Dream Factory

College kids running around Disney as characters? Umm sign me up! I read this in middle school and loved the story line and a look ‘behind the magic’ the book gives you.

At first, I found this book to be a bit hard to follow. There isn't much of an introduction and you just jump right into the story. Ella and Luke spend the summer working at the happiest place on Earth with a bunch of other people around their age including Luke's hot girlfriend Cassie (which makes you wonder, why did they make her a chipmunk if she's so hot?) and Ella's best friend. Ella doesn't believe in dreams coming true much, and how could you blame her with the tragedy she's carrying around with her that no one but her best friend knows about? Luke's whole life after DisneyWorld is planned out for him and Cassie is urging him to be smart and take it. But it's not what Luke really wants. So what will he choose? The path already set out of him or is he going to risk it all and find his happily ever after? The book switches off from Luke's point of view to Ella's point of view. I'm a huge huge huge fan of Disney, so that's why I picked up this book. When I started reading it and it was a lot of complaining about how much they hated their jobs, I was starting to re-think reading this book since one of my biggest dreams is to work at Disney. But I realized, they're in Florida and not California, the weather must be much hotter out there and there are some people who really do hate working at a theme park, I for one, loved it. Ella struck me as someone I'd like to sit down and have a conversation with. Everything she says is thought provoking. She doesn't always make sense but to Luke, she makes perfect sense. And the whole time you're urging Luke to ditch miss Barbie and run off with Ella already! I enjoyed reading this book. To the point where I stayed up until 5:30AM this morning just to finish it. The lack of sleep was worth it. It's a romance book without the cheesy predictable romance. It relates a lot of what really happens in real life. The struggles, the secrets, the questions you ask yourself and the wants. I highly recommend this book!

This novel is a wonderful story that is beautifully written with alternating chapters by Brad Barkly & Heather Hepler. I was drawn to it by its Disney reference, but I stayed because of its darker tone. I couldn't put it down, and I recommend it to anyone who can use an unexpected fairytale romance.

Title: Dream Factory Authors: Brad Barkley and Heather Hepler Publisher: Dutton Books Reading Level: Young Adult Rating: 5/5 Summary (B & N): When the character actors at Disney World go on strike, the teens hired as replacements learn that it isn't exactly the Happiest Place on Earth. Ella gets to be Cinderella, simply because the shoe fits. It should be a dream come true, but Ella no longer believes in dreams. Luke is a fur character, Dale the chipmunk. Chip is played by his girlfriend, Cassie, who is perfect in every way. Why, then, does Luke find himself more drawn to imperfect things like the theme park's Phantom? A team-building scavenger hunt brings Luke and Ella together. As they uncover the Magic Kingdom's treasures, they discover an undeniable magic between them. Review: Once again, Barkley and Hepler bring a calm, cute love story to the table. Through alternating chapters of Ella and Luke the story unravels. I first discovered this awesome duo of Barkley and Hepler this last June when I read Scrambled Eggs at Midnight, and you can see from my review, that I fell in love with it. Now, once again, here I am completely in love with their charming stories. Dream Factory focuses on Ella and Luke, both of them destined to be together, both of them with a boyfriend (Ella) and girlfriend (Luke), so how does this work out? I started reading this one night, and the next thing I knew I was tired and it was late and I was more then half way done with the book in four hours. I got sucked up into Luke and Ella's story and I didn't stop until I was done. Ella and Luke are a lot alike, which is strange when they were written by too different people. But having them alike is so different, nowadays, every love story has the good girl falls for the bad guy , etc. So, this one was very engaging to read about and a very delightful change. Hepler and Barkley are amazing writes that have a soft edge in the writing. Their combination of writing offers a striking and endearing romance story that is charismatic and unforgettable. This is a book you shouldn't miss out on.

**SPOILERS BELOW** Adorable story. You can say it's a cliche, but that's kind of the whole point, that cliche awesomeness still lives on and is rarer than thought, but as beautiful as ever. Cassie was an annoying but necessary character. Ella...was enigmatic. At times I found myself loving her character, and at times, she felt like a total Mary-Sue. Then you've got Luke Skywalker, who, not only has the coolest name in the universe, but is also the sweetest kid ever, the one we all want. As for background characters, Mark...wow, could you be more of a cardboard cut-out? 'Course, that's what made his character so epic, I always giggled at his obliviousness to how utterly BORING he was. And Robin Hood, how could you not love our mischievous Robin Hood? The idea of a Disney world scavenger hunt was awesome, I just wish I could have been there. I just think that it's a beautiful story of dreams coming true in the perfect location, the place that promotes itself as the place where dreams come true. Filled with a plethora of amusing and amazing Disney world facts, it just adds to the absolute magic of the the epic story of Luke S[kywalker] and [Cinder]Ella. <3

I absolutly love this book! With the alternating chapters it allows you to get inside the heads of the two main characters and provides different points of view. I am a picky reader and dont like many different books but i couldn't put this one down. It kept me interested and i found myself laughing out loud sometimes. I could really picture the book in my head and the story is a really fun idea.