Another fantastic NIcholas Sparks novel!

This story unfolds in two parts - with two main character's voices. The first storyline follows Colby, a young farmer from NC who is on vacation in St. Petersburg, FL - the first vacation in a long time, escaping the demands of the farm and taking care of his sister and aunt. He's singing at a beach side bar, fulfilling part of his old dream of being a musician. And, of course, he finds a girl. The second storyline follows Beverly - escaping an abusive husband with her young son, she'll do anything to get them away safely. The whole boarding the bus in disguise bit reminded me of "Safe Haven".

It's a typical Sparks book - has a lot of high points, drama, and somewhere along the way, you know the storylines are going to cross - and when they do, whoa - not what I was expecting.

Thank you NetGalley, the author and publisher for a temporary, digital ARC in return for my review.

Sparks is back. This book really reminded me of the old school Nicholas Sparks that I fell in love with!! Two independent story lines (it seemed at first) take turns within the pages of the book. I preferred one to the other, but when the story lines connected, the pages made since! This book will enthrall you and engage with every turn!

I received an arc copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for my honest opinion of it. This book was absolutely amazing and I loved everything about it. It is told in parts by Colby and Beverly. It is easy to figure out that their lives will somehow be connected before the end of the book but really hard to figure out how. I can definitely see a movie in the future. I would give it more than 5 stars if I could.

A fast paced read that keeps your attention. Strong characters that you are hoping have a happy ending.

I have enjoyed every Nicholas sparks books and this one is no different. It is told from two perspectives and touches the heart. The characters were invigorating and it was just an all around good read!

Thanks to NetGalley, Nicholas Sparks, and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book is a two person narration and as soon as you’re hooked on one character’s journey and need to know what happens next, you jump to the other character. There was so much detail in each character’s development and backstories, it made reading this book go by in a flash. I know Sparks is a popular author but Dreamland is only the second novel I’ve read by him. I will certainly be picking up more, right after I tell all my friends to pick up this one!

Tears, another warm heart truthful story. The characters just brought you into their life with struggles. like many of us. Colby and Paige through their life and dreams of music and art brought an element of caring and deep long struggles. It is a must read! Well done Nicholas Sparks. The song Dreamland was absolutely beautiful, a deep connection into life! Bravo

Dreamland, by Nicholas Sparks
emotional inspiring reflective tense medium-paced
Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

Dreamland follows two storylines, each from a different point of view. It's got all the feels - one story has lots of suspense. The other is a classic story about young love. When the stories eventually come together in the last quarter of the book, buckle in for a roller coaster of emotion.

Colby is a farmer, caring for his family farm in NC. He also is a singer/songwriter and gladly takes a week's vacation to play a gig in Florida. Of course, while he's there he meets the gorgeous and talented Morgan and their chemistry sparks making beautiful music together. (I didn't care for the emphasis on Morgan's eating habits and slender weight . . . it seemed irrelevant). I loved the process of how they encouraged each other and worked together to write songs - their creative energy was exciting. And the love story is what it is - Sparks has the ability to move with you a little at a time until all at once they fall in love.

Meanwhile, poor Beverly is escaping an abusive husband who works for the government and has the power to track her. She saves up and comes up with a plan to get her son away without her husband finding them. They end up settling in a house but she doesn't eat a lot so that her son can have a varied diet but she does her best to create a home for them. She is terrified of being found and her fear keeps her from fully settling into their new place. There are some weird holes in her storyline that make sense later in the book.

The back and forth between stories offers natural breaks, though I read this in pretty much one sitting. It would be great for an airplane ride or day at the beach or curled up on a snow day.

#Dreamland #NetGalley

This is classic Nicholas Sparks, and I enjoyed the back and forth of the two stories, getting to know the main characters and wanting to find out what was next. The twist surprised me, and I thought it was done well, but then the end fell flat for me and I wasn’t satisfied with how it wraps up. But, that’s also classic Nicholas Sparks. 3.5 stars. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I always love Nicholas Sparks! I liked the characters in the book. This book is written as two different stories. Even though I figured out part of the twist in the story being told, it did not take away my enjoyment of the book. Through his writing Nicholas Sparks also brings up a subject that everyone should have more understanding and compassion about! Well done! #NetGalley #Dreamland

Another AMAZING book from Nicholas Sparks. The majority of the book is split between the perspectives of 2 characters. I spent the majority of the book trying to figure out how they were connected and it wasn’t anything I had guessed. Highly recommend this book!

I feel like you can NEVER go wrong with a Nicholas Sparks book. He knows how to write romantic tales that get you entirely caught up in.

I absolutely fell in love with Colby right from the get-go. It was very easy to empathize with him.

It took me a little while to like Morgan, off the bat she seemed a little much, but her quirky personality made me change my mind. You see how easy it is for them to fall in love.

I was not expecting a twist in any way whatsoever.

This book was very well paced, well written, and absolutely on the level we’ve all come to know and love about a Nicholas Sparks book.

Well another Nicolas sparks is a great one and the two stories were fun and different love everything he writes

Dreamland written by Nicholas Sparks 4 stars.
This seemed like a departure from his usual novels. There were two very different POV and stories that didn’t seem to fit. I kept waiting for the big reveal - how there’s two stories would relate.
Story one is Colby and Morgan. Farm boy and daughter of two doctors who both share a love and talent for singing and songwriting.
Story two- Beverley and her son Tommy flee their abusive household leaving everything but two book bags.
I really enjoyed both stories. When one got too heavy, Sparks would switch to the other one (talk about suspense building). It was also fun to try to figure out how these two stories would collide. Only thing I didn’t love was the ending because it seemed rushed. I want to thank NetGalley for allowing me to read this wonderful book and give my honest opinion and review.

Honestly, this wasn’t my favorite Nicholas Sparks book. The love story wasn’t very believable to me. This just doesn’t feel like what I’m used to from a Nicholas Sparks.

You can never go wrong with any book by Nicholas Sparks but this one is gonna be one of my top five favorites. I absolutely loved it!

This book had two stories in one and I couldn’t figure out how they were going to come together. But come together they did. This is totally worth the read!

Dreamland follows a young male that is spending time playing in a beach club in Florida as his vacation from working on the family farm. He meets a girl who is on her post college graduation vacation and they quickly get along and begin spending more time together. Additionally this also follows a story of a young mother forced to run away with her son and follows the adjustments she has to make to keep him safe.

Nicholas Sparks continues to show his talent for writing in this novel that keeps you interested from the first chapter. Your emotions are taken on a trip and the ending allows you to reflect and take everything that you learned along the way.

This one was so good! I loved it so much! The first 5 stars I have given in a long time! If I hadn’t already made my wrap-up for last month it would have been my favorite of the month. This book had two stories in one and I couldn’t figure out how they were going to mesh. I can’t say much more without spoiling but this one is totally worth the read! Especially if you love twists and turns and surprise endings.

Nicholas Sparks writes in a way like no other: the poignant outpouring of love and pain; real life situations and emotional circumstances that pull at your heartstrings and leave you wanting more – his writing is a gift that the readers are lucky to keep receiving.

Dreamland tells the parallel stories of Beverly and her young son Tommie, trying to escape an abusive husband, and farmer Colby – who meets dancer/singer Morgan Lee on a work vacation in Florida. While Beverly is trying to get by with what little she has – barely eating to make sure her son is fed, Colby is an aspiring singer and songwriter performing at a beachy restaurant and failing quickly for Morgan. The two tales cannot be more different, yet somehow you are waiting for these lives to intertwine but can’t foresee how.

I admit I absolutely loved Colby’s sections and quickly read through his budding romance with Morgan, while Beverly’s portions were a little more painstaking and took me extra time to fully absorb. The issues Sparks tackled were heavy, as is his norm, and he pulls it off in a way that just weaves through your mind and heart effortlessly. I would be cautious that some of the subject matter may be triggers for some people reading.

The character development was good, and you felt like you really understood each person, even if they weren’t fully relatable. In addition, I absolutely loved the constant theme of music: knowing a lot of people in Nashville living out their dream, I think the goal of pursuing your dream of singing/songwriting is not an easy one but was nice to read about.

It's interesting to think about what exactly Sparks meant by a Dreamland – is it the state of love with another, or making your professional dreams come true?

This thought-provoking novel is full of an undercurrent of suspense that builds with each chapter. Alas, it took me awhile to fully be engaged in this novel, but once you are hooked you can’t wait to finish it. Since I wrongly will compare every one of his novels to The Notebook (which I can read and watch repeatedly) and this one wasn’t quite on that level for me, I rate this 4.2 stars. (I confess, if this was written by anyone else but Sparks, the rating may be lower.)

Thank you so much to NetGalley for this ARC; all opinions are my own!

“… but I was living in a dreamland.”