Book Review: Dream Life by Lauren Mechling

Release Date: January 12, 2010
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 336
Source: Publisher

Other books in the series: Dream Girl (July 2008)

Summary:
Claire Voyante's first semester at Henry Hudson High School was eventful, to say the least. As she heads into her second semester, things are calming down a bit. But Claire has a few secrets that are getting harder to keep. Her biggest secret of all? The onyx and ivory cameo necklace her grandmother gave her for her 15th birthday. Ever since she started wearing it, her dreams have been coming to her in black and white and turning out to be oddly prophetic.
Becca's been hanging out with her old prep school friends and never seems to have time for Claire anymore. And soon, Claire discovers why - there's a secret group of society girls with a mysterious identity. And, turns out, a mysterious enemy who's out to get them. The second she sniffs out trouble, Claire jumps on the case. But is it someone close to Claire who's in danger again - or could it be Claire herself whose life is at stake? (From laurenmechling.com)
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At the close of Dream Girl, the first installment in Claire Voyante's story, Claire solved a mystery, saved her best friend Becca's family from almost certain death, and fell for Andy, Becca's handsome older brother. Now Becca is too busy hanging out with her old private school friends to spend time with Claire, and Andy--who is busy too--is pulling away.

The prophetic black and white dreams, however, won't leave Claire alone, and they're as strange and unclear as ever. Here's a particularly entertaining (and non-spoilery) example:

Everyone at the party had on the coolest costumes. Which might explain why my dance partner wasn't Andy--or even a guy for that matter. It was a gray kangaroo, with a margarita in one paw and my oven-mitted hand in the other (I was dressed up as Julia Child). Mr. Kangaroo dipped me with the finesse nobody dressed like a minor league baseball mascot has any right to possess.

What's a girl to make of that?

As for Claire's shrinking social life, the reader doesn't have to worry long. Becca lets Claire in on the reason she's been so busy within the first seventy pages: Becca's involved in a secret society that goes back to eighteenth century New York. The society's mission? Helping the city out through activities like "'planting community gardens or repainting the youth wing at hospitals.'" In addition to that, there is a rival club trying to out their existence and thwart their philanthropic plans. Detective Claire is on the case again!

The atmosphere of Dream Life is as light and fun as that of Dream Girl, but the secret society business adds an extra air of excitement and mystery. The plot dashes and strolls and ends speedily but satisfyingly. The helpful aims of the secret society may sound boring, but the missions contain plenty of danger and cloak and dagger action.

Just as in Dream Girl, however, the best part of Dream Life is the cast of characters. Claire and her family are as adorably quirky as ever, and the new characters are just as strong.

Moreover, magic cameos and over the top teenage secret societies may be unrealistic, but much of Dream Life is written realistically. Claire and Andy's romance doesn't go perfectly: there are misunderstandings, secrets, insecurities, and busy schedules. (Although this doesn't mean there can't be a happy ending.) The people around Claire have secrets, too, and Claire is forced to some hard realizations by the end of the novel.

Dream Life is sophisticated and fun. Anyone who's read Dream Girl owes it themselves to see Claire's story continue to unfold, and while enough of Dream Girl is recapped for Dream Life to be read as a standalone novel, I enjoyed reading the books in order. I suspect I wouldn't have enjoyed Dream Life as much if I weren't already acquainted with the characters. Also, so much happens and the clues fit together so interestingly that Dream Life is definitely going in my rereading pile. If you like mystery, fashion, and laughter, I recommend adding this one to your To Be Read list.

The Book Trailer:

Dream Life by Lauren Mechling -- Trailer from Richie Williams on Vimeo.

Book Review: Eyes Like Stars: Theatre Illuminata, Act I by Lisa Mantchev

Release Date: July 7, 2009
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 368
Summary:

All her world’s a stage.

Bertie Shakespeare Smith is not an actress, yet she lives in a theater.
She’s not an orphan, but she has no parents.
She knows every part, but she has no lines of her own.
That is, until now.

Enter Stage Right

NATE. Dashing pirate. Will do anything to protect Bertie.

COBWEB, MOTH, MUSTARD SEED, and PEASEBLOSSOM. Four tiny and incredibly annoying fairies. BERTIE’S sidekicks.

ARIEL. Seductive air spirit and Bertie’s weakness. The symbol of impending doom.

BERTIE. Our heroine.

Welcome to the Théâtre Illuminata, where the actors of every play ever written can be found behind the curtain. They were born to play their parts, and are bound to the Théâtre by The Book—an ancient and magical tome of scripts. Bertie is not one of them, but they are her family—and she is about to lose them all and the only home she has ever known.

Lisa Mantchev has written a debut novel that is dramatic, romantic, and witty, with an irresistible and irreverent cast of characters who are sure to enchant the audience.

Open Curtain (From us.macmillan.com)
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Eyes Like Stars and I had a bumpy beginning; I found the first few chapters to be fun and silly, but not wildly un-putdownable, not to mention difficult to follow. Once I got the hang of the Theatre, characters, and script-style flashbacks, though, I had a grand old time. The pages beyond the beginning chapters just flew by, and I was sorry to leave Bertie and her friends. Lucky for me, Eyes Like Stars is the first in a series. (A trilogy, I believe.) I did not, however, discover this until I finished the book and realized that the story was far from over; from the book cover, Eyes Like Stars appears to be a standalone title. I was pleasantly surprised and pleased to be incorrect.

I adored the crazy characters and the intricate plot of the novel. When Eyes Like Stars opens, Bertie is about to be thrown out of the Theatre unless she can think of a meaningful way to contribute. Her plan? Direct Hamlet and restage it in Ancient Egypt (instead of Denmark). While this alone is amusing, the story takes many unexpected twists and turns and ends up going places I never expected it to. In fact, so much happens in this novel that I want to read it again just to soak it all in.

Speaking of amusement, Bertie's friends and constant shadows, the fairies from A Midsummer Night's Dream, are so much fun. In one scene, "The fairies put on their thinking caps, which were red and pointy." I may have giggled out loud.

As far as the other characters go, given that the Theatre Illuminata is home to every actor from every play ever written, there are some great moments with classic theater characters. While the reader doesn't need to be familiar with every play referenced--I was not--to "get" Lisa Mantchev's (the author's) jokes, it certainly makes them funnier. Take, for instance, my favorite, a scene with Lady Macbeth and Macbeth from Macbeth and Gertrude from Hamlet:

"Lady Macbeth, in particular, was livid.

'I don't see why that play should take precedence over the classics!'

'You would think that,' Gertrude said with a sniff. 'Just because you've performed for the queen--'

'I am the queen!' bellowed Lady Macbeth.

'No, I'm the queen. You merely have aspirations for him.' Gertrude pointed at Macbeth, who was holding up a cruller and muttering, 'Is this a doughnut I see before me?' Then he noticed the raspberry jam on everything and started to shriek."

The cruller still gets me. Eyes Like Stars is by far one of my favorite books of 2009, and I highly recommend it.

Book source: My local library.