This was a charming set of short stories! They all had a bit of a whimsical tone to them, not quite out there in the science fiction realm, like with lasers and beams, but it was enough to dip your toes in. I found that some stories really stuck to me and I wanted more, but others fell short for me. When the stories fell short, I struggled to read through them.

Saying that, however, I thoroughly enjoyed most of the ones I read! I found The Man of Her Dreams to be pretty relatable, especially for my teenage self, which I think was my favorite story in the whole batch. I also liked how there was an afterword from the author, explaining why she wrote that particular story.

Upon a Waking Dream contains twelve science fiction and fantasy short stories. I came into this blind, and I’m pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed 8 out of the 12 stories.

I feel like some stories could have been excluded from this collection though. The Daily Log From an Outpost, Thirteen, No Good Reason, and Family Name… I didn’t really see the point in these stories and I rated them 1 or 2 stars.

But I do have my favorites, my 4-5 star reads. Letter from Glomsuet was so funny and entertaining especially the twist in the end. The Man of Her Dreams is a fan girl’s dream turned into reality. Inheritance, Larry, and The House with an Inside but No Outside were warm, cozy reads. I applaud the J.S. Bailey for her creativity in these stories.

Overall, this is a good book to get into, especially for science fiction and fantasy lovers or those who want to get back into reading.

thank you Net Galley and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great short story collection! Definitely brought me back to my teenage years, reading classic sci-fi collections my dad would give me.

The stories cover a great range of topics and themes, so I think everyone can find a favourite. They also vary in length, and I really appreciated the short ones that leave you chuckling to yourself before you move on to the more lengthy ones. I'd struggle picking a favourite myself!

All in all, this was a fun, easy read. Don't skip the author's notes at the end!

Thanks to NetGalley for for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest feedback.

Many thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this as an ARC. I appreciate it!

I feel like I don’t have enough words to express how much I love the cover. Blue and gold covers have a choke hold on me. Something about the color combination just makes me feel so called to the contents of the book. I would love to have the physical copy someday to stock in my personal library.

This collection of short stories was absolutely a fun read! It was quick and went by fast. I definitely would like to read a longer portion of the author’s work.

One of my favorite short stories was about the flat earther being abducted by aliens on accident. I love how he goes through an entire redemption arch and the journey he takes as well. And then the end made me laugh because now he’s in the perspective of the friend he once mocked. I thought that short story was so clever and enjoyed it a lot.

Also the ending of the logs made me laugh too. I did not expect that ending. This author has a fun imagination and I thoroughly enjoyed each piece I read. It’s definitely worth the read. Plus it doesn’t take long to fully read the book. It’s like a couple hours worth to finish. Would recommend gifting this to friends as well because of how it makes you

I have a kind of love/hate relationship with short stories, but before I get to that must say I have the utmost respect for authors who are able to create quality short stories. Managing to craft entertaining short stories is an incredible skill. I’ve read plenty of authors who can create wonderful novel length fiction, and yet their short pieces are disastrous. I’m more than pleased to say J.S. Bailey’s collection of sci-fi and fantasy stories in Upon a Waking Dream show she’s more than capable of crafting wonderfully entertaining short stories. Now back to my love/hate comment. My issue is that often times when I love a short story I want more. While it may be a self contained story, I can’t help wanting more, wondering about the characters beyond what we are told or about the larger world in general. Take the first story in this collection for instance in which a Flat Earther gets accidentally ‘abducted’ by aliens. It’s an entertaining tale, but the truth is there is so much more I’d loved to have known about the world/society he ends up in. (Though some that I have read it might argue that the ending makes it totally self contained because … well, I won’t deeper into that comment since I think it might be a spoiler depending on how you take the story.) But that’s how it was with many of the stories within this book, they sparked my imagination to the point I would have been more than happy to have read entire novels if the stories had been expanded. And if a story sticks with me, makes me think/wonder (not in confusion, that would be the hallmark of bad fiction) about the worlds these stories take place in or about the characters, then that’s a sign of a quality story teller. I’ll definitely be checking out more of her work in the future. Thanks so much to the author and NetGalley for the chance to read an ARC of Upon a Waking Dream.

A delightful collection of stories that are out of this world! Each story introduces readers to a unique world created by the equally unique mind of J.S. Bailey.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for the arc.

I will start by saying that this was not a short story collection for me. While I do enjoy short story collections, I found that most of these stories i didn't really enjoy. Many were short and ended abruptly. Even the longer ones still didn't feel finished to me.

I think most of these had unique and interesting premises, I just found my reading experience lack luster.

My favorite of the stories was by far Inheritance - a sweet and sad story about a grandmother that has recently passed.

Overall, this was just not for me but I can see the potential for others to enjoy it.

I found this collection of short stories very interesting! I love how different each story is. My particular favorites were Daily Log from Outpost #602 (I wish it was longer!) and The House with and Inside but no Outside. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to review this book.

📖 ARC REVIEW 📖

Thank you @jsbailey_author for an early copy of Upon a Waking Dream. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. 🤍

Upon a Waking Dream is a collection of short sci-fi and fantasy stories, including stories where a flat-earther gets abducted by aliens, a magic pen that bridges the gap between generations, a story where Jesus is alive at present, and many more.

Each story is unique, very interesting, and well-thought of. They are beautifully created and imaginative with lots of plot twists. The stories made me think a lot of what-if scenarios, which was fun!

I would recommend this if you’re a fan of sci-fi and fantasy stories, or if you want to take a short break reading between genres. Rating this ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5. Releases March 7th, 2023!

I received a digital ARC through NetGalley.

This is a book of short science-fiction/fantasy stories. Some are funny, and others made me think. My favorites were: “Letter from Glomsuet”, “The Man of Her Dreams”. “Jay”, and “Inheritance”.

So muxh to love with this book. The story was amazing and had you hooked from the beginning amd a character you really root for.
Such a brilliant set up and would highly recommend

this was a really good! I liked the characters, and they were super well-developed. the plot was super cool and fun to read, and the writing was also smooth and easy to understand
highly recommend

I was pleasantly surprised by this quirky collection of short stories.

I had never read anything written by J. S. Bailey before and I’m not the biggest fan of short stories, but I’m glad that this title caught my eye. This is a really fun collection of Sci-fi/Fantasy short stories of varying length and topic.
Some stories are short and have a simple premise, others longer and more emotion filled. Read about aliens, disappearing hotel floors, a house with an inside but no outside and more.

I highly recommend Upon A Waking Dream!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This short story collection was a mix of big hits and larger misses for me. I'm someone who tends to be harder to please with my sci-fi and though Bailey's work is something I will be checking out again this collection just wasn't for me.

Open these pages and delve into new worlds where...

-A Flat Earther gets abducted by aliens

-A college dropout gets by with a little help from her imaginary friend

-A woman obsessed with her favorite actor creates a new universe just to meet him

-A magic pen bridges the gap between generations

-Thirteen isn't an unlucky number...or is it?

Upon a Waking Dream contains twelve science fiction and fantasy tales from the mind of J. S. Bailey, ten of them never before published.

Beautiful cover. I’ll definitely read more from this author. Thank you, netgalley and the publisher, for my copy of this book.

I'll be honest I was not expecting to like this one as much as I did. I normally don't pick up much fantasy or science fiction, but I thought maybe short form would help my attention span for it, and this one did. it was easy to get lost in the world of each story within the first couple of pages. I highly recommend this for anyone struggling with fantasy and science fiction or wanting to explore the genres more.

Otherworldly is the best way I can describe this anthology.

I have been trying to expand my horizons by reading outside my favorite genres, and this advanced copy of Upon a Waking Dream did not disappoint. Each story had a Twilight Zone-esque quality to them but was endearingly entertaining. I would be hard-pressed to choose my favorite story from this collection.

Time travel, aliens, immortality, regret, flat-earthers, reuniting with deceased loved ones — there is something for everyone in this collection.

This book of short odd stories was absolutely fun to read, From a magical pen that allows you to right to your family from another time period, to a house with an inside but no outside, Bailey keeps us entertained from cover to cover with her vivid imagination!
Loved it, 5 stars from me.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

I really enjoyed J.S. Bailey's Upon a Waking Dream, which was an anthology consisting of twelve short stories. A flash fiction collection primarily focusing on science fiction. I really enjoyed the different lengths of the story because it meant that in such little time Bailey was able to create a world with specific technologies that the reader had to acclimate to quickly. Some of my favourite stories were Jay, The House With An Inside But No Outside, and The Last to Pass. The science fiction was reminiscent of The Twilight Zone, and I believe that is a huge reason as to why I enjoyed the collection so much.