★★★★ 
Everything changed when naive young Alana met the mysterious, handsome stranger from her dreams not long ago. Now embroiled in the immortal lives of the creatures of the forests, both humanoid and not, she must learn to adapt if she truly wants to live a happy life with her dream-beau, Christian. But Alana must learn quickly, as not everyone is content to see Alana and her mother continue as they are. When dark forces threaten the lives of everyone close to her, Alana takes an offer she cannot refuse…
Elusive Dreams is the second book from author Floriminda Edar Reid, and follows on from the dramatic course of events in the first novel in this series, Moonless Night, with heightened stakes and danger. Alana has grown much since first meeting Christian, becoming much harder in personality and somewhat more cunning in her wit since her induction into the hidden society of the night. It definitely feels like a proper sequel to Moonless Night, with proper progression of every aspect introduced in the first story that builds on what’s been established before, and brings in much more.
A comparison to other popular supernatural romances, especially vampire novels, is inevitable, and it’s hard to say that Elusive Dreams does much to distance itself from the tropes and typical story beats of the genre. This isn’t necessarily a criticism, as the tried-and-tested works for a reason, but for readers looking for something particularly different, the series might not provide enough reasons to become truly invested in the series on the whole.
A definite mark in favor of this novel is the writing flows much better than its predecessor, which suffered for its poor grammar and writing style that’s fairly hard to unpack. However, this is only relative to the first book’s issues, as Elusive Dreams still remains a beleaguered read due to the stilted writing on display, which has failed to be ironed out despite what seems to have been a thorough technical edit of the text. An allowance can be made that the book requires a “dream-like” quality due to its subject, but some of the writing remains difficult to follow.
It’s a shame that these issues could not be fixed before publication, as Elusive Dreams is more than meets the eye in terms of its plot and themes, which should definitely appeal to readers of supernatural romance. Reid has no shortage of imagination, and there are innovative details throughout, particularly in terms of setting, which really does stand out as its own richly-imagined world. So there is a lot to offer here, despite some of the book’s deficiencies.
Even with easy comparisons to its peers in many aspects, Reid has done a remarkable job in developing the world and its residents in an interesting and logical way from the previous book, which will be very satisfying to readers already invested in Alana’s story. It’s definitely recommended to start with the first novel to become truly immersed in the world Reid has created, and once you get going with this series, Elusive Dreams is easy to approach and hard to put down.
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