Book Review: The Thought War
The Thought War. Padmaja Khanna. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, December 14, 2015, Trade Paperback and Kindle, 272 Pages.
Reviewed by Deanna Frances.
The Thought War by Padmaja Khanna is the final installment of The Dream Hiker trilogy, a young adult adventure and science fiction series. Taking place primarily in the dreams of 17-year-old Jack Treole, The Thought War follows Treole and his friends Eddie, Selenia, and Zeta as they try to find answers about the dream world from Jack’s father, Master Yuquoa.
In Khanna’s first novel in the series, The Dream Hiker, the friends meet on a collaboration website that one of Jack’s schoolteachers has set up. There, the students discover that they can connect within their dreams, and they begin their own adventures in the dream “thought world.” The second novel, The Mind Trap, continues the story with the friends meeting in real life at a science camp in Chicago, Illinois.
The Thought War builds upon the suspense created by the unanswered questions of the previous novels as the young friends set out to learn the truth about Jack’s father, who had died in the real world several years prior but lived on in the dream world and became one of its most powerful men.
With the help of some new friends and old friends from the previous books, Jack, Eddie, Zeta, and Selenia launch a quest to find Master Yuquoa’s rival, Master Sietto, who might hold answers about a possible thought war over access to powerful conches that could make one of them the “Dreamlord,” granting power over all the minds of the dream world.
I was truly looking forward to reading The Thought War, and I was not disappointed. After reviewing Khanna’s second novel of the trilogy, I was excited to find out what would happen to the group of friends in the dream world, and this novel fulfilled all of my expectations.
Before reading Khanna’s first two novels, I was not very familiar with science fiction stories, but I’ve enjoyed Khanna’s use of both the realistic world and the fictional dream world. I think that the two worlds add a unique twist to a story that might otherwise have been a typical young adult novel.
I also enjoyed the characters and their relatable personal stories as well as the new characters the author introduced in this novel. Even though the book featured an extensive cast, I was never confused because the characters were all so different and strongly developed, and they remained memorable and identifiable throughout the action.
I believe a wide variety of readers can enjoy The Dream Hiker trilogy. Even though I was not a science fiction fan before reading these novels, I can now appreciate the interesting aspects that science fiction can bring to young adult novels. In my opinion, fans of realistic fiction, science fiction, or young adult novels alike will enjoy The Dream Hiker Series.