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Once Upon a Time #3
What Dreams May Come
True love always finds a way in the Once Upon a Time series from bestselling author Kay Hooper. With a poignant twist on Sleeping Beauty, this short novel reunites two people torn apart by time and tragedy.
Just a week before her wedding, Kelly Russell's world falls A car accident leaves her fiancé in a coma from which doctors predict he will never awaken. At first, Kelly doesn't believe them. But as the years pass, she comes to accept her fate and mourn the love of her life. What she doesn't anticipate is for passion to lay dormant, hidden beneath the surface all this time—only to rise again when she least expects it.
After a decade of slumber, John Mitchell opens his eyes to a world that's different from the one he remembers. Kelly has changed, though his deep love for her hasn't. Gone is the carefree girl he planned to marry, replaced by a resilient survivor who moved on without him. Mitch asks for a little bit of time—a...
Just a week before her wedding, Kelly Russell's world falls A car accident leaves her fiancé in a coma from which doctors predict he will never awaken. At first, Kelly doesn't believe them. But as the years pass, she comes to accept her fate and mourn the love of her life. What she doesn't anticipate is for passion to lay dormant, hidden beneath the surface all this time—only to rise again when she least expects it.
After a decade of slumber, John Mitchell opens his eyes to a world that's different from the one he remembers. Kelly has changed, though his deep love for her hasn't. Gone is the carefree girl he planned to marry, replaced by a resilient survivor who moved on without him. Mitch asks for a little bit of time—a...
192 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 1, 1990
22 people are currently reading
211 people want to read
About the author
Kay Hooper
107 books2,453 followersKay Hooper (aka Kay Robbins) was born in California, in an air force base hospital since her father was stationed there at the time. The family moved back to North Carolina shortly afterward, so she was raised and went to school there.
The oldest of three children, Kay has a brother two years younger and a sister seven years younger. Her father and brother are builders who own a highly respected construction company, and her mother worked for many years in personnel management before becoming Kay's personal assistant, a position she held until her untimely death in March 2002. Kay's sister Linda works as her Business Manager, Events Coordinator, and is playing a major role in the creation and operation of The Kay Hooper Foundation.
Kay graduated from East Rutherford High School and attended Isothermal Community College — where she quickly discovered that business classes did not in any way enthrall her. Switching to more involving courses such as history and literature, she also began to concentrate on writing, which had been a longtime interest. Very quickly hooked, she asked for a Christmas typewriter and began seriously working on her first novel. That book, a Regency romance titled Lady Thief, sold to Dell Publishing in 1980. She has since published more than 60 novels and four novellas.
Kay is single and lives in a very small town in North Carolina, not far from her father and siblings. Deigning to live with her are a flock of cats — Bonnie, Ginger, Oscar, Tuffy, Felix, Renny, and Isabel — of various personalities who all like sleeping on manuscripts and whatever research happens to be spread across Kay's desk. And living amongst the many felines are two cheerfully tolerant dogs, a shelter rescue, Bandit, who looks rather like a small sheepdog, and a Sheltie named Lizzie.
The oldest of three children, Kay has a brother two years younger and a sister seven years younger. Her father and brother are builders who own a highly respected construction company, and her mother worked for many years in personnel management before becoming Kay's personal assistant, a position she held until her untimely death in March 2002. Kay's sister Linda works as her Business Manager, Events Coordinator, and is playing a major role in the creation and operation of The Kay Hooper Foundation.
Kay graduated from East Rutherford High School and attended Isothermal Community College — where she quickly discovered that business classes did not in any way enthrall her. Switching to more involving courses such as history and literature, she also began to concentrate on writing, which had been a longtime interest. Very quickly hooked, she asked for a Christmas typewriter and began seriously working on her first novel. That book, a Regency romance titled Lady Thief, sold to Dell Publishing in 1980. She has since published more than 60 novels and four novellas.
Kay is single and lives in a very small town in North Carolina, not far from her father and siblings. Deigning to live with her are a flock of cats — Bonnie, Ginger, Oscar, Tuffy, Felix, Renny, and Isabel — of various personalities who all like sleeping on manuscripts and whatever research happens to be spread across Kay's desk. And living amongst the many felines are two cheerfully tolerant dogs, a shelter rescue, Bandit, who looks rather like a small sheepdog, and a Sheltie named Lizzie.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 16 reviews
May 8, 2018
Pročitah ovu knjigu usput. Kupila sam je da je proslijedim, i dok sam čekala sina u školi počela sam da je čitam. Nastavila kad sam došla kući i začas završila. Brzo se čita, lagano štivo. Obični ljubić kod kojeg unaprijed znamo kraj.
November 29, 2016
FINAL DECISION: For such a short novel, this book is well constructed with a suspense story along with an angst filled second chance at love story. I loved the setup for this story and the story between these characters went in unexpected directions.
THE STORY: Ten years ago, Kelly Russell's world was shattered when her fiance was in a car accident which resulted in him ending up in a coma from which doctor's said he would never awaken. She is shocked when he returns having finally awakened and wants to pick up where they left off. While John Mitchell's life stopped ten years ago, Kelly has lived a life and suffered pain and loss. She knows they can't recover what they lost, but Mitch wants to try and see what might still exist between them.
OPINION: I really enjoyed this book. The book begins with a rip van winkle/sleeping beauty premise. The hero is placed in suspense while Kelly's life goes on. She lives a decade, loses family, marries and divorces, and creates a life for herself that is far from what she anticipated at eighteen when Mitch ended up in a coma. When the two meet again, there is the echo of their past together, but things have changed for both of them. What I find intriguing about this story is that the past is not idealized between these two. Although Kelly loved Mitch, she recognizes that their relationship was shallow then. Mitch wanted a woman who was weaker and more innocent than Kelly is now. Kelly knows that she has changed and doesn't believe that there is any possibility of them having a future together.
While the pace of this book is incredibly fast in real time (only days pass before everything is resolved), I thought the feelings and issues were complex for the length of the book. Kelly and Mitch have to resolve incredibly difficult issues. Kelly has experienced ten years but Mitch has not. The two have to resolve the past and learn who they are now. I enjoy a book with angst and this book has the most angst of the series. For me, when these two find one another, it is sweeter.
WORTH MENTIONING: WHAT DREAMS MAY COME was originally published as a Loveswept category romance in 1989.
CONNECTED BOOKS: WHAT DREAMS MAY COME is the third book in the Once Upon a Time series but each book can be read as a standalone since they are only loosely connected.
STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.This review was originally posted on Top10RomanceBooks.com
THE STORY: Ten years ago, Kelly Russell's world was shattered when her fiance was in a car accident which resulted in him ending up in a coma from which doctor's said he would never awaken. She is shocked when he returns having finally awakened and wants to pick up where they left off. While John Mitchell's life stopped ten years ago, Kelly has lived a life and suffered pain and loss. She knows they can't recover what they lost, but Mitch wants to try and see what might still exist between them.
OPINION: I really enjoyed this book. The book begins with a rip van winkle/sleeping beauty premise. The hero is placed in suspense while Kelly's life goes on. She lives a decade, loses family, marries and divorces, and creates a life for herself that is far from what she anticipated at eighteen when Mitch ended up in a coma. When the two meet again, there is the echo of their past together, but things have changed for both of them. What I find intriguing about this story is that the past is not idealized between these two. Although Kelly loved Mitch, she recognizes that their relationship was shallow then. Mitch wanted a woman who was weaker and more innocent than Kelly is now. Kelly knows that she has changed and doesn't believe that there is any possibility of them having a future together.
While the pace of this book is incredibly fast in real time (only days pass before everything is resolved), I thought the feelings and issues were complex for the length of the book. Kelly and Mitch have to resolve incredibly difficult issues. Kelly has experienced ten years but Mitch has not. The two have to resolve the past and learn who they are now. I enjoy a book with angst and this book has the most angst of the series. For me, when these two find one another, it is sweeter.
WORTH MENTIONING: WHAT DREAMS MAY COME was originally published as a Loveswept category romance in 1989.
CONNECTED BOOKS: WHAT DREAMS MAY COME is the third book in the Once Upon a Time series but each book can be read as a standalone since they are only loosely connected.
STAR RATING: I give this book 4 stars.This review was originally posted on Top10RomanceBooks.com
July 13, 2017
What Dreams May Come is a re-read for me. My opinion on the book didn't much change upon the second reading. This is the third in the "Once Upon a Time" series and is based off a combination Sleeping Beauty/Rip Van Winkle plot. The story opens with John "Mitch" Mitchell left in a coma after a car accident and his fiance trying to reconcile the possibility that he may never wake up. She decides to move on with her life. 9 years later, "Mitch" miraculously wakes up still loving Kelly and wanting to get her back.
This is a sweet second chance story. However, I would have loved it more had it been longer. I would have like to see more of Kelly and Mitch together before the coma to see how they were then, rather than being told. It would have made for their changes to seem more significant later when they get back together. There is also a little mystery with her ex-husband, but that was kind of anti-climactic. So, while I did enjoy it, it could have been better with more to the story.
This is a sweet second chance story. However, I would have loved it more had it been longer. I would have like to see more of Kelly and Mitch together before the coma to see how they were then, rather than being told. It would have made for their changes to seem more significant later when they get back together. There is also a little mystery with her ex-husband, but that was kind of anti-climactic. So, while I did enjoy it, it could have been better with more to the story.
November 29, 2016
This is an intriguing twisted spin on Sleeping Beauty. In this case a car accident leaves Kelly's fiance in a coma. The doctors predict he will never wake up and at first Kelly fights against it but as the years pile up she knows she needs to accept the truth and move on. Then miraculously Mitch wakes. Obviously after ten years everything is different but he knows he still loves Kelly with all he has and just wants time to show her exactly how much. Danger lurks around them though. Perhaps the same danger that caused the accident that took so many years from them. Will they ever get their HEA??
A good read and one I would definitely recommend.
A good read and one I would definitely recommend.
April 28, 2017
Sleeping Beauty is the old classic , and now in this modern world the hero Mitch comes out of a coma after ten years , their childhood romance needs to be rekindled between Mitch and Kelly and they are both are different people with a ten year gap.
March 7, 2024
I like her other books more.
February 23, 2017
A very quick read that's part of a series but which appears to have been reissued as a standalone. It's good to see some older novels reissued even if some of them don't hold up as well as others. This is well written and an intriguing situation for Kelly but it's not the most suspenseful or romantic story. It's not a bad read for a lazy afternoon but you might find things have changed since this was first published.
September 25, 2016
Originally published as a series romance in 1989, this is now being released in ebook form. It is fairly short, under 200 pages, more of a long novella than a full novel.
This is inspired by Sleeping Beauty, but is not a retelling of the fairy tale; only the long sleep is the same. Kelly was very young--only 18--when her fiance was badly injured in a car accident. Mitch was left in a coma and not expected to ever regain consciousness. After months of denial, Kelly was finally persuaded to accept the diagnosis and get on with her life. Nine years later, Mitch wakes up. Kelly is gone and he is alone. After his long recovery, he determines to track her down and win her back. But Kelly is not the naive girl he knew.
Both characters are appealing. Mitch does seem too mature for someone who slept away so many years of psychological development. But I appreciated that Kelly's maturation over that time was presented as not just right but also necessary for their relationship to work.
This is inspired by Sleeping Beauty, but is not a retelling of the fairy tale; only the long sleep is the same. Kelly was very young--only 18--when her fiance was badly injured in a car accident. Mitch was left in a coma and not expected to ever regain consciousness. After months of denial, Kelly was finally persuaded to accept the diagnosis and get on with her life. Nine years later, Mitch wakes up. Kelly is gone and he is alone. After his long recovery, he determines to track her down and win her back. But Kelly is not the naive girl he knew.
Both characters are appealing. Mitch does seem too mature for someone who slept away so many years of psychological development. But I appreciated that Kelly's maturation over that time was presented as not just right but also necessary for their relationship to work.
September 16, 2011
مو المرة الاولى اللي اقرأ فيها قصة عن الغيبوبة لكنها المرة الاولى اللي احس ان الكاتبة تناولت الحدث بشكل واقعي .. الحالة اللي مروا فيها الابطال من خسارة و الم .. و عودة لاكتشاف الذات كل بطريقته كانت مؤثرة جدا .. الحوارات كانت واقعية جدا لدرجة تمس القلب .. باختصار حسيت بغصه وانا اقرأ هذه الرواية .. جميلة جدا
July 7, 2011
Again with the coma thing. It only worked in The Dead Zone.
no-longer-interested
September 26, 2011I decided that this book didn't sound as interesting as I once thought. Going to send it off into the world
February 14, 2017
One kick ass story
November 29, 2016
I thought it was okay, interesting modern twist on the fairy tale. Extra plot with the heroine in hiding.
November 29, 2016
This is the third book in the series.Just loved this series a set lovely romances with a bit of mystery in them.A modern take on fairy tales recommended to all
August 30, 2016
Loveswept
Displaying 1 - 15 of 16 reviews