A Dream Within A Dream (Coffey and Hill Book 3)
Mike Nappa and Melissa Kosci
Revell Pub.
June 2nd, 2020
A Dream Within A Dream was written by Mike Nappa (about the first ¼ of the book) and Melissa Kosci (the last ¾ of the book). Anyone who loves mysteries, anything Poe related, or historical fiction will enjoy this book. The story bounces back and forth between Atlanta and Boston, with some fun historical treasure hunt elements found along the famous Freedom Trail, including a visit to Old North Church, Paul Revere’s house, and Boston Common.
Kosci explained, “After Mike had a personal tragedy I was asked to finish this last book of the series. The female protagonist, Trudi, fits perfectly into the type of female characters I write. They are very tough, kick-butt, and courageous. If the publisher and Mike give the OK, I would be very interested in writing a couple of books about Trudi’s assistant Eula.”
Because Eula is young she contrasts perfectly with Trudi. Kosci stated, “I thought of Trudi as emotionally and mentally tough. Eula is sweet with a tough side. She knows how to fight and shoot and would make a great protagonist.”
Bestselling author Mike Nappa first introduced readers to private investigators Trudi Coffey and Samuel Hill in Annabel Lee, where they had to race against time, and a killer, to rescue a fourteen-year-old girl. In The Raven, the duo found themselves mired in another life-threatening plot when a pickpocket gets in over his head with the Ukrainian mafia. Now coauthors Mike Nappa and Melissa Kosci have teamed up to deliver one last epic thrill in the final installment of the Coffey & Hill Series, A Dream within a Dream.
The references to Edgar Allen Poe in each of the three books of the series makes for an interesting read. Annabel Lee is the last tragic work of Poe about the loss suffered by a widowed husband. The Raven is his most famous poem and the references in this book make for a very fascinating story.
The book opens with Trudi Coffey in Boston watching a Celtics/Hawks basketball game. While watching the game, Trudi is confronted by two FBI agents who are asking probing
questions about her ex-husband, Samuel Hill. With her curiosity aroused, Trudi is determined to find him and get to the bottom of his disappearance. To make matters worse as she is leaving the game, she has an encounter with an armed man demanding her help.
“Samuel is one of the most fun characters I have ever written. He is basically a pain in the butt. No one ever knows where he is coming from, if he is serious, or is he pulling someone’s leg. But he is really smart and cocky. Trudi likes to harass him, which he fully deserves, as evidenced by his nickname.”
After Trudi returns back to Atlanta, Samuel turns up and explains how he is protecting that armed man, named Dream, from the Boston mob. It appears that they are after Dream because he knows where priceless art has been stowed away. He has a map showing the location of artwork stolen from the Gardener Museum during the infamous 1990 heist. Now Trudi, Samuel, her assistant Eula, and Dream must keep each other safe and win the race to find the artwork.
“I wanted to write Dream as eccentric who has been through a lot. He has PTSD from being kidnapped, abused, and put through horrific events. I think he is very caring with a certain amount of innocence. His coping mechanism is to recite random facts.”
This story is a fast read that will keep readers interest throughout the book. It is full of suspense, action, intrigue, and Edgar Allen Poe references.
