The Dreamwalker's Child

by Steve Voake

Fifteen-year-old Sam Palmer's life is dull--until a bizarre bicycle accident leaves him in a coma. Sam awakens in Aurobon, a world eerily similar to his own, only to discover that his "accident" was part of an elaborate abduction by a ruler with a deadly agenda. Now Sam must team up with a fearless girl pilot to outwit the enemy. Otherwise, dark forces will invade his own world on insects the size of fighter jets. But that's if the terrifying marsh dogs don't kill him first.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Fiction, Science Fiction, Middle Grade, Childrens

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Steve Voake is the author of all the Daisy Dawson books, as well as two novels for older readers. He lives in Somerset, England.

Reviews

[Victoria Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautifully written, well thought out adventure story with so much heart. Loved it.

[Marie-José · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast pasted story, fascinating story line. Fun to read.

[Kate McMurry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating YA Fantasy with a Science-Fiction Feel

Young teen Sam Palmer is a geeky recluse who is somewhat embarrassed by his obsession with insects. He's also amazed, and slightly freaked out, that his fascination seems to be reciprocal. Insects follow him everywhere. They never hurt him, though, until the day he sees a strange cloud of wasps, feels a sting on his neck, and blacks out. The next thing he knows, Sam is in a strange marsh in the middle of nowhere, in the dead of night, and the only living souls around him are a pack of slavering dog-like creatures out for his blood.

The action gets started in this book almost immediately, and it never stops. The story is told in alternating points of view of Sam, the leaders of two opposing militaries on the planet Sam has been swept to, and Sam's mother, who is the Dreamwalker of the book's title.

There are some truly hideous villains in this book, and Sam is knocked around brutally. He's a very strong protagonist, though, and so is the young girl who is sent to rescue him by the leader of the non-evil army. Skipper is a crack pilot of one of the most unusual flying "machines" you will ever read about in a fantasy.

There are a lot of insects in this book--the whole story is based around them. If you find the very thought of bugs repugnant, you might not enjoy this book. But since this book is primarily geared to adolescent boys, I don't think that will be a problem for them at all. I think they will love this book. The dynamic female character in the book will make it enjoyable for girls as well.

For parents: This book has no sex, drugs, or alcohol, and no bad language. It does, though, have a lot of violence. However, it is presented in such a way that I don't believe young teens will find the book overwhelmingly scary.

[Ali · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sam Palmer and his family have just moved to the country. Sam is bored and fed up, missing his friends and the social life he had in the city. He has always been interested in insects, but now he has become hyper-aware of them, almost to the point of obsession. One summer Saturday he decides that instead of letting the insects follow him, he will follow them, and see where they are coming from. Little does he know that they are slipping between the fabric of our world and the connected world of Aurobon, where there is a fierce war on to stop General Hekken and the dictator Odoursin from destroying humanity in revenge for a terrible accident.


The Dreamwalker's Child by Steve Voake (2005) is a fast paced, exciting read, with an environmental message; if Artemis Fowl is Die Hard with fairies, then this is Rambo with pilot-controlled insects. Sam and Skipper, the daredevil girl insect pilot who rescues him from Hekken's prison-cum-insect breeding factory, are great protagonists, and the action sequences made me hold my breath. This is former Primary head teacher Voake's first novel, and I'll be certainly be hunting down others. Highly recommended for Artemis or Alex Ryder fans.

[Vincent · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading the book “The Dreamwalker’s Child” by Steve Voake, I decided to rate it 4 stars. It was a good book although it’s not perfect so I couldn’t rate it a 5. This is because some parts aren’t that exciting or interesting to read but the book overall was good. I like the setting in that it is somewhat science fiction with fantasy elements in it. The way they explained how things work and how they make pilotable insects are well done with some sci-fi technology as well. The action scenes vary from exciting to repetitive but mostly they are on the exciting side. I like the concept and plot of the book. I feel that the book is made to entertain people who are reading it so I don’t think that there are any important topics in this book. Although, the book does also

[Eilonwy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe 2-1/2 stars.

The story was weird, the mythology was intriguing, and the action was non-stop, so I got through this book pretty quickly. But it didn't feel very satisfying in the end, and I couldn't be bothered to see if there were any sequels (which there doesn't seem to be -- but was this really intended as a standalone?). I was really surprised when I learned that there was a bidding war among publishers for this book -- it was all right, but not that great.

[ReadingSloph · Rating 3 out of 5]

The dream-walker's child is an easy read with a very good world concept. The book has some really good and interesting ideas that I haven't seen before. This gives the book a fresh new feel to it. The reading style drags you into the action and is immersive in its style.
The plot is good, though it feels like it moves too quickly at some points where I feel like it could have gone into more detail especially in the end conflict.
The characters are good and are interesting though I feel like they too could have been developed more and more detail could have been added, though this could be normal for the intended age target.
Overall it was an enjoyable read and was something different to my normal read.

[Kiran · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet, refreshing premise, with fun characters! I got surprisingly attached to the characters given how short the story was, and the emotion was very tangible. The world building was unique; it felt like something out of one of my dreams, both moderately bizarre and yet following logic in its own way. I wonder if the premise actually came from a dream.

I would have liked longer to get to know the characters better and know more about the world (there's a mysterious people who are talked about a lot and show up once but we don't get much about them).

Overall enjoyable, quick story with lots of heart. Great read for a lazy hot summer's day.

[Katherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

- Very interesting premise, but the writer didn’t focus on the most successful ideas

- Cheesy at times, many characters felt like filler content and had very generic personalities

- A very vivid world created, that I wish was explored more

- The ending felt rushed and illogical, the final paragraph I knew was coming but was still annoyed when it happened.

- Overall felt disappointed

[Suzanne Rogers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Camden suggested I read this. The beginning was a little strange with the insect obsession and the creepy marsh dogs, but after the first couple of chapters I really started to enjoy it. A very unusual plot, fast paced and exciting. I liked the ending.

[Susana · Rating 4 out of 5]

As crianças podem esperar um livro de acção, de narrativa fácil e onde quem é sempre salvo é o rapaz. Ah, e não há os namoricos nos quais os autores tendem sempre a cair.
Este é um livro de aventura com muita correria, insectos, vilões e as explicações são plausíveis.

[Lois O'Rourke · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read it one afternoon when I had nothing else to read and found in a hotel room. Pretty much a kids book but was entertaining enough for a few hours!

[Mohammed Ahmed · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book as it was a mystery right from the start when sam’s bicycle accident had him in a coma until the very end when he is reunited with his family.

[Lobna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was amazing🥹

[Farzanah ^-^ · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF

[Ana · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,5⭐️

[Aelvana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sam Palmer had a rough time after his family moved and he lost all his friends, but even he isn't sure why he's suddenly fascinated with insects. But it turns out the fascination is mutual---and not all of the insects are what they seem. In the world of Aurobon, insects are the size of planes and flown by human pilots. And Sam, as the Dreamwalker's Child, is part of a prophecy that predicts he will rise against the Darkness. Different forces have different ideas of what that prophecy means, but one thing's for sure: everybody wants control of the Dreamwalker's Child.

The insect fighter planes get a chance to show off all book, from the breeding process to the ways different types of insect planes fly. The different insect types have marked differences in how they fly and how they fight, and it's fun to see the ways both sides are using their insects on Earth. Sam goes through a good deal of training in order to learn to fly; though he is a natural talent, the skills aren't just handed to him.

In other ways, the book was less than it could have been. The good insights characters had were followed by someone else congratulating them on how clever they were. The bad guys had a decent setup and motive, but borrowed heavily from World War II atrocities, and none of them had a speck of good. The concept of Dreamwalking plays a very small role, as Sam is kidnapped by enemy forces rather than landing in Aurobon. His mother does use it for an entirely unexpected purpose that felt a bit cheap.

Overall, the insects are the only draw, and the rest of the plot is weak. Most of the secondary characters, like Mump, fall away completely by the end and feel like they only existed to fill space in the middle (particularly Mump, as comic relief). I rate this book Neutral.

[Alina · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was pretty bad. The whole story was way too short and it didn't make much sense. The prophecy was neither explained nor resolved. Events were just described in the shortest amount and I never really felt with any of the characters nor did the bad guy ever get that much time to be really bad. The blurb suggested the villain was this military dictator but somehow, another guy was more evil, yet both never really felt like great baddies.

Stuff like the dream walking were never explained and seemed to have no reason for the plot at all, just like the fact that Sam started to learn how to fly and that there were some fly-buddies for about 30 pages or so.

One could clearly see that this was a rather badly developed debut work that might have worked if the author had taken more time to let his story and characters grow and actually started to explain some of his plot holes.

No wonder I had started this novel over three years ago and only now read it because it had few pages and I had nothing better to do...

[Jodie Downes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! Definitely a book with a different storyline, a great book - one to be read! I bought this book on a whim in a cheap book store on holiday and I'm so glad that I did. Sam, the main character, ends up stranded on unfamiliar land following a random accident in the "real world". Soon he realises it was no accident and in fact, he has been embroiled in a war of the insect world. Here he meets Skipper, a girl he instantly has an affinity with. A story that really does capture your imagination, complete with sketches to enhance the reading experience. A book that grabs your heart - one that you can't stay away from for too long before needing to head back into their adventure. Definitely one to read!

[Charlotte · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book because my 11 year-old son brought it to me as a must read. I found the plot too big a stretch with too many holes in the structure of how the world works. But I reiterate- my 11 year-old loved the book.

It is about a boy sucked into a parallel world to our own. They are able to navigate between the worlds in their genetically engineered bugs (the explanation of which made no sense). So they are small enough to fit inside the bugs, which blend in with our real world bugs.

*Spoiler Alert*

If you've read this book, did you find the ending a little incestuous? I don't think my son caught it, but it certainly creeped me out.

[Katherine Hetzel · Rating 2 out of 5]

The premise of the story is OK - boy in a coma in this world, but his soul/core/being is transported to another, miniature world, where insects are used as airplanes.

At times, it felt a bit like I was being lectured about insect physiology and behaviour,there were big chunks of back story explained to the MC throughout, and there were certain areas (like when the MC gets trained in piloting wasps...yep, really!) that were glossed over, when I'd have liked to experience it through the MC. I found myself skimming at times to get to the action...

There's a sequel, but I won't be checking it out. Sorry.

[Maddie Madeline · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book felt kinda like a fever dream. I loved it

[Tracey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have have been meaning to read this book for ages but never got round to it, I think the cover put me off a bit.. yes I admit it I choose books by their covers. However I picked it up in the weekend when I didn't have anything else to read and then I couldn't put it down. Sam's adventure is fast paced and fun. There are goodies and baddies and an evil plot to destroy humankind along with insect fighter jets...what more could you want from a action adventure story.

[Jayne · Rating 2 out of 5]

It had some good ideas in here but I felt the story was ruined by the preachy "humans are ruining the world and we're all gonna die because of it."

Sam was almost a great character. I wanted him to be more like Skipper. She is exactly the kind of character I like - strong, self-motivated, inventive, get's the job done and doesn't whine.

Obvious first book.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

After a traffic accident sends him into a coma, a boy with an intense interest in insects travels to another world where fighters pilot horseflies & wasps and battle to destroy or preserve the human race.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sci-fi. Fifteen-year-old Sam is involved in an accident that leaves him in a coma. He wakes up in a world where insects are their substitute for airplanes. A group there is trying to rid the world of people. After all, we are poluting and destroying the world so do not deserve it.

[Monika · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book for a child. Being an adult, reading this made me go into my childhood days and think of how I dreamed about all those tiny ants, insects and if they have their own homes just like us with all the families. I enjoyed reading this a lot.

[Samuel · Rating 3 out of 5]

kind of good. a little less well written for middle schoolers, but great science fiction/fantasy book.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a big fan of this one.

[Brandee Terry · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick and easy read but definitely interesting. The story was a unique one which seems harder to accomplish these days. I would reccommend it for a younger audience but it was enjoyable.