an astonishing family secret that can close his case (and his mouth) for good.

I am not usually someone who likes reading about lawyers and courtroom dramas.  My years watching Law and Order was strictly for the investigation and the hunky cops in uniform.  I decided to read Open and Shut purely because of the fact that there is a dog character and the author is obviously an animal lover(I mean...27 dogs?!  Holy cow).  I was quickly hooked by the first few pages.  Andy Carpenter is a sarcastic lawyer who often crosses the lines to make a point in the courtroom and he will do anything to save his clients.  He bends the rules a lot.  But beneath all that he is still a pretty nice guy who sometimes takes his payment in melons.  You really have to love him.  He's like My Cousin Vinny, only a much better lawyer. 

I was intrigued by the plot and I couldn't put the book down. There is a lot of mystery, a lot of humor, and some pretty intense courtroom scenes that never get dry or boring. It was a perfect blend of everything. I am definitely looking forward to the next book in the series.

Intertwined by Gena Showalter

 
 
 

Intertwined

by Gena Showalter

There’s something about the new guy at Crossroads High…

Most sixteen-year-olds have friends. Aden Stone has four human souls living inside him:

One can time travel.
One can raise the dead.
One can possess another human.
One can tell the future.

Everyone thinks he’s crazy, which is why he’s spent his entire life shuffled between mental institutions and juvie. All of that is about to change, however. For months Aden has been having visions of a beautiful girl—a girl who carries centuries-old secrets. A girl who will either save him or destroy him.

Together they’ll enter a dark world of intrigue and danger... but not everyone will come out alive.

I wasn't sure if I was going to like this book at first.  It started somewhat slow, and there was a part where I was afraid it was going to turn into the YA, love-at-first-sight, we're fated to be together even though we're still in high school type thing.  I was prepared to put the book away at that point.

***spoiler***

There is some of that, but it is a lot more subtle***


I kept with it and was pleasantly surprised when I found myself hooked and truly caring what happened to the characters.
What kept me coming back to the book was the very interesting concept of four separate souls inhabiting one boy's body.  Well, five, if you count said boy.  Of course he is considered schizophrenic, which just adds even more interest and tension to the story. 
The only bad thing I could say is that there was a lot going on in this book.  A lot.  Eventually it all came together, but at first it seemed like the author was just trying to dump as much stuff in the story as possible.