by Lauren Mechling
ages: 12+
First sentence: “You could say I was running behind schedule, though that would be putting an optimistic spin on it.”
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Review copy sent to me by the publisher.

Things are looking up for our girl, Claire. She managed to save her friend Becca’s family — the Shuttleworths of Soul Sauce fame — from the doom and gloom in the last adventure through her snazzy black-and-white dreams. She managed to snag a super cool college boyfriend, Andy (though they’re keeping it hush-hush for now). All while managing to take down the snitty bad girls at Hudson High. (End previous book plot summary.)

So, what could get in her way?

Well, lots, actually. Claire’s up and down with her boyfriend. Becca has taken to hanging out with her old prep-school friends, and doesn’t have as much time for Claire anymore. She hasn’t even had any decent dreams of late. Everything seems to be falling apart. But then, Claire is initiated into this super-secret New York club, the Blue Moons, and suddenly everything picks up again. A mystery to solve! Black and white dreams! Socialites! Protests! Murder mystery parties!

Dream Life was much like Dream Girl, but better. Perhaps it was because I knew what to expect out of it — lots of fluff, a bit of action, great clothes and happening hot-spots — but, while I enjoyed the first, found this one to be a lot more fun. I especially loved the minor characters: Hallie, a goth foodie that’s also inducted into the Blue Moons (why couldn’t she have more to do?); Ian, Claire’s geeky comic book side-kick from Hudson (felt like he totally had a thing for Claire… why couldn’t she get the geeky guy rather than the uber-cool college one?); and Louis, Claire’s friend from her former high school, who has a thing for Becca. The three of them made book fun for me. But, beyond that, it’s a book with a winning combination of fashion, mystery and fun.

Can’t lose with that.