The Eurythymics penned a line in their hit song “Sweet Dreams,” saying “everybody is looking for something.” In the novel “Wake,” that something ends up changing main character Janie’s life forever.

Dreams and nightmares have always remained private until Janie was born. In Lisa McMann’s “Wake,” Janie is an average girl with one exception: she gets sucked into people’s dreams.

Those dreams usually end up being very mundane until Janie is sucked into Cabel Strumheller’s nightmare. Now Janie must try to take control of her bizarre talent in order to save Cabel from a terrifying fate.

McMann’s debut novel is a fast-paced, easy read once the reader gets past the introduction. Her writing is synchronized by time and can be a bit confusing at first. Instead of giving a simple background to Janie’s life, McMann has the reader jump right into her struggling young adult years.

The dreams Janie gets sucked into at the beginning of the novel seem disjointed and hard to follow. It’s just one dream after another without a break for the reader to breathe.

Luckily, McMann backtracks a bit to explain things and the reader finally begins to comprehend Janie’s gift. From there, the novel becomes more interesting with nightmares that Janie can’t get out of, a romantic prospect and an elderly woman who helps Janie to realize her talent.

Suspense and romance are intertwined throughout the novel keeping readers on the edge of their seats as they root for Janie to gain confidence in her talent and save Cabel from his nightmares.

Profanity is used frequently in the book to enhance the tense situations Janie faces and may offend some. But for the most part, the profanity is used at just the right moments and right amount so the characters don’t seem like trash talking sailors.

This book may be a great read for anyone who has ever felt insecure with their own skin as they may relate to Janie and her personal struggles.

Plus the ending will leave readers waiting in high anticipation for McMann’s second book in the “Wake” series, “Fade.”

Reach the reporter at theresa.dillon@asu.edu.