The Dream Hunter

By: Laura Kinsale

Narrated by: Nicholas Boulton

Length: 12 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

To love him is to face her deepest fear...

In search of a legendary mare, Lord Winter enters the crucible of the red sands, forging unbreakable bonds of loyalty and trust with his young companion in the desert. But hidden beneath the ragged costume of a Bedouin boy is a remarkable young woman: Zenia Stanhope, daughter of the extraordinary Queen of the Desert.

Zenia wants nothing of the danger that Lord Winter lives for. She wants only to reach England, far from the blood and sand of the desert. But in one night of terror, condemned to death, their lives are irrevocably bound. Zenia escapes to an English world of elegance and comfort, leaving behind the lonely, fearless man who has changed her life and conquered her heart... until he returns to invade her sanctuary.

Now she must choose between safety and love, but can she find the courage to be the person she was truly born to be?

©1994, 2013 Hedgehog Inc (P)2013 Hedgehog Inc

An interesting though sometimes frustrating read..

The Dream Hunter is a rivaling tale of adventures in foreign lands and a less riveting tale of finding love and belonging.

Zenobia “Zenia” Stanhope is the daughter of British explorer, revolutionary and eccentric, Lady Hester Stanhope (real-life historical figure who comes to be known as the “Queen of the Desert”. However, she’s a self-centered woman who neglects Zenia. The girl feeling deeply her mother’s disdain and dreams of England and the father she never knew, searching for that love and support she has not received. So much so that she come to hate the desert and upon her mother’s death she wishes to finally make her way to England. Unfortunately, she has no money or resources and finds herself at the mercy of Lord Winter who takes her for a young man (as that is the way her mother had her dressed and behave). The two go on an adventure (reluctantly for Zenia) through the red desert where Lord Winter searches for a prize mare. Throughout their adventures and ordeals, the two form a bond. However, their lives come under peril and they are separated. Zenia finally makes her way to England where she’s built a life for herself, believing Lord Winter died in the desert. However, unexpectedly he reappears two years later and now they must both reckon with their new lives in England and come to terms with their shared past.

The first part of the book takes place in Syria with travels to other Arabian countries through the desert. The scenes are vividly painted, so much so, that you feel the burning heat of the desert sun and the thirst that comes along with it. There’s an excellent combination of world-building and character development.

Zenia’s behavior once Arden, Lord Winter, arrives in England can be seen as irritating, annoying, and maybe even childish. However, if we take into consideration her experiences, and the clear trauma at her mother indifference and frankly disdain we can understand some of her hang-ups. However, misguided her actions are, they come from a place of trauma, but it does become tiresome. Kinsale, is very good at creating these complexities in a character, thought I do feel that I time she pushes the angst and conflict too far and for too long. Her characters are complicated, the emotions and actions are contradictory at times but not without cause but still, there is a limit to what is plausible.

In regard to the depiction of the protagonist time/experience in the Arab desert there is some problematic aspects mostly comprised of (I’m not sure what the correct terminology is) “white awesomeness”. This is directed towards the H with his 10-shot Colt rifle and how the Arabs where in awe of him for it or the ultra-superstitious nature of the Arab people (I mean they could say the same about Christian superstition). Nonetheless, the scenery and the description of the cultures and political environment of the time felt realistic and well-drawn.

I love Laura Kinsale’s books because they aren’t typical or formulaic when it comes to their plots. However, she does rely heavily on the same types of tropes which she uses throughout all the books I’ve read from her. You have the reluctant hero/heroine trope paired with the hero/heroine who pursues them throughout the book once their feelings are establish. This then causes the on again/off again trope. Which is caused by the miscommunication trope.

I don’t mind any of these tropes, but not to belabor the point I do feel that Kinsale pushes them a little too far for a little too long. I wished she’d hold back sometimes. Having said that, I still happily read her books because she’s so good at telling her stories that even when I’m annoyed I still what to know how things turn out because I still care about the characters.

I gave up on the heroine right before she finally had her epiphany which is her serious “mommy issues”. She’s known this but it isn’t until the 11th hour that she’s ready to confront them. Arden, Lord Winter could also be frustrating with his inability to communicate but he at least came to the realization of his love and wanted to marry Zenia and moved heaven and earth to do so, which made him the better of the two protagonists. I’m glad Zenia finally relents but I really wish she’d done so sooner allowing time for the reconciliation and establishing of the relationship - now in a healthy way.

The narration for this book was done by Nicholas Boulton who is probably one of the best if not the best narrator I’ve listened to. He’s always spectacular, I have only praise for him.

Even with its shortcoming it was still a good book to read/listen to and I would still recommend it. Just be prepared to be frustrated.

Great story and perormance! By now my fav by Laura

Would you consider the audio edition of The Dream Hunter to be better than the print version?

I LOVE Nicholas Boulton's performances and I don't know print version so I can't compare.

What did you like best about this story?

That is unpredictable. Both leading characters are complicated and the story have many turns of action.

Which scene was your favorite?

When they make love the first time.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The moment when Zenia stops the carriage and return to Winter in last chapter. I had tears in my eyes.

Any additional comments?

From novel to novel I find them better.

On my re listen list for sure

I purchased this book for three reasons; I needed something to listen to on a drive from Indianapolis to Dallas, Laura Kinsale is now on my favorite authors list, and Nick Boulton could never put me to sleep.
The heroine, while naive in many ways, is engaging. I liked her bravery and endurance, and her fear of being found out gave the story more depth. The hero has a lot of misanthropy, and there is the added fact that the heroine had heard him express misogyny, thus her fear of being found out as a woman. The hero is dismayed and confused by his growing feelings of tenderness toward the Bedouin "boy".
I like the complexity of Kinsale's characters, though they aren't always exactly likable. Both of the protagonists grow in the course of the story. The plot is nicely textured without being too convoluted. This is definitely on my re listen list.

Kinsale gem

I’m a fan of Laura Kinsale and was pleased to find this novel as an audio book. The heroine’s issues were a bit tedious, but on the whole, Kinsale stories are captivating and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Wonderful love story of the wild desert

This was a fabulous love story rich with details of the clash or 2 worlds, fears and desires. Mr Bolton’s narration brings each characters fully to life and expresses the struggles of both Xenia and Arden as they face death, the desert and the perils of proper English society. I loved this story and was sad to reach the end.

Wonderful!

I have read three other books by Laura Kinsdale and this is my favorite so far. Nicolas Boulton is by far one of the best and perfect for these stories.

Entering Another World

As with all Laura Kinsale books, you are transported to another culture and can practically feel the hot sand beneath your feet. Nicholas Boulton is, as always, a truly gifted voice actor with the ability to sound like a native speaker, whether the language is Arabic, Japanese or Hawaiian. I have queued up every Nicholas Boulton book I can find and will listen to all of them.

This particular plot is not my favorite of Ms. Kinsale's works. The heroine is hugely inconsistent and almost seems to have multiple personalities. She's amazingly strong in one chapter and faints and sobs in the next. She's so irritating that I didn't think the hero should continue courting her. Multiple times, right through to the last chapter, I found myself thinking 'she's an idiot!'

It's a worthy listen, however, and it's based on some interesting real-life characters of that time. It's just not my favorite of Ms. Kinsale's works.

Too much angst and craziness for me

However, it is certainly well written and romantic in every form of the word. I felt like I had been beat up by the end. So it's probably a 5 if you like that stuff. I don't and don't want to accidentally read it again.
The narration is excellent for sure!!

Beautiful, dazzling and heartbreaking

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes! Practically nobody writes fictional characters as well as Laura Kinsale. From the main characters to the supporting characters, everybody is fleshed out and alive and real. Dream Hunter is no exception. Lord Winter, the hero, is as amazing a man as you will find in any historical fiction because he isn’t just a clichéd manifestation of a regency era male, but a bittersweet, lonely, damaged man who is struggling to find meaning in his life, even at the cost of it. He’s gorgeous and sexy and yet suffers from real life anxieties!

Zenia, the heroine, is truly his female doppelganger. Like him, she cannot seem to find that allusive sense of belonging. Lord Winter recognizes pretty early in the book that they belong together and the conflict all arises in the reluctance on Zenia’s part to recognize Lord Winter as her soul mate. Lovely Zenia has been neglected and mistreated and unloved most of her life (by her own mother) and she hasn’t the capacity to just overnight surrender herself to love and to being loved. Laura Kinsale always writes the most complex and abstruse female characters and Zenia is no different; for that, Zenia, like lots of Kinsale’s females, gets misaligned by some readers who expect and want less complication in the female protagonists. Zenia has been so damaged by someone who should have had her most complete loyalty and trust that it amazes me that she finally finds and accepts love at the end, not that she was stubborn and refused it for so long.

Anyway, listen to this gem of a novel and be utterly amazed at the plot twists and turns and the beautiful and inevitable ending. It starts in England, moves to the middle east and comes back to England and it all feels so right and yet so unexpected. And Mrs. Lamb, a secondary character, is pretty much worth the price of admission as portrayed by Nicholas Boulton! In my opinion, of Kinsale's books narrated by NB, Dream Hunter is the best so far!

Great story & amazing NARRATOR! Fantastic combo!

What did you love best about The Dream Hunter?

I recently stumbled (for the first time) on LK's books with 'The Prince of Midnight' and absolutely fell in love with her writing as well as the narrator Nicholas Boulton. Once you've heard him you will compare all others readers to him and hope they are at least half as good! This is my third book by her and yearn for more of this combo- writer/reader. I must admit 'dream hunter' is a bit different than the other two as far as the setting, but trust me it is well worth your credit and time....... You will hunger for more!

Have you listened to any of Nicholas Boulton’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

His performance in 'Flowers from the Storm' will rivet you. His ability in changing voices for each character is amazing. You feel each emotion so deeply- anger, joy, hate, love, desire....sex! He tops the list!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes!