Steggie Belle and the Dream Warriors by Elias Pell Published by Elias Pell on June 20, 2020
Genres: Fiction / Fantasy / Action & Adventure
Pages: 386
Format: ARC, Audiobook
Source: Author
""What if our understanding of dreams is just a poor reflection of another place... a real place?" During a storm, a man who calls himself Zoofall has barricaded himself inside an attic. He has only seven candles worth of time to reveal his extraordinary secrets. How, when he was a boy, he discovered a wild other world, where Reality and Mythology meet, beyond the limits of Lucid Dreaming. There he found a group of other young dreamers, and together, through many adventures, they tried to unravel the terrifying mysteries of this dream world. In a race against time, Zoofall must figure out if his own unusual powers make him a possible saviour or a dangerous burden. As dark forces rise up, threatening to engulf their group, he must uncover the greatest mystery of all. Who their incredible leader, Steggie Belle, really is, how she became so powerful, and if by any chance she can be saved?"--Publisher's description.
My Review
I received this audiobook from Elias Pell in exchange for my honest review. Everything you read here is entirely my own thoughts and opinions. Before I get started I would like to define lucid dreams according to Wikipedia in case you have never heard of them.
Wikipedia states: A lucid dream is a type of dream in which the dreamer becomes aware that they are dreaming while dreaming. During a lucid dream, the dreamer may gain some amount of control over the dream characters, narrative, or environment. Lucid dreaming has been studied and reported for many years. So reader now that you are aware of what a lucid dream is let us jump into my review.
This is the story of Zoofall, Wolfe, Puddle, Steggie Belle, and many more. It is an adventure taken in both the dream world and the waking world. The story is told from Zoofall’s point of view as an adult looking back on his childhood. He has given himself a set amount of time (seven candles to burn out) to write everything down from his time in the dream world before he re-enters it as an adult and maybe never returns.
Zoofall is on an outing to the zoo when he notices someone, someone that he has only ever seen in his dreams. This rightfully so startles Zoofall and he ends up falling into the gorilla habitat. While lying there trying not to freak out he hears a voice in his head telling him to remain calm and still which he does. Lucky for him he lands in the habitat with the female who recently lost her baby, which makes her gentle toward him. This is where the story begins for Zoofall, that night is when his dreams open up into something he can not even begin to understand but is happily willing to learn and become immersed in the dream world and all that goes with it.
Throughout the story, we meet a number of lucid dreamers led by a female named Steggie Belle. We also learn about the magical world that is the dream world with all the creatures, witches, the good, and the evil that resides there. We follow Zoofall as he goes between both the waking and the dreaming worlds. We watch him create lasting friendships, learn how to be a warrior, and show extreme bravery. The reader learns that the dream world is not all positive vibes but that evil lurks there and creeps into the waking world. Dreamers are wounded and killed while others end up missing. This story is jam-packed with adventure and great world-building. I feel that readers of many ages will be able to enjoy this story and who knows maybe even pay closer attention to their own dreams.
I have to say that the villain in this story reminded me of Voldemort when he entered the scene and maybe it was the narrator’s voice that did it or the fact that like Tom Riddle he started out “normalish” and then turned evil and power hungry. Either way, he was enough to keep me on my toes during my time reading this story. I am eager to see what happens in the next book because this one ended on such a cliffhanger. If you are looking for a new fantasy adventure based on dreaming and in the dream world then definitely go and pick this one up I do not think you will be disappointed.
Trigger Warnings:
- Battles
- Death of Friends
I also want to thank Elias Pell for this Arc Audio in return for an honest review of his book. The audio read by Jay Forrester for Steggie Belle & The Dream Warriors will be released on September 23rd, 2023.