ZOOLOO’S BOOK TOURS | THE DREAM TRAVELLER: DARK RISING | JOHN NASSARI

 

BOOK REVIEW | THE DREAM TRAVELLER: DARK RISING | JOHN NASSARI

ABOUT THE BOOK

The Dream Dark Rising, an epic fantasy adventure.

 Book one of the Dream Traveller Series.

 Girvyn is unaware he possesses a unique he can enter people's dreams, identifying him as a Dream Traveller.

 Girvyn aspires to follow in his uncle’s scholarly footsteps. Yet, his future veers off course when a dream entangles his fate with a forest tribe ravaged by demons, led by the rogue Traveller, Crane. Crane has long schemed to merge his nightmarish realm with the Waking world, a plan exposed by a lone survivor's harrowing tale. Crane's vulnerability lies in his physical form; destroying it would disperse his demonic legions. While some advocate for a global military alliance against him, others see hope in young Girvyn, who controls a mysterious and deadly gateway.

 However, uncle Laglen fears Girvyn is not prepared for such a grave role. Girvyn must master his emerging abilities to navigate a destiny that binds him to an epic struggle between dreams and reality.

 With the world teetering on collapse, can Queen Amelia of Rathnell and her sworn protector, Elaya Faith, persuade other nations to join forces to assault Crane’s northern fortress, or will the fate of the waking world rest on the shoulders of a young scholar?

REVIEW

The Dream Traveller: Dark Rising is the first in an intriguing new series by John Nassari.

Set in a medieval world, the story focuses on Girvyn, a young man whose dream worlds become reality.

Opening with an attack on a village in a forest setting by demons and an unknown figure in purple, the land of Rathnell and further beyond its borders come to realise that an unknown assailant is decimating whole villages and stealing the children. Reports abound of monsters and demons attacking the villages.

Surviving the attack on her village, a young girl travels to the Queen’s court to report about the incident.

Meanwhile, Girvyn is plagued by dreams. He witnesses inhabitants forced into a strange land and changed into horrifying monsters. Girvyn soon learns after entering the dream of his uncle that he is a Dream Traveller and that he is able to enter the land of dreams. After being introduced to his power, he soon learns that he is part of a select few who are able to enter the land of dreams and manipulate it to their own will.

This is an enjoyable fantasy novel that blurs the lines between reality and fantasy. Nassari builds a complex world that has plenty of adventure and intrigue.

At times, the story uses some well worn tropes and can fall into predictable modes of story telling. In addition to this, it is difficult to determine who the story was aimed at. Having no knowledge of this book, I initially thought it was an adult fantasy, but it soon became clear that this was aimed at young adults.

However, this does not impact on my enjoyment of the story, and I think that this is a good gateway fantasy for those that are just being introduced to the genre.

On the whole this was an enjoyable read that had a solid plot and complex world building and is perfect for those that want get into the fantasy genre.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

By day, John Nassari is a London-based photographer; by night, he is a passionate fantasy writer.

John’s love for fantasy literature began in his teenage years, inspiring a lifelong dedication to storytelling. His debut novel, The Dream Traveller: Dark Rising, was released on May 7, 2024, and quickly gained recognition. It reached the No. 1 Best Seller spot on Amazon Kindle in August 2024 and became a finalist in the 2024 Page Turner Awards.