K.M. Weiland’s Dreamlander launches from a conceptual query: what if our dreams reflect the life we experience in a parallel world? From this question, K.M. Weiland formulates a dynamic story which but for two minor flaws, would get my full five star treatment.

Before I go on to expand on why I loved this story, let’s get the nits out of the way. First, we fall in love with Lael, the parallel world where Chris Redston’s dreams take him. Earth/Chicago, however, can’t quite match up, and when I went there, back from Lael, I had to fight the urge to skip ahead. The action in the “real world” felt pedestrian and at times almost besides the point. Without giving away the ending, that’s especially a problem once we swipe the last few pages. For a second, lesser nit, I’ll note that the story takes several time jumps that come across as evidence of a heavy editor’s hand, keen on removing fat, perhaps to stay under a prescribed word count or in order to enforce a good galloping pace, without smoothing out some of the transitions. Perhaps the “deleted scenes” (director’s cut, anyone?) will furnish a less jumpy experience.

The good? The characters are wonderfully drawn, especially in Lael, where they inhabit a fully fleshed out world that gives full reign to their challenges, aspirations and relationships. Oh, and about that world, wow, what imagination! I won’t spoil it (or embarrass myself, since perhaps my impression results from too a light diet of fantasy fiction), but the way this world mixes Medieval-Renaissance components with technology more akin to the twentieth century, or perhaps beyond, sets it apart from anything I’ve experienced in literature.

Building on this wonderful world inhabited by compelling characters, Weiland gifts us with a story full of battles, inner-character conflict and seemingly insurmountable escalating challenges that will ultimately call for painful and sacrificial choices. Along the way, we will move from an interesting concept — do we live in two worlds? — to the exploration of a grand theme: how do we set aside self-interest to make decisions for the good of others, even at great personal sacrifice? All that takes place in the story arises from and supports this struggle between self-interest and doing right for the benefit of others. We see this progression take place through our protagonist, Chris Redston, but we see the same happen in lesser characters, even if their selected courses of action don’t seem entirely right.

Without diving into the philosophical-theological realm, one question begs asking: does Chris Redston, a.k.a., “the Gifted” portray a Christ figure? I’ll leave that as an exercise to the reader.

On the grand total line, does the good outweigh the nits? Overwhelmingly, yes. If you enjoy a well-paced story that doesn’t short-change character development and which at all times finds its fuel in realistic characters facing real-world challenges and heart-wrenching choices, click that buy button and start reading Dreamlander. Since that choice lies well behind me, I’m off to order another of Weiland’s works. I see a Western in my future.