Helpful Score: 3
Every time someone near her falls asleep, Janie Hannagan gets sucked into their dreams. This is hardly fun at all, as most people's dreams consist of falling, nudity, or sex, and, while Janie is technically awake through these experiences, she's blind to the real world. Talk about an uncomfortable lifestyle.
Janie's troubles only continue to escalate when she starts to fall into the once troubled, now sexy Cabel Strumheller's dreams...and finds that she appears in them as well, and that he, too, is aware of her presence in his dreams. There may be more to her ability to fall into people's dreams than Janie realizes, more power than she realizes she has. So begins a new chapter of Janie's life, one where she learns to control her abilities and use them for good.
What WAKE lacks in good writing and interesting characters, it makes up in a stunning story idea. McMann's writing style is straightforward and succinct in an almost ethereal manner. This, while effective in exposition, does not work as well when the plot really needs to get going, and I felt like I was missing what was going on between Janie and Cabel as their relationship developed.
WAKE works fairly well as a stand-alone novel, but thanks to its fascinating premise, I think I am going to pick up the next book in the series, FADE, and see if Janie, Cabel, and the situation they're in become clearer to me over time.
Janie's troubles only continue to escalate when she starts to fall into the once troubled, now sexy Cabel Strumheller's dreams...and finds that she appears in them as well, and that he, too, is aware of her presence in his dreams. There may be more to her ability to fall into people's dreams than Janie realizes, more power than she realizes she has. So begins a new chapter of Janie's life, one where she learns to control her abilities and use them for good.
What WAKE lacks in good writing and interesting characters, it makes up in a stunning story idea. McMann's writing style is straightforward and succinct in an almost ethereal manner. This, while effective in exposition, does not work as well when the plot really needs to get going, and I felt like I was missing what was going on between Janie and Cabel as their relationship developed.
WAKE works fairly well as a stand-alone novel, but thanks to its fascinating premise, I think I am going to pick up the next book in the series, FADE, and see if Janie, Cabel, and the situation they're in become clearer to me over time.
Helpful Score: 2
This book was a so-so read that was fortunately short. It had potential, with a very interesting plot, but since the author was more worried about playing with fonts and the use of several writing styles that the thing as a whole was lacking. The short, clipped sentences did nothing to help as well since they only made it annoying to read. Once I did get used to my complaints, the story did improve, but wasn't one of those "great" starts to a series. I'll give it one more chance by putting the next book on my wishlist for PBS, but if that one disappoints, I'll give up on this series.
Helpful Score: 2
I'd like to start this review by saying I'm usually a slow reader and I read this book from start to finish in a few hours. That being said, it had my attention, but the characters aren't really described really well and the relationship between Janie and Cabel is awkward and a hot mess at best.
The way the author writes can be really obnoxious.
Like the.
Use.
Of two or.
Three word sentences.
All.
The.
Time.
It's really not a terrible book, it's just over too quickly and there isn't very much depth to the characters.
I've already requested the next book in the series because the first book left me unsatisfied. If you read this book, I suggest you have the whole trilogy on hand. I also highly recommend this book for young teens, maybe about 14 or 15.
The way the author writes can be really obnoxious.
Like the.
Use.
Of two or.
Three word sentences.
All.
The.
Time.
It's really not a terrible book, it's just over too quickly and there isn't very much depth to the characters.
I've already requested the next book in the series because the first book left me unsatisfied. If you read this book, I suggest you have the whole trilogy on hand. I also highly recommend this book for young teens, maybe about 14 or 15.
Helpful Score: 1
Choppy at best. I do not care for this style of writing. I didn't really become attached to the characters at all :o( There just didn't seem to be any feeling in it. Honestly not what I expected for a teen book or one I would give to my teen.
Helpful Score: 1
First Line: Janie Hannagan's math book slips from her fingers.
Seventeen-year-old Janie Hannagan lives on the fringe in more ways than one. Janie lives with her mom, an alcoholic, and at an early age, Janie learned that she was responsible for her own welfare. And if she's near anyone when she falls asleep, she gets sucked into their dreams. It's all to invasive-- and all too same old, same old. She's trying to save money for college and works at a nursing home. She likes working there; old people usually don't sleep soundly enough to dream.
She can't tell anyone about this ability that she can't control. They'd think she was a freak. So when she falls into a particularly gruesome nightmare in which she's a participant as well as a witness, she has no idea what she's going to do.
This book is fast-paced and almost immediately hooked me. Janie is a very sympathetic character, and it was easy to get emotionally involved as she tries so desperately to stay out of other peoples' dreams. I'm looking forward to following this series to see what happens to her next.
Seventeen-year-old Janie Hannagan lives on the fringe in more ways than one. Janie lives with her mom, an alcoholic, and at an early age, Janie learned that she was responsible for her own welfare. And if she's near anyone when she falls asleep, she gets sucked into their dreams. It's all to invasive-- and all too same old, same old. She's trying to save money for college and works at a nursing home. She likes working there; old people usually don't sleep soundly enough to dream.
She can't tell anyone about this ability that she can't control. They'd think she was a freak. So when she falls into a particularly gruesome nightmare in which she's a participant as well as a witness, she has no idea what she's going to do.
This book is fast-paced and almost immediately hooked me. Janie is a very sympathetic character, and it was easy to get emotionally involved as she tries so desperately to stay out of other peoples' dreams. I'm looking forward to following this series to see what happens to her next.
