Exile for Dreamers by Kathleen Baldwin Pages: 384
Published by Tor Teen on May 24, 2016
Series: Stranje House #2
Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Historical Fiction, Fantasy & Magic
Source: Finished Hardcover from Publisher
Also in this series: A School for Unusual Girls, Refuge for Masterminds, Harbor for the Nightingale, Santuary For SeersIt’s 1814. Napoleon has escaped his imprisonment on Elba. Europe is in shambles. Britain is at war on four fronts. And at Stranje House, a School for Unusual Girls, five young ladies are secretly being trained for a world of spies, diplomacy, and war.
Tess Aubreyson can’t run far enough or fast enough to escape the prophetic dreams that haunt her. Dreams bring nothing but death and grief, and Tess refuses to accept that she may be destined for the same madness that destroyed her mother. Until her disturbing dreams become the only means of saving Lord Ravencross, the man she loves, and her fellow students at Stranje House. Tess’s old friend, the traitorous Lady Daneska, and Ghost, the ruthless leader of the Iron Crown, have returned to England, intent on paving the way for Napoleon’s invasion. Can the young ladies of Stranje House prevail once more? Or is England destined to fall into the hands of the power-mad dictator?
Note: This is the second book in a series that must be read in order.
If you are new to the Stranje House series, check out my review of book one, A School for Unusual Girls HERE
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Exile for Dreamers is the second book in the Stanje House series by Kathleen Baldwin. I absolutely loved, the first book in the series, A School for Unusual Girls, and this book was even better than the first book. I will always have a soft spot in my heart for Georgie and Lord Wyatt, but I really really adore the setup of this series. Each of the books is told from one of the five Stranje House girls point of views. Book one was Georgie, book two is Tess and book three will be Jane. I just love that idea. The series follows a single timeline and the events of the books take place one right after another, so the series must be read in order. But from each book we get to see the next set of events unfold from a different perspective. It is brilliantly done.
Exile for Dreamers is Tess’ story. Tess is such an interesting character. I was super intrigued by her in the first book, and I grew to totally love her in this book. Her story with Lord Ravencross was excellent. Not to mention her ability is really fascinating. Not only her dreaming ability but also her connection with animals. She is a multifaceted character that I was eager to keep learning more about as the book progressed. And I was totally surprised with the direction things took with one of the characters. View Spoiler »
The Stranje House series is quickly turning into one of my favorites. I love that it blends different genres seamlessly. It is part historical fiction/alternate history, party magic, and part secret spy school. I have never read another book quite like it. I should note that in the historical aspect, at the end of the last book we took a departure from actual historical events. I thought Kathleen Bladwin did an excellent job explaining the what and the why in her afterword, which I would encourage everyone to read. The Stranje House novels are more of an alternate version of history, where just shifting one event in Napoleon’s time could have resulted in a very different turn of events. It is so much fun to explore this possibility. (Can you tell I love history!?) But even non-history majors can easily enjoy these novels. Katleen Baldwin does a fantastic job making them accessible and easy to follow, all the while creating a world and characters that are unputdownable. I am in love with the Stranje House novels. Seriously, in love.
I can’t wait to learn more about Jane, Maya, and Sera in each of their stories. I am almost positive that each of the girls will get their own story, and I could not be more thrilled about that. They are each so fascinating in their own regard. So different, and valuable in their own way. I love watching them all work together. They have each other’s backs and they don’t hesitate to jump in after another girl to help out. (Sometimes literally jumping into something)
Overall, Exile for Dreamers was a FANTASTIC follow up to the Stranje House series. This is a series for readers and lovers of all different genres. I think everyone should read this series. There will be something in between these pages that you will fall in love with, I’m sure of it. Book three, A Refuge for Masterminds is Lady Jane’s story- our resident mastermind herself. I am so pumped for the book. I have been absolutely loving it. I know I am going to be so sad when it is over because I will have to wait until next year for the fourth book. Kathleen Baldwin has not let me down yet. I am in love with this series!
Books in the Stranje House Series:
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About Kathleen Baldwin
Award-winning author Kathleen Baldwin loves adventure in books and in real life. She taught rock climbing in the Rockies, survival camped in the desert, was stalked by a mountain lion, lost an argument with a rattlesnake, enjoyed way too many classes in college, fell in love at least a dozen times, and married her very own hero. They’ve raised four free-spirited adventurous children.
Awarded 2016 Spirit of Texas, A School for Unusual Girls , is her first historical romance for Young Adults. It is a Junior Library Guild selection. Publisher’s Lunch listed it in their 2015 Young Adult BookBuzz. Kansas State NEA Reading Circle gave it a starred review in their 2016 “Best of the Best” for High Schools. Scholastic licensed it for book fairs, and New York Times Book Review called it “enticing from the first sentence.”
Kathleen is also an avid reader and adores the wit and humor of Oscar Wilde, P.G. Wodehouse, and Jane Austen. Her eclectic reading interests range from Frank Herbert to Meg Cabot, and on to the delightfully imaginative tales of Diana Wynne Jones.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
I bet Abraham Lincoln’s speeches were amazing to hear live.