Book Review: Dreamtaker by Azshure Raine

Genre(s): Fantasy

Book Synopsis:

Fate and Time are forever intertwined, but what about Fate and…Eternity?

Fate smiles upon a thriving Chall under the rule of its new king. A time of celebration has come to the once guarded metal walls. Flowers bloom and people arrive in anticipation of the royal wedding of the King of Chall to his princess.

But…

An unknown evil lurks beyond the eastern mountains. Smoke billows out of an abandoned outpost where a mad scientist tinkers with the blood of a titan and a new threat is born.

Will Fate have the strength to endure?

Only Time will tell.

Review:

I received an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Dreamtaker starts about eighteen months after the end of ReBirth. The main characters have begun to rebuild and are moving on with their lives. Everything starts off on a hopeful note for Jase and Liya, but the illusion of peace doesn’t last long.

There’s a new villain in this book: Damien. My initial impression was he has a cruel streak a mile wide, and he’s driven to achieve his goals. So driven, he’ll do anything in his power to achieve them, and that’s a nasty attribute when coupled with the fact he has no conscience. (If you thought Soren was bad in book 1, I think Damien’s worse.)

There are also some familiar faces making a return from book 1 beyond Jase and Liya. Reve’s back, and she’s far less angry than before. I really liked the change in her character. Tokei and June (and the kids) make a return as well. Tokei is probably one of my favorite characters in the series; he’s so powerful, but has that big “teddy bear” feel. And then there’s Corvus (or Crow)… He is hilarious, ridiculous, and brings some much-needed comedic relief to what would otherwise be a very dark tale.

The core story still focuses on Jase and Liya, and they both go through some hell in this book. But what I love about their pairing is that they never give up on each other, they will do everything in their powers to be with the other, and despite the trials and struggles they endure, they never lose hope for the future. They’re a fantastic pair.

The lore expanded significantly in Dreamtaker as well. The Keepers were mentioned a few times in ReBirth, but you actually get to see some of them in action here. Each has their own specific role and unique abilities, but they’re all working toward their own goals (and sometimes those goals don’t align with the other Keepers’.) It made for an additional layer to the overall conflict, one that was difficult to predict, but fun to watch as it unfolded.

There are still some questions I have regarding the Keepers and Titans that haven’t yet been explained, but I feel that the series is definitely moving in that direction. There is so much depth to the history and lore of this world, that I think we’ve only seen a small portion of it so far.

And that ending… Talk about leaving a reader wanting more. I’ll be watching for book three when it’s available.

Author website: azshurerainenovels.com

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