Olivier seems to relish toying with readers’ expectations, as the questions about what’s really going on become ever more urgent. The one other hiccup in the leads’ bubble—besides intense dreams in which Olivier conjures intimate, sometimes eroticized dread via wrenching and poetic imagery—seems to be Nina’s drinking, which is made worse for Oliver by the facts that his parents apparently died in a collision with a drunk driver. But as dreams and reality collide the story takes even wilder turns, with a hostage situation, unexpected blood test results, mad scientists, and tantalizing hints about the true nature of this couple’s connection.

Though labeled a romance, The Girl in My Dreams plays out as a darkly romantic thriller with a science-fiction edge, as Olivier demonstrates a deft sleight-of-hand when it comes to plotting, genre, and the ways that her leads truly are connected. The twists jolt, the couplings are vigorous and inventive, and a host of dreamlike and unsettling moments—like one love scene involving a forked tongue, or another centered on inked markings on a body—prove truly disorienting, but perhaps the biggest surprise, in the end, is that, touchingly, romance wins the day.

Takeaway: Obsessive romantic thriller of paralysis, mad dreams, and unexpected connection.

Comparable Titles: Karen Hamilton’s The Perfect Girlfriend, ​​Lisa Jewell’s Watching You.

Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A