The Lost Dreamer tells the story of two young women, Indir and Saya. While Indir lives in the sacred city of Alcanzeh and is able to “Dream” truths about the future, Saya travels elsewhere with her mother, and her “Dreams” allow her to communicate with the spirits of their world. Outside forces begin to shift Saya and Indir’s worlds, causing them both to embark on new adventures in a setting inspired by ancient Mesoamerica.
What I liked:
-There are so many powerful women in this book, and even better is how many different ways that power was expressed among the characters. Some held a quiet and gentle power, some were more outspoken, still others were dangerous warriors. The women were complex, unique, and believable in their emotions and actions. Huerta definitely deserves praise for providing a whole cast of such strong female characters.
-I think this book could be very healing for some people. There are many examples of openly given love and acceptance. It could be especially comforting for someone looking for instances of: feeling safe within your relationships, moving on from emotionally abusive parental relationships, consent / bodily autonomy, using physical touch as an act of affection, and taking time to heal yourself (physically, mentally, and emotionally). A lot of these characters created what felt like a safe space.
-I really liked the main characters. I especially appreciated Indir’s character. She chose her words carefully and often tread cautiously, but that didn’t stop her from being strong, caring, and fierce. I loved seeing her personality type represented so well. Saya’s story also never failed to interest me, and some of her chapters were my favorites of the whole book.
What I didn’t like:
-The world building, while immensely creative and detailed, was revealed so gradually that I often felt lost. Background knowledge that should have been cleared up in the first few chapters kept coming right up until the end. Perhaps the author was trying to avoid info-dumping, but I struggled to really get into the story because of it.
-The writing style just didn’t seem to work, and this was a huge issue for me. I would be reading and realize I got distracted half a page ago, which also slowed down the already gradual pace. Sometimes the author used vocabulary meant to depict vivid imagery and yet crammed it into short choppy sentences. I don’t think it was necessarily bad writing, maybe just not a style that works for me.
-That ending. There’s going to be a sequel, right? I was under this impression that this was a standalone novel, but with so much left out of the ending, there has to be more to the story. Otherwise, does this open ending just hold some deeper meaning that went completely over my head? Either way, the book feels as though it is missing its entire conclusion that had been building up throughout the whole story, which was quite disappointing.
Overall: 2.5 stars
I’m on the edge of whether or not I actually liked this book- maybe I just wasn’t the right reader for it. I did enjoy it, but I really wish I could have enjoyed it more.
What I liked:
-There are so many powerful women in this book, and even better is how many different ways that power was expressed among the characters. Some held a quiet and gentle power, some were more outspoken, still others were dangerous warriors. The women were complex, unique, and believable in their emotions and actions. Huerta definitely deserves praise for providing a whole cast of such strong female characters.
-I think this book could be very healing for some people. There are many examples of openly given love and acceptance. It could be especially comforting for someone looking for instances of: feeling safe within your relationships, moving on from emotionally abusive parental relationships, consent / bodily autonomy, using physical touch as an act of affection, and taking time to heal yourself (physically, mentally, and emotionally). A lot of these characters created what felt like a safe space.
-I really liked the main characters. I especially appreciated Indir’s character. She chose her words carefully and often tread cautiously, but that didn’t stop her from being strong, caring, and fierce. I loved seeing her personality type represented so well. Saya’s story also never failed to interest me, and some of her chapters were my favorites of the whole book.
What I didn’t like:
-The world building, while immensely creative and detailed, was revealed so gradually that I often felt lost. Background knowledge that should have been cleared up in the first few chapters kept coming right up until the end. Perhaps the author was trying to avoid info-dumping, but I struggled to really get into the story because of it.
-The writing style just didn’t seem to work, and this was a huge issue for me. I would be reading and realize I got distracted half a page ago, which also slowed down the already gradual pace. Sometimes the author used vocabulary meant to depict vivid imagery and yet crammed it into short choppy sentences. I don’t think it was necessarily bad writing, maybe just not a style that works for me.
-That ending. There’s going to be a sequel, right? I was under this impression that this was a standalone novel, but with so much left out of the ending, there has to be more to the story. Otherwise, does this open ending just hold some deeper meaning that went completely over my head? Either way, the book feels as though it is missing its entire conclusion that had been building up throughout the whole story, which was quite disappointing.
Overall: 2.5 stars
I’m on the edge of whether or not I actually liked this book- maybe I just wasn’t the right reader for it. I did enjoy it, but I really wish I could have enjoyed it more.