Perchance to Dream by Lisa Mantchev

Hello!

Glad you could join me for another rousing round of...Oh, my!  Is that a fabulous book that's been read, reviewed and I simply must have?  Why yes...yes it is...here at Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers!  You'll have to forgive any over the top flourish today as I just finished reading the most wonderful sequel in a rather flashy series and dramatic flair is simply the order of the day.  What book you may ask?  Hmm...wouldn't you like to know...no really, I'm sure you would.  It's actually the feature of the day!  Ready?  Today's book of choice is....

Theatre Illuminata, Book 2:

Perchance to Dream

by

Lisa Mantchev

(Okay, first things first...let's take a moment to ogle the cover....ah, yes...it is rather lovely isn't it?  Okay, back to business...)  Welcome, welcome!  Please, sit for a spell and join us as the players take the stage for tonight's performance...only there is no official stage, rather a stage coach, and the players are on the move, far away from their usual haunt.  When last we saw Beatrice Shakespeare Smith, affectionately known as Bertie (and as such referred to from here forward), Sedna had just finished reeking havoc on the theater, Ariel was running errands for Bertie and Nate was pulled into a watery abyss.  A few questions answered...the identity of Bertie's mother, the woman behind the Mistress of Revels, and the way in which a player may have the final curtain fall on their performance.  A few questions raised...who is Bertie's father, is Nate really gone, and why on earth is Ariel behaving so cordially towards her NOW of all times.  Yes, it is a wicked web we weave and a weary world in which it is woven (whoa...that's nine words with the letter "w"....couldn't have done that if I was actually trying...). 

Bertie, not being one to take things lying down, sets out to retrieve her wayward pirate...hoping against hope that she is not too late (watery abyss and all...tends to leave less room for necessary air to breathe).  Her travel companions?  Well, none other than her fairy friends....Peaseblossom, Cobweb, Moth, and Mustardseed.  Never leave home without a merry band of food loving followers.  What's this?  One companion we've forgotten!  Why, it's Ariel the windy elemental and look, he's here of his own volition.  Interesting turn of events.  No matter.  There is much for Bertie to learn if she intends to find what (who) was lost and claim it once again for her own.  The power of words is a tricky business indeed, but one that she must master quickly lest she falls prey to the wickedness that shadows her intended goal.  Oh, Bertie...what HAVE you gotten yourself into?

If you saw my Goodreads updates, you might already have a fairly good idea about my opinion of this book. Three words...I LOVED IT. Yes! It's true! It was a wonderful second installment to the series full of twists and turns, OMG and Aww moments, the works. Like a well rehearsed play, author Lisa Mantchev struck story telling gold with this one (though one could say 'yet again' with the brilliance that was EYES LIKE STARS).

Your attention is hooked, no grabbed, no clasped by the unflinching hands of the story spinner as the action, the romance, the I'm-gonna-throttle-you-no-wait-embrace-you events unfold before your eyes. (Okay, well mine was at the very least and if you liked the first novel, I can pretty much say this one will fit your fancy as well.)

Character wise....they feel like old chums (hmm, that was sorta proper English there...must be my UK friends influence...anywho...) come together once again to weave a tale unlike any other starring themselves nonetheless. At times, you'll want to love and not-so-much-love both Nate (don't believe me...oh, BELIEVE it) and Ariel (well, that's not so much a surprise now is it?), though Bertie's character remains a steadfast pulse of pure brilliance. She's a girl trying to reconcile the past she's never had with a future that's just out of reach and find answers to herself in the mix of it all. Throw in the two boys vying for her hand (in more ways than one...nope, not gonna spoil it though) and yeah, the emotional roller coaster is palpable through the pages...much like the golden light from The Complete Works of the Stage.

Story wise...there is more than one mystery revealed within these pages. Questions both asked and answered....who is Bertie's father? It's....him? Really? NO WAY! Bertie's true love is...him? Nu-uh! Nate's really not...wow! And he didn't want....NO! But Ariel was....really? You can't be serious!  That's just too much of a good thing!  And whoa...Sedna and...?  GASP!  (What? You thought I'd TELL you....um, no. Gonna have to read it...sorry, well not really...it's good!)

Special thanks to author Lisa Mantchev and the folks at Feiwel and Friends for the ARC for review! (THANKS!) If you haven't checked out this authors amazing work, visit her site (one or two) or follow along on Twitter!  To find out more about Feiwel and Friends, visit their site, take a look at their blog, or follow along on Twitter!  (Gotta love Twitter...really...)

So if you've read the first book, I suggest ye get thine shelf to a bookstore (or online site) and order up this fresh addition as it be on sale for your reading pleasure.  If you haven't read the first book...um, why?  No, really, why?  It's really good.  Still not quite sure?  Okay, for a little glimpse at it's contents, my review.  One final note to this fabulous author....hi, can we have book three ASAP?  Much thanks.  (^_^)  Alrighty then, let's finish this act in true Bertie style with a flourish, a bang and a well timed bow.

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Until next time....happy reading!

 

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