Dreamslinger

Gr 5 Up–Kim’s new novel offers a whimsical fantasy for readers. Ten years ago, 14-year-old, Aria Loveridge’s mother died in the Great Outburst. Raised by her father, she now lives at the Resthaven Home for Dreamslingers. Cursed with the Dreamslinger gene, her father is an expert on Dreamslinger Welfare. When the Royal Hanguk’s Dreamslinger League announces the opening of trials for teenage slingers, Aria knows she must go, not only to learn about her powers but to also spy for her father. Things, however, at the trial aren’t quite going as planned. Her dreampanion Rio is born missing part of its tail and struggles with flying, and the two have trouble seeing eye to eye. As she uncovers dark secrets from her mother’s past. Aria starts to question everything she’s known. Who was her mother really? The plot is engaging, well written, and full of adventure, while the characters are entertaining and multifaceted. The worldbuilding is imaginative and draws readers into the novel. Although they are a key part of the story’s subplot, heavy themes of government oppression of Dreamslinger powers and radical rebellion often overshadow the main plot, leading to bouts of exposition that render the pacing uneven. Aria is half-Korean, half-white.