NetGalley kindly gave me a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I think as a young teenager (early secondary school) you'd like this book due to its love triangle - a winner with teenage girls.

This book had a really interesting idea - being an Eri. However, it's not really a strong enough idea other than a mystical land where you have to give up something (that you don't know about) to keep things in balance - a bit vague. It just didn't have enough oomph to make it a believable concept.

It's a love story (triangle) set in a Modern Africa that still has very tribal practices like beheading people to bury their heads with a King and sacrificing hundreds of animals etc. It may be my Western interpretation but for me it was just a bit strange as I felt it needed to either be modern or tribal. There wasn't enough of either idea so the story seemed stuck in the middle. The idea that the main characters are off being business men, studying at University etc. but then chopping peoples heads off for a burial was quite a juxtaposition I struggled with. I think I'd have preferred either or concept to solidify the setting. For example, a tribal setting would've worked really well with the mystical dream land and idea of pleasing the gods etc.

There wasn't much build up/detail meaning I was detached from the characters. Why was the main character so desirable - this isn't explained? She just comes across as a damsel in distress who needs saving by the men in her life. They made ridiculous decisions and comments like "I tried to recall the proper first aid treatment for someone with a bullet wound in their neck, but nothing came to me." Seemed a bit of an odd comment.

4 dreamy, magical, reminiscent stars!

The Place Beyond Her Dreams is a promising book about a young girl who's family takes in a young house boy and raise him as their own. Along the way, her grandfather dies unexpectedly, they fall in love, and a love triangle surfaces, and amidst it all, she realizes she has powers to travel to a magical realm while she sleeps.

It has all the makings of a book that I like: magical realism, love triangles, fast paced, dream-like story telling. A fantasy set in Africa? Fantastic! Amazing! Beautiful! STUNNING! The writing was written with a fun prose that felt like a reminiscent memory, so it appealed to older readers too. I loved that tactic! Honestly, I really enjoyed reading it.

The author seemed to have put a lot of care into each character, and by keeping the dreamy prose it separated you a touch from some of the harsh moments, while still keeping close just enough to like the characters. I didn't realize there was going to be some intense moments, as it starts out with the MC a young girl. But overall I enjoyed it quite a bit!

Big Takeaway
The prose was dreamy, the story absolutely matched in a great way. The story was a bit rougher than I expected, but I did still really enjoy the story and the prose. I especially loved Luenah, and wish we dove into it more, but I was satisfied with it regardless.

*I received an ARC for free and am leaving this review voluntarily*

Content warning: Domestic abuse!!!!

**Big plus, I've spoken to the author of this book, and she is absolutely wonderful and, to me, that is HUGE encouragement to support her. :)

This book was unlike anything I expected. Reading Ona's story both on earth and Luenah, I felt I was in a dream that I didn't want to end. Will be looking out for this author's works in the future.

HI. Still reading the book and i've only just started. I plan on giving a full read and posting review online but thought i should mention something as i was just reading more and this stuck out for me a little bit.
In the first chapter her ability to see glimpses of the future is introduced quite quickly and not elaborated on at least very much for the remainder of the chapter.
It would be a bit more helpful understanding wise if there would be some more description in the chapter overall (Though i understand this is likely the intentions writing style so i will not judge that.) Or maybe a scene showing this ability instead of it being told.

That being said i am enjoying the book quite a bit overall so far.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Trigger warning: this book contains some scenes of domestic violence.

The Place Beyond Her Dreams starts with Ona who quickly experiences a great loss in her life. She soon discovers her ability to travel to a dream like world. She knows she will have to sacrifice something to achieve her purpose in life, but her journey to that discovery comes at many ups and downs.

This book is light on the fantasy aspect. I was expecting more fantasy, specifically more time in Luenah, the dream-like world. However, the story was far more grounded in reality. Not just in plot, but in themes. I cannot say I have much experience in royalty or magic, but the struggles Ona goes through resonated with me. Her loss, love, inability to choose one thing or another, and constant fighting what she knows is technically the "right" thing for things she knows matter more, are all things we've experienced.

What stood out to me the most was the love Oby Aligwekwe has for each one of her characters, both he good and the bad. The way she wrote each character, you could feel how much attention to detail and character development Oby Aligwekwe poured into them. The language also felt magical at times. Her use of imagery and description really sold the "fairy tale" aspect more than the plot. I truly enjoyed this book and look forward to future YA releases from this author.

I am not entirely sure what I was expecting of this book but it wasnt quite this. Overall, I very much so liked it. It is a very well written out book with a lot of cultural aspects that were absolutely fascinating to read about. I loved the main two characters and their interactions with one another and I also enjoyed reading about Eris and Luenah.
The book did take a few dark turns that I was not expecting but I liked that it was overall, a very well written coming of age set up with unique legends and fantasy.

I lived for this book. I’m not usually one for books about out of body experience but it was well detailed and I could imagine myself going to Luenah.