Review: Dream Warrior by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Dream Warrior is the fourth book in Sherrilyn Kenyon’s paranormal romance Dream Hunter series, a spin-off from the Dark Hunter series.

Cratus is a god stripped of his powers by Zeus. Known now by his human name of Jericho, he has been tormented by Zeus for millennia by being slain and resurrected every night.

Delphine is one of the Oneroi, the gods and goddesses of the dream world. Sent to Jericho to enlist his help in the fight against the evil gods Azure and Noir, she finds herself drawn into his fight instead.

This book is part of a much larger series, and while it almost works as a standalone novel, it’s clear that there is much assumption that the reader is familiar with the other books. There are many secondary characters who aren’t fleshed out, and many concepts that aren’t explained.

Even the romance between Jericho and Delphine, ostensibly the major plot of the book, seems forced, as though they fall for each other simply because it is a convention of the genre. Both characters are somewhat two-dimensional, given backstory but no real character development that makes sense.

Kenyon’s writing jars a lot, with pop culture references sitting side by side with ancient mythology, a juxtaposition that acts only to make the story feel ungrounded. Kenyon also commits one of the sins of writing – telling and not showing – many times, especially in relation to character emotions, which only gives the story even less of an emotional impact.

It is likely that a reader who enjoys the other books in this series could enjoy this book. On its own, it doesn’t stand well and is ultimately forgettable.

Dream Warrior is published by Piatkus.