NOVEL

Title: Dream Weaver

Author: Steven Paulsen

Publisher: IFWG, 2023

In which fellow Ballarat-based writer Steven Paulsen draws on his own travels, a tonne of research and a well-honed imagination to conjure a thrilling chase across a chunk of 1400s Anatolia. Ali is a poor youth with a valuable gift – a gift he barely understands but drops him into the centre of a bloody power struggle. To survive he must fulfil a quest that involves unexpected allies and merciless pursuers, the prize a sheer delight. The story is pitched at a YA audience but rewards the older reader, even if some of the turns and reveals may not be too unexpected. The characters are enjoyable, the setting well detailed, and moments of magic are beautifully entwined in the historical period in what must draw references to the Arabian Nights. There’s an earthiness, a darkness, the flavours and scents of the food and the landscape, that keep the flights of fancy grounded while giving the story plenty of lift. Good fun.