Dreaming Anastasia - Joy Preble

Anastasia Romanov thought she would never feel more alone than when the gunfire started and her family began to fall around her. Surely the bullets would come for her next. But they didn't. Instead, two gnarled old hands reached for her. When she wakes up she discovers that she is in the ancient hut of the witch Baba Yaga, and that some things are worse than being dead.


In modern-day Chicago, Anne doesn't know much about Russian history. She is more concerned about getting into a good college—until the dreams start. She is somewhere else. She is someone else. And she is sharing a small room with a very old woman. The vivid dreams startle her, but not until a handsome stranger offers to explain them does she realize her life is going to change forever. She is the only one who can save Anastasia. But, Anastasia is having her own dreams...

This novel was quite an unexpected surprise! I wasn't sure what I was hoping to get from this book but by the time I was finished with it, I was actually sad to see it end. The characters were deep and I loved Anne as a heroine. She was really strong but was still vulnerable at the same time.

I loved the spin about Anastasia Romanov and the whole Russian family and royalties fascinate me. The author certainly did her homework with the bloodlines (I'm actually quite obsessed with Russian royalties and Anastasia which is why I got this book to begin with) and she also added an intriguing element of magic with the witch Baba Yaga. The ending was a tiny bit weak, but it didn't affect my overall rating.

The sequel to Dreaming Anastasia is coming in January of 2011 and it is called Haunted. I took a peek at her website and the synopsis of that one s a girl being haunted by a mysterious and malevolent mermaid. I can't wait!


*****