Tech systems, spiritual cosmologies

A Dream Wants Waking 
by Lydia Kwa

Hamilton: Wolsak & Wynn, 2023
$22.00 / 9781989496756

Reviewed by Raeshelle Pascual

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A Dream Wants Waking by Lydia Kwa is a mythic fantasy novel that blends twenty-third-century dystopia, fox-spirit mythology, and science fiction elements. Kwa blends sci-fi with Chinese myth, and creates a unique and captivating story that captures the essence of relationships and belonging. The narrative jumps from timeline to timeline, following reincarnating spirits, chimeric creatures, demons, and humans caught between dimensions. The tale explores what it means to belong, to awaken, and to confront forces far older and more complex than oneself.

At its centre is Yinhe, a young fighter and half-fox spirit who has never fully fit into the human world. Growing up marked by difference, she moves through life carrying the quiet ache of someone who has learned to expect misunderstanding. When a malfunctioning mega-intelligence known as No.1 threatens the delicate balance of a post-catastrophe world, Yinhe is summoned into a dangerous mission that blurs political intrigue, mythic legacy, and the power of storytelling. Kwa renders these formative experiences with careful emotional clarity, revealing Yinhe as a protagonist shaped as much by tenderness as by injury.

Kwa’s writing is peaceful and mythic. Not only is it beautiful, but the words encapsulate the book’s emotional stakes in a single breath. An example comes in a moment of philosophical reflection: “To love is to suffer, but to love is also to discover.” These moments are frequent and give the narrative a contemplative rhythm that mirrors its interest in spirit realms, reincarnation, and the flexible lines between worlds. Kwa’s writing does not just describe these themes, but moves with them, drifting between timelines and lifetimes in a calm, dream-like flow that invites the reader to linger in the mystery rather than rush through it.

The novel’s biggest triumph is how naturally it merges mythological logic with speculative science. Neural implants, giant chimeric brains, and virtual spectacles exist alongside divine turtles, ancient odes, and spirit portals. Rather than confounding readers, Kwa’s concepts synch well with one another. The divine turtle Ao is not out of place beside an omniscient state intelligence, as both are entities that shape worlds, record histories, and influence fate. Similarly, the “visual tableaux” generated by No. 1 in the future mirror the performative rituals and storytelling nights in Bent Back, emphasizing how illusion can bind control, or liberate a population. 

Kwa never treats myth as a superstition nor science as sterile machinery; both are equally alive and capable of wonder and harm. The result is a universe where the ancient and the futuristic reflect one another, revealing that technological systems and spiritual cosmologies spring from the same human desire: to make meaning out of unseen forces that govern our lives.

With that said, the jumping between timelines grows a bit dizzying. The non-linear structure that switches quickly often lacks transitions—and that makes the novel feel like multiple stories at once.Though thematically resonant, the threads from the seventh and ninth centuries can appear distant from the intensity of the twenty-third-century plot. As a result, the reading experience can gets akin to juggling; it’s  several separate stories rather than following one evolving arc. While these historical threads are thematically rich, they sometimes lack the immediacy and urgency of the 2219 CE storyline. The contrast can make the past timelines look slightly emotionally distant, even if they deepen the novel’s themes. For readers more invested in the high-stakes tension of the future plot, these abrupt historical interludes may interrupt momentum, creating a sense of disjunction within an otherwise thoughtfully assembled narrative. 

As readers of Oracle Bone and The Walking Boy know, Kwa’s storytelling is distinctive and singular. In A Dream Wants Waking the cumulative effect of the interwoven timelines is ultimately one of depth rather than distraction, suggesting a universe where past, present, and dream entwine in ways that defy linear logic. As the narratives echo back and forth across centuries, patterns emerge that would be less powerful if told in a straightforward chronology. The structure asks the reader to experience time the way Yinhe does: layered, recursive, and emotionally interwoven. In this sense, what first feels fragmented gradually becomes a deliberate architecture, reinforcing the novel’s belief that history, memory, and myth are unavoidable forces continually shaping the living world.

Ultimately, A Dream Wants Waking stands out as a novel driven by ambition of emotion and imagination. Even when its structure risks overwhelming the reader, its commitment to exploring how lives echo across time remains compelling. Vancouver-based Kwa asks us to consider not only how stories are told, but how they persist through reincarnation, inherited wounds, and traces of love and longing that outlast any single lifetime.

Yinhe’s journey, spanning centuries and dimensions, becomes a meditation on how identity is formed not in isolation, but in dialogue with ancestors, spirits, myths, and systems that seek to contain them. For readers willing to surrender to its shifting rhythms, the novel offers a rare blend of intellectual challenge and emotional resonance. It rewards patients with moments of beauty, wisdom, and a sense of interconnectedness that lingers. Kwa’s work remains a bold, evocative exploration of what it means to awaken to one’s purpose in a world shaped by both ancient forces and uncertain futures.

Raeshelle Pascual is a fourth-year English student at Thompson Rivers University. She hopes to pursue being an elementary school teacher after completing her BA, as she’s inspired by working with children. She loves to read, write, and listen to music. [Editor’s note: the review of Lydia Kwa’s novel is Raeshelle’s first for BCR. We’re happy to publish it.]

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The British Columbia Review

Interim Editors: Trevor Marc Hughes (nonfiction), Brett Josef Grubisic (fiction and poetry)
Publisher: Richard Mackie

Formerly The Ormsby Review, The British Columbia Review is an on-line book review and journal service for BC writers and readers. The Advisory Board now consists of Jean Barman, Wade Davis, Robin Fisher, Barry Gough, Hugh Johnston, Kathy Mezei, Patricia Roy, and Graeme Wynn. Provincial Government Patron (since September 2018): Creative BC. Honorary Patron: Yosef Wosk. Scholarly Patron: SFU Graduate Liberal Studies. The British Columbia Review was founded in 2016 by Richard Mackie and Alan Twigg.

“Only connect.” – E.M. Forster