Astrid Johansen’s younger sister, Nina, drowned 17 years ago in a reflecting pool on the property next door to her house. Astrid was babysitting Nina while her parents were at a party. No one actually blames Astrid, but the implication is that if she had been keeping a closer eye on her sister, this unthinkable tragedy never would have occurred. Astrid has been living with this guilt for years. It has seriously impacted her relationships with her mother, father and now ex-husband. And, as the book’s title states, she dreams about water.

"As usual, [Banner] does an outstanding job of developing believable characters, keeping the action moving, and making readers want to keep turning pages."

Astrid’s aunt Maude lives close to where Nina drowned. She calls Astrid to let her know that she has found a typewritten letter with a handwritten signature. “The letter will change everything we believe about the past,” she says. But before Astrid can get any more information, she hears a thump and the phone line goes dead.

Astrid immediately decides to visit her aunt and see what’s going on. To her horror, she finds Maude in a pool of blood on the floor. After calling 911, she becomes immersed in a mystery about her sister’s death. What really happened that night?

A. J. Banner deals with multiple topics in DREAMING OF WATER, including the unreliability of memory, family secrets, divorce, guilt and mental illness. When Astrid finds some old letters in her aunt’s house, readers are treated to interesting facts about how someone can determine the validity of a written missive, which Astrid does for a living.

Banner alternates between the present and the past several times throughout the book, providing a solid backstory of what went down 17 years ago to explain what is happening to Astrid now. As usual, she does an outstanding job of developing believable characters, keeping the action moving, and making readers want to keep turning pages.