Dreamland: An Evening Standard 'Best New Book' of 2021

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While Colby and Morgan are falling in love, Beverly is on the run with her six-year-old son, from an abusive marriage. Fearing for her life, and her son’s life, she makes sure she is able to escape without a trace. She wonders if she can ever completely escape the clutches of such a controlling man. Namely Peggy and the rest of the Batternbergs must spend the summer in the luxurious Oriental Hotel, barely a mile away from Coney Island. Nancy Bilyeau presents a rip roarin' stroll on the boardwalk on Coney Island in 1911. She adds lustre tinged with darkness as Brooklyn becomes a showcase for in-your-face class distinction, jutting prime real estate, upscale grand hotels overlooking the highjinks of people at play, the paralyzing fear of European anarchists, and America perched on the brink of war.

there is one thing I do know. Women of my family, and all others like us, cannot behave the same as men do.Set in 1911, Peggy Batternberg (yes, she's one of those Batternbergs) is ready to spend the summer playing bookshop keeper far away from her rich, snobbish family. The Author shares on her blog, the inspiration behind dreamland: http://nancybilyeau.blogspot.com/2019... Disapprove they may, but hidden behind their pomposity lurks a web of deceit, betrayal and deadly secrets. And as bodies begin to mount up amidst the sweltering clamour of Coney Island, it seems the powerful Batternbergs can get away with anything…even murder. Imagine being on the cusp of your new life at a time that America was changing. Peggy in the novel is an heiress so think of the Vanderbilts and all that jazz and it’s a whirlwind ride. It’s a time of changing morals, women’s freedoms, how women were supposed to act and how rich heiresses were supposed to act in particular. Family dynamics are interesting! The setting of Coney Island, brilliantly brought to life by the author, in many ways reflects the gulf between rich and poor. The rich and privileged of society, such as the Batternberg family, live the high life in luxurious seafront hotels waited upon hand and foot and seek escapism in the entertainment offered in Dreamland. Meanwhile the less fortunate toil there in the heat or are presented as objects of freakish fascination and novelty.The invitation to the luxurious Oriental Hotel a mile from Coney Island is unwelcome. Despite hailing from one of America’s richest families, Peggy would much rather spend the summer working at the Moonrise Bookstore than keeping up appearances with New York City socialites and her snobbish, controlling family. I adored Peggy and thought she was so likable and I really felt all of her struggles when it came to class and expectations from her family as well as her other social constraints during that time. The author made her come alive and I acutely felt her struggles which for me is a hallmark of a great characters and story. The introduction of OxyContin into the American medical industry might have been the literal cause of addiction, but the origins of the American opiate epidemic are based in a drastic transformation of the way the medical industry viewed and treated pain. Prior to the 1970s, opiates were highly stigmatized in America. Doctors who prescribed opiate painkillers were seen as “outlaws,” as opiate painkillers were highly addictive. The stigmatization of opiates, though somewhat warranted, resulted in the suffering of many patients in legitimate need of pain relief. For decades, researchers and medical professionals searched, in vain, for a “Holy Grail,” a drug that would allow for pain relief without the undesirable side effect of addiction. In the latter half of the 20th century, attitudes toward pain and its treatment began to change with the introduction of palliative care, or “treating the pain and stress of the seriously ill.” One influence of palliative care was the work of Cicely Saunders. Saunders, an English nurse and researcher, treated cancer patients with opiates. Saunders believed “that death should be dignified,” and that patients were entitled to pain relief in their final days. The women find themselves in the same book club, which cycles through tons of enticing titles that Fadipe has kindly included a list of at the end of the novel. When the women get into discussing the books they’ve read, it’s clearly a statement on the story; halfway through, there’s essentially a book report on “Americanah” about the way women oppress each other. It’s heavy handed, but it works. This was a wonderful work of historical fiction that looked at Coney Island and the division between the social classes over a century ago. Themes then are still reverent today: family secrets, young love, crimes against women, family expectations, etc. Besides the impressive research that went into this wonderfully written book, it is also engaging, and the plot flowed seamlessly. Although, Peggy had to do what her family wanted, she still found a way to find freedom, have courage, and do what she felt was right even when it went against her families wishes. Peggy is a likable character with spunk.

Peggy Battenberg is requested to stay with her family on Coney Island. She reluctantly accepts. Peggy feels trapped within her family, their name, their riches, and she wants to shape her own identity. Shortly after arriving to the Oriental Hotel on Coney Island, prejudices are unearthed and a prevalent divide of social classes greet her while making her way to Dreamland. But, women begin to show up dead. Who can she trust and why is she being followed? Such fans do not really have to work that hard to put all the pieces into place and make sense of all the jargon that Dale Brown throws around. For most normal readers, though, the Dreamland series can feel like a chore to read Peggy is told not to mix herself with the common folk of Coney Island, but never one to conform to her family’s expectations, she sneaks into the darkness to Dreamland. The greatest minds in the country use Dreamland to bring some truly amazing projects to life. The fact that someone like Dale Brown wrote Dreamland isn’t amazing. The author flew planes in the army. He understands aerospace technology, and it was only natural that he would seek to explore the subject in fiction. The Dreamland series is very reminiscent of Brown’s earlier work.The cover of Dreamland is beautiful. It reminded me of Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus which I really liked and I requested for this one without reading the summary. It's a completely different genre—Dreamland being a historical mystery and The Night Circus being fantasy. I don't know if it's just me but the cover seemed to promise magic and it was a slight disappointment when I read the summary and realized there would be none.

I have to admit that at some points I felt it is a little slow-paced, but it wasn't the book's fault. After some time I have realized that the not too slow not too fast pace of it, it was perfect for this kind of book, and it gave me time to sink in all the information and feelings. The year is 1911 when twenty-year-old heiress Peggy Batternberg is invited to spend the summer in America’s Playground. There are some distinctly unlikable male characters in the book including senior members of the Batternberg family who indulge in immoral behaviour whilst insisting on high standards of propriety from their own wives and daughters. Initially I found Peggy’s sister Lydia rather a wet blanket although I did feel sorry for the position in which she finds herself, promised in marriage to the rich and arrogant Henry as ‘the human glue between two families” rather as if she was a business asset the subject of a merger or acquisition. Later I warmed to her as Lydia proves her mettle in other ways. Overall it was a compelling mystery story, with some interesting comments on class and prejudice in the early 20th century.

Thank you to Hannah Groves from Endeavor Media for providing me with an advanced copy. Opinions are my own.