Dreamland

Caitlin wakes up on the morning of her sixteenth birthday to discover that her older, talented sister Cass has run away with her boyfriend leaving quiet Caitlin to fill the void in her parents’ attentions and to be the focus for their aspirations. Then she meets sexy, wild-boy Rogerson who represents a chance for her to discover new things about herself:

‘I saw myself, then, setting out across uncharted territory, places Cass had never been or heard of. My world was suddenly wide and limitless, as vast as the sky and stars I’d been dazzled by earlier, and it all started there with the door he was holding open for me.’

But when Rogerson starts to beat Caitlin the dream turns sour and she finds that only a drug-induced dreamlike state can dull the physical and emotional pain. Dessen’s readable style and convincing portrayal of an intense, physical adolescent love should ensure a wide readership for Dreamland which addresses important issues about date violence against young women.