This book was absolutely incredible! Full disclosure - I am a big fan of both Diane Chamberlain and books about time travel. In a way, this book was very different from her others - she doesn’t normally write about science fiction - but it was also everything that I’ve come to expect from her books. Fully developed characters, timely plots with occasional fascinating twists, an engaging voice and an immersive reading experience that makes them difficult to put down. Although I was concerned before I started The Dream Daughter as it is such an unlikely premise, both the details of time travel and the motivations of the characters, especially the main character, are very believable. It provided an enjoyable escape for a difficult week.

Wow, this book was amazing. Completely different from Diane’s other books but I loved it! I couldn’t put it down. The story line was excellent and I fell in love with Carly, the main character. The family ties in this book are so strong and the love the have is real and seems to jump off the page. I was fully engrossed in this book and I was fearful I wasn’t going to be happy with the ending, but oh was I surprised!! Highly recommended!

Diane Chamberlain writes a multi-layered, genre crossing and complex novel that is emotionally heartbreaking and moving. Through the device of time travel she outlines just how much the world has changed from the turbulent 1970s to the beginnings of this century and the momentous events that occurred such as 9/11. In 1970 in Maryland, 26 year old Caroline 'Carly' Sears has faced difficult times with the loss of her husband in the Vietnam War. She is pregnant and expecting his child, when she receives another crushing blow, her child is afflicted with a heart defect that cannot be rectified. Her supportive sister, Patti, is married to Hunter Poole, a man about whose background very little is known, and they are blessed with a child. Hunter feels he owes everything to Caroline, the person who helped him when he was a broken man. A man with huge secrets, he makes the decision to open up to reveal himself as a time traveller, informing her that he thinks there is a way to help her baby.

Caroline finds herself facing a mind blowing solution to her woes that sounds incredibly far fetched and puts her in a quandry. However, she is a mother who will do anything to save her beloved child, and for this she is willing to think beyond herself and go where she never thought was possible, into the future, to a New York where the leaps in medical science from the 1970s have been astonishing. Like all the best laid plans, returning back to the 1970s turns out to infinitely more complicated than thought for Caroline. She is bemused at all the technological shifts in society and how the perspectives on the Vietnam War have changed as the story moves in unexpected directions. Chamberlain writes a emotionally gripping story of love, loss, grief, family and mother-child relationships. Through the character of Caroline, she highlights the stresses and pressures of living in two different time periods and how far a mother is willing to go to save her child. For many readers, the inclusion of time travel in this novel will require a substantial suspension of disbelief, but I was fine with it as the author made use of the device well to illustrate pertinent points and issues. A great read that I thoroughly enjoyed. Many thanks to St. Martin's Press for an ARC.

This story was very creatively written with absolutely amazing characters. I loved the time travel plot and the challenges Carly had to face as she headed 31 years into the future to save her unborn baby. I also liked how the author effectively used the time periods, such as the Vietnam Era and 9/11 to add layers of realism and emotional angst to the characters’ lives and choices made.
This was a very fast read due in part to the author’s ability to engage her reader from the very first page until its completion. Very highly recommended!

I’ve been a fan of Diane Chamberlain for at least 7 years and have read every one of her books. This book was different from any other book she has written. The way it was written made the events mostly believable, though there were a few parts that were confusing. Some of the characters were a little more one-dimensional than I’ve come to expect from Chamberlain’s previous works. All in all though, it was a good read, though not in my top 5 favorites of hers.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley for the promise of a truthful review.

How far would you go to save your child, what would you do to make sure she is ok? Carly, finds herself widowed and pregnant in the year 1970. Ultrasound testing is very new and her BIL manages to get her into a study so she can have one. There they find out her child will not surivive, because she has a heart defect. Thus sets up the rest of the story, one of love and loss, and journey through time.

I really enjoyed this book which was full of more twists and turns than I had originally thought it would have. It's a very touching and sad story at first but has a happy ending. This was definitely an original and very different story that will take you by surprise. I recommend this one!

Thank you to Netgalley for the advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was my first Diane Chamberlain book but it won't be my last! Let me just say that I'm usually not a fan of paranormal or time travel books but this one even made me believe it MIGHT just be possible! There was a perfect balance of science and realism to outweigh the fantasy that one could go back and forth in time and return to a specific place because of the "portals" that surround us. So when Carly discovers that her unborn baby has a congenital defect that can only be operated on with fetal surgery, her brother-in-law reveals the only way the baby can be saved. Of course we are all pulling for mother and baby but there are many more surprises and twists that I didn't see coming. Overall, this was a lovely and fascinating read about family, sacrifice, survival, and love. Reminiscent of The Time Traveler's Wife, this book may astound you and you might shed a tear or two at the end!

I am a bit of a fan of Diane Chamberlain’s books, so I was really happy to receive a copy of The Dream Daughter (thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley) in exchange for my honest review. TBH, I didn’t even read the promotional material, figuring if it was as enjoyable as Necessary Lies, The Stolen Marriage, etc., it would be well worth my time. Then I read the blurb, and saw the words “time travel…” OMG.

I’m not a fan of fantasy, magical realism, science fiction (except for the it-could-maybe-really-happen type like something about a plague), and especially not a fan of time travel. So this one sat on my TBR pile for MONTHS while I debated whether or not to even read it. There always seemed to be at least a couple of other books in the pile that were SO much more appealing to me. Finally, when I realized it had been on the pile more than three months, I decided to quit procrastination and just try it...even though it was categorized as “Women’s Fiction,” two words which are, for me, almost as offputting as “time travel” for me!

So here is the outline (no spoilers): it’s 1970 and a young widow name Caroline (Carly) Sears learns she is pregnant right before her husband is killed in Vietnam. As if that isn’t enough, she finds out the baby, which is the only thing she has to connect her with her late husband, has a serious heart defect for which there is no treatment – at least not in 1970. So, here we go...

Her brother-in-law, a physicist, confides to her that he is in North Carolina because he traveled back in time from 2018, then met and married her sister (who has NO idea about any of this), and was so happy he then decided to stay in 1970. He is willing to help Carly travel to a time in the future when fetal surgery is a relatively common practice, with the idea that she and her baby can then travel back to 1970 North Carolina.

That’s the basic outline. As I said, no spoilers, that's just what you could gather from the publisher’s blurb. It does have the Diane Chamberlain style of developing characters the reader really cares about, and has some interesting conundra (?) for the main characters to deal with. BUT. It's time travel.

So, here’s the thing: I know several people (including some in my book club) who will LOVE this book, and I will recommend it to them without hesitation. They will read it and give it five stars. For me, it just isn’t my thing. I tried to imagine the characters in a story that didn’t involve time travel, set in any of the timeframes that are in the book and realized I would have liked any of those WAY more. So, for me, I can only go 2 stars…but I will definitely continue to be a fan of Ms. Chamberlain’s work (and hope this time travel stuff is just an aberration!)

When I heard this novel involves science fiction, I decided to take a pass. But when the publisher offered me a chance to read an advanced review copy, I couldn’t resist, as after all, this is Diane Chamberlain. It turns out the science fiction angle is only a means to deliver a wonderful story dealing with love, family, and the courage to do the right thing. I loved it.

The book got off to a bit of a slow start for me, but around 40% or so I was totally hooked. Carly’s mysterious brother-in-law Hunter tells her there is only one way for Carly to save her unborn baby who has been diagnosed with a severe heart defect. To elect this option, however, will take a tremendous amount of faith and courage. How far will Carly go to save her unborn child? And this turns out to be only the tip of the iceberg in terms of the decisions Carly will have to make to ensure her child gets the best life possible.

This story is a good ‘un, people. Carly is a gem of a person and so well drawn. I enjoyed putting myself in her shoes and trying to figure out the best way to go as numerous forks in the road continued to appear. The time line is complex and the reader needs to pay attention, but Ms. Chamberlain lays it all out pretty well. I found myself thinking more during this novel than I usually do, which is a good thing. There were multiple times I was sure I had the roadmap of the tale figured out, but was wrong every time. I cheered throughout the last few pages of the book even though it was all tied up a bit too nicely, something I don’t always need.

In summary, this book was a very pleasant surprise as I liked it much more than I thought I would. I heartily recommend it to all readers looking for a typically good Diane Chamberlain novel. If you have never read her, this is as good a place as any to start. I’m excited I still have many more of her books yet to read.

Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press, Net Galley, and Diane Chamberlain for an advanced copy of this novel. Opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way.

The Dream Daughter by Diane Chamberlain

October 2018
Women’s fiction

I received this digital ARC from NetGalley and St.Martins Press in exchange for an unbiased review.

This author has always been on my TBR list but didn’t have the opportunity until now to review her latest novel.

Although the story is presented with alternate narrators in different time periods it feels as if it is occurring simultaneously. The concept of time travel is used in this book as a unique means of exploring ethical dilemmas.

It was April of 1965 when Caroline Sears, a physical therapy student intern, meets Hunter Poole, a difficult depressed patient at rehab in Chapel Hill, NC. Carly seems to be the only one with whom Hunter connects after falling from a 3-story building who can assist with his recovery.

Jump forward to Naggs Head, NC in April of 1970 where Hunter is now married to Carly’s sister, Patti and a 1 year old son, John Paul. At this time Carly finds herself a widow with her precious husband Joe a casualty of the Vietnam War. Carly never had the chance to inform him of her pregnancy before he died. At 24 weeks pregnant it is discovered that the baby has an irregular heartbeat where she is referred to National Institute of Health (NIH) in Maryland for a fetal ultrasound study.

When the results of the study prove fatal for the baby, Hunter decides he needs to share his secret with Carly in order to save her baby. There are many twists and unexpected discoveries as Carly experiences the world in ways she dreamed possible. Her only goal is to save baby Joanna with a life saving surgery that hasn’t been invented!

Through time travel issues of the past and future are analyzed with a new lens. Is it acceptable to disturb the present with knowledge of the future knowing it would alter the present? Likewise, is it ever wise to alter the course of history once it has been set in motion? It becomes imminently obvious how the slightest changes can alter the ultimate outcome in time.

I would like to thank St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an E-ARC of this book. I have read all of Diane Chamberlain's books, and even though this is different from her other books, it is fantastic! It took me a while to get used to the time travel element but once I did, it just helped make a great story. Just make sure you pay attention to the dates at the beginning of each chapter so you do not get confused as you read.

I can’t remember how I discovered Diane Chamberlain, but I’ve been a huge fan of hers since that first book. The Dream Daughter is by far my favorite. It is amazing. I hadn’t read anything about it and I’m so glad I didn’t. I think I experienced every emotion a human being is capable of experiencing while reading this book. I loved Carly and her story. I already can’t wait for Diane Chamberlain’s next book, but it will be hard to top this one. Solid 4.5 stars.

Big thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and Diane Chamberlain for the opportunity to read this phenomenal book.

Diane Chamberlain is one of my go to authors, whatever she writes you can guarantee an excellent book. This book is not an exception. Superb and emotional read that engages you from the first chapter. Well done again Diane.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me a copy of this fantastic, clever, book! It is not your typical Chamberlain book and I was leery at first. I love her books and her ability to tackle tough subjects. This was different but brilliant!

Carly is pregnant in 1970, recently widowed, and sent to 2001 to hopefully receive surgery on her baby's heart. Imagine her surprise at how different the world was from 1970 to 2001!

And that's only the beginning. The author takes us to 2013, throws many obstacles and painful, heartwrenching decisions at Carly, and gives the reader a real page-turner to see how Carly's going to make it through. Clever writing, clever story!

Diane Chamberlain yet again produced a book that is amazing. I was a bit hesitant to read it, since the topic is so out of the norm for her. I was not disappointed at all. I was amazed at her ability to keep the timelines flowing and her ability to transition from one time period to the other was seamless. Fabulous book, I will be recommending it to all the readers I know.

Diane Chamberlain is an amazing storyteller and this one does not disappoint. This engrossing page turner asks the question what would you do to save your child ? Turns out the impossible . Caroline the main character meets a patient at the hospital she works at and her life is changed forever . Science fiction family saga with lots of turns is the best way I can describe this book. Emotional spellbinding story

A unique time-travel bit of "women's" fiction. On the plus side, I didn't see the ending coming, and it was a satisfying, heartwarming story. On the down side, I thought that the first half of the book dragged, and included perhaps a bit too much detail about the characters' emotional angst. Conversely, the end of the book seemed to wrap up too quickly. Overall, a memorable story, even considering the uneven pacing.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
I am embarrassed to admit that, though I own 3 other Diane Chamberlain novels, this NetGalley book is the first of hers I have actually read.

It certainly moves the others up the list. I really appreciate her writing style.

While it is difficult to write much of a review without giving away spoilers, the best way to read The Dream Daughter is to go in blind. It is an unexpected family drama that is touching and relatable. While I might have questioned some of the veracity of the plot line, there was no way to doubt Ms. Chamberlain understands familial bonds.
Read this is you like domestic drama, but would like a unique twist on the genre.

Thanks to #dianechamberlain #stmartinspress and #netgalley for my advanced ecopy of this lovely novel!

I loved this story. It drew me in from the very beginning and kept me furiously reading to the end. Another fantastic read by Diane Chamberlain!