This was a quick little novella that had some great aspects to it, and some other… not so great aspects. I really need to stop reading novellas just for the sake of my ratings ratio, because I am just not one for short stories, and I always find myself holding it against the books when they aren’t long, simply because I am the type to always want more.

I think the interplay between Dream and Cupid was wholesome and fun, and I liked seeing the relationship between the soulmates, Chris and Zoya, play out. My issue with the novella is that it felt like so much was left dangling that could’ve been spun out into further storytelling, such as the existence and relevance of Nightmare in its shared vessel with Dream. It was mentioned and then never addressed again, which felt like a waste.

I also struggled from a structural standpoint to feel stable in who the story was following. The novella never sets up a strict POV, meaning that it goes from feeling omniscient to limited perspectives, and also oscillates between Dream and Cupid without any clear delineation. Paragraph to paragraph, the reader is thrust into different characters’ viewpoints, and that made the reading experience really jarring because it wasn’t clear who, if anyone, was the actual protagonist we were meant to be primarily invested in. For all the above reasons, I give this 2⭐, but I believe if this author published a full-length novel, I would indeed give it a peek!

*Thank you again to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.*

This book, while short, was beautiful. It was a story that I believe many people will relate to. It brings in aspects that are evident in everyday life of most people. It shows the ups and downs of human relationships that I think everyone has gone through. It had me gripped from the first word. It was well written and a fun book when you need a cute story as a pick me up or to bring you a little extra hope in the day. It's a heartwarming book which I adored. Definitely got me out my reading slump.

This was a really cute book. I have not read a book like this in a while and I really enjoyed it. The romance was so cute!

*Thank you to NetGalley and ARC provided by Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for providing me this book in exchange for an honest review*

I was so disappointed when I realized that this book wasn't actually a novel but a novella. It's a short cute story about love, hope and acceptance. I really liked the impersonation of Dream and Cupid which worked together to united two people. It was an amazing idea which I'd really love to see explored more.

This cute novella was totally charming. I love the concepts of gods, immortals and fates, so reading about Cupid and Dream as they navigate mortals was great fun. I enjoyed reading the journey of the fated romance of our two mortals. I would love to read more by the author.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishing group for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC for my honest review.

This was a cute, quick, easy to read novella. I enjoyed it because I have neve read a book that focused on Cupid.

I am extremely thankful to be able to read the book 'Dream a Little Dream of Me' by Akria Varma. I would rate this a 4-star review. I found I was slow reading this novella, though I believe that is a reflection of me as a reader not the book. As a romance reader the concept of the book and the way that is has been written is different to my usual reads which I believed have reflected on my reading. I did really enjoyed the concept of this novella, watching as a couple learns to heal and come together from a third-party view, though I was feeling like a third wheel throughout the entire novel, which I believed hindered my ability to become emotionally attached to the characters. But the perspective was a unique and interesting take that I haven't experienced before in a book.

The inclusion of characters like Dream, Cupid, and the others added an element of intrigue. Seeing how the immortals view mortals and their cautious lack of involvement made the emotional connections in the story all the more touching. Being a Novella there are questions that are left unanswered in relations to the characters and I am left wondering if this is a standalone novella and if I will have those questions answered.

While I don't see myself reading this book again, the concept has definitely left me intrigued. I would recommend this book to a select group of friends who I believe would appreciate its unique perspective on love. If you enjoy exploring different viewpoints and meanings of love, then this book is a good read for you.

Thank-you to NetGallery for allowing me the opportunity to read this eARC.

Dream a Little Dream of Me was a short, sweet novella of love and friendship featuring meddling gods. The author's passion for the storyline was very clear, and the afterword proved the sentimental place Dream a Little Dream of Me came from. It was a poetic and romantic exploration of the bonds that keep us together.

Despite this, I found the pacing of the book jilted at times, and often repetitive. Varma often makes the same statement or observation and restates it in the following sentences, a very jarring form of writing that resulted in my attention escaping the book. This, combined with both chunks of exposition and a lack of scene exploration with flat characters resulted in a lack of immersion. Thus, I rate Dream a Little Dream of Me 3/5 stars.

2.5 ✯

“Oh my dear brother, you fear me without realizing that it is your fear that gives me the power I need.”

⚜

I really liked the concept of this Novella, this story is through the eyes of the immortal entities, Cupid and Dream, while they struggle to bring two soulmates together without using Cupid’s magic.

Chris and Zoya’s relationship dynamic was complicated, with misunderstandings separating them for three years. I enjoyed watching their past unfold and understanding what went wrong between them, although I felt we didn’t have much explanation for what Chris had hurtfully said to his friends about her. He also never said sorry to Zoya for this.

I enjoyed watching Cupid and Dream get attached to this love story for their own reasons and trying everything they could to make it work. Throughout the story, their own relationship improved and they started working together on their goal of reuniting Chris and Zoya.

I really wish we had found out whether Melissa and Mark were also soulmates, their relationship was adorable.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC.

Thank you to the author and the publisher, Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op, for sharing an ARC of this little novella with me on NetGalley!!!

So so good!!! Such an interesting novella! Easy to read and engaging. Cupid and Dream enter a competition over two soulmates to fall for one another but this time without Cupid intervening with his powers. It was such a good story. Heartwarming and light and without any trace of desperation and torment. This time the leading force of the story is love and hope. Wonderful!!!

This is totally a 5 star read for me. Such a good book. So so so good! I recommend everyone to read this amazing story.

Okay, first of all…I loved this so much but would have loved it even more if it was a full-length novel and not a novella.

I have always been fascinated by the idea of Cupid, and I enjoyed the add in of Dream and how they mixed together with the humans.

This was a really quick, easy and enjoyable read.

*Thank you to Net Galley, for this ARC. I am leaving an honest and voluntary review*

This book, all be it a novella was actually too cute.

I had no idea that story that what was told was going in the direction it went in and I really enjoyed all of it.

Could this book be longer and give more back story and completed on other characters stories? Yes 100% but is it refreshing enough to just get away with being a novella focusing on two characters that made me happy? Yes 10000%

This is a cute fantasy novella and I would recommend to anyone who just wanted to read a quick romance with angst and a slight tinge of magic 🥰

overall just a really sweet and cute novella! i loved the premise but definitely look forward to more world building in the next book(s). the theme was something we all need these days and presented in such a captivating way, i was engaged and couldnt help but binge it!

"I used to think love was powerful. But not as powerful as hope."

"Dream a Little Dream of Me" is an enchanting and sweet novella. It did feel very short and almost rushed; that being said, the story is still capable of creating an impact.

It is a sweet tale about Dream and Cupid, who make a bet involving mortals that are soulmates, and things don't go as planned.

This was very well written and takes a good look at relationships and what goes into them.

I would not be mad if Akira Varma wants to develop these characters more and write a full novel.

Thank you, NetGalley for the chance to read this novella.

I picked up this book because of the synopsis. I felt like this book was too long, but also too short. Some things felt rushed, while other things felt glossed over.

I also don't really know how to feel about the characters because I don't feel like I really got to know either Cupid and Dream. Chris and Zoya, the two estranged soulmates, are the ones that I got to know the best, but I still feel like there are gaps in their history. Which might be part of the point, since they were more a plot devise than characters.

The narrative sometimes switched perspective between Cupid and Dream mid-paragraph. And that sometimes threw me off. It made the narrative inconsistent. I was more interested in Dream and Cupid, but they weren't as front and center as I would've liked. The author's note mentioned that there's another book, or a sequel of sorts that's going to focus more on Dream. And I like that idea, since this book did start with Dream talking about how his power struggles, something that I felt got pushed so far to the background that I started to forget that was what started the bet.

"I used to think love was powerful." "But not was powerful as hope." "...the hope of love. And maybe sometimes, we need that hope as well."

For being a novella, the story really packs a punch. It explores the topics of hope, love, and people being more than they seem.

Dream & Cupid make a bet involving mortals that are soulmates, but things don't go exactly as they plan. People aren't always what they seem, and sometimes all it takes is a little hope.

I truly hope the author gives us more insight into Dream and Cupid in a future story. There is still so much that I want to know about them.

I would recommend this story to anyone wanting a heart warming, quick read.

A short, somewhat sweet fantasy novella. I didn't find the love story or any of the characters compelling. Due to the limited number of pages in this book, I found the worldbuilding lackluster and not enough to make me care about this story. Although interesting ideas were introduced, none of them were executed especially well. The writing in particular I found really repetitive, which is a significant problem when the book is this short. For example, there were MANY lines like the following:

"Dream was right. Of course, Dream was right."

"If Cupid could find out why, he'd be one step closer to understanding their problem. And if he could understand their problem..."

I know this is somewhat of a nitpick, but the length of the book really made instances like the one above stand out in a bad way. I didn't need these basic concepts reiterated.

This was not for me, but if you want a short read, this one will deliver.

I read this book through NetGalley.

Firstly, I'd like to thank NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of "Dream a Little Dream of Me" in return for my honest review.

"Dream a Little Dream of Me" is a novella that follows Cupid, an immortal entity that brings soulmates together, as he makes a bet with Dream, another immortal entity, that he can bring two soulmates together WITHOUT using his magic. The soulmates in question were once childhood friends and now they hate each other... what could go wrong?

I was drawn into this book first by the cover, it's just gorgeous, and then by the concept. However, I think the concept could have been executed better. The verbiage and descriptions were very repetitive, and it made me want to stop reading. I loved the idea of Cupid, an immortal being that weaves fate to bring soulmates together. It's romantic and it's fun to see a love story form from the outside looking in.

I did DNF this story about halfway through.

I was given an advanced copy in exchange for my review. This is my honest review that I am leaving voluntarily. The concept was a mash up of "sandman" the Netflix TV show and "The good Omens". So it was good but it wasn't original. The writing wasn't terrible but it was third person and it would follow the mmc "dream" and then he would leave a room and then we would end up following 'cupid'. It was a short read and I did appreciate that aspect. I just wasn't into it and it wasn't for me but I'm sure it will be for the people who are looking for a short fantasy read.