Dream Student

I was offered a free ebook copy of Dream Student (Dreams #1) by J.J. DiBenedetto after I had entered a giveaway for the book and didn't win.  It took me a few weeks to get around to reading it, but now that I finally have, here is my review.

Sara is a typical pre-med student, trying to balance studying, dorm life, having fun, and suffering through the most unimaginable nightmares.  At first the dreams don't seem so bad, she sees a boy that she feels an intense connection with.  They later meet at a club and it is insta-love.  But she keeps having these recurring nightmares of a man brutally murdering young girls and dumping the bodies.  She wakes up screaming and crying.  It isn't until she sees an article in the paper with the girl's picture that she realizes that her nightmares are really happening.  She is viewing someone else's dreams while she is asleep.  Sara and her friends must work together to stop the murderer before he claims his next victim.

The concept for this story is nice and interesting.  It is a cool idea that you could be a crime fighting dreamer.  I think that the author could have done a lot more with it than he did.  At one point Sara visits the sleep lab on campus and they run tests, telling her that the results don't make sense.  They hook her up to all of the probes and scanners while she sleeps, and as soon as her nightmares begin according to the tests it is like she became an entirely different person.  As soon as Sara leaves the sleep lab, there is no follow up with that.  I would think that the professors took an interest in the test results and would want to investigate more, but they don't.

Also, there is a lot of content in the book that is unnecessary and boring.  It is frequently mentioning class schedules, and minute details about how the characters are spending their days.  A lot of this could have been eliminated with absolutely zero impact to the story.  If the author had worked a little bit more on character development and a little bit less on minute details about the characters' class schedules and studying the book would have been more interesting.  As it was, it was still an interesting read, the story had a nice flow, and the pace picked up quite a bit near the end.  I'd be interested in seeing what the author did with the story line in the other books of this series.

Edge of End

I received an ebook copy of Edge of End by Suren Fant from the author after I entered the giveaway for a physical copy of the book and did not win.  At first I had received an unedited copy, but a few days later the author emailed me to provide the final edited copy of the novel, which is what I am reviewing here.

Edge of End is a story about a man named Jonarhan who wakes up in the desert with no memory.  He stumbles into a town that seems completely abandoned.  He has some weird visions which lead him to a certain house in the town where he finds a woman named Elizabeth.  They realize that they are trapped in the town surrounded by supernatural beings, and if they want to survive they must escape as soon as possible.  The town is crawling with demons who will do anything to stop them from leaving.  Jonathan and Elizabeth fall in love, and will not leave the town unless they go together.

The story here is interesting.  It isn't amazing, it is just interesting.  If I were to review the story itself and nothing else, I would give it a 3 star rating.  Good, not great, not bad.  Worth a read if this is your kind of thing.  The love aspect between Elizabeth and Jonathan was a bit ridiculous, they would have passionate kisses seconds after brutally maiming a disgusting demon.  Also I felt the character of Elizabeth could use some work, she seemed dull and stupid at times, running off to get killed and having Jonathan come and save her.  I prefer stronger female characters who have a brain and use it.

The reason I am giving this book 2 stars instead of 3 is because of the writing+grammar (yes, even the edited final copy had many mistakes).  If a really good editor were to get a hold of this book it would be much improved.  So many times when reading a sentence, I would think to myself 'no one actually uses that word!' or find the same adjective used to describe something 3 sentences in a row.  It is so distracting when you are trying to read something, I kept trying to correct what I saw to be mistakes, thinking 'it would work much better if the author had phrased it like this'.  I shouldn't have to do that when reading a book.

Inquest (Destroyer #1)

Inquest by DelSheree Gladden is a story about a young girl named Libby who will destroy the world.  An inquest is a talent unlocking ceremony that each person must attend on their 16th birthday to reveal which of the 7 possible talents that person possesses.  Having more talents means that you have a more prestigious place in society.  At Libby's inquest, it is revealed that she has all 7 of the talents, naming her Cassia, the Destroyer, who it is fated will bring an end to the world.  Libby and her freind Milo must work together to improve her talents and stay safe from the Guardians, who are out to kill them. 

I picked up this book when it was on a free promo for Kindle.  I could not put it down!  I think I *may* have stayed up half  the night because I had to know what would happen next.  I can't wait to pick up the next book in the series!  If you enjoy books like The Hunger Games or Divergent, definitely give this one a try.