Full review to come! ( )

3.5/5 stars. After her mother's death, an orphan is placed into a boarding school. There she finds magic, danger, and an entirely new past. Charming book. [I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.] ( )

Young readers will enjoy following the adventures of Addison, the protagonist of this mysterious fantasy novel. Combining elements of Alice in Wonderland, Harry Potter, and A Wrinkle in Time, Rhys Bowen and daughter CM Broyles have concocted a tale that will feel familiar but also breathe new life into the genre.

Dreamwalker by Rhys Bowen and C.M. Broyles is a cute and magical children’s book. Addison “Addy” Walker just lost her mother. Her aunt, Jean Walker, is her new guardian. Addy has to move to England (from California) and go to boarding school (her aunt is an executive who travels frequently). Addy has been having strange dreams (which her mother said were psychic or prophetic), but does not know what to make of them. Then while her aunt is looking up various boarding schools, she gets a pop up for the Red Dragon Academy in Wales (now Addy’s dream about whales makes sense). Since they are willing to accept new students (it is October), Aunt Jean hustles them onto the next train.

Aunt Jean likes the school (likes that they will take Addy immediately) and leaves Addy in their capable hands. Addy discovers that the headmistress, Miss Neves has a pin just like Addy’s necklace (dragon with stones). Do you think it is a coincidence? Addy makes friends with her roommates Celeste du Bois (who is French and her mother is an opera singer) and Phillippa “Pippa” Masters (from Kent). Turns out that all the girls were adopted (another coincidence or part of the bigger picture). Addy’s dreams have been taking her to some unusual places. A place where everyone wears white and there is a mean man named Lord Grymur. He was not very happy to see Addy and ordered her captured. Thankfully, Addy wakes up before she can be captured. Who is Lord Grymur? How could he hear Addy’s thoughts? Was it a dream? Addy also sees a little red-headed girl named Twigg in one of her dreams. The girl is so helpful and friendly. Then Addy wanders down a supposedly haunted corridor. Her eyes do something strange and she is on the other side of the mirror. She runs into Twigg who helps her. Twigg mentions being a Fareeth. What is a Fareeth? Is this part of the school (Addy cannot quite wrap her head around the part about the mirror yet)? Why are the children scared in this part of the school? Why does know one wear green? Something strange is going on.

Dreamwalker is a fun and magical children’s book. It is a great story for children age 10 to 13 (I would have loved it when I was that age). It has magic, dragons, the good guys, a mystery, and a villain. I would give Dreamwalker 4 out of 5 stars. Dreamwalker has a charming ending. Dreamwalker is a great chapter book for children that are not yet teenagers (or for us adults who are children at heart).

I received a complimentary copy of Dreamwalker in exchange for an honest review. The review and opinions expressed are my own. ( )

NetGalley Review : If you are a Harry Potter fan, you will LOVE this book, which kept me reading from page one until the end. Addy's mum has recently died and she has to leave California to go live with her only other relative, an aunt in the UK. The aunt cant wait to shuffle her off to boarding school, and it is at this school in Wales, the Red Dragon Academy that Addy learns she is not quite who she thinks she is. The book has a nice balanced between the normal ( fitting in to a new school, culture, langauge, making friendships, bullying etc) and the paranormal (strange dreams, ancient myths, parallel worlds and teachers who are not quite what they seem.) first in a series about 7 children with special powers who must be trained to fix a terible wrong in another world. Highly recommended for ages 11 upward. Can't wait for the next one! ( )