The Dream Daughter: A Novel

I have been obsessed with Diane Chamberlain book since 2014. So far I’ve read 20 of her books including this one. I follow Diane on Facebook and I knew that her next book was going to be a time travel novel. I was extremely nervous. She had never written anything with a this kind of element before and I had no idea how it was going to work. I’m not a huge sci-fi fan and time travel can often can be confusing. Going into this book I thought this book was going to be a big flop for me. Boy was I wrong. This book is addicting! I couldn’t stop reading! I’m a third grade teacher and most school nights I’m lucky if I read anything. I read this whole book in one sitting on a school night. If that doesn’t say everything already, keep reading this review. The pages just melt away like butter. They are so easy to take in and Diane includes so many elements that make you want to keep reading to find out what is going to happen next. So many times, I kept saying “One more chapter” because I had chores around the house to do. Well one more chapter turned into reading the whole book. I couldn’t put it down. The characters and settings were really unique. It was interesting to see how characters translated or changed based off of the time frame they were set in or transitioned to. It was obvious when we had a 1970s character in a present like time frame or a present time frame character in the 1970s. It just showed how good of a writer Diane Chamberlain is. When we were in 2001, I felt transported back to when I was 11 and what the world was like then. I found myself really caring for and empathizing with the characters and freaking out whenever events would occur for them. The sci-fi elements made me the most nervous going into this book. I was scared they would either be too confusing, unrealistic, and not done in a way that I could understand. Diane Chamberlain wrote it this time travel in a very simple way that will let contemporary fans and sci-fi fans alike to access this type of story, which I really appreciated. Overall Diane Chamberlain will stay one of my favorite authors. If you haven’t given her a chance yet, this is the one to try! I will continue to gloat and rave about her. My viewers of my youtube channel always ask me which one I recommend, and I will be recommending this one for a while! Can’t wait for her to come up with something else! Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an early copy of this book.

Life has been hard for Carly Sears. Her husband Joe, her childhood sweetheart, had gone to Vietnam and been killed two weeks later. That knocked the pins out from under Carly's world. She gives up her physical therapist job and goes to live with her sister and brother-in-law in the family's beach cottage in Nags Head, North Carolina. The family support and familiar surroundings start to help Carly find her footing and then she finds that she is pregnant. All her hopes are now focused on the baby which will be her living tie to Joe. But fate isn't done with Carly yet. In a routine checkup, she gets horrific news. Her baby has a heart defect and will only live a few days after birth. Reeling, Carly is about to give up when her brother-in-law, Hunter, comes to her with a strange story. Hunter had come into her life as a patient when he was found with a broken ankle and hospitalized. Carly worked with him and got him back on his feet and introduced him to her sister. Now Hunter tells her something that she cannot believe. Hunter's background has always been a bit mysterious, something he won't talk about. Now he tells Carly that his mother had perfected time travel and he has come back from the future in the early 2000's. When he fell in love and married, he decided to stay but he can get Carly to the future where her baby's heart can be operated on in utero and fixed before birth. Carly can't believe it but decides to trust Hunter. Everything works as he promises and her baby is born and starts doing well in the newborn intensive care. Carly has to go back but vows to return quickly to her baby and bring her back to the coast. But when Hunter sends her forward again, instead of returning to 2001, she ends up in 2011, her baby long gone. Carly tracks the baby down and finds a way to meet her. Her daughter is now a lovely, healthy ten year old with loving adopted parents. Should Carly stay with her daughter? Should she take her back with her to the past? Whenever I read a time travel book, I just suspend disbelief since the science is never going to work out. To me, this was a book about a mother's love for her daughter and about what one will do for the people they love. Carly always makes the best out of what life throws her and is focused on those she loves and what is best for them. This book is recommended for readers of women's fiction.

I absolutely LOVED this book! It was extremely well written and so unique. I had a hard time putting it down. Thank you,Diane, for such a great story!

If you’d like to time travel and you want a story with a lot of twist, this is perfect and it’s such a beautiful story

I wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy The Dream Daughter at first—the premise seemed a bit unusual—but I’m so glad I gave it a chance. I discovered this title through the AI book matching quiz on Fable, which recommended it to me. After reading a few reviews, I decided to dive in, and I was pleasantly surprised at how much I loved this novel. The story centers on Carly, a mother whose love and devotion to her daughter drive the plot in deeply moving ways. As a mother of a daughter myself, I found much of the storyline relatable and touching. Having been born in the early 1970s, I also appreciated how the book transported me through familiar time periods from my own life, adding a layer of nostalgia to the experience. The time travel element of the story caught me off guard. I admit I had to suspend disbelief at times, but I’m glad I did. The pacing was swift, and the narrative was compelling, ultimately delivering an emotional and tender tale that resonated with me. Overall, I would give The Dream Daughter 4 stars. It’s a heartfelt, enjoyable read that exceeded my expectations and left me thinking about the power of a mother’s love.

I loved this book. It was about time travel and a mother’s love

I read The Dream Daughter on the recommendation of a friend, but was tempted to quit until halfway through the book. Till then, it was the sort of nothing novel you only keep reading in order to find out WHAT HAPPENS. There was little or no character development, especially missed in Myra and her teenage son. The plot read like: Then I did THIS, but THIS happened, and then THAT happened, etc. Finally, when I had about given up, the real story started, and the characters in it began to act like real people. Caveats: It's a dead giveaway, when Carly goes to New York in 2001, that she will be affected by the strongest event of that year; you keep waiting for that particular shoe to drop. Also, futuristic anachronisms like "Seriously?" keep popping up in Carly's speech, which any good editor should have caught. You know, from the type of book it is, that it will all turn out all right. I give the author good marks for NOT making this story a romance, and for NOT sending her heroine into the past. Vintage Season, Time And Again, Outlander, City On The Edge Of Forever, and countless others haves covered that ground; there have been all too many inferior others. It's okay for Carly to have a baby in the future because we're constantly messing with the future anyway. So I would classify this as a COSY book, despite its constantly dire first half. I would have liked Myra and the young Hunter to come into the story more. Hunter in particular would have been a good choice to communicate with both future and past. Some questions about time travel remain, that ought to be explored. When you leave the present and travel in time, why must you return at a later time? Why can't you return before you started? Does the time you spent "away" need to correspond in some way to time elapsed in the present? And, particular to this book: If anyplace 15 feet off the ground makes a good portal, why aren't high divers, ski jumpers, suicides, etc., constantly disappearing? But this is not the book for that. You'd need a really thoughtful SF writer like the Arthur C. Clarke, C.L. Moore, or Isaac Asimov.

I've read four of Diane's books and each are captivating enjoyable reads, with twists leaving me unable to predict endings. Dream Daughter was the same. I loved this book, it was a page turner and spurred my imagination. I usually sell my books on ebay after reading. But as a new fan of Diane's I'm keeping them all. On to the next one, so many to choose from. Also appreciate the "A note from the author" section in the last pages. Diane shares books that she enjoyed and inspired her interest of time travel. I plan to read each one so thanks to her for steering us toward more great stories.

I have to admit, I have loved every single book of Diane Chamberlain - and yes, I've read them all! This book is no exception. The topic Diane chooses is always well thought out, never black and white. What I really admire about this writer is her ability to make me think. Why do I believe what I do? What might it feel like to be 'on the other side of the fence'? Termination of pregnancy (abortion) is never an easy topic to discuss, but it must be done. Until we examine why we think what we do, and are honest enough with ourselves, we will never be able to understand someone else's point of view. It is far too easy to make our own decision and expect that everyone else should follow what WE think. A very thought provoking book, and I could not put it down until the last page, and then I purchased the recommended texts as well!

False adverting no mention of time travel before purchase. Rip off, terribly written. The order was good quality though, no damage to book and delivered quickly.

Loved this book! It was iffy at first but half way, I was sooo into it and read it in 4 days.

Diane Chamberlain is my favourite writer of emotional fiction and The Dream Daughter is a perfect example of why she’s not going to be knocked from that top spot any time soon. Carly Sears is newly pregnant when she receives the heart-breaking news that her husband has been killed in the Vietnam War. Sadly, the baby she carries suffers from a severe heart problem that is impossible to fix in 1970. However, Carly’s brother-in-law, Hunter, is certain her baby can be saved, as long as Carly is willing to be transported to the future. The time travel element of the story is so expertly woven throughout the narrative that it is easy to suspend disbelief. In fact, the uncertainty of time travel adds tension to what is already a gripping, moving read. The dilemma Carly faces, torn between the family she loves in 1970 and securing a future for her baby daughter, is almost too hard to contemplate and yet, as ever, Diane Chamberlain makes it impossible not to read on. One of my favourite reads of the year.

Great great book. Love the story, it made me cry. I loved this book. 100% recommend.