a rather ridiculous premise that takes itself quite seriously when it really should lean more into its pulp fiction heart

Loving Greek myths, I was really intrigued by the premise of this book. However, it falls down in execution, since most of the novel takes place in the modern world, where a young man, Seb, has lucid dreams about being in Ancient Greece.

The chapters switch perspective from Seb to Apollos and back again, but with no indication as to which character each chapter is about, it's difficult to keep track of what's happening to who and when.

Slow to start and rushed to finish, this could have done with further developing to bring out the potential in it.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC without obligation.

Well written and intriguing characters and a gripping enigmatic story line make you become immersed in the novel, and keep your interest until the end. Recommended to anyone looking for an imaginative escapist read.

2.5

The start of the book implies it is set in Ancient Greece but it’s mostly set in the real, modern world and the main character has dreams (possible past life memories) that are in Ancient Greece.

I wanted to like this but there’s just something about it that I wasn’t feeling.

I feel like the idea was good but it perhaps wasn’t executed very well. Chapters switched from Seb’s & Apollos’ voice and there wasn’t a distinction for each character so often you didn’t know who’s perspective the chapter was from until you read on and gained context.

It took me longer to read this book than expected as in parts it felt like ‘what’s the point’. So little had happened by 40% in that I wondered if it was going to be a series as I didn’t see how much could be resolved in the remainder.

The ending seemed rushed & not well thought out. Even the characters seemed confused.

This is a strange, time travel book. After the sudden death of his adoptive parents, Seb enrolls in a college for natural medicine modeled after the ancient Greek healing temple of Asklepion. There he finds a life that mirrors his, as he begins to heal. He begins dreaming about ancient Greece, and the dreams actually become part of his life. His college lecturer, Sybil, helps him understand the dreams, as he works to unlock the mysteries that surround his life.

The story is fascinating, but time travel really never does totally interest me, so this book was not as interesting as it would be for a reader fascinated by time travel. The characters are well done and brought to life throughout. The story line was likewise well thought out and done. I did find the ending a bit of a surprise and a bit rushed. All in all, the book was okay, though, as a time travel book, it will never be one of my favorites. I received this from NetGalley to read and review.

I wanted to like this book more than I did as I taught many Greek myths to my students in 9th grade English. So maybe it's just too much, or maybe the time travel thing just didn't work as well as I'd hoped. In any case, Seb is an interesting character and I thought the idea was a good one, but I found my mind wandering too much and I just couldn't focus enough to make it enjoyable.

Great premise but I didn't quite connect to the story as much as I wanted. I found my mind wondering. I think people who are into Greek myths would really enjoy this novel but it wasn't my cup of coffee.

Seb is trying to move on after the death of his adoptive parents. He gets a place on a natural healing course. The course is modeled around the Ancient Greek healing temple of Asldepieion. When he's at college he discovers a past life that heals his own life. Seb's only clue to his background is a brooch that was his mothers, an Ancient Greek brooch. Taking part in the dream healing sessions, take him back to Ancient Greece.

This is a time travelling story. All the characters are well rounded, even the ones from Ancient Greece. We all, at some point in our lives, will have to deal with the loss of someone that we love it's part of lifes circle. But to be a le to venture into the past, to help the healing process, I'm not to sure about. Seb came across as a bit of an idiot and I found it hard to like him. I also felt the ending to be a bit rushed. Loosed ends were left untied. I really wanted to like this story more. A decent enough read.

I would like to thank NetGalley, John Hunt Publishing Ltd and the author Carolyn Mathews for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The premise of this books seemed cool. I love Greek Mythology and the idea of lucid dreaming which is what I got from this. I think that I was hoping for something more like magical realism, but I just didn't get that. I stopped reading this because it wasn't what I expected and I didn't particularly like the writing.

I received and ARC copy of this book via Netgalley, John Hunt publishing and roundfire books in exchange for an honest review. The narrative follows the life of a young man who is trying to move on following the sudden death of his adoptive parents. He applies for and is offered a place on a natural healing course. There he has regressive dreams that take him back to Ancient Athens and to some extent mirror what is happening to him.

The author asks for some artistic license in the way she portrays the historical events and it seems she needs it. I don't feel as if she is describing Apollos - rather it is Apollo who is sometimes called Apollon but i cannot find references to the spelling the author uses. I found this confusing as there is an Apollos who is described as an apostle and saint.

There are lots of positives for this narrative which was pacy and easy to read. The author has built likeable current day characters and a believable story line. I felt that there were things missing that would have created cleaner links between the past and the two presents of Sebastian's college and social lives. The ending felt rushed and too clean.

However I did enjoy the book and i would look to read more from this author.

A well written and entertaining book.
I liked the cast of characters, the setting and the plot.
I look forward to reading other books by this author.
Recommended
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Something about this book is nagging me and I can't quite put my finger on it. The story is nice enough:
Seb enters a scholarship at the Holistic Healing Centre and is required to 'earn his keep' by participating in Dream-Healing-Sessions, which take him to Ancient Greece.
The writing is very much for young adults and reads like a car trying to get into gear on a bumpy road.
The characters are present; I can hear them but don't see them. It's like a stageplay, being on the outside looking in.
The parts where I do feel involved are the ones playing out in Ancient Greece. These are detailed, full of life and character.
The last chapters are rushed and the ending is abrupt.
Although I appreciate the idea behind this story, this is not a book I'm likely to return to.

Thank you Netgalley and Roundfire Books for the ARC.

I liked the first 75% of this book but then I got really frustrated. It builds and builds on this really interesting premise, but the ending feels rushed and as though big chunks of internal logic have been eliminated. Threads are left hanging all over the place and everyone lives happily ever after, I guess?

‘Temple of Dreams’ by Carolyn Mathews follows a young man named Seb who enrolls in a college for natural medicine modeled after the ancient Greek healing temple of Asklepieion. It’s at the college that he discovers a past life that begins to mirror and ultimately heal is own life.

Last year I began studying Greek Medicine so I was very excited to read this book and I’m happy to say that overall it did not disappoint. I really liked the storyline and the author’s writing style. I’m surprised that ancient healing hasn’t featured in more fiction because it’s a fascinating subject with huge potential.

Although part of the book takes place in Ancient Greece, the themes of the story were timeless. Mending the past, acceptance, love & loss, and self-discovery are all things people grapple with no matter the date. ‘Temple of Dreams’ is a time traveling story and like all good time traveling adventures, there has to be a greater purpose to venturing into the past, and in this story, the main character was able to journey into deeper parts of himself, initiating an intense healing process.

With that being said, the only let down was the ending. I thought it was rushed and unresolved. I needed there to be more of an explanation in order to tie up the loose ends. Also, it seemed like there was an underlying conspiracy in the story making me suspicious of some characters that ultimately did not lead to anything, however that might have been done purposely on the author’s behalf.

Overall, I thought Carolyn Mathews did a great job venturing into the intimidating genre of Ancient Greece. She was able to make antiquity contemporary and for that reason I hope it’s not the last time we visit the ‘Temple of Dreams.’

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Seb is orphaned by his adoptive parents, makes friends, and receives a scholarship to a healing institution. Through a series of events, he finds his identity and love.

The hero of this tale, Sebastian, is faced between choosing between studying for a secure but dead-end career in pub catering, or in signing up for a mysterious course in healing, based on Greek myths and Greek knowledge. Sure he will be unable to pay for the latter he rather churlishly turns it down, when he discovers that he will be tutored for free!
Sebastian recently list his adoptive parents in a motorway pile-up. His only clue to his true background is a brooch left behind by his mother. An ancient Greek brooch.....
Then he meets Felicity, who works in a boutique and romance begins to stir. Yet when City urges him to look for his natural parents, Sebastian, again churlishly, refuses to any help in this. At the same time his new flatmate seems interested in Felicity too, whilst Felicity thinks he prefers a so.ewhat predatory French girl. The path of true love never running through and all that.
So many people seem to want to help Sebastian, but it also seems clear that he can be a bit of a jerk.....
The next woman in his life then seeks to really show Sebastian what his course of study is about - through initiation. A sacred bath within the depths of a temple within the campus, gives Sebastian access to memories of a Greek who lived during the times when the Eleusian mysteries were practised. However, churlish Sebastian here too refuses to continue with the experiment when his muse seems to be more interested in what may be an earlier incarnation, or in what the Mysteries are really about. Yet Fate does seem determined to confront Sebastian with himself......
This can be enjoyed as a romantic novel with an element of the supernatural, if romantic novels appeal to the reader - or, for that matter, for anyone who is interested in the Greek Mysteries. The characters living in this past are well drawn, facing as gritty dilemmas in finding their ways in life as anyoneigjt becon the present - perhaps more so, as the struggles just to survive were far greater then. There is an element of coming-of-age too. Hopefully as far as potential readers gobmow, you know who you are.

I thought this was a beautifully woven story about a man trying to piece together his life after the death of his adopted parents and to find out who he is whilst he has dreams and memories of a man in Ancient Greece. It was a really interesting and engrossing read.

Temple of Dreams
by
Carolyn Mathews

The Temple of Dreams ticks all the boxes for an enthralling read; engaging characters, fast paced with moments of tension, and romance, but better still, underlying the story is a very thought provoking spiritual theme.
The principle protagonist, Sebastian, is a likable young man, with whom I felt engaged from the very start. That said there were moments when I felt he was a bit sharp with some of his would-be supporters, something that was understandable due to his vulnerable state. It begins with Sebastian being orphaned when his adoptive parents are killed in a car crash. This unforeseen change in his life leaves him in a somewhat precarious situation. However he is a resourceful young man and possessed of interesting and unusual abilities, abilities that help him win a place as a scholarship student at a nearby college. The college, like Sebastian is also unusual, but as it turns out, is just the place for him. Here he shares a room with Nick, a cheerful ex-actor, a perfect foil for the reflective Sebastian. He also meets a young woman known as, Fliss, a sympathetic friend who is determined to help him. Once the principle characters are set, the story switches backwards and forwards between an ancient Greece steeped in ritual and mystery where the action centers on a young man by the name of Apollos, and the present day. It becomes ever more evident to the reader, if not to Sebastian, that his and Apollos's lives are somehow inexplicably entwined.
Temple of Dreams is a deeply spiritual book, punctuated with ancient myths and philosophies, including thought provoking premises, such as reincarnation and profound gems of wisdom such as 'Man being the microcosm of the macrocosm'.

This is a beautifully written book, which can be read and enjoyed equally at two levels. One, the plight of Sebastian and how he overcomes the difficulties life has thrown at him in the here and now, but for some this will be a story of great spiritual and philosophical depth, a rewarding glimpse of the workings of the spirit within the soul of man.
I loved the book and can't recommend it highly enough.
5 stars

I had two main problems with this book: the characters and the writing.

The characters: All of the characters seemed really juvenile. In the case of Seb, this makes sense, as he's a 20 year old man trying to find himself. However, even the authority figures / teachers acted like middle schoolers - smirking about sexual rituals (that they are teaching about!) or having inappropriate emotional meltdowns. Unlikable characters is not necessarily a deal-breaker for all books, but in this case, it seemed like the reader was supposed to like and identify with Seb, but I found him whiney and unsympathetic. Furthermore, a book with all unlikeable characters needs to bring some other literary or philosophical merit to the table, and Temple of Dreams also failed in this regard.

The writing: there's a lot of telling, and not much showing, and the showing that does occur contradicts the telling. For example: Nick and Fliss, Seb's roommate / bestie and girlfriend, respectively, are shown to basically be twats. Nick is constantly late for class, is a low-key misogynist, and frequently brags about his background as a movie star; he is frequently a source of anxiety for Seb, in his insistence that Seb go out on the town with him. Fliss decides that she has the right to find Seb's birth mother for him - despite him telling her not to - after 2 dates; she also is frequently insecure and jealous whenever Seb interacts with other women. But the author informs us that Nick and Fliss are the two coolest people that Seb has ever met, thereby hand-waving away everything she has shown us about these characters. The author also includes random asides about Seb's feelings for other characters (the director of the institute is a foe, for example) which are not backed up by previous interactions between characters or by earlier internal monologues.

Also in terms of writing: there are narrative threads that the author introduces and then drops without resolution. Seb has super strength! What does it mean? Who cares! Seb's adoptive mother never wanted him! What does that signify? Who cares! That dead Greek chick used a love spell on the dead Greek guy! Why is this a problem? Who cares!

At the end of the day, I am struggling to identify the right audience for this book, because it clearly wasn't me. Maybe a teenager with a cursory interest in Western Esotericism?

A really well written book that transports you through time to Ancient Greece. The story flowed well in both time zones and was led by a cast of great characters.