Review of The Dream Crystal by Mark O'Bannon

In the first book of Mark O'Bannon's The Dream War series, Erin is a student in Seattle studying to be a fashion designer. Her dream is to bring beauty to a broken, saturated world. Piece by piece, her dreams are dismantled: she's kicked out of school, her martial arts mentor banishes her, something malevolent is stalking her, and she discovers she isn't human—she's a Changeling named Aisling, who, as a baby, was traded with the baby of her mortal parents. In other words, she's a Faerie. She enters the Land of Dreams in the midst of a war with the Shadow People, and with the help of friends she fights to rescue her sister, the real Erin, from the Land of Shadows.

The dreams that the title of the series refers to are the dreams inside anyone; not the ones one has while they are asleep, but the ones that come alive when we think of the future before us, the ends we want to meet, our desires. Throughout Aisling's journey, there's much debate inside herself about whether dreams exist and about the nature of freedom, with which those dreams can be exercised. Many different views of freedom and beauty are confronted, as she struggles with her shattered dreams. However, there's no simple answer to Aisling's questions.

There were a few times when the story seemed staged, when the seams that hold the fabric together could be seen; however, O'Bannon's way of writing gives a mystical, dreamlike quality to the story that works very nicely. O'Bannon is able to depict the faeries as potentially lifelike beings in an interesting world, where their magic is fueled by their dreams. The author focuses primarily on Aisling and her development, so the reader may find some of the relationships and personalities of the supporting cast as not nearly as fleshed out as Aisling's. In spite of this, the author brings the characters together well and does well to illuminate on Aisling's inner struggle and how it correlates with her outer struggle. On the other hand, there's also much action, as Aisling battles for her sister, and the reader is presented with a strong female lead.

Although the story may be more appealing to a young adult, any fantasy lover will enjoy this book, especially if they are interested in Irish mythology and folklore.

Mark O'Bannon's The Dream Crystal is available from Amazon in both print and Kindle editions, among other vendors.

Review by Diana Reed