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"I never wanted one human being to matter to me so much that if I lost them, I'd lose myself too."
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What a lovely story this was - full of love and magic and sacrifice and, above all, the delight and devastation of chance... Isabel is a charming protagonist, and she is surrounded on all sides by a diverse group of supporting characters who lend depth and warmth to her story. That story did not proceed as I thought it would based on the book's description, but for once that was a surprisingly good thing - there is a twist that is not even alluded to there, and it becomes the basis for the majority of the story. I liked that; it was a pleasant surprise and happened to bring in an element that I love reading about.

There were a few points where I felt like the story floundered a bit. Finn (Isabel's daughter) is a delight, but we don't get nearly enough of her. Her role in the story is HUGE, but her character is not fleshed out as much as that role would suggest (or, to my mind, as much as it required). The end got surprisingly TV-MA - it wasn't necessarily inappropriate, but it felt a bit gratuitous and very unexpected, given the tone and tenor of the previous majority of the book (and the guarded and emotionally withdrawn nature of the characters to that point). I appreciate that this may have been the point, but it still felt rather surprisingly graphic. And finally, the actual ending was a little open-ended. That may have been intentional - this is, after all, the era of the sequel. Still, the reader is left with a pretty wide-open set of possibilities, particularly for Finn and Max. I might have liked to see a little more about where their relationship was going...

All in all though, this was a thoroughly enjoyable read, and I would definitely look for the author again. I must admit though, I still don't understand the title - there are two daughters in this one, Isabel and Finn, and I suppose it could refer to either (or both), but the "dream keeper" portion has me at a bit of a loss... There are poignant and prescient dreams throughout the story (suggesting that the eponymous keeper would be Isabel/daughter would be Finn), but the "keeper" concept isn't really a big part of that. Not for anything, but usually it's easier to figure out the basis for the title. It doesn't detract at all to not know, but it is a mystery to me nevertheless...

A copy of this review will be available on my blog (www.Jill-Elizabeth.com) on July 5, 2017.

I think I'll settle on 3.5 stars, but definitely have some conflicted feelings on it.

What I liked:
Time slip and the era/setting they went to (rebellion era Barbados--early 1800s)
Quirky characters
Archaeology

What I didn't like so much:
Gratuitous sex a few times (too descriptive without any real reason or bearing on story)
Didn't really care for where the author took the story in the end.


I was vested in the story and where it was going. It definitely held my interest though I didn't always like or agree with decisions of characters. Mixed in with the time travel aspect are family secrets that finally get unraveled, romance, history & mystery. I am grateful for the chance to have read it!

**Big thanks to NetGalley and Random House-Ballantine for an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review**

This was the first book by Emily Colin that I have read. I loved that the story was told from the perspective of both Isabel and Max. I loved the story as well as the characters the only thing about the book that I did not like was that it was a very slow read and it only picked up speed towards the last quarter of the book. I would have liked for the story to read a bit faster. I love stories about time travelling!!!

Thank you to Ballantine Books and Netgalley for the copy.

I am torn about this read. On one hand, I saw many elements of solid writing particularly in the beginning, but on another, I think my question was why? Why did this story need a "back in time" component? I really didn't get why the characters were taken and why they were returned. I enjoyed the history and the interactions that occurred but how did that line up with the rest of the story. I think I would have understood if the title had been explained in the story: The Dream Keeper's Daughter - Maybe it was explained but this felt like a long long read so I might have missed it. Who was the dream keeper? I THINK I know who the daughter is but...
Next, the 'romance' between Max and Isabel took a different twist, which is fine, if it would have made sense for Isabel to go that route. If the author had built that character. It was interesting but I didn't fall in love with the main characters. Instead, I found myself wondering about Ryan. He was interesting. 2.5 stars
Thank you Netgalley for this ARC

Taking too long to get started. The story just sputters and doesn't do much to draw me in. There is too little information, which means I have no idea what is going on. After awhile you quit caring and finally quit reading.

Emily does a great job taking the reader back and forth in time, as she runs the parallel story lines of Isabel and Max. Add in archeaology and romance, and you have a book that tugs at the heart on more than one occassion. The subject matter in the past time is not an easy one, but the author does good job in making it relatable and makes history come alive. Emily does a great job in bringing her characters to life off the page and making them seem like people you know. isabel could be your best friend, the single mom in your daughter's class, or the one you joke with at the local coffee place. Despite all that though, it can be slow going, and I did find myself putting it down multiple times, but then willing to give it another chance. So it took me about 4 times picking it up to get it read. It's not that it doesn't flow, but there just seemed natural stopping points within the book. Not sure if the author meant for those to be there, it might just have been a sophomore writing block thingy. It's a decent story if you can stay with it, with a different twist on an age old story telling technique.

Didn't finish this one, either -- read a few reviews that referenced looooots of sex at the end, and I'm not into romance novels.

I was frustrated by this novel. This book gives the impression that's it about something, but there's no THERE there. Usually, I love time travel stories. The premise had me hooked and fascinated at first. But the story bogged down in the middle, and got repetitive and predictable. Everything was spelled out for the reader. Max disappears and we immediately find out where. Half of Isabel's mother's necklace is found; we know why, and know the other half will show up. Finn is adorable, but her "gift" of sight is never explained. I kept hoping the gift had something to do with her father giving her that info across time, but that wasn't it. Her dad communicated unintentionally via dreams. This novel destroys one the basic tenets of time travel, that one travels back or forward in time, but remains in the same physical place. Max and Judith travel back and forth not just 200 years, but 2,000 miles from South Carolina to the island of Barbados! How? If there's really a "Thin Place" in the woods, why hasn't anyone else slipped through time there? Worst thing: The book is told from the POV of Max and Isabel, two people who are separated for years and are desperate to be together again. We are set up to wish for a romantic reunion between them, but don’t get one. It takes Isabel the entire length of the book to learn where Max has been, which makes her seem stupid. I hated her when she wasn't sure she believed him. All these years she's been waiting for him, and when he returns, she doesn't want him? Who wants to read that book? Instead she chooses Ryan, who disparages everything Max has been through and is filled with rage and lust, not love. Poor Max goes through hell and back, and is punished....for what? Isabel keeps saying he "lied to her". Why, because he didn't tell her he saw her mother in the woods once? The long, boring, final section is spent on Isabel's confusion and a sex scene between her and Ryan, with no more mention of time travel. This is bad writing. The time travel element should be an integral part of the wrap up of the plot and theme; Max should find a way to convince Isabel of what happened so that she finally embraces it; the story should hold some kind of lesson that comes from all they have been through. But we are given nothing, and they aren't even together at the end. I feel as though the author had an intriguing premise, but didn't know what to do with it. She wrote two totally different ideas (a story about a slave revolt in Barbados in 1816, and a story about a woman whose boyfriend went missing) and tried to shoehorn them into one novel. A novel that doesn't work. Perhaps the publisher and editor were bamboozled by her at-times lovely turns of phrase, and the (apparent?) success of her previous book, and let her write anything she wanted this time without paying attention to whether it worked or not.

3.5 stars

I enjoyed 90% of The Dream Keeper's Daughter. The first 90% was riveting, believable, surprising, and a true page-turner. I was dying to know how this story would end. Sadly, the much anticipated conclusion didn't live up to its potential. I am desperate for this book to have better closure. It's making me crazy.

The Dream Keeper's Daughter is the story of Isabel who is trying to get by after her boyfriend disappears into thin air leaving her pregnant and abandoned. Through different viewpoints we learn that Max didn't only disappear, he traveled back in time and that while eight years have passed for Isabel, for Max it has only been a few weeks. It's a love story, a mystery and a family drama all in one. I enjoyed it very much. I just wish it had a better ending.

Thank you Netgalley and the Publisher. I really enjoyed this book and really got into it even though it is not what I normally read.

3.5 stars - A pretty good story with a nice time-slip that I really liked. I was rooting for the leads, but I have to say, that I'm not sure that I liked where the author went with the story in the end. And all the sex towards the end...way over the top! Finn is pretty adorable so I would have liked a little more done with her. Overall, a fast read with good characters, but a disappointing ending for me.

**Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley in exchange of an honest review.**

I enjoyed this book for the most part. It was a little long, seemed to take me a long time to read it. I liked the time traveling storyline. I will look for this author again.

The Dream Keeper's Daughter by Emily Colin is an enjoyable fantasy. The pacing is a bit slow at the beginning but otherwise a great read. Time-travel, dreams, and an engaging plot line kept me reading this book. I was intrigued by the archaeologist's journey to finding answers as well as her boyfriend's situation. Max Adair is stuck trying to figure his way back home to Isabel Griffin and their daughter. The suspense slightly builds into a climax causing an edge of the seat moment. Romantic, entertaining, and charming. The Dream Keeper's Daughter is an emotional fascinating tale. I recommend it to others.

If you liked The Time Traveler’s Wife you’ll like this because the essence is very similar as it uses a time traveling theme to tell a poignant story. Using a dash of historical fiction as an overlay really added a cool dimension which was needed to make up for an ending that didn’t quite meet the level of great writing the author showed in the rest of the book. She uses a lot of detailed description so you feel like you’re right next to the characters watching all of this unfold which helped draw me in.

Emily Colin has an easy pace that lulls you in and keeps your mind wandering through the story as you become more curious by the page as to what she’ll show you next. Until you hit that ending then it’s like your mind got stuck in mud and you’re spinning trying to get through.

I came to a point where I really thought it was done and felt it was a gratified conclusion but then I realized it wasn’t. The last quarter feels like the author had some kind of sex quota for her book and she realized she was ending it without meeting that quota so she crammed every bit of sex, thoughts of sex, about to have sex, etc into those pages between the 3 main characters. It’s a whole lot of fun when you’re dealing with changing perspectives each chapter. When she finally gets done cramming it all in at the end, the story ends as if you’re walking through a forest then without realizing it walk over a cliff – you just don’t see it coming and not in a good way.

I felt conflicted when I finished because I enjoyed most of it but that ending kind of screwed with my “I love this” vibe.

Review will be given on it's release date. http://dewonthekudzu.com

Possible spoilers. This book is 80% historic time travel, in which the author did some admirable research into a little-covered time period. When I got to the 80% mark, I thought the book was complete, and planned the review I would write, mentioning the somewhat predictable conclusion. But no....there was still 20% to go; 20% of what could possibly be described as mommy porn. Unnecessary, in my opinion, to the conclusion - at least to this degree.

Suspense starts immediately and builds.
A single mother raising daughter who can tell what others are thinking/feeling.
Husband/father disappeared 8 years ago...Mother disappeared 6 years before that.

I was not sold completely on the time travel story line...then I started reading and I could not stop.
Then at the end, I was torn and disappointed.
Up to then, I enjoyed this book.
I would have given a 5 star rating if the end was better, but I still enjoyed the entire rest of the book- so 4 stars.

Let me start by saying the title of this book makes no sense to me based on the story. But I will say mistitled or not this was a very interesting book. From page one you can tell that the author took her time and did her research on the topics and places she used to build the characters and their story. I really appreciate that! This book did not end the way I was expecting it too and guess what…. I was not disappointed.
There are a couple of things towards the end of the book that are obviously in the story so additional books can be written using some of the characters, and while I would love to see these characters stories written, the way that they were referenced and used in this book made me feel like they were just thrown in for the sake of continuing or building a series.
All in all this was a good book and I would absolutely read it again.

Isabelle has lost 2 of the key people in her life - her mother while she was a teenager, and her first love who is also the father of her child but disappeared before she was born. The problem is that they were truly lost – they disappeared without a trace, and there has been no indication of where they may have gone, of what might have happened to them. Until one day she receives a mysterious phone call. Isabelle is left wondering, did she somehow imagine it? Is she going crazy? What is going on?

This story is also told from the alternating viewpoint of Max, from the moment he disappears. The reader gets the perspective of both stories, and also how they fit together. This helps to add some suspense to the story, as the passage of time does not match up exactly between the 2 stories.

I enjoyed the development of the story, but my favorite part was the mystery surrounding the “how” and the “why” of what happened to Max. I am trying to avoid spoilers, but I might have enjoyed it more if the author had provided more of a context on the historic event that Max’s story centers around; this was my first introduction to this occurrence and so it may have been more suspenseful had I known more up front, rather than having it unravel over the passage of time throughout the book.

I loved the discoveries about her relationships that Isabelle makes along the way – about herself, her family, and the impact that the disappearances of her loved ones have had on her emotional development. This was a bit of an emotional rollercoaster, but it is definitely brings the story full-circle. The Dream Keeper’s Daughter is engaging, unpredictable, and a breath of fresh air – it is very different from the other books I have read lately!

I wasn't aware of the sexual descriptions prior to reading. Because of this, I was unable to get past the first few chapters. No other issues with the book, it was easy to read and the characters seemed interesting.