You’ll be swept away in this feel-good romance set in a blend of West World, the Star Trek holodeck, and Total RecallWorkaholic insurance attorney Luke Darringer has it all: money, looks, ambition. Sure, he hasn’t taken a vacation in over a decade, and his personal life is almost nonexistent—but that’s a small price to pay in order to maintain strict control, and minimize his vulnerabilities. But … vulnerabilities.
But then Luke’s firm, with the help of his cheeky administrative assistant Charlotte, strong-arms him into becoming the first-ever client of the new Dreamscape Adventures, Inc. The new company promises fantastical vacations to wealthy clients, as well as controlled therapeutic experiences to individuals suffering from various forms of mental illness, such as autism and PTSD. They’re a potentially huge client for Luke’s firm, but they need liability insurance before they can get off the ground. Luke expects he’ll have a quick little canyoneering adventure like he did back in his college days, and then get right back to the grindstone.
But Luke’s adventure doesn’t quite go the way he planned. Eli, the entrepreneur in charge, assures Luke that the glitches are nothing to worry about, and they’ll have things under control again in no time. Instead, Luke soon finds himself in a wilderness of questionable reality, where he is responsible not only for his own safety, but also Charlotte’s, Eli’s, and that of a nonverbal autistic boy whose vulnerability strikes a bit too close to home. Forced to confront his past and his deepest fears, Luke must decide whether to rewrite history and become the man he’s always wanted to be—or whether instead he is doomed to repeat it.
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What happens when an opportunity for the vacation of a lifetime turns into a nightmare? Luke Derringer is already disgruntled about being assigned the task to assess Dreamscape Adventures, Inc for liability insurance when his working vacation quickly turns into a matter of wilderness survival. Not only will he have to help a group of inexperienced canyoneers survive in the harsh climate, but he’ll also have to relive the childhood fears that he had long ago locked away.
As a first time reader of C. A. Gray’s work, I was very pleased with my reading experience. Gray did a magnificent job of creating an exciting story premise with the Dreamscape technology. She also kept the story engaging with the interpersonal relationships between the characters and the dangers of wilderness survival. I enjoyed watching Luke’s inner struggles as he wrestled with the problems presented and how his attitude was affected by everything that happened along the way. This book ended up being a quick read as I could not wait to find out how things would turn out in the end.
In a way, the book reminded me of Jurassic Park—an expensive pleasure business that requires approval for liability insurance, but an IT glitch causes major issues for the test-run clients leaving them to survive in a dangerous setting. In Dreamscapes, however, there are no man-eating dinosaurs lurking in the background, only Luke’s worst fears and the childhood trauma that shaped him into the cold, hard man he was at the beginning of the book. Luke’s character growth was slow and steady over the course of the story, and while I think he still had a ways to go at the end, I found the conclusion of the book was overall satisfying.
I’m glad I had an opportunity to read and review this book, and I look forward to reading more from this author soon! If you like virtual reality technology, redemption, relationship development, and survival stories, you’ll want to check this one out for yourself!
The content is appropriate for a mature teen or adult audience. The book includes mild swearing and allusions to sexual activities but nothing graphic.
I received a free copy of the book to read. I am leaving a review voluntarily.
When I started the book, I thought I might not like this one as a high powered attorney for an insurance company is not really my cup of tea. Plus, he was a jerk! Although the longer I read, the more intrigued I was by the story. Charlotte is a wonderful character and she really adds a lot to the story. Eli and Billy were characters with a twist. This is not the usual story that I would read, as I am more into space science fiction, but I think it was a GREAT story and would highly recommend it.
This review is for the audiobook version.
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Ms. Gray has given me quite the adventure. First she gives me a character that I started out wondering if I would ever like him. He seemed bound and determined not to like what was going to happen to him. Then we meet his assistant. You start to wonder why she stays working for a man who seems so self-absorbed. You continue because you wonder what the author plans for the character’s/and our adventure. I was impressed that the author included a character that has a disorder. We see that the characters aren’t perfect and that’s just the way I like it – it helps make the story seem more real.
Mr. Berry may not have me thinking of either of the main characters while listening to him. He did however help while picturing the scenes as they went by. And I could picture him being a secondary character keeping us up to date on all the goings on.
I thought this more fantasy and science fiction than paranormal. This is a story that I could see becoming real at some time in time. After all, if an author can be so creative to come up with a dream adventure why can’t someone take her idea and run with it. Thinking back to some of the old shows I grew up with, I could see this becoming a part of a series. Each week would be another adventure. Maybe there would be a part of the plot that they find themselves needing to get out of trouble.
Our author creates suspense, hints of romance, and plenty to get you caught up in what’s going on. Will things turn out ok? How would we get ourselves out of the same situation? Would you go to the company and ask them to create you an adventure? Will you follow this author and see what else she has to offer?
I voluntarily reviewed an Audiobook copy of this book.
This was my first C.A. Gray’s book. Dreamscape Adventures, Inc. is a fantasy paranormal novel, suspenseful, twisted and really captivating. I loved it! Luke is an intriguing character. His assistant, Chalotte, is a great character, caring and supportive. The secondary characters, Eli, and Billy are also really interesting. The storyline is original and captivating, filled with adventure and danger. I love the ending. Matthew E Berry did an outstanding job with the narration. He has a great voice, easy to understand. All characters were easy to distinguish. I enjoyed my listening, and highly recommend it. I was given a free review copy of the audiobook — at my request — and have voluntarily left this review.
I really enjoyed reading this book. Seeking funding for their project that allows customers to live out their own personal adventure of choice, Luke is invited to go on an unpredictable adventure of his own. If you enjoy fantasy and sci-fi, you’ll enjoy this book.
This is a different kind of book for me so I was not sure what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised. Although it might seem like Westworld, the story is fresh. The characters are interesting and complex. Luke has been through a lot of trauma in his life leaving him not interested in a long term relationship and he seems like a jerk. There are twists, many of which were expected but some that weren’t.
I definitely enjoyed reading this book.
I am giving it four stars due to the improbability of certain situations.
I received a free copy of this book from the author through Book Sirens and I am voluntarily leaving my honest review.