Review: Wake by Lisa McMann

Wake by Lisa McMann





rating: 4.0/5.0











From the back of the book:

Not all dreams are sweet.

For seventeen-year-old Janie, getting sucked into other people's dreams is getting old. Especially the falling dreams, the naked-but-nobody-notices dreams, and the sex-crazed dreams. Janie's seen enough fantasy booty to last her a lifetime.

She can't tell anybody about what she does -- they'd never believe her, or worse, they'd think she's a freak. So Janie lives on the fringe, cursed with an ability she doesn't want and can't control.

Then she falls into a gruesome nightmare, one that chills her to the bone. For the first time, Janie is more than a witness to someone else's twisted psyche. She is a participant....

This is a very interesting young adult read. It moves very fast. Since the paranormal only involves dreams, it doesn't take much setup for this book and that makes it easy to get right into the story. I liked getting to know Janie and watching her grow in her ability. I also liked her interaction with her best friend and neighbor Carrie and of course the snobby girl that inhabits all high schools, Melinda. I found Janie's mom sad, but she only plays a minor role (and that in itself is sad). I really like Cabel, though he was shrouded in mystery a lot of the book. The dreams that Janie is sucked into can be anything from amusing (the typical naked in front of a class) to terrifying.

I didn't find the book predictable at all - it kept taking me by surprise and I really enjoyed reading it. I am looking forward to learning more about Janie and Cabel and the other adventures they are in in Lisa McMann's next book in the series, Fade which came out in February.

I think this is a good, easy-to-read series for young adults and older adults alike.


Binding: Trade paperback
On-sale Date: December 23, 2008
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Pages: 224

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