I LOVE Diane Chamberlain and was excited to read this...but then I wasn't. I kept having to force myself to go back to it and I was so confused because she is one of my go-to authors.

I kept on trying to get through this over a period of maybe 4 months. It got better and interesting but it is NOT her best work....but she has a lot of wonderful ones.

Wow. Not my usual genre of book to read but this book was wonderful. A must read! You will not be able to put it down.

I would like to thank NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to preview this ARC of The Dream Daughter by Diane Chamberlain.

Carly Sears is a newly widowed mother to be in the 1970's. She has just lost her husband to the Vietnam war and to her utter joy, she finds out that she gets to have a piece of him forever by having his child. However, after receiving a cryptic urge to get a new-aged ultrasound by her brother-in-law, she discovers that her baby has a rare heart defect that is terminal. Devastated by the news, she is frantic to do anything she can to save her child. And then her brother-in-law lets her in on a completely unbelievable secret. One so crazy that it might actually be worth a try.

Diane Chamberlain has yet to disappoint me. Her books are always a delightful blend of entertaining, interesting, educational, and dramatic. This one slightly smacked of Stephen King's 11/22/63, another book that I just loved. I was so impressed with how intricate and riveting this was, a true page turner. I highly recommend.

Diane Chamberlain is a master of pulling readers into another time and place, making the not so distant past intriguing backdrops for her novels. Moving between the turbulent 60’s and 70’s and into the early 2000’s and beyond, The Dream Daughter requires the reader to let go and give in to the questionable premise of the novel (no spoilers). I’m not gonna lie, when I saw where the book was headed I did an internal eye roll, but the story is so engaging you have no choice but to buy in and go along for the ride. The story revolves around Carley and the decisions she must make to save her child. It’s ultimately a story about the strength of love, the bonds of trust between family members, overcoming loss and honoring memories. More uplifting than it sounds, The Dream Daughter celebrates the strength one finds when put to the test.

I found this book to be complex, yet intriguing. It really made me think what if we could really time travel! Diane Chamberlain did not disappoint me this time. I highly recommend this book!

I love Diane Chamberlain's books. However, this one was just okay.

I had a hard time getting into the book initially. You needed a large "suspension of disbelief." While normally I like a little fantasy and magic in a slice of life book (think Sarah Addison Adler type stuff) this one was just too much. I had a really hard time, through the whole book, wrapping my head around the circular concept of the time travel.

But, in the end, I enjoyed the down-to-Earth nature of the characters and felt connected to their stories. Setting aside the fantasy, the storyline of love and loss and decisions was the stuff that you expect from Diane Chamberlain. I enjoyed the book, but would recommend her other books over this one.

How far would you go to save the life of your unborn child? One young mother is about to find out. It’s 1970 and Carly has recently lost her husband to the Vietnam War. Shortly before she had found out she’s is pregnant with their first child. A few months later, her doctor tells her that her unborn child has a heart defect that will be fatal once the child is born and there is nothing that can be done. Her physicist brother-in-law thinks he has a solution, but it’s a drastic one, and will take all of Carly’s courage to give her daughter a chance at life.

This story left me breathless and in tears at several points. The intensity of the drama surrounding the birth of Carly’s daughter is quite moving. The author has written the story in a way that really makes the reader feel like they are right there living the story with the character. And the characters are ordinary people who find themselves thrown into extraordinary circumstances. Their ability to stand strong throughout is inspiring and uplifting. In particular, I really liked how the author wrote the teenage girl to be so true to what every teenage girl I’ve ever met is like. The story line is unique and full of surprises. I think a wide variety of readers will really love this book.

3.5 stars. An unforgettable story about a mother’s love and what it means to be a family.

This novel follows Carly, a young pregnant widow in 1970 who learns that her unborn baby has a fatal heart defect. Carly turns to her loving and supportive sister and brother-in-law to help her find the strength to go on after receiving this devastating information. While grieving for the future loss of her unborn child, Carly’s brother-in-law proposes an unfathomable solution that shocks and confuses Carly. Putting pure trust in her brother-in-law, Carly embarks on a journey that will change her life forever.

I am a huge fan of Diane Chamberlain’s writing and this novel lived up to my expectations as far as beautiful wording and descriptive language goes. The storyline however, didn’t quite work for me and I couldn’t shake the implausibility of the scenario. Due to the content of the story, I believe this book will largely be a love/hate type of reaction from readers. Lucky for me, I sit somewhere in the middle of those two spectrums and I still look very forward to her next novel.

The characters were wonderful. Diane Chamberlain has an outstanding ability to create vivid and real characters that you can’t help but care for and feel drawn to. Though the plot felt unrealistic, I still found myself rooting for these characters which says something about the excellence of her writing.

This was a Traveling Sister read that I couldn’t squeeze in during the discussion time. Brenda and Norma and many of the other Traveling Sisters loved this book. To find their reviews, please visit our blog at:

https://twosisterslostinacoulee.com/2018/11/09/the-dream-daughter-by-diane-chamberlain-travelingsistersread-bookbloggers/

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Diane Chamberlain for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Dream Daughter is available now!

Oh wow. Put some time away for this book. Diane Chamberlain has done it again. All the stars!

No spoilers from me. Can't say enough great about this. Read it today!!

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this fabulous book.

This book was lovely. I love books with time travel. I love books with strong family stories. This was just what I needed. I didn't find it to be a particularly deep book, but I enjoyed the story, and enjoyed that it had themes of multiple types of love. The love of sisters, in-laws, parents, etc. Overall just lovely.

One of my favourite authors. Diane you never disappoint and you certainly haven't this time. I love your books and hope you keep on writing because I will keep on buying !! I love the time travelling in this book it really threw a different spanner in the book. LOVE LOVE LOVE. Cant stop thinking about it and wanting to read more.

Enthralling and heart-wrenching!
I have loved each and every novel I have read by Diane Chamberlain. The Dream Daughter is no exception.
The author steps out of the norm for her and gives us a memorable and beautifully written time travel tale.
How far would you go to save your child?
Would you go back in time?
Carly does just that and by doing so she takes a heart-wrenching, informative journey meeting and being aided by many captivating characters that give her hope and strength.
An intriguing, unique story that I highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an arc of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

In 1970, Caroline Sears is a pregnant widow, and her baby has a heart defect that cannot be fixed. But…her physicist brother-in-law is actually from the 21st century, and he tells Caroline she can travel to the future to save her baby.

Stay with me if you’re ready to bail. This novel spans genres – it is contemporary fiction with a bit of science fiction thrown in to make a compelling plot. There are no aliens or time machines, and it is an easy, interesting read. You may roll your eyes at the time travel, but consider this: If you were presented with a seemingly unbelievable opportunity to save your unborn child, would you take that chance? Caroline does.

If you’re willing to accept a fantastical element in your novels, I recommend this one.

The Dream Daughter tells the story of Caroline (Carly) and her quest to save her daughter throughout time and space. It's about motherhood and love, bond, faith and uncertainty. And there's also the element of time travel interwoven into the plot!

I liked it so much that I've read it over a weekend. It's gripping and it doesn't let you move on with your day until you've read it. Diane Chamberlain not only knows how to write well in a way that engrosses the reader into the fictional world of her characters, but she creates interesting characters, puts them into interesting situations and you don't really know what is going to happen. Honestly, I couldn't predict the ending and my radar is usually quite good. This novel has originality that is a rare commodity in this genre of fiction.

If you're thinking "time travel in contemporary fiction, really?", my answer is "YES! Really!". It just fits. It could be a big miss or hit, but in this case it is a hit and executed in really well. There's enough depth and detail in the right places, not taking away from the heart of the novel, which is the bond between a mother and a child, family and of course love.

Carly is strong, she has been through so much pain, but she is still ready to do anything she can to save her unborn daughter. She is dedicated and loving and absolutely brave. As you follow her emotionally-packed journey throughout the novel, you get closer to her and understand her better. She becomes the friend you care about.

The novel is definitely worth your time and attention. It simply stands out in this genre.

I have kindly received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press in exchange of a fair review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I am always excited when I get a chance to read a new novel by Diane Chamberlain as she is one of my favourite authours but this book was not her usual type of story. I found it hard to get into the story and I did finish it but it was definitely not one of my favourite books.

Diane Chamberlain wrote a clever and creative novel about a mother who will do anything to save her unborn daughter, even if it means believing in the impossible. The Dream Daughter is a unique tale told mainly through Caroline Sears' point of view during different time periods through time travel. The plot unfolded in ways that I could not predict. I could not put it down because of my constant need to find out what would happen next.

Diane Chamberlain incorporated historical events, science fiction, and real-world stresses of motherhood. I'm not going to spoil it, but I loved it!

Diane Chamberlain writes intricate story lines as well as brilliantly developed characters. Hooked from thefirst page.

The year is 1970 and Carly Sears is mourning the loss of her husband, Joe. He died just weeks after arriving in Vietnam. Carly was devastated, but the news of her pregnancy is the only thing keeping her going. She is going to cherish and protect this baby with everything she's got. It is all that she has left of Joe. When she finds out that the baby has a heart condition her whole world crumbles. Her baby will not live long once born. She is going to lose the only piece of Joe that she has left. Until her brother-in-law, Hunter approaches Carly with an option that is so unbelievable that Carly fears for Hunter's sanity. What he asks of Carly will force her to suspend belief and put her trust in a man with unbelievable tales to tell. But it is the only option she has to save her baby's life. Will it be enough? Will she be able to save her baby? And at what cost?

Diane Chamberlain has certainly outdone herself with The Dream Daughter. I want to be very careful with what I say here because I want you to be just as surprised as I was with the true premise of this novel. What The Dream Daughter boils down to is a grieving wife desperate to hold on to a part of her husband. I really liked Carly. She was smart and strong and level-headed even in the face of extreme adversity. Whenever I read a book like this I try to put myself in that situation. What would I have done if I was Carly? I probably would have made the same choices that she did, but I would have gone a step further when she was. ahem, in New York City. I also really liked Hunter and everything that he did to help Carly, but her sister was a bit of a difficult person. The end was a bit unexpected for me, but I can understand why the author ended the story the way she did. And the was perfect, exactly the kind of closure that a reader needs. - CLICK HERE FOR SPOILERS.
Bottom Line - The Dream Daughter was a wonderful tale about love, faith, and trust. As always, Diane Chamberlain creates an inviting world for her readers to discover and challenges them to think outside of the box that they live in. Great book.

Details:
The Dream Daughter by Diane Chamberlain
On Facebook
Pages: 384
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Publication Date: 10/2/18
Buy it Here!

Diane Chamberlain does it again! I loved this book. Caroline discovers that her unborn child has a heart defect and doctors give her no hope for the baby making it long after birth. Caroline is of course devastated. But her brother in law Hunters offers a possible solution that seems crazy and something anyone might laugh off. But Caroline considers the offer and travels into the future where she has surgery for her unborn child. Will it work? Will she return to the last with her family?

5+

Carolina just finds out she is pregnant when her husband is killed in Vietnam. One can only imagine her fear when she is told her baby has a congenital heart defect that in 1970 is considered fatal. When her brother-in-law approaches her with a plan to help her baby, Carolina jumps in with only minimal hesitation.

I did not check out any of the reviews prior to reading this book. Come on - it's Diane Chamberlain. Who needs to preview a Diane Chamberlain book?

So I was quite surprised to find out early on that this involved time travel. Time travel? In a Diane Chamberlain book? I've always associated time travel with sci-fi. Silly me. If anyone could use time travel as a premise to their story line and make it believable, it's Diane Chamberlain.

This is a heart warming story of a mother's love and what she is willing to do for her baby. It is about the power of faith. About always moving forward wvwn when you are scared. About believing in yourself and taking chances.

What a delight!

My thanks to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley.