Breaking Normal

Dream Weaver #3

by Su Williams

The final book in the 5 Star rated, International Book Award Finalist, Dream Weaver Novels series by Su Williams!

Does 'normal' even exist for Emari Sweet anymore? Normal is all she's wanted since the death of her parents, but with the Wraith, Thomas, out for her blood, and the betrayal of Nick, Em doesn't see normal returning any time soon. Making use of her newfound powers, she works with Spokane Police to uncover evidence in ‘cold cases’ and memoryprint clues for current ones. But is she putting the entire Caphar race at jeopardy by her choices? Will her relationship with Nick survive? And will any of them survive the destruction of the malevolent Nightmare Wraith?

WOW! Excellent pace, wonderfully flowing narrative, and an ethereal sense of excitement throughout!
*Mark Wilson - Author of dEaDINBURGH with
Paddy's Daddy Publishing

**Another great [story] from Williams. This book phased me from fantasy skeptic to fantasy believer! Looking forward to more work from this author. I will follow her anywhere!
James Moser - author of
Chasing Prophecy**

Genres: Young Adult

289 pages, Paperback

First published August 6, 2014

About the author

I confess...I'm a bit of a dork, with a quirky and sometimes dark personality, though not as dark as some. I love the outdoors and nature, and photographing normal, everyday things from different and abnormal angles. One of my photos has been published in the political humor book Red Dog/Blue Dog by Chuck Sambuchino.

Legally, my name is Susan Barton, but I write under the pen name Su Williams (my maiden name). I am a 48 year old mother of 4, Sarah, Josiah, Jack and Aundraic. I'm married to Ben and we have 2 cats, a garder snake, a crested gecko named Reid (like in Criminal Minds) and a beagle, Dyson (yes like the vacuum) who is my favorite teddy puppy.

I was born in Little Rock, AK. My daddy was military and my parents finally decided that Spokane, WA was the place for us and this is where I've lived since I was about 10.

I always wrote special poems for family birthdays, and began to write short stories in Jr. High. Many years later after a self-esteem building program of hypnosis, and reading Twilight, I was inspired. I said, "I could do that." So I did.

Dream Weaver has been 4 years in the making, as I've learned the ins and outs of the literary process. That is an ongoing endeavor.

My goal is to get Dream Weaver into the hands of people who will love Emari, Nick, Eddyson, Sabre, Ivy and Jesse as much as I do. Dream Weaver is the first of 3 planned novels. The second is called Rock Star in which Emari lives the life of a rock star and discovers that Nick is really not who he claims to be. Finally, in Private Eye, Emari will team up with Officer Molly to solve some of Spokane's open and cold cases and will unveil the truth behind the crash that killed Emari's parents.


Reviews

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

"BREAKING NORMAL" is the final book of the Dream Weaver series. I would classify this novel under the genre of young adult/paranormal fiction. The Dream Weaver Trilogy is a dark romance, the story is dark science fiction meets YA romance.

The concept of the Dream Weavers, is amazing. But in this story, the author takes on a new direction, to keep the interest of the reader. Every book has a unique character and subjects. Action packed and in places a bit dark, well written and keeps the suspense throughout.

But does normal even exist for Emari Sweet anymore? Normal is all she’s wanted since the death of her parents, but with the Wraith, Thomas, out for her blood, and the betrayal of Nick, Emari doesn’t see normal in the near future. Will her relationship with Nick survive? And will any of them survive the destruction of the plague of the Nightmare Wraith? Without giving too much away of the plot, Emari is stronger and wiser, becoming a really strong heroine.

The series overall was a good one and I enjoyed it. I will defiantly recommend this book to any supernatural fans. This book was provided to me for an honest review.

[Lesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.0. Like Dream Weaver and Rock Star, Breaking Normal keeps the action coming (this time from many different directions), making for a quick and easy read.

Plot:
At the end of Rock Star, Thomas revealed that Nick had been lying to Em all along. When Breaking Normal picks up, Em has developed some very self-destructive behaviors, which are worsened by Thomas’ psychological warfare. Even though she feels betrayed by Nick, she knows she has to continue to work with him and Sabre to get rid of Thomas once and for all. When she’s not training or planning with them, she spends her time working with Molly at the police station. There, she uses her gifts to try and assist with the cold cases.

Characters:
Unable to sleep because of her fears and nightmares, Emari starts out pretty much a train wreck, and she has no problems whatsoever, letting Nick know how angry she is. (As a Nick-lover, it was almost hard to read!) As in Dream Weaver, she eventually chooses not to be a victim; in fact, she does a complete 180, facing her issues, becoming stronger both physically and emotionally, and helping others to do the same. She also finds that she has developed some new gifts that even Nick and Sabre weren’t aware that the Caphar were even capable of.

Poor Nick (still loving him!)…. He totally betrayed Emari just by doing the one thing he promised to do before he met her. My heart went out to him the entire book. He is there throughout, but because Breaking Normal is pretty much Emari’s journey of self-discovery, there’s not a lot of focus on Nick’s feelings or motivations. He does turn into quite the avenging angel in the end though. Loved it!

Sabre has turned pretty dark in this one. He is straddling the line between Caphar and Rephaim, and we aren’t quite sure which side he’ll land on when he falls.

Ivy and Molly are back. This time, though, Ivy learns about everything that has happened. Molly, who is featured more frequently, also suspects. Adrian and Emma are also around, and we learn a new secret about Adrian. Jesse briefly appears, too; without spoiling things, I’ll just say that the reunion is not a happy one.

In terms of villains, Thomas returns, and his actions and continues to be the evil maniac we have come to know and hate.

Writing:
Williams has put a lot of thought into her the characters she has created, and while I can’t explain how, the fact that she loves them comes through in her writing. As one would expect with such quick turnaround between books, there were a few grammatical errors, but (as in Rock Star) none were so glaring that I couldn’t focus on the plot. There is some cursing and allusions to rape and consensual sex, but nothing extremely graphic.

The Bottom Line:
Even though the climax is somewhat bittersweet, it’s a very fitting conclusion to a great series. I loved the epilogue! I’ll miss reading about Em, Nick and Sabre.

[Mark Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Su is one of those authors who takes you from your comfort zone and makes you wonder why you took such a long time to read their genre.

Breaking Normal is a very assured piece of work from an author who improves with each work she produces. Su learns from each book she writes and is becomes a powerful new voice in her genre with a vast array of techniques and no end of imagination at her disposal.

The narrative flowed along with considered pace, conveying the character’s voices, distinctly but in such a manner that they complimented each other perfectly and kept the story moving forward. The combined effect immerses the reader with ease into the world Su has built for her characters.

Another huge developmental step forward for the writer and a wonderfully engaging, novel for her growing list of readers.

[Christoph Fischer · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Breaking Normal" by Su Williams concludes the amazing Dream Weaver Series and does so perfectly.
Without giving too much away of the plot, Emari really comes into her own in this book, becoming a really strong heroine. The author has struck some more serious notes in this book, but that fits in well with Emari's own growth.
I am still in awe with the concept of the Dream Weavers. This time the narrative and the story are taking a new direction, which keeps the series fresh and entertaining. This is not a repetitive formula series but one where every book has a unique character and subjects. Action packed and in places a bit dark for a young adult series it is well written and keeps the suspense throughout.
Brilliant character development and a fantastic ending. Highly recommended.

[Su Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a little daunting, writing the final book of the Dream Weaver series. Readers had high expectations and I wanted to deliver. So far, I think I've succeeded. BREAKING NORMAL had to be action packed, so I had to come up with awful things to put Em through...as if things haven't totally sucked for her to begin with. But alas, as the master of her universe, I must pillage and plunder her life...along with all of her friends and 'her little dog, too.' No one was safe from the sword, and as you'll see, the cast list comes out a little shorter in the end.

In the beginning of Breaking Normal, Em is still reeling from finding out the truth of Nick's deception. And as a typical 18 year old that's suffered through what she has, her grief roils in the anger stage. Of course, Nick is the closest and most deserving target. But when Thomas again spins their world into chaos, she must set aside her rage, and team up with Nick and Sabre to overcome and ultimately extinguish the plague of the Nightmare Wraith. In the end, Em is stronger, tougher, wiser and more mature, and becomes what can only be described as 'bad ass!'

**WOW! Excellent pace, wonderfully flowing narrative, and an ethereal sense of excitement throughout!
*Mark Wilson - author of dEaDINBURGH with
Paddy's Daddy Publishing**

**Another great [story] from Williams. This book phased me from fantasy skeptic to fantasy believer! Looking forward to more work from this author. I will follow her anywhere!
James Moser - author of
Chasing Prophecy**

[Kandy Scaramuzzo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the final installment in the Emari series. I really enjoyed boos one and two. This one seemed to be a bit different. I really liked the way the characters evolved in the first two books. In this book we found out more about Sabre and his issues which was helpful in understanding him and his choices. The relationship between Nick and Emari seemed to devolve rather evolve. I did not like the petulant attitude of Emari throughout this book. The first two books flowed perfectly, this one jumped around a whole lot, which was difficult to follow at some points.
Eddyson was his same sweet self. His ties to the attacks were used to show some of Emari's emerging powers. He was a handy little guy to have around in the story.
The series overall was a good one and I enjoyed it. I will defiantly recommend this book to any of supernatural fans. This book was provided to me for an honest review. I gave this book four stars.

[Jone Schlangen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I wasn't such a fast reader. Then I wouldn't have reached the end of this trilogy so quickly. But I am. And I did. Su Williams did an amazing job of wrapping up her Dream Weaver series with Breaking Normal. I must say, the title fits. As a wise person recently told me, there is work involved even in staying the same since everything deteriorates over time. Emari Sweet no longer has the luxury of staying the same.

It's time for Emari to face some of her worst nightmares. And to do so, she must change how she views the world, the people around her, and herself.

[Jeana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exciting..liked the whole series.

[Sarah-Jayne Briggs · Rating 3 out of 5]

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I would give this book 3.5 stars… not 4, though, because Emari kind of ruined the book for me.

I did like this third book about as much as I liked the second. I felt the relationship between Nick and Emari was more complicated and complex in this book… though some of the things that Emari did made me cringe. I still wasn’t sure I really liked her during the course of the book, especially because I didn’t have the impression that there were limits to her powers. And I felt she was ‘playing God’ a bit… especially in regards to what happened with Jesse.

Sabre was definitely solidified as my favourite character throughout this book. It was good to see more of him. I didn’t mind Nick very much, but there were times I really empathised with him for having to deal with Emari, considering that she came across as quite hypocritical a lot of the time.

I do appreciate that some effort was made to make Thomas more well-rounded in this book, but he still seemed truly villainous… not at all like William was in book two.

I really liked Ivy as a character and I particularly liked Molly… though not Emari’s temptation to meddle so much. I really felt that Emari was treading the line here. She did some things I don’t expect from the ‘good guys’.

I loved seeing Eddy in this book. I like animals, so it was pretty cool to see how big a part Eddy played.

In some ways, it would be good to see something focusing on the other characters and not Emari, who I felt was too over-powered. And the ending was, I felt, rather lacking. I don’t think I’ll be re-reading any of the books in this series, but I think I would have liked Emari better if her power was more ‘normal’, rather than ‘no one else has seen it before. Ever.’

[Christy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads.

Book 3 in the Dream Weavers series is here. After the end book 2 I was not fully sure there would be a 3rd book. Things pick up in a very different place than what I excepted and the Sweets we knew is so very very different. This book is full of time jumps that were very confusing to me. The gang was all here but book 2 changed them in unexpected ways and the information that came out was a little of hmm what? Though I read though the book and somewhat enjoyed it I did not get the same level enjoyment as from the other books. I have really like these characters in the past, but I didn’t feel the same this time, I can’t fully put my finger on why. This is an author that I will continue to read and follow. I will say that you must read this book to see how it all ends up because there are a couple shocks along the way.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like this one much better than the rockstar one. The beginning was a little hard to get through because of her anger and how reckless she was, but the book gotten much better and the ending was worth it. I especially like the empowerment that is shown to the readers with her way of "choosing"to be a survivor, and the changes she made in her life by simply choosing to not let things get her down. I also love the insight that we got as a reader into her mind when she finally chooses to forgive someone dear.

[Arnoldo A Martinez III · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG SO AWSOME

OMG SO AWSOME

Your work has never failed to impress me! I can't think of a insult for this! I'm so sad that the books have ended ;( I hope you continue writing books as amazing as this.

[Storm]

Soooooooo goooooooood reading itttttttt right nowwwwwwww