Dream a Little Dream
Dream a Little Dream book cover

Dream a Little Dream

Mass Market Paperback – February 1, 1998

by
Price
$8.99
Publisher
Avon
Publication Date
ISBN-13
978-0380794478
Dimensions
4.19 x 1 x 6.75 inches
Weight
6.6 ounces

Description

From Publishers Weekly Setting her story in Salvation, N.C., Phillips adeptly develops the theme of love's healing power. Broke and desperate to provide a better life for her son, gutsy Rachel Stone ends up in Salvation when her car breaks down. She knows the place?even worse, they know her as the widow of G. Dwayne Snopes, a televangelist who fled stealing millions. Luckily, Gabe Bonner, who owns a drive-in theater where Rachel asks for work, seems to be the only person who doesn't recognize her right off. Rachel's proud mettle distracts Gabe from the grief of his own tragic loss, but enemies strike out at Rachel, while Gabe's brothers mount a family defense against the gold-digging widow. Phillips (Heaven, Texas) digs deep to expose weaknesses and strengths in the psyche and faith of her characters. The result is a book that is touching, funny, sexy and humane.Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. "No One Tops Susan Elizabeth Phillips."-- Jayne Ann Krentz"What The World Needs Is More Books By Susan Elizabeth Phillips."-- Elizabeth Lowell"A warm and humorous story."--" Los Angeles Times A Desperate Young Mother Rachel Stone's bad luck has taken a turn for the worse. With an empty wallet, a car's that's spilling smoke, and a five-year-old son to support, she's come home to a town that hates her. But this determined young widow with a scandalous past has learned how to be a fighter. And she'll do anything to keep her child safe—even take on. . . A man With No Heart Gabe Bonner wants to be left alone, especially by the beautiful outcast who's invaded his property. She has a ton of attitude, a talent for trouble, and a child who brings back bad memories. Yet Rachel's feisty spirit might just be heaven-sent to save a tough, stubborn man. Dare To Dream Welcome to Salvation, North Carolina—where a man who's forgotten what tenderness means meets a woman with nothing to lose. here two endearing lovers will set off on a funny, touching journey of the heart. . .to a place where dreams just might come true. Susan Elizabeth Phillips is axa0#1 New York Times bestselling author whose books have been published in over thirty languages. Guided by the motto, “Life is better with happily-ever-afters,” she loves writing about love in all its forms. Among her accomplishments, Susanxa0createdxa0the sports romance with her novel Fancy Pants .xa0She is best known for her Chicago Stars and Wynette, Texas series, as well as multiplexa0stand-alonexa0books.xa0Visit Susan’sxa0website atxa0www.susanelizabethphillips.com. Read more

Features & Highlights

  • A Desperate Young Mother
  • Rachel Stone's bad luck has taken a turn for the worse. With an empty wallet, a car's that's spilling smoke, and a five-year-old son to support, she's come home to a town that hates her. But this determined young widow with a scandalous past has learned how to be a fighter. And she'll do anything to keep her child safe—even take on. . .
  • A man With No Heart
  • Gabe Bonner wants to be left alone, especially by the beautiful outcast who's invaded his property. She has a ton of attitude, a talent for trouble, and a child who brings back bad memories. Yet Rachel's feisty spirit might just be heaven-sent to save a tough, stubborn man.
  • Dare To Dream
  • Welcome to Salvation, North Carolina—where a man who's forgotten what tenderness means meets a woman with nothing to lose. here two endearing lovers will set off on a funny, touching journey of the heart. . .to a place where dreams just might come true.

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
60%
(1.4K)
★★★★
25%
(581)
★★★
15%
(348)
★★
7%
(163)
★
-7%
(-163)

Most Helpful Reviews

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SEP at her best!

Susan Elizabeth Phillips is one of the best writers of contemporary romance as is amply proven by "Dream a Little Dream" . This is the story of Rachel Stone, the widow of a TV evangelist whose greed and hypocrisy continue to haunt their former home, Salvation, North Carolina. Rachel and her son Edward are truly destitute, and she returns to Salvation in search of some of her husband's ill-gotten gains. In order to conduct her search, she must outwit the current occupant of her former home, the widower Gabe Bonner. Gabe is still in such deep mourning for his lost wife and son, that he has completely closed down emotionally. Circumstances bring Rachel and Gabe together, and much to their mutual surprise, their initial antipathy and wariness begins to awaken emotional feelings neither anticipated. Their sparing matches are hysterical and Phillips does a wonderful job building the sexual tension between the two.
This is actually a two-for-one romance. In addition to Rachel and Gabe's story, the book includes the romance of Gabe's brother Ethan and his secretary Kristy. Ethan is a reformed sinner who became a pastor, the kind that sharply contrasts with Rachel's flamboyant dead husband. Kristy has been a part of his life forever and clearly always had a crush on Ethan. When Rachel comes to town, she inspires Kristy to make some changes in her life which completely throw Ethan's world into a tailspin,
This novel has a unique plot, wonderfully developed characters, and extremely amusing dialouge. Even if you aren't a fan of contemporary romance, this is such a sweet and funny novel that you are bound to enjoy it.
65 people found this helpful
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Keep a hankie handy

Gabe Bonner lost his family in a car accident 2 years earlier, and has been a shell of his former self. Rachel Stone is the widow of a greedy Salvation, North Carolina televangelist who absconded with most of the town's hard earned savings 3 years earlier, blaming his fall from grace on Rachel.

When her car breaks down in of all places, Salvation, a now destitute Rachel seeks employment from Gabe, the only person in town who does not know about her past. Soon it catches up to her and Gabe very reluctantly takes her under his wing, since she is the first woman he has felt a stirring for since his wife died.

With the town and Gabe's preacher brother Ethan against Rachel and her young son Edward (who likes to be called Chip), Rachel searches her former mansion (now Gabe's) for the missing money, only to be thwarted by Gabe. Soon, the two are in each other's arms acting on the chemistry that has been between them all along, much to both Gabe's brother's consternation. But Rachel cannot see herself with him long-term as he keeps Edward at arm's length, to the point that Edward fears him.

There is also a secondary romance involving Ethan and his secretary Kristy who has had the hots for Ethan for ages, and solicits Rachel's help in getting him to notice her. And boy does he.

This is the fourth of the Chicago Stars/Bonner Brothers stories. It is one of the best. The scenes between Gabe and Edward will keep you misty. He is a broken man that cannot seem to accept another young boy in his life, especially one he perceives as being as weak. Be sure to read "Nobody's Baby But Mine" to get background on the Bonner family clan.
20 people found this helpful
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Wonderful Read, well worth the money

A very enjoyable read. The heroine(s) in this book take different paths but eventually reach their goals of self-discovery and fulfillment. Rachel must battle her past relationship with a corrupted pastor and a town's inability to offer forgiveness. Kirsty wages a war within herself to find the love of her life...by first loving herself. I loved the complex nature of the dialogs. Romance wasn't a melodramatic moment that left the reader wondering if that much syrupy conversation was safe to digest in one setting. Instead the romance between the males and females in the book took on a different level of caring and sensitivity. Themes that were handled with care, grace and humor: overlooking the beauty that is right beneath your nose, grieving the lost of a family, holding on to your faith, etc. It would seem with the many complexities and varied themes, this book would be a jumble of cliches. Instead it is a well written love story that I will keep in my list of treasured books. Although SEP has not been one of my favorite authors, this is definitely one of my favorite stories. Great job.
19 people found this helpful
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Don't bother.

I hated the heroine from the very beginning. She was rude, disrespectful, ungrateful, and just too damn lippy. I wanted to put her on a stake and burn her to death. Just to be fair though, she has a few good points too, but MAN! She runs her mouth like there's no tomorrow that it doesn't matter she has good points at all! I especially didn't like the part where she wanted Gabe, the widower, to say something bad about his dead wife, just so she could feel good about herself. That's not respectful at all, but then I doubt she gave a damn about anything except Gabe and herself.

With that said, I still love the author. She has some good books out there: Lady Be Good (which is light as fluff but EXTREMELY funny), Ain't She Sweet?, and This Heart Of Mine. Check those out instead.
7 people found this helpful
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Thank goodness for mistakes!!!!!

The book club I belonged to before my Amazon days accidentally sent me this book instead of the Nora Roberts book I ordered. I stayed up all night reading and the next day bought every one of Phillips' titles. Susan Elizabeth Phillips is a master of the craft! Dream a Little Dream is a bit different from most of her others. You'll need Kleenex, but by the end of the book you'll understand the redeeming power of love.
6 people found this helpful
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SEP Challenges the Romance Genre!

This book challenges the romance genre. Here, we have a heroine that dresses in old lady housegowns and oxford shoes. SEP takes a clear departure from the cliche scenario: strong wilful but beautiful heroine with beautiful clothes. While this book is clearly a romance, SEP focuses on developing an interesting and moving story.

Rachel Stone comes back to Salvation, North Carolina. This town hates her because her now deceased husband was a phony televangelist who took Salvation on a wild but ultimately disappointing ride. Rachel, however, is in survival mode. She needs to find the link to the missing 5 million dollars that her husband took with him to the grave. She has something like $5 to her name and a broken down vehicle, but most important she has a 5 year old son to take care of. Where this child is concerned, she has no pride. As such, Rachel demands a job from Gabe Bonner, a man with a sad past, having lost his wife and son to a car accident. Rachel and Gabe may seem like an unlikely pair, but they come together and through the course of their story, we see how they really belong with each other. This book unlike other SEP books is full of sad moments, but a page turner nevertheless.
6 people found this helpful
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I'LL GIVE THIS A HUNDRED STARS IF I COULD!

It is a very heartwarming story. I've read almost all of Susan Elizabeth Phillips books and this one ranks as one of the best . It is about a story of a man who almost lost hope when suddenly a woman brought him back from from his grave and made him live again. It has a different twist from all the other romance books I've read, and the twist made it more lovable and definitely a tear-jerker. It delves deeper on human emotions... it's not a mushy, mushy kind of book but a very realistic one. Often times we find ourselves on the brink of giving up like Gabe had but then people that surrounds us gives us comfort and a reason to move on... And yes..... I've read the book 20 times.
6 people found this helpful
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"Feel Good" book of all time

Open DREAM A LITTLE DREAM and visit Salvation, NC where the famous Bonner family resides. Get in a little deeper and get to know Heartbreak Mountain, which is the heart of the Bonner Family. Read more and get hooked on Dream A Little Dream, the story of Gabe Bonner and Rachel Stone.
The Bonner brothers have always been close, looking out for each other. When Rachel Stone's car breaks down and is stuck in Salvation, they think she's not good news and try to get her to leave. But they're not the only ones who do, the people of Salvation have decided to blame all their problems on her. Because she was married to a televangelist who played them all for fools.
Most importantly, Gabe wants Rachel and her 5 year old son gone too. He's grieving over the death of his wife and son and doesn't want to feel anything again.
However, Rachel is broke and her luck had just run out. And she was not going to give up the only hope she has of securing her son's future. As for the people and the Bonner brothers, she's never given up on a fight before.
Dream A Little Dream is about many things, the love of a mother for her son, the healing of a grieving heart, the struggle of a strong woman to make it, and how they teach each other to love again.
Susan Elizabeth Phillips is known for her funny and heartwarming dialogue, and Dream A Little Dream is no exception. However, it also has a deeper sense of feeling. She'll make ya laugh and cry, and at the end, make ya feel good all over!
5 people found this helpful
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Wonderful

This was my first SEP novel and it won't be my last. I laughed, I cryed it was just wonderful. The hero is such a lost sad soul you can't help but love him and the heroine is understanding, fiesty and just a great mother who would do anything for her son. The h/h interacted so well with each other you could just feel how much they needed each other. I thought the hero was a little hard on the son but I could also understand the pain he was going through. I was a wonderful book that I read in one day because the characters just pulled me into the story so much I could'nt put it down. Kudos to SEP for making a real winner.
4 people found this helpful
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New territory with this book, very well done, wow!!!

Wonderful!
I am a longtime fan, I already liked Hot Shot, Glitter Baby and Fancy Pants, her more serious (older) books a lot. When she began, with It Had to Be You, to write wonderfully funny and still touching books, I just couldn't wait for the next one, and I kept rereading them again and again, they are so special!
Now, Dream a Little Dream is again new territory, still funny, but much less so, and dealing with a very tough subject. The heroine is really fighting for the survival of her son and herself, she's so poor, she's prepared to do anything to keep her son fed and get money for basic necessities - and yet, she manages to do this with grace. The hero lost a beloved wife and son and is not recovering at all. He's at the edge of just giving up. He behaves horribly and cannot stand the heroine's son.
With this premise, writing a book where you still can laugh sometimes, where you don't hate the hero but understand him, where the heroine is convincing (the right mixture of looking out for herself and still being a good person in such a difficult situation is nearly impossible - but it works here) - I am very impressed. I couldn't put down the book and I was sorry when it ended.
I still hope that Susan Elizabeth Phillips will write "pure fun" books again, they are such a treat! But this a bit darker one was so good, and dealing with subjects like death and poverty and prejudice is so important, that it should be done well. There are few authors who can do it, and I am happy to see that SEP is one of them.
I will read anything she writes and look forward to see where she takes me the next time, her growing palette of writing styles and subjects makes me richer, too.
4 people found this helpful

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