In the Dark of a Dream

by L.E. DeLano

The recent death of her father has upended J.J. Ashford’s life, granting custody to her estranged mother, and moving her halfway around the world to an island owned by the secretive, high-security biotech company that her parents co-founded. To make things even worse, J.J. suffers from night terrors and since arriving on the island they’ve become a horrifying nightly ordeal.
Trapped in nightmare battle scenarios with a group of soldiers, she soon realizes these are more than random dreams. The most frightening discovery of all is that J.J. may be the only hope for her squad—and the only one who can set them free.

387 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 23, 2024

About the author

L.E. DeLano comes equipped with a “useless” Theatre degree that has opened doors for her in numerous ways. Though mostly raised in New Mexico, she now lives in Pennsylvania with two adventurous kids and two ridiculous cats. When she’s not writing (which is almost never), she’s binge-watching Disney+ and planning road trips.

L.E.’s YA novel, BLUE, was named the 2021 SPARK Award winner by The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), a 2021-22 Gold Medal Winner for Young Adult Fiction in the Reader Views Reviewer’s Choice Awards, a 2021 NYC Big Book Award Distinguished Favorite in Young Adult Fiction, a 2022 Independent Press Award Distinguished Favorite – Teen, and was named 2021-22 Teen/YA Book of the Year by Reader Views Kids. Her debut YA novel, TRAVELER, was a Keystone State Reading Association (KSRA) Secondary Book Awards Finalist for 2018-2019.

Reviews

[Charles · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m not great at writing reviews, but I know what I like in a book. I like books to be engaging and entertaining. This book checks both of those boxes. I really enjoyed this book. It was a fun read with a great story and vividly drawn characters. The plot was based on an interesting and unique concept that blurs line the between the real world and nightmares. The lead character of J.J. was believable and relatable. I enjoyed the many pop culture references, and loved the tie-in with one of my all-time favourite songs.

[Meg Fry Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a mood reader: this absolutely hit the spot for the sci-fi, action, thriller mood I’m in! A super unique story with really cool connection and great sets of characters. Immediately this is my new favorite book by LE Delano!

[Nathaniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an excellent sci-fi thriller. Packed with strong characters, an intriguing concept, and plenty of thrilling twists, this is a novel that exemplifies what solid YA sci-fi can be. I really enjoyed the depth we got both in the real world and the not so real one. I don't want to give too much away. This reminded me, in some ways, of some of Michael Crichton's books, but easier to digest. I have loved every release from DeLano so far and I'm so excited to add this book to my collection.

[K.P. Gillespie · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. The recent death of her father has upended J.J. Ashford's life, granting custody to her estranged mother, and moving her halfway around the world to an island owned by the secretive, high-security biotech company that her parents co-founded. To make things even worse, J.J. suffers from night terrors and since arriving on the island they've become a horrifying nightly ordeal. Trapped in nightmare battle scenarios with a group of soldiers, she soon realizes these are more than random dreams. The most frightening discovery of all is that J.J. may be the only hope for her squad-and the only one who can set them free.

I really liked this book, it was a nice blend of thriller and sci-fi, geared toward the YA reader. I think that those readers will enjoy the teenage angst aspects of this book more than me, but there were themes of dealing with grief and loss which appeals to all readers of all ages. The plot was very clever and draws the reader into the mix of characters and the complex narrative of the story.

A great summer read.

[AMAO]

May 1, 2024. |

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great Sci fi thriller. A little touch of Hunger Games, with a very inventive and unique story. Well written with great characters that keeps you interested until the end. I received an advance review copy for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.