Quirky Cat
Written on Apr 16, 2019
Slumbering is the first novel in the Starlight Chronicles series by C.S. Johnson. It's a young adult fantasy series that it sure to please fans of both genres. Slumbering follows young Hamilton Dinger, AKA Dinger, AKA Hammy, on a surprising and unexpected journey in his very own hometown.
Dinger is used to be the best in school. He's brilliant, he's a great athlete, and everything comes naturally to him. Especially when it comes to making friends. But things are about to change in his life, and the question is, how is he going to handle it?
The series takes a new perspective on superpowers and saving the world, and is really quite a lot of fun to read. If you're looking for a story with a protagonist that has a lot to learn, then this is the one for you.
Also, side note: I just want to point out how much I adore this cover. It's absolutely stunning! And honestly I know that I would have picked up this book for that reason alone, even if I hadn't been approached to give it a read.
I really enjoyed Slumbering, and once again found myself completing this novel in one sitting. I just couldn't put it down. And trust me, I tried to put it down for a bit to get some work done – it didn't work.
This was a fun and unique experience for me. I'll confess that I really didn't like Dinger at the beginning of the book. Honestly, I'm not even sure I liked him all that much by the end of the book. But I was still curious about the plot and what was happening around him. It proves that you don't always have to like the protagonist in order to enjoy their story.
And I can honestly say that my not liking Dinger didn't take away from the book in the slightest. Instead I just happily read on, waiting for that big moment when everything would change for him, forcing a perspective shift – because I had no doubt that one was on the way.
The novel did a trick that I'm personally a fan of – starting at a later point, but then bringing us back to the beginning to explain everything. It's smart because it gives us a glimpse of the action, but then it gives us a chance to understand (and care about) everything that is happening.
The mystery about what was actually happening during Slumbering was exceptionally done. It had a gradual buildup, courtesy of Dinger's refusal to deal with the situation. The storytelling style helped here as well, since Dinger was essentially telling us the story from a later point in time – with him essentially admitting where he should have noticed that something was off here and there.
I really enjoyed that this novel was a bit of a twist on the coming of age story, or at least it felt that way for me. We have an inherently selfish character – Dinger – forced to come to terms with the evil happening around him, and make a choice he doesn't want. That doesn't automatically mean that he's going to do a better job of thinking about other people of course...but it's a start. I'm looking forward to seeing his character progress in later novels (oh I do hope he appears in the rest of the series).
The superhero names in this novel were a bit all over the place, but in a good way. I love that Dinger is Wingdinger. It's so appropriate somehow. And Starry Night is another fantastic name, which an implication of mystery, which is fortunate since we don't know much about her. Though I do have my theories on the matter.
I'm looking forward to reading the next novel in the series, Calling. There's also a novella that's #0 in the series that I apparently missed, called Searching. I'm going to have to look into that one as well!
For more reviews check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks