Dreamhunter

By: Elizabeth Knox

Narrated by: Edwina Wren

Set in 1906, Dreamhunter describes a world very similar to ours, except for a special place, known simply as "The Place", where only a select group of people can go. These people are called Dreamhunters and they harvest dreams that are then transmitted to the general public for the purposes of entertainment, therapy - or terror and political coercion.

Fifteen-year-old cousins Laura Hame and Rose Tiebold both come from famous dreamhunting families, but only Laura proves to be blessed with the gift. Once inside The Place, she finds out what happened to her missing dreamhunter father and discovers that the government has been using dreams to control an ever-growing population of convicts and political dissenters.

©2005 Elizabeth Knox (P)2006 Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd

Critic reviews

"A lyrical, intricate and ferociously intelligent fantasy...Satisfies fully while pointing to the promised sequel. Provocative and compelling." (Kirkus Reviews)
"Captivating....Dreamhunter is an example of great writing....Compelling, highly original." (Sydney Sun-Herald)

Creative Concept

The narration is a little slow with too many "mouth noises" but the concept is creative and the writing is quite lyrical. Even though not all of the characters are quite as well developed as their fantasy world, Dreamhunter is worth your time if you are willing to commit to Dreamquake, the second in the duet. I listened to Dreamhunter last year before Dreamquake was available on audio so I had to actually read it to finish the story and I enjoyed the reading much more than the listening. Maybe they picked up the pace and adjusted the mike for Dreamquake.

Like a Dream

Elizabeth Knox ability to create worlds we can tour and dwell in is evidenced again in the Dreamhunter and DreamQuake. I've read as many of her books as I've been able to find because I just love the places she has made for us. The narrator is perfect for Dreamhunter, with a voice that is dreamy and yet varied for the several main characters and beings. I'm not sure I'd like these audio books as well if I hadn't read them first, too late to tell... ;) I also found that if I was too tired out, I would join the dream and fall asleep listening and retrace back to where I'd nodded off. Listening while driving, no that would be dangerous. So, I'm recommending this book to you who have the time to soak up the world these two artists can bring you into for a little while, writer and narrator. Relax and enjoy.

Waiting for the sequel

The writing is elegant, lyrical and understated. The narration is sensitive. Too bad Audible isn't offering the sequel yet.

Easy read

If you don't look too close to reality this story is for you. It's brain candy and the characters are likeable.

Simply Excellent, a new idea...

This is a great book with a great narrator! I'm buying the paper book too, just to get my children to read it. It's a new idea told very well. I can't wait to hear/read the 2nd book.

slow start

It's a slow start but I enjoyed this book once I got through the beginning.

Excellent Performance

Edwina Wren does a beautiful job narrating this amazing story. Knox has written a great tale of love and growing up.

Love it

It’s a very interesting story. I love the characters. The reader does a great job with character voices. I took one point off for the extra sounds of lip licking or something. I think this may be an editing or technology problem and not the reader, but it is distracting.

Listening to dreams

A great book and great narration by Edwina Wren make this a must have for any Audible.com fan. My only complaint was that it ended.

A gentle adventure

What does Edwina Wren bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Edwina Wren created a gentle monster - I could feel his kindness. Real male voices were a bit more elusive but the story telling did not suffer for it.

Any additional comments?

The two book set was enjoyable the first time, but it took one time through to get a feel for the kind of story it was, and the second time through for me to see it unfold through the characters' eyes. A good balance of inner and outer action, not buried in a sea of thoughts and descriptive detail. However, what was really buried and the story behind it still seems a bit murky to me. As oft happens in such tales, when characters have an "aha" moment, I am tempted to wonder what else they might have surmised had the author had not told them what to think.Boys might not choose this story, but I think they would be their loss. By the way, so interesting that there are religious characters who are not hypocritical evil incarnate.