Young Mom Ashley is found dead in a small Hudson Valley town leaving her partner Roman and young son behind. Roman is reeling in grief and trying to tackle parenthood alone with his mum Tara helping at every given opportunity. Roman is the journalist for the town and he begins investigating himself and is shocked by how little he knew about Ashley.

This is one of those books that you think about when you’re not reading it, it is a small town mystery that also has family drama, grief and mental health explored within its topics.

For me this was a good solid four star read, a first by this author but I will be sure to check out more of her work.

Many thanks to NetGalley, publisher and author for my eARC.

Honestly this was a tough read, but it was intriguing enough I wanted to push through to see how it all played out. I did have to read this all as close together as possible or I would have put this book down and not picked it back up.

As mirrored in a lot of reviews there were so many unnecessary covid/pandemic mentions. Two of the times it was mentioned could have been used to add depth to the story but as it was brought up so frequently it didn’t allow for any emotional impact. You could argue that it was mentioned a lot as covid impacted us all, which is true but with no depth of exploration other than “they moved here during the pandemic” it’s useless.

There was a lot of repetitiveness throughout. Multiple descriptions of events, multiple interactions repeated. I’m surprised this wasn’t caught and cut. There was also a number of political references throughout which felt misplaced, as though they were put in as an afterthought to make this book seem more set in the times.

“If we can only save one of their lives, who should it be?” Honestly I almost dnfed this book when I came across this line. It’s overused, unnecessary and so factually false it drives me insane.

There was not a single likeable character within this book. This could be because all the characters were exactly the same. The drugs, the mental health issues, the feelings about their children, the open relationships that weren’t actually open relationships because they were really all cheating on each other. The adults who lived these exact lives as kids but then grew up.

The worst character was Tara. I hated reading her pov, I hated others talking about her. Tara was weird as fuck and the whole “do again” relationship with her grandson was awful. The ending also annoyed me Roman should have taken Mason and ran far far away from that woman. I hate to blame a woman for a man’s actions but like it actually was all due to her and I don’t think the “trials and tribulations of parenthood” changes this.

Unfortunately this book was just not for me.

In I Dreamed of Falling, Roman Grady leads a mundane life as a reporter for the local newspaper when his long-time girlfriend—and mother of his son—is found dead near a cliff edge. The police are quick to rule it an accident, but as Roman and his mother dig deeper into her life, unsettling secrets threaten to unravel their family.


The Good Stuff:

The premise of the book promised intrigue and mystery, and Dahl definitely delivered on that front. Slowly, we discover the secrets of each character, as well as the victim’s life before her death, gradually closing in on her final moments. 

There are a lot of red herrings and new characters that throw suspicion, keeping you guessing the identity of the murderer until halfway through the book.

I liked the plot twist towards the end, but I think the execution lacked a bit of substance.


The Not So Good Stuff:

Having read many thrillers and mystery books, I have to admit that this unfortunately wasn’t for me.

I think the book would have benefitted from a faster pace and, overall, more tension and suspense. The stakes were not described in a way that made me care about the characters. 

On top of that, I felt a bit let down by the reveal of the murderer. It was a brilliant idea to choose that particular character, but only the last few chapters really hinted at their involvement. The book lacked the appropriate breadcrumbs scattered along the way to give us the ‘AHA’ moment at the end.

Overall, I believe the book would have benefitted from another round of editing, where repetitive dialogue (describing events that happened in the previous chapter/scene) and unnecessary character interactions (that weren’t relevant to the plot) could have been cut.


Rating:

⭑⭑⭒⭒⭒

Whilst this book wasn't for me, I believe casual readers who are looking for an easy-to-read novel with a bit of mystery and a plot twist will enjoy it.

How well do you really know the person that you love? Or the town that you live in? These are the questions facing Roman Grady after his long term girlfriend Ashley dies, leaving him with their 4 year old son.

Because when Ryan begins to investigate Ashley's death he discovers that there was plenty about her life that he was not privy to. And if that wasn't bad enough, it turns out Ashley's not the only one who was keeping secrets...

This was a bit too much of a slow burn for me in the initial part of the book, but it does ultimately deliver quite a gripping story. So a bit of a mixed bag, but worth checking out if you like nuanced, clever thrillers.

I really enjoy Julia Dahl’s writing and her stories are always so interesting.with characters that I can’t decide if I like or hate them. I Dreamed of Falling has all this and more. A slow burning mystery that I couldn’t stop reading.

Ashley is found dead after a party at her former best friends house. Her death at first appears to be an overdose, but her partner Roman thinks otherwise. He is the reporter for the local paper and wis prepared to ask the questions that the police seem to be avoiding. This opens up a lot of possibilities and even more questions.

A small town domestic thriller/mystery that you can lose your day in. Thanks to Bedford Square Publishers on NetGalley for my early copy to read. Published on February 13th.

I really enjoyed Julia Dahl’s The Missing Hours and was eager to read whatever she wrote next.

I Dreamed Of Falling starts with a death in a small town, the dead woman’s partner is a reporter and is determined to get to the truth.

It’s detailed, lots of looking back into recent events and character relationships and I found it fairly slow. I was waiting then wishing for more to happen.

Sorry to say it wasn’t one for me.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bedford Square Publishers

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to finish this book. Its more a personal preference but I didn't like the style of writing. It felt scattered and unfinished.

Somewhat of a slow burn that suddenly grabs you and will not let you go! It was impossible to put down once I got further into the story. A totally gripping thriller about the secrets of small town secrets!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for my ARC

"Roman Grady is the sole reporter for the local newspaper in a tiny Hudson Valley town - a town so small that every store opening is considered newsworthy. But when Roman's girlfriend Ashley, the mother of his four-year-old son, is found dead, he realises he had no idea what was really going on in her life. And when he starts asking questions, he’s not prepared for the answers."

I Dreamed of Falling took a while to engage me, but I'm so glad I stuck with it because it developed into a gripping thriller. In its depiction of small town life and the ways in which it can trap you, it reminded me somewhat of Amy Engels (which is high praise indeed!).

Highly recommended for fans of thrillers with a family element to them: readers of Engels and Lisa Jewell will particularly find much to enjoy.