3.5/5.

Dreamland is an interesting historical novel, vaguely reminiscent of The Great Gatsby with its thoughtful, yet pointed commentary on life in the early 20th century, especially the lives of the wealthy. 
Peggy is a naive young woman through most of the story. She has very little understanding of how the real world functions, as she was born into an elite American family that owns several coal mines. As the story progresses, she begins to (somewhat) understand the lives of those beyond her odd, and at times cruel, family. 
In the short span of a summer near Coney Island, she falls in love with a Serbian immigrant, gets tangled up in a murder case, and faces her past demons. 
This book was a reminder that the United States has never been kind to immigrants. It's incredibly frustrating to see how little has changed in 100+ years. 
The insta-love and lack of plot toward the middle of the book is what brings it down to a 3.5 star read, rather than 4 stars. It really just felt like the entire middle was to make the length of the story longer. However, the ending really picks up. I was left feeling satisfied and mildly heartbroken.
Finally, I don't think Dreamland should compare itself to Night Circus. I didn't feel a strong sense of magical realism, and the comparison is a bit strong. Dreamland stands out in its own right as a commentary on early 20th century life and the darkness that comes with wealth in America.

*Many thanks to Nancy Bilyeau, Endevour Media and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.*
I cannot say liked this novel. To begin with, I found the presentation of the famous Coney Island in its golden days truly interesting, its entertainment and the people who provided it. At times I liked Peggy Batternberg for her independence and inquisitiveness. However, I found her too naive on the one hand and too intelligent on the other hand, which makes Peggy a character I can't trust.
The descriptions of the lifestyle really wealthy families had in America one hundred years ago are well-presented, including the rituals and the places where they stayed and lived.
On the whole, the target reader is definitely YA, which is not me, so I am convinced they will rave about 'Dreamland', for me it was just an OK read, and I enjoyed it mainly for the period details.

Peggy works in the Moonrise Bookstore, that is until her Uncle arrives and tells her she is needed at home. It turns out Peggy is a member of the wealthiest families in America, the Batternbergs. It’s 1911 and Peggy is a new woman, independent and knows her own mind.

She has been told she must spend the summer with the family at the Oriental Hotel. Her father had died in debt and the Batternberg family had been paying all expenses since, but when her mother finds out she decides to sell their home, downsize and live off the proceeds….Peggy is dubious as this doesn’t sound like her mother.

At the hotel, there’s Peggy, her mother, sister Lydia and brother, Lawrence. There is also Henry, Lydia’s fiancé, plus cousin Ben.

Dealing with the stifling atmosphere, Peggy escapes and meets, artist Stefan in Dreamland on Coney Island…….but then a woman’s body is found, Stefan is suspected due to his background but she knows he’s innocent and sets out to prove it putting herself in danger at times too. 

This is just a perfect read, historical fiction at its finest, with a strong female character, a murder mystery and a little love too. It highlights the vast difference between the wealthy, the less fortunate and those from a different country or culture, not only in monetary terms but in attitudes and behaviour.  The writing is so descriptive, you can feel the sweltering heatwave and the family tensions are palpable….I love it and is a must read for anyone who enjoys engrossing historical fiction. Gloriously entertaining.

Thank you to Hannah at Endeavour Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this for free. This is my honest and unbiased review.

Dreamland by Nancy Bilyeau is a novel that is insightful when dealing with class warfare and structure, but when it is not, the novel is a fairly obvious mystery that is easily solvable. The novel is called Dreamland after the Brooklyn Amusement park on Coney Island, it is most infamous for having a ride called Hell Gate. A horror boat ride at the time that was full of fire and live actor's. Dreamland in the novel is more of an after thought since less than a fourth of it takes place there. I love reading about the amusement parks of yesteryear, and was eagerly anticipating this one since I had just read Curious Toys which was about Hell Gate a couple of years later in 1915. Maybe my review was tainted where the text in that book was way more descriptive and captured the atmosphere, Dreamland was really vague in details. That being said the one part this book nails is the class warfare and thoughts on immigrants. Bilyeau made comparisons to the muslim people of today and the struggles to break with people being lumped in as a group instead of being an individual. That was my favorite part, too bad the mystery took up the majority of the book. Thanks to Netgalley and Endeavor Media for giving me a copy. This book was published on January 16 2020.

The Plot: Peggy a New York shopgirl who at the Moonrise Bookstore, she is not you ordinary shopgirl, Peggy it part of the elite class and bucking the system as she craves for independence in 1911. Peggy's Family owns mines and is making good money off them she has a huge trust that she gets when she turns 21. Her family was in a bit of turmoil and worry about their elite status as her father has passed away. He younger sister Lydia is set to marry Henry a very rich man who used to court Peggy. Lydia and Peggy are a bit estranged but thanks to Henry's demands of the family, he moves them all to the Oriental Hotel in Brooklyn, not to far from Coney Island. When they arrive woman is found dead in the ocean. The death has everyone on there's toes and the police protecting the rich from the amusement park patrons and workers. Peggy goes with some of her family and can't stand the way they talk about the poor and splits off to go on her own adventure. Where she meets a foreign painter who doesn't know that she's rich. They end up falling for each other, but a women is murdered on the very spot where they kiss, and Stefan the painter is the only suspect the police want for the crime. Peggy is determined to find the real killer.

What I Liked: The class warfare was really good, and how you can see similarities today was really well done. Same with how immigrants are treated in America and judged on a group of people instead of an individual. I liked the character of Peggy and her feminist ideals that women in this country are still fighting. I hated the character of Lydia, Peggy's Sister, at the beginning, but at the end of the book she was my favorite. The cover art is beautiful.

What I Disliked: The descriptions in this novel are so weak, it was hard to imagine what 1911 New York looked like. There's a scene where Peggy is blown away by Stefan's art, and she must buy two pieces, yet the reader gets only the briefest description of this incredible art. Hell Gate the attraction is so visually stunning I would have been lost if I had not read the book about it previously. The killer was way to easy there was no other suspects, and it was telegraphed so early on, you almost think, okay there's got to be a twist, but there is not. Did really not like Stefan as a love interest, didn't think they would get a long. The plot is slow a lot of start and stops so far as pace goes.

Recommendations: This is one that I can not recommend, there's some nice little bits about class warfare and structure, but with this novel as a whole there's not enough there to enjoy. I found the mystery incredibly weak, the novel does try to make it more exciting in the end but was still so so easy to solve. I love a great historical fiction but they need the descriptions to put me in that certain time period, and I felt them lacking, (note: I did read an advanced copy so these descriptions have hopefully improved). I hate to give books a low rate but I have to give Dreamland by Nancy Bilyeau 2 out of 5 stars.

This was a completely different genre for me but I loved it  as they say, I couldn't put it down.

I had never read anything about the heat wave or the Coney Island fire of 1911. This was a completely new area for me.  Peggy was such an independent young lady for her day, as it turned out was her sister Lydia.   I was tossed all ways trying to fathom out who was the villain and murderer. I did have my suspicions of course.  Henry Taul was an absolute male chauvinist who thought lydia would make the perfect wife as long as she  "put up and shut up". Such arrogant snobs who thought working class ordinary people were at the bottom of the pile! 

I have never read Ms Bilyeau before but will cerrainly look for more of her books.

Thank you netgalley!

Nancy Bilyeau, author of "The Blue" and "The Crown" brings us up close and personal into the seedier side of Coney Island and the harsh realities of privileged women at the turn of the century...Rich, spoiled and very much property of their male relatives.

Peggy Battenburg, of the infamously rich Battenburg's of New York works in a little bookstore, much to the abject horror of her family. Peggy wants to aspire to greatness; as long as she remains meek, quiet and elegantly dignified...in other words no unauthorized thoughts.

Without choice, Peggy finds herself staying for the summer, in a Grand Hotel with her family, near the excitingly wicked Coney Island. She wants to explore this lustful attraction...

Falling in Love, falling out of family favour and trying not to fall victim to a serial Killer, Peggy needs to fight for her place as a thinking woman in privileged Victorian Society.

4 stars

Thank you to NetGalley, Endeavour Quill and the author Ms. Nancy Bilyeau for the opportunity to read this Advanced Readers Copy of "Dreamland".
The opinions expressed in this review are mine alone.

I had high hopes for this but didn't really love it. Most of the characters were vile and those who weren't didn't garner much sympathy. I found the plot flimsy and fanciful. Some of the historical references were interesting but other than that "Dreamland" wasn't for me.

One of my favorite settings in books is an amusement park, so the setting of Coney Island in this story is perfect! This story takes place in the early 1900s and follows a young wealthy lady who vacations in Coney Island with her family and struggles to fit in with the "high class expectations" of her family. The storyline had some similar themes as the movie, Titanic, with the "wealthy girl mingles with the lower class and falls for an unsuitable gentleman". 

This story was a lot of fun...it was full of great descriptions of Manhattan Beach and Coney Island, the sights and sounds were described so well, I truly felt like I was there. There was also an air of mystery to the story, with some murders taking place. 

I really found the peek into the wealthy family's dirty laundry interesting. The romance was decent, but not my favorite (I never really enjoy romance though). 

Overall, this was a very fun, atmospheric, summery story that a lot of people should enjoy. Recommended!

I received an e-arc of this book from NetGalley and Endeavour Media to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I did enjoy Dreamland but I think I wasn’t in the proper mood or setting to fully enjoy it. This book is not a romance or a mystery but the story of a woman trying to be free and make her own choices without the intervention of men in her life. Overall it just wasn't for me.

I enjoyed this book but felt it needed a little more . It felt like it was missing out on character development, atmosphere, even a bit more chemistry would have been nice. It was a good story and the writing was good. It just seemed to be missing something.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

Book Review: Dreamland by nancy Bilyeau
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This gorgeous cover belongs to Dreamland by Nancy Bilyeau, which pub date was 3 days ago! When I started reading this it had been a while since I read the synopsis, so for some reason I expected a fantasy novel. It isn’t, it’s historical fiction/mystery instead. It didn’t disappoint though! I loved reading about Peggy’s rich family, and I loved that I didn’t really trust anyone, which made it an exciting read that kept me guessing.
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Synopsis:
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The year is 1911 when twenty-year-old heiress Peggy Batternberg is invited to spend the summer in America’s Playground.
But the invitation to Coney Island is unwelcome. Despite hailing from one of America’s richest families, Peggy would much rather spend the summer working at the Moonrise Bookstore than keeping up appearances with New York City socialites and her snobbish, controlling family.
But soon it transpires that the hedonism of Coney Island affords Peggy the freedom she has been yearning for, and it’s not long before she finds herself in love with a troubled pier-side artist of humble means, whom the Batternberg patriarchs would surely disapprove of.
Disapprove they may, but hidden behind their pomposity lurks a web of deceit, betrayal and deadly secrets. And as bodies begin to mount up amidst the sweltering clamour of Coney Island, it seems the powerful Batternbergs can get away with anything… even murder. 
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Thank you @netgalley, @endeavour_media and @tudorscribe for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
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Title: Dreamland
Author: Nancy Bilyeau
Publisher: Endeavour Media / Endeavour Quill
Publication date: 16 January 2020

2.5 Stars

This was a little disappointing. While it is incredibly well written it just didn’t live up to the promises made in the blurb. We are promised the extravagance and excitement of Coney Island amusements in 1911. The escape to its debauchery. Instead we got a slow paced slice of life of a New York socialite that had a little bit of “not like other girls” syndrome.

The mystery itself was extremely predictable. While initially Bilyeau managed to create suspicion in many of the male characters. It was not a page turning mystery. In fact in the end the investigation and reveal were very rushed. It took almost 80% of the story before our main character decided to look into the murders. Therefore all her investigative theories and the reveal and final wrap up all had to be squeezed into 75 pages. For me this was disappointing after pages of description of family dinners and how she spent her summer holidays. It just wasn’t for me.

Over all I just found it a bit dull. I wanted to be swept into the magic of Coney Island, to get imbedded in a dark and devious murder mystery and instead I found it rather dull. Again the writing was stunning, it reminded me of the style in An Interpretation of Murder but was missing the satisfying mystery for me. The writing was what kept me reading to the end. The rest just wasn’t for me.

What an incredible read. It gives you an insight into being an heiress in one of the richest families in America circa 1911. A summer on Coney Island, unsolved murders, an illicit affair between an heiress and an imigrant, drugs...what did this book not have? It would have been so much better with more description of hotels, coney island et. al. Otherwise very well done and look for more from this author!

Beautifully written historical fiction, focusing on the complicated lives of the Battenberg family in New York. Money fuelled engagements meets the bustling amusements of Coney Island, but it becomes very clear very quickly that a sinister killer is operating just metres from the fun. Peggy Battenberg wants to know all about it. 

I loved the characters, richly detailed setting and varying pace of the novel. All the plot points felt believable, and there is an amazing attention to historical detail. Futurism, the rise of Mussolini's Italy, Coney Island and freak shows, its all there in high definition.

A very satisfying read.

Firstly many thanks to Netgalley and Endeavour press for an ARC of a wonderful book. As soon as I started reading I knew this would be a book that would hook me in and I would just not be able to put it down and I was right. I disagree with some reviews that say the book left you wanting more in the way of descriptions, I thought the characters were well thought out and described, the storyline was very believable and moved at a pace that was just right so that nothing was missed. The detailed description of Coney Island and the barrier caused by ones social class and place in society before the First World War was sensitively done and was true of the time the book is set in. I did find myself not wanting the book to end and when it did my first thought was hopefully the author will bring these characters to live again. I
This is a wonderful story that I encourage all to read.

I enjoyed this book but felt myself wanting more details.  More atmosphere.  I wanted more to happen at coney island.  I did really enjoy the characters but I wanted more development of them.  Maybe a little more romance between Peggy and Stefan.  Especially because they were both such courageous people.

Started this book with a complete visual of everything described by the book's MC, Peggy Batternberg. Manhattan during summer's heatwave. The sounds and smells of Coney Island diffused all around me. Millionaires' Row and its wealthy, influential residents came to life once again. I don't know about you, but when I read historical fiction I tend to spend lots of time Googling people and settings from the story. (There's a lot to Google here.) Doing so allows me to better place myself within the storyline. I immediately bonded with Peggy because she cherished her duties at the Moonrise Bookstore. I'm always gonna root for a chick that digs books. I got in to the read quickly, but it kind of fizzled towards the end. Still, I quite enjoyed this historical mystery. Well worth the read. Atmospheric.

Peggy is an heiress. She doesn't have to work. She likes the independence she feels, if one can call it that. Unfortunately, the Batternbergs do not think kindly of a monied young socialite schlepping to a day job. How common and uncouth! Peggy's need to distance herself from uppity relations will find her entangled with a Serbian artist and three questionable crime scenes. If she had doubts about being the Batternberg black sheep, it's safe to say she's wearing the wool well.

America’s playground Coney Island turns into America’s nightmare in this historical fiction. Peggy, the female lead is a “modern woman” way ahead of a time where the rich ruled and most important the men. Having been born into an affluent family, Peggy doesn’t have much say in the way her life is lead which at times has her coming off as a bit naive to the reader. Many a time this naïveté kind of annoyed me because she truly believed she could change the world whom had decided her role in life from the moment she was born. 

Not only does Peggy have to follow her families whims and orders but she falls in love with a working man who would never be accepted by her family. Underneath the surface of all this though lurks a serial killer hell bent on making Peggy’s life miserable and to keep her beloved out of prison, it is up to her to find out just what kind of secrets the rich hide.

This was a mesmerising novel. The whole time I was reading it, I felt I literally escaped to a whole new world. The language was vastly rich in its descriptions of Coney Island the socialite high life style. The heroine's character was layered, filled with the innocence of youth and idealism, making me feel nostalgic about first loves and rebel days of the past. It almost reads as a hypnotic tale of mystery and finesse. This was a beautifully constructed historical fiction novel, one that will hold a tiny piece of my heart with it. If you're a fan of historical fiction and a strong female lead, then this is a little gem.

I loved this! I have read all of Nancy Bilyeau’s previous novels – The Crown, The Chalice and The Tapestry, set in Tudor England, and The Blue, about an 18th century porcelain painter – and enjoyed them all, but I think Dreamland, her new historical thriller, is her best yet.

It’s the summer of 1911 and twenty-year-old Peggy Batternberg, one of America’s wealthiest heiresses, has just started an unpaid job at New York’s Moonrise Bookstore. Her family disapprove, but Peggy has been feeling uncomfortable with her sheltered, privileged lifestyle and is enjoying the experience of doing something useful for a change and getting to know people from different backgrounds. However, she has hardly had time to settle into her new job when she is ordered to join the rest of her family at the Oriental Hotel near Coney Island to spend the summer there at the invitation of her sister’s fiancé, Henry Taul.

Peggy is disappointed and angry. She resents having to leave her position at the Moonrise and she dislikes Henry, so it is with a lot of reluctance that she agrees to change her plans. Shortly after her arrival at the hotel, she slips away from her Batternberg relatives and ventures through the gates of Dreamland, the newest and most impressive of Coney Island’s three huge amusement parks. It is here that she meets and falls in love with Stefan, a Serbian artist who sells hot dogs from a cart – definitely not the sort of man considered suitable company for a Batternberg heiress! Her family would be even more shocked if they knew that she had become mixed up in a murder investigation, but that’s exactly what happens when the body of a young woman is found on the beach near the hotel…

There was so much to enjoy about this book. First, the setting. I have never been to Coney Island but Nancy Bilyeau describes it all so well – the luxurious hotels, the beach and, most importantly, the rides, shows and other attractions of Dreamland itself – that I could form a clear picture of everything in my mind. In reality, the events that take place towards the end of the novel happened in May 1911, but Bilyeau plays around slightly with the dates so that the story unfolds during the summer heatwave instead, adding even more atmosphere to the novel.

Although Peggy is a fictional character, she is loosely based on the real American heiress and art collector, Peggy Guggenheim. It was interesting to follow her personal development over the course of that summer at Coney Island as she becomes increasingly aware of the disparity between the world in which she has grown up and the world populated by those who are less advantaged. Her visits to Dreamland open her eyes to a whole different way of life and her relationship with Stefan shows her the difficulties faced by immigrants in a society where they are viewed with suspicion and distrust.

I think the mystery aspect of the novel was actually my least favourite part of the book. There were only a few suspects and the eventual solution didn’t surprise me. What interested me more was the prejudiced way in which the investigation was handled by the police and the assumptions they made about various people based on factors such as name, nationality, gender and level of wealth.

The way Dreamland ended seemed to leave things open for another book about these characters; I would love to read a sequel, but if there’s not going to be one then I’m sure Nancy Bilyeau will find another equally fascinating setting and time period to write about next!