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Jan 04, 2010

Steph Su rated it:

DREAM GIRL is an utterly delightful, entertaining, and real book, featuring sharp writing and amazing characters. I couldn’t put it down, and, considering how this is not my usual genre fare for reading, that’s saying something.

Lauren Mechling’s writing is pitch-perfect for the likable Claire. Claire has a tongue-in-cheek way of approaching and viewing the world, going along with all the eccentricities around her while simultaneously making her genuine mark on others. She sounds lik More...

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Aug 16, 2010

McKenzie rated it:

Claire Voyante is kind of psychic. She has some odd hunches, but they never turn into anything. Then, on her fifteenth birthday, her grandmother gives her a cameo and everything changes for the weirder. Her dreams are intensified, but Claire still doesn't know what to make of them. Will she be able to figure out what they mean before her or one of her new friends gets hurt?

Dream Girl was one of those odd novels that doesn't try to be anything other than what it is. It doesn't attempt More...

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Jul 02, 2010

Samantha rated it:

The novel Dream Girl definitely relies on it's original, likeable characters to keep the story afloat. It's narrated by Claire Voyante, aptly named due to her psychic visions. Unfortunately all of those visions have never helped her in life and usually end up making her feel awkward. Claire is starting a new school, full of overly studious, unfriendly classmates and strict teachers. It's a far cry from her previous haven at her alternative private school. Then Claire's grandmother- Kiki, an etti More...

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Aug 29, 2009

Sophie rated it:

Dream Girl is part madcap mystery--complete with cartoonish characters and over-the-top family feuds about ketchup recipes--and part realistic comedy-drama, as its heroine (Claire Voyante--no, really) tries to fit in, make friends, and overcome bullying at a new school. The author tries to make a hybrid of the two genres--and doesn’t quite succeed--but Dream Girl is still an entertaining look at life in New York City for a schoolgirl and her wacky family.

Claire Voyante, of course, ha More...

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May 05, 2009

cecilia rated it:

Unfortunately, dream girl is a far cry from Agatha Christie's mysteries. The story is somewhat predictable, but you have to love the best friend's attractively adorable older brother! However, I really wanted to kick him for being an idiot and hopelessly stringing Claire along while he is already hopelessly tied around another girl's finger! Ack! What is wrong with these boys?

I enjoyed dream girl, but it did not make me hold my breath like WAKE. I think the story and characters could More...

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Nov 22, 2008

Nian rated it:

Having just finished Sight by Vrettos, I’m starting to see the many parallels between stories with a similar plot. It’s hard to be creative when you’re writing a story that’s been told way too many times to count. However, I do give Lauren Mechling props for making catchy phrases. She likes to play with her words, hence Dream Girl (which doesn’t mean Girl of Your Dreams, but literally a girl who has visions at night) and Claire Voyante (clairvoyant: someone who sees the future—get it?). Still, f More...

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Jan 21, 2010

Sarah-Greenbeanteenqueen rated it:

About the Book: Claire Voyante (it's French) has always been having strange visions that lead her nowhere. But when her grandmother gives her a cameo necklace, Claire starts to have dreams she can't explain. When the dreams start to lead her to a mystery involving her new best friend, Claire becomes a detective, piecing the clues together in order to save her friend's life.

GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: I love Claire!! This book was so much fun. Claire was a blast to read about.

More...

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Dec 22, 2009

Katie rated it:

Dream Girl mixes the eerie dream-filled suspense of Wake with the clue cracking mystery of Nancy Drew, and in result, brings you a totally new adventure that will have you flipping page after page.

I’ve heard a lot of so-so things about this one, but I’m one of the people who actually really enjoyed it. Claire, the main character and narrator, is probably one of the most amusing and likeable characters I’ve ever read about. She’s quirky, snarky, and sarcastic but Mechling writes her s More...

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Jul 22, 2010

Brianna rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Feb 03, 2010

Brittni rated it:

Dream Girl is about a girl named Claire Voyante (BEST NAME EVER, huh?) who's been having dreams. Sounds pretty ordinary enough, but in her dreams, she'll see symbols that eventually pop up in the near future. When her grandmother Kiki gives Claire a mysterious cameo necklace, these dreams begin to have even more importance, to the point where her "talent" can save her new friend's life.

I had this book on my want list for quite a while, and I got it for Christmas along wit More...

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Jan 16, 2010

Bri Meets Books rated it:

With a name like Claire Voyante, it’s no surprise she has prophetic dreams. Such is the plot of Lauren Mechling’s novel Dream Girl. The dreams, while yielding helpful clues to real-life circumstances, are assembled bits and pieces, and Claire is left to sort through them for what’s meaningful. The hodgepodge nature mirrors Lauren Mechling’s novel with its mix of romance, mystery, and high-school story. Unlike the dreams, however, all the elements of Dream Girl are useful and noticable. It’s More...

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Jan 25, 2010

Suzanne rated it:

Icky-poo. A 3/10 on the Peach-worthiness scale for me, at best. It tries so hard to be hip that it reads like a sequel, as if there's some insider knowlesge SOMEWHERE that would make this character's life and circumstances make better sense. Okay, I get that she has intense dreams and that somehow the cameo given to her by a Waldorf-dwelling grandmere makes those dreams somewhat prophetic, but the suspense of her wealthy new friend's ketchup fortune's safety just doesn't involve me. I don't real More...

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Jan 25, 2010

Brooke rated it:

Claire Voyante has always had strange dreams and visions for as long as she can remember. Although, her parents bestowing her the name "Claire Voyante" is definitely coincidental - they know nothing of her visions. She's in the middle of switching schools, and her lack of friends is obvious. She's on the outside of the popular girl group (which contains her best friend from childhood), and her new school is overwhelmingly dull. Up until her 15th birthday Claire thought the dreams and v More...

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May 12, 2010

Helen rated it:

3/30/10

In the book "Dream Girl" by Lauren Mechling. Claire is moving to Hudson High school and she met Sheila a long time ago but they're not friends anymore so they don't talk to each other anymore. She regretted going to go that school. She got in by mistake.

4/6/10

In the book "Dream Girl" by Lauren Mechling.This girl named Clarie. She realized that she has alot of dreams some of her dreams could be dangerous some could be as si More...

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Jan 16, 2010

Lenore rated it:

Claire falls into her first “case” which involves her new best friend Becca, heiress to a ketchup empire, and Becca’s family’s sworn enemies.

First off, let me just say that I adore Claire. Her wry narration had me in stitches throughout. One of my favorite instances being when she’s trying to figure out how to tell Becca that she can’t ski while headed out to the slopes in Aspen: “If I didn’t speak up fast, I’d end up communicating it via my full body cast.” (p 175)

Both More...

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Apr 06, 2011

Christine rated it:

So. I picked this up, not because of the gross pink cover, but because her name was Claire Voyante, and she actually was one. Plus her dad was French. Beastin!

So anyway.

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this. It made me laugh that she was best friends with her grandma. Claire herself cracked me up.
To be honest, though, I hated that she liked Andy, who was so obviously ambiguous. Any time a guy focuses on you--in a romantic way--instead of his girlfrie More...

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Jun 12, 2010

Kim rated it:

Two Sentence Summary: Since she was a little girl, Claire Voyante has had dreams that have connections to her real life. Will Claire learn to use these dreams in time to help protect a new friend while trying to find her place in a totally new school?

One Sentence Review: Claire is a sweet narrator you can’t help but root for and want to know more about, even though the plot occasionally feels confused and the minor characters sometimes slip into the background.

Read the re More...

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Jan 22, 2010

Yan rated it:

Dream Life is a charming read that combines the best of both worlds: Nancy Drew and Gossip Girls. Okay so I ran out of analogies. At any rate Dream Life is a mesh of high socialite without all the snarky backstabbing and a mystery that has the decency to don on a gorgeous yet sensible pair of boots before running around New York.

One of the best things I found refreshing from Dream Life was the family relationship. I was pleasantly surprised how much effect Mechling put in to the moth More...

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Jan 24, 2010

Paula rated it:

It's a bit Nancy Drew but more Veronica Mars . . . Mechling presents an above average teen chic lit series that is up to date without the raunchiness of some in the genre.

I was just talking to my friends about the need for another young female heroine in the TV market . . . maybe they'll pick Claire.

I think most teenage girls would enjoy this. It's mainstream enough for the girly girl with the supernatural twist that will appeal to the alternative sort. And for those l More...

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May 22, 2010

Kelsey rated it:

Dream Girl was a witty, original, and well developed read. Claire, the main character, was awesome. She was smart, interesting, and kept me wanting to know what was going to happen next. Mechling also has a great writing style, it's expressive and funny. The twists in the plot kept me wondering how things would end up, and the variety of interesting characters added a lot to the story.

Claire was a main character that just shone off the pages. At fifteen, she'd been through a lot and More...

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May 06, 2010

Shera (Book Whispers) rated it:

Thoughts:

From the gorgeous cover to the enticing words, “Dreaming just got Dangerous.” How could I not be crazy about it. Plus there were some pretty positive reviews floating around on some blogs.

My excitement-bubble popped after about page 30. That's about the point when I realized this book didn't have anything else to offer me. It was slow going, and the main character, Claire, felt like just another character. She didn't stand out, in fact she felt like she should b More...

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Jan 11, 2010

Jenna rated it:

This book was insanely adorable! It was a lot of fun to read. The characters are eccentric, but in a delightful way. They were all characters I wanted to know more about. I really liked Claire. Her sense of humor was fantastic! I liked a lot of supporting characters too - Becca, Louis, Kiki, Henry... all of them... Claire's dreams were really fun to read and it was a cool to see how they tied into the story.

It took me a little while to get into the book and for the mystery to More...

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Feb 11, 2010

Yan rated it:

Dream Life is a charming read that combines the best of both worlds: Nancy Drew and Gossip Girls. Okay so I ran out of analogies. At any rate Dream Life is a mesh of high socialite without all the snarky backstabbing and a mystery that has the decency to don on a gorgeous yet sensible pair of boots before running around New York.

One of the best things I found refreshing from Dream Life was the family relationship. I was pleasantly surprised how much effect Mechling put in to the moth More...

1 comment like

Feb 27, 2010

Allison rated it:

Dream Girl was an entertaining read filled with tons of memorable characters--both those you'll love and those you'll hate. Claire is a fabulous protagonist with a very amusing sense of humor and a unique ability. Her family was so cool also! Whether it was her parents or little brother or grandmother Kiki, they made the book so much better just by being there.

The beginning of the book felt slow and the details of the book's mystery wasn't even shared until late in the game. Once it More...

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Jan 25, 2012

Brittany rated it:

Claire has dreams, not like everyone else does though. The things she sees in her dreams she witnesses again in real life. She's not sure why she sees them though and after her grandmother, Kiki, gives her a cameo necklace she begins to dream more often, and in black and white. On top of all this Claire is starting at a new school, and doesn't really have any friends going into it. One day she sees an airplane ring and decides she wants to know the girl who's hand it's on. The girl's name is Bec More...

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Nov 12, 2008

Lucy rated it:

Claire Voyant has always had visions. Pointless, annoying visions--and when she follows up on them, she usually ends up trying awkwardly to explain herself. But when her fabulous grandmother Kiki gives her a cameo broach on a chain for her birthday, suddenly the visions get a lot clearer, a lot sharper, and a lot more black and white. Oh, and more accurate, too. Suddenly, Claire is having visions that may actually be useful--and as she starts following up on her hunches, she realizes that her vi More...

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Oct 30, 2008

Jennifer rated it:

Reviewed by Breanna F. for TeensReadToo.com

Claire Voyante (yes, that is her real name) has had strange visions ever since she was little. She's never been able to do anything with them, but that all changes on her fifteenth birthday when her grandmother, Kiki, gives her a beautiful cameo made out of onyx and ivory on a gold chain. Pretty soon she starts having these strange black and white dreams.

While these dreams start occurring, Claire is in a new school and has made More...

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Oct 10, 2008

Bianca rated it:

Plot: The idea was a great one but was not executed as succesfully as I hoped. It didn't capture the imagination or get me excited at all. Ideas were only half formulated at times and other parts of the book were never fully explained, such as Kiki's and Claire's mums relationship. Also the background of the cameo that Claire was given, where did it come from etc.
3/5

Characters: My favourite characters weren't the main characters, instead I wanted to know more about Eleanor, Cle More...

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Sep 29, 2008

Eliana Lechuga rated it:

Claire Voyante is trying to figure out what her dreams mean, after finding dead ends and a move to another school, she meets her best friend, Becca and her ex-best friend Sheila (who's bent on embarrassing her). Then Claire meets Andy, Becca's older brother, she instantly gets a crush on him but he has a girl friend. Becca is being stocked and Claire tries to find out who it is, Kiki, her grandmother, helps Claire along the way. The theme of the book is following your gut even if it leads you t More...

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Aug 17, 2008

Rachael rated it:

Claire Voyante has been unfortunately named. Sure, she’s been having strange dreams and visions since she can remember, but they’ve never led her anywhere. Besides, the name is French. But on Claire’s fifteenth birthday, her fashionable grandmother Kiki gives her a strange cameo made of onyx and ivory and tells Claire to wear it at all times. Suddenly, Claire’s visions become clearer, although black-and-white. And though she’s become very sleep-deprived due to these dreams, she starts to follow More...

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