Terms We Have for Dreaming

by Eric Arvin

Three hundred souls. That is all.

The entire world, all of human existence, comes to three hundred souls born and reborn again. No more and no less. Countless billions of people share these souls, each individual with a slight piece or sliver of grace. But when gods corrupt and upset the most delicate of balances, a hero must come forth to lead people toward a brighter day and a better life.

Genres: Dystopia, M M Romance, Gay, LGBT, Science Fiction

272 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 3, 2017

About the author

Eric Arvin resided in the same sleepy Indiana river town where he grew up. He graduated from Hanover College with a Bachelors in History. He has lived, for brief periods, in Italy and Australia. He has survived brain surgery and his own loud-mouthed personal demons. Eric is the author of WOKE UP IN A STRANGE PLACE, THE MINGLED DESTINIES OF CROCODILES & MEN, SUBSURDITY, SIMPLE MEN, and various other sundry and not-so-sundry writings.

Reviews

[Jason Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing.

[Joyfully Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Joyfully Jay review.

4.5 stars

Terms We Have for Dreaming is GLBT+ fiction in the broadest of terms. There are brief scenes of homosexual romance, but this is not the story’s main focus. Ultimately, this is a novel about a group of individuals seeking freedom from an autocratic leader. Though Terms We Have for Dreaming has been published following Arvin’s death, the message the author sends will resonate with many readers who are concerned about the current international political situation. This fictional individual called GOD orders an equally depraved Senator General to round up anyone they see as deviant, which can be sexually, physically, or otherwise, indiscriminate of age or gender. For the reader, this is frightening and hard hitting, especially with daily news stories about gay men being sent to death camps and citizens of first-world countries in danger of losing basic human rights.

Terms We Have for Dreaming is written in third-person present tense, using an omniscient narrator only known as “we.” I found this especially destabilizing and it also increased my discomfort about the subject matter. However, in using this “we,” Arvin is able to jump from character to character, revealing the true bleakness of the Immortal City and the harshness that many of these individuals endure. Not all of the characters Arvin focuses on are those we would consider heroes either. Cayden Lothair is one of GOD’s best ferrymen; Mags Hensil is a Sister of GOD; Esther Kerr may be Gemma’s mother, but is also one of the revolutionaries who brought GOD to power, and Deidre Maire is in charge of the hospital in the ninth ring. Yet, whilst Arvin is able to make his reader hate and feel genuine anger and disgust, we also love the bravery and resilience of other characters like Gemma, Rossa, Tully, Key, Lawl, and Duncan. It is these men, women, and children who are able to change the atmosphere of this novel, bringing hope and laughter.

Read Kirsty’s review in its entirety here.

[Christy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had almost forgotten the beauty and eloquence of Eric Arvin's writing. He has always reminded me of the true greats with his lushness of prose and his richness of storytelling. My problem is the same as it has always been while writing a review of Eric's work - trying to do justice to the story, when I lack that eloquence and lushness.

"The Immortal City has no privacy. Not really. But there is darkness, and there is dreaming."

In the Immortal City, GOD's tower rises above all, and GOD sees all. Only GOD can judge who are sinners and what their punishment should be. But GOD is soulless, evil, and a tyrant, and has nothing to do with religion. There are many different characters in 'Terms We Have for Dreaming', each with different lives and purpose, and many of their stories are told by an omniscient narrator known only as "we". I am not going to focus on each of these individuals as I believe only through reading 'Terms We Have for Dreaming' can the full magnitude of each person be felt.

Please find my full review at Rainbow Book Reviews

[Absynthe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not sure what to say about this book. I may have understood it better if I was high? I wasn't, so not all of it made sense. It's definitely VERY different and quite interesting. But kind of an acid trip in book form too.

[Lily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written story, I didn't want it to end. I wanted to continue exploring what was outside the last gate, how sad to think we'll never know.

[Sam Valuem · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Rascal and this Terms We Have for Dreaming are my favourite books by Eric Arvin. The prose is rich and flowing as always, yet in these two books the narrative gets gloomy and pitch black. Characters are cruel, life hits hard but still there is hope. Great book.

[Becca · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF

[Trix · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not my cup of tea for the simple reason that I had trouble understanding the book. For the first 30% I kept going back to Goodreads to see if I had to read something before going into this book or some introduction that might explain things a bit. And even after finishing the book, I still didn't understand who the 300 souls were and how everything fit together. I was pretty aloof from all that transpired in the book. There was a lot of mayhem and torture but I had no emotions regarding the events. The story-telling and the characters made it seem a far away experience, watched but not felt.

The mantle of leadership was passed to various characters. First Colm Archer and Usker Lance. Then Gemma Kerr who is encouraged by "The Passions" to head off towards the end of the Immortal City. Along the way, she gathers sinners, orphans and Rossa on her march towards the 9th ring. The ferryman Cayden meets her in dreams and eventually joins the marchers and takes the lead with Rossa. There are other characters that flash in and out of the spotlight: Lawl, Duncan, Gran, Key, Senator General Hegart, Esther, Deirdre, God. Everything soiled by blood, torture and murder. Everything done with the purpose of showing us this autocracy that has ended up killing and eating anyone that dares obey. And the band of heroes pushed to make a stand for change.

[Eduardo · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am having trouble understanding the book. I think that it's too much going on, one minute we are at someone's history, then we are at someone else, and so on. I'm at 30%. :- / DNF (definitly not finished it). :- /