Dreams and Shadows

A Novel

By: C. Robert Cargill

Narrated by: Vikas Adam

Length: 13 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

A brilliantly crafted modern tale from acclaimed film critic and screenwriter C. Robert Cargill - part Neil Gaiman, part Guillermo Del Toro, part William S. Burroughs - that charts the lives of two boys from their star-crossed childhood in the realm of magic and mystery to their anguished adulthoods

There is another world than our own - one no closer than a kiss and one no further than our nightmares - where all the stuff of which dreams are made is real and magic is just a step away. But once you see that world, you will never be the same.

Dreams and Shadows takes us beyond this veil. Once bold explorers and youthful denizens of this magical realm, Ewan is now an Austin musician who just met his dream girl, and Colby, meanwhile, cannot escape the consequences of an innocent wish. But while Ewan and Colby left the Limestone Kingdom as children, it has never forgotten them. And in a world where angels relax on rooftops, whiskey-swilling genies argue metaphysics with foul-mouthed wizards, and monsters in the shadows feed on fear, you can never outrun your fate.

Dreams and Shadows is a stunning and evocative debut about the magic and monsters in our world and in our self.

©2013 C. Robert Cargill (P)2013 HarperCollins Publishers

amazing!

so good that I also own the book but the voice actor was so incredible that I preferred to listen to the audio book even when I had time to read.

excellent plot and story, great character development, I will be reading more from this author for sure, this was his first work that I encountered.

The Best Book

I was interested by this book at the beginning and loved it by the end.

FUN! IMAGINATIVE! and REFRESHINGLY DIFFERENT!

What did you like about this audiobook?

I really enjoyed this novel because the storyline is creative and engaging. The author merges two realms as his settings or this story and it is done with clarity and plausibility. The story follows 2 boys in 2 vastly different worlds and evolves as their unexpected meeting leads them both along an unexpected path together. The characters have depth and are well developed with relatable qualities. These fantastic beings within the story are based in traditional folklore, giving the reader some familiarity and enhancing their believability; but they also have original characteristics that make this story unique. The writing is well structured and witty with a surprising humor and just the right touch of mystery. Unlike many fantasy novels, Dreams and Shadows is concluded well but leaves you wanting to see where else they can go. I look forward to reading/listening to this book again. Dreams and Shadows is a great debut novel for this innovative new author. I hope to see more from him, and would LOVE to see a sequel to this story.

How has the book increased your interest in the subject matter?

This story ties in the traditional fantasy genre into modern times. It is refreshingly different from many of the popular fiction novels that have been recently available.

Do you have any additional comments?

The reader does an excellent job of portraying the characters consistently and with the appropriate dramatic flair.

An Amazing Book

This was a very enjoyable escape; I enjoyed it so much more than I thought I would. Not only is the story itself wonderfully engaging, gripping, comic and tragic, but the narration itself, by Vikas Adam, has to be one of the best readings I've ever heard -- and I've heard many. Vikas' command of the characters, and their voices -- amazingly in childhood and adulthood -- is superb. I can only hope he reads other books that I have an interest in.

As for the story itself: it's a fairy tale, a modern-age fairy tell in an urban environment that grabs on tightly to its roots in the netherworld. I have a hard time describing it, and the only thing that comes close is to think if the Brothers Grimm time-traveled into our present age, to write a fairy tale that intermixes the beauty and harshness of the fairy world with the beauty and harshness of present-day urban America.

My only hope now is that if AMC were to ever make this into a series, please consider Steve Buscemi as the Fallen Angel Bertrand. :)

Addictive Read

I own this book in every medium, it is amazing. Everytime I read this book I cannot put it down the characters are excellent and the story line has a great hook. If there is a book I want made into a movie this would be it, the twists are perfect and it is anything but predictable.

Deliciously dark

Imaginative and well written. Mr. Cargill has created a world where wishes can come true (careful what you wish for), love and hate are both sides of the same coin, and love grows deep, but hate sometimes deeper.

The narrator was very talented, performing a variety of accents and pitches. Sometimes my throat hurt just listening to the voices of some of the more ethereal characters.

DARK

Lots of depth and truly scary fairies! Loved it and can't wait for the next one. Vikas did a fantastic job as usual.

Cool urban faerie tale

Interesting characters, good story, very cool mashup of Texas Hill Country, fairies, djinn, and magic.

awesome story, amazing performance.

A great story. The performance is perfect. My third listen in the last few years... it is really that good. A great, light car drive book.

Potential for a Lot More

The author is a good technical writer and has some really cool ideas. However, the relationships are 1-dimensional and in general there is a lot of telling instead of showing. On a personal preference note, the characters take themselves too seriously (must everyone be hard-bitten?) and the gore was heavy-handed.