diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/data/jsonl/multi-lines-with-arrays/5-records.json b/asterixdb/asterix-app/data/jsonl/multi-lines-with-arrays/5-records.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5bd8cb6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/data/jsonl/multi-lines-with-arrays/5-records.json
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+[]
+{"id": 21, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good", "array":  [1, 2, 3]}
+
+
+{"id": 22, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good", "array":  [1, [1, 2], [1]]}
+{"id": 23, "year": 2018, "quarter": null, "review": "good", "array":  [1,
+2, 3]}
+
+{"id": 24,
+  "year": 2018,
+  "quarter": null,
+  "review": "bad",
+  "array": [
+    1,
+    2,
+    3
+  ]
+}
+{"id": 25,
+  "year": 2018, "quarter": 1, "review": "good", "array":  [1,   2,       3]}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/data/jsonl/multi-lines-with-nested-objects/5-records.json b/asterixdb/asterix-app/data/jsonl/multi-lines-with-nested-objects/5-records.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..063e30a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/data/jsonl/multi-lines-with-nested-objects/5-records.json
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+{"id": 26, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good", "array":  [1, 2, 3], "nested":  { "id" :  1}}
+
+[]
+[    ]
+[{"id": 27, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good", "array":  [1, [1, 2], [1]], "nested":  { "id" : 1}, "nested2": [ {"id":1 }]},
+{"id":28,"year":2018,"quarter":null,"review":"good","array":[1,2,3,{"nested":{"array":[{"nested":{"array":[1,2]}}]}}]}]
+
+{
+  "id": 29,
+  "year": 2018,
+  "quarter": null,
+  "review": "bad",
+  "array": [
+    1,
+    2,
+    3,
+    {
+      "nested1": {
+        "id": 1,
+        "nested2": {
+          "id": 2,
+          "nested3": [
+            {
+              "nested4": null
+            }
+          ]
+        }
+      }
+    }
+  ]
+}
+{"id": 30,
+  "year": 2018, "quarter": 1, "review": "good", "array":  [1,   2,       3, {"nested": { "array": [1, 2]}}]}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/data/jsonl/multi-lines/20-records.json b/asterixdb/asterix-app/data/jsonl/multi-lines/20-records.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..69aa775
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/data/jsonl/multi-lines/20-records.json
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+[{"id": 1, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good"},
+
+
+{"id": 2, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good"}   ,
+{"id": 3, "year": 2018, "quarter": null, "review": "good"}]
+
+{"id": 4,
+  "year": 2018,
+  "quarter": null,
+  "review": "bad"
+}
+{"id": 5,
+  "year": 2018, "quarter": 1, "review": "good"}
+{"id": 6, "year": 2018, "quarter": 1, "review": "bad"
+}
+{"id": 7, "year": 2018, "quarter": 2, "review": "good"}
+{"id": 8, "year": 2018, "quarter": 2, "review": "bad"}
+[{"id": 9, "year": 2019, "quarter": null,
+
+  "review": "good"},
+{"id": 10, "year": 2019,
+
+  "quarter": null,
+  "review": "bad"}    ,
+{"id": 11, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "good"}]
+[{"id": 12, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "bad"}]
+{"id": 13, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "good"}
+{"id": 14, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "bad"}
+{"id": 15, "year": 2019, "quarter": null, "review": "good"}
+{"id": 16, "year": 2019, "quarter": null, "review": "bad"}
+{"id": 17, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "good"}
+[{"id": 18, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "bad"}, {"id": 19, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "good"},
+{"id": 20, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "bad"}]
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/data/jsonl/single-line/20-records.json b/asterixdb/asterix-app/data/jsonl/single-line/20-records.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bf86095
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/data/jsonl/single-line/20-records.json
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+[{"id": 31, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good"},
+{"id": 32, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good"},
+{"id": 33, "year": 2018, "quarter": null, "review": "good"},
+{"id": 34, "year": 2018, "quarter": null, "review": "bad"},
+{"id": 35, "year": 2018, "quarter": 1, "review": "good"},
+{"id": 36, "year": 2018, "quarter": 1, "review": "bad"},
+{"id": 37, "year": 2018, "quarter": 2, "review": "good"},
+{"id": 38, "year": 2018, "quarter": 2, "review": "bad"},
+{"id": 39, "year": 2019, "quarter": null, "review": "good"},
+{"id": 40, "year": 2019, "quarter": null, "review": "bad"},
+{"id": 41, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "good"},
+{"id": 42, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "bad"},
+{"id": 43, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "good"},
+{"id": 44, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "bad"},
+{"id": 45, "year": 2019, "quarter": null, "review": "good"},
+{"id": 46, "year": 2019, "quarter": null, "review": "bad"},
+{"id": 47, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "good"},
+{"id": 48, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "bad"},
+{"id": 49, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "good"},
+{"id": 50, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "bad"}]
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/external_dataset/aws/AwsS3ExternalDatasetTest.java b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/external_dataset/aws/AwsS3ExternalDatasetTest.java
index 5e2d2de..b5866e9 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/external_dataset/aws/AwsS3ExternalDatasetTest.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/external_dataset/aws/AwsS3ExternalDatasetTest.java
@@ -365,7 +365,7 @@
             String[] lines;
             switch (ctx.getType()) {
                 case "s3bucket":
-                    // <bucket_name> <def_name> <file1,file2,file3>
+                    // <bucket_name> <def_name> <sub-path:src_file1,sub-path:src_file2,sub-path:src_file3>
                     lines = TestExecutor.stripAllComments(statement).trim().split("\n");
                     String lastLine = lines[lines.length - 1];
                     String[] command = lastLine.trim().split(" ");
@@ -386,7 +386,7 @@
         String definitionPath = definition + (definition.endsWith("/") ? "" : "/");
         String[] fileSplits = files.split(",");
 
-        LOGGER.info("Dropping bucket");
+        LOGGER.info("Dropping bucket " + bucketName);
         try {
             client.deleteBucket(DELETE_BUCKET_BUILDER.bucket(bucketName).build());
         } catch (NoSuchBucketException e) {
@@ -397,13 +397,31 @@
         LOGGER.info("Uploading to bucket " + bucketName + " definition " + definitionPath);
         fileNames.clear();
         for (int i = 0; i < fileSplits.length; i++) {
-            String fileName = FilenameUtils.getName(fileSplits[i]);
-            while (fileNames.contains(fileName)) {
-                fileName = (i + 1) + fileName;
+            String[] s3pathAndSourceFile = fileSplits[i].split(":");
+            int size = s3pathAndSourceFile.length;
+            String path;
+            String sourceFilePath;
+            String sourceFileName;
+            if (size == 1) {
+                // case: playground json-data/reviews SOURCE_FILE1,SOURCE_FILE2
+                path = definitionPath;
+                sourceFilePath = s3pathAndSourceFile[0];
+                sourceFileName = FilenameUtils.getName(s3pathAndSourceFile[0]);
+            } else {
+                // case: playground json-data/reviews level1/sub-level:SOURCE_FILE1,level2/sub-level:SOURCE_FILE2
+                path = definitionPath + s3pathAndSourceFile[0] + (s3pathAndSourceFile[0].endsWith("/") ? "" : "/");
+                sourceFilePath = s3pathAndSourceFile[1];
+                sourceFileName = FilenameUtils.getName(s3pathAndSourceFile[1]);
             }
-            fileNames.add(fileName);
-            client.putObject(PUT_OBJECT_BUILDER.bucket(bucketName).key(definitionPath + fileName).build(),
-                    RequestBody.fromFile(Paths.get(fileSplits[i])));
+
+            String keyPath = path + sourceFileName;
+            int k = 1;
+            while (fileNames.contains(keyPath)) {
+                keyPath = path + (k++) + sourceFileName;
+            }
+            fileNames.add(keyPath);
+            client.putObject(PUT_OBJECT_BUILDER.bucket(bucketName).key(keyPath).build(),
+                    RequestBody.fromFile(Paths.get(sourceFilePath)));
         }
         LOGGER.info("Done creating bucket with data");
     }
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/query-dataset.000.s3bucket.sqlpp b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/query-dataset.000.s3bucket.sqlpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5def284
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/query-dataset.000.s3bucket.sqlpp
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+ * distributed with this work for additional information
+ * regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+ * to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+ * "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+ * with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+ * software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+ * "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+ * KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+ * specific language governing permissions and limitations
+ * under the License.
+ */
+// create S3 bucket with data
+playground data_dir level1a:data/jsonl/multi-lines/20-records.json,level1a/level2a:data/jsonl/multi-lines-with-arrays/5-records.json,level1b:data/jsonl/multi-lines-with-nested-objects/5-records.json,level1b/level2b:data/jsonl/single-line/20-records.json
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/query-dataset.001.ddl.sqlpp b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/query-dataset.001.ddl.sqlpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6b2e0cd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/query-dataset.001.ddl.sqlpp
@@ -0,0 +1,36 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+ * distributed with this work for additional information
+ * regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+ * to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+ * "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+ * with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+ * software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+ * "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+ * KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+ * specific language governing permissions and limitations
+ * under the License.
+ */
+
+DROP DATAVERSE test IF EXISTS;
+CREATE DATAVERSE test;
+USE test;
+
+DROP TYPE t1 IF EXISTS;
+CREATE TYPE t1 AS OPEN {};
+
+DROP DATASET ds1 IF EXISTS;
+CREATE EXTERNAL DATASET ds1(t1) USING S3 (
+("accessKey"="dummyAccessKey"),
+("secretKey"="dummySecretKey"),
+("region"="us-west-2"),
+("serviceEndpoint"="http://localhost:8001"),
+("container"="playground"),
+("definition"="data_dir"),
+("format"="json")
+);
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/query-dataset.002.query.sqlpp b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/query-dataset.002.query.sqlpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..87490e6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/query-dataset.002.query.sqlpp
@@ -0,0 +1,23 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+ * distributed with this work for additional information
+ * regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+ * to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+ * "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+ * with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+ * software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+ * "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+ * KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+ * specific language governing permissions and limitations
+ * under the License.
+ */
+// requesttype=application/json
+// param max-warnings:json=100
+USE test;
+
+FROM ds1 v SELECT VALUE v ORDER BY v.id ASC;
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/query-dataset.099.ddl.sqlpp b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/query-dataset.099.ddl.sqlpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..36b2bab
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/query-dataset.099.ddl.sqlpp
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+ * distributed with this work for additional information
+ * regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+ * to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+ * "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+ * with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+ * software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+ * "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+ * KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+ * specific language governing permissions and limitations
+ * under the License.
+ */
+
+DROP DATAVERSE test IF EXISTS;
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/results/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/external_dataset.002.adm b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/results/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/external_dataset.002.adm
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bf2b0e1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/results/external-dataset/aws/s3/jsonl/external_dataset.002.adm
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+{ "id": 1, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 2, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 3, "year": 2018, "quarter": null, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 4, "year": 2018, "quarter": null, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 5, "year": 2018, "quarter": 1, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 6, "year": 2018, "quarter": 1, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 7, "year": 2018, "quarter": 2, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 8, "year": 2018, "quarter": 2, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 9, "year": 2019, "quarter": null, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 10, "year": 2019, "quarter": null, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 11, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 12, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 13, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 14, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 15, "year": 2019, "quarter": null, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 16, "year": 2019, "quarter": null, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 17, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 18, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 19, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 20, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 21, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good", "array": [ 1, 2, 3 ] }
+{ "id": 22, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good", "array": [ 1, [ 1, 2 ], [ 1 ] ] }
+{ "id": 23, "year": 2018, "quarter": null, "review": "good", "array": [ 1, 2, 3 ] }
+{ "id": 24, "year": 2018, "quarter": null, "review": "bad", "array": [ 1, 2, 3 ] }
+{ "id": 25, "year": 2018, "quarter": 1, "review": "good", "array": [ 1, 2, 3 ] }
+{ "id": 26, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good", "array": [ 1, 2, 3 ], "nested": { "id": 1 } }
+{ "id": 27, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good", "array": [ 1, [ 1, 2 ], [ 1 ] ], "nested": { "id": 1 }, "nested2": [ { "id": 1 } ] }
+{ "id": 28, "year": 2018, "quarter": null, "review": "good", "array": [ 1, 2, 3, { "nested": { "array": [ { "nested": { "array": [ 1, 2 ] } } ] } } ] }
+{ "id": 29, "year": 2018, "quarter": null, "review": "bad", "array": [ 1, 2, 3, { "nested1": { "id": 1, "nested2": { "id": 2, "nested3": [ { "nested4": null } ] } } } ] }
+{ "id": 30, "year": 2018, "quarter": 1, "review": "good", "array": [ 1, 2, 3, { "nested": { "array": [ 1, 2 ] } } ] }
+{ "id": 31, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 32, "year": null, "quarter": null, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 33, "year": 2018, "quarter": null, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 34, "year": 2018, "quarter": null, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 35, "year": 2018, "quarter": 1, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 36, "year": 2018, "quarter": 1, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 37, "year": 2018, "quarter": 2, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 38, "year": 2018, "quarter": 2, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 39, "year": 2019, "quarter": null, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 40, "year": 2019, "quarter": null, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 41, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 42, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 43, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 44, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 45, "year": 2019, "quarter": null, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 46, "year": 2019, "quarter": null, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 47, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 48, "year": 2019, "quarter": 1, "review": "bad" }
+{ "id": 49, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "good" }
+{ "id": 50, "year": 2019, "quarter": 2, "review": "bad" }
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/testsuite_external_dataset_one_partition.xml b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/testsuite_external_dataset_one_partition.xml
index e194c86..0597d8f 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/testsuite_external_dataset_one_partition.xml
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/testsuite_external_dataset_one_partition.xml
@@ -73,5 +73,10 @@
         <expected-warn>Parsing error at data_dir/no_h_missing_fields.tsv record 2 field 3: some fields are missing</expected-warn>
       </compilation-unit>
     </test-case>
+    <test-case FilePath="external-dataset" check-warnings="true">
+      <compilation-unit name="aws/s3/jsonl">
+        <output-dir compare="Text">aws/s3/jsonl</output-dir>
+      </compilation-unit>
+    </test-case>
   </test-group>
 </test-suite>
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-common/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/common/exceptions/ErrorCode.java b/asterixdb/asterix-common/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/common/exceptions/ErrorCode.java
index cfe4646..6ec0ea2 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-common/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/common/exceptions/ErrorCode.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-common/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/common/exceptions/ErrorCode.java
@@ -240,9 +240,9 @@
     public static final int LIBRARY_JAVA_FUNCTION_HELPER_OBJ_TYPE_NOT_SUPPORTED = 3046;
     public static final int LIBRARY_EXTERNAL_FUNCTION_UNSUPPORTED_NAME = 3047;
     public static final int OPERATORS_FEED_META_OPERATOR_DESCRIPTOR_INVALID_RUNTIME = 3048;
-    public static final int PARSER_FACTORY_DELIMITED_DATA_PARSER_FACTORY_NOT_VALID_DELIMITER = 3049;
-    public static final int PARSER_INVALID_CHAR_LENGTH = 3050;
-    public static final int PARSER_FACTORY_DELIMITED_DATA_PARSER_FACTORY_QUOTE_DELIMITER_MISMATCH = 3051;
+    public static final int INVALID_DELIMITER = 3049;
+    public static final int INVALID_CHAR_LENGTH = 3050;
+    public static final int QUOTE_DELIMITER_MISMATCH = 3051;
     public static final int INDEXING_EXTERNAL_FILE_INDEX_ACCESSOR_UNABLE_TO_FIND_FILE_INDEX = 3052;
     public static final int PARSER_ADM_DATA_PARSER_FIELD_NOT_NULL = 3053;
     public static final int PARSER_ADM_DATA_PARSER_TYPE_MISMATCH = 3054;
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/input/record/reader/stream/QuotedLineRecordReader.java b/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/input/record/reader/stream/QuotedLineRecordReader.java
index e6e8ae0..81b8e41 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/input/record/reader/stream/QuotedLineRecordReader.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/input/record/reader/stream/QuotedLineRecordReader.java
@@ -52,7 +52,7 @@
         super.configure(ctx, inputStream, config);
         this.warnings = ctx.getWarningCollector();
         String quoteString = config.get(ExternalDataConstants.KEY_QUOTE);
-        ExternalDataUtils.validateQuote(quoteString);
+        ExternalDataUtils.validateChar(quoteString, ExternalDataConstants.KEY_QUOTE);
         this.quote = quoteString.charAt(0);
         this.escape = ExternalDataUtils.validateGetEscape(config);
     }
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/input/record/reader/stream/SemiStructuredRecordReader.java b/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/input/record/reader/stream/SemiStructuredRecordReader.java
index fa4a4a5..1fb5b25 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/input/record/reader/stream/SemiStructuredRecordReader.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/input/record/reader/stream/SemiStructuredRecordReader.java
@@ -18,6 +18,15 @@
  */
 package org.apache.asterix.external.input.record.reader.stream;
 
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.CLOSING_BRACKET;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.COMMA;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.CR;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.KEY_RECORD_END;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.LF;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.OPEN_BRACKET;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.SPACE;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.TAB;
+
 import java.io.IOException;
 import java.util.Arrays;
 import java.util.Collections;
@@ -25,21 +34,32 @@
 import java.util.Map;
 
 import org.apache.asterix.common.exceptions.ErrorCode;
-import org.apache.asterix.common.exceptions.ExceptionUtils;
 import org.apache.asterix.common.exceptions.RuntimeDataException;
 import org.apache.asterix.external.api.AsterixInputStream;
 import org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants;
+import org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataUtils;
 import org.apache.hyracks.api.context.IHyracksTaskContext;
 import org.apache.hyracks.api.exceptions.HyracksDataException;
 
 public class SemiStructuredRecordReader extends StreamRecordReader {
 
+    private enum State {
+        TOP_LEVEL, // valid chars at this state: '{' or '[' to start a new record or array of records
+        ARRAY, // valid chars at this state: '{' or ']' to start the first nested record or close the array
+        NESTED_OBJECT, // valid chars at this state: ',' or ']' to close the array or expect another nested record
+        AFTER_COMMA // valid chars at this state: '{' to start a new nested record
+    }
+
     private int depth;
     private boolean prevCharEscape;
     private boolean inString;
     private char recordStart;
     private char recordEnd;
+    private boolean hasStarted;
+    private boolean hasFinished;
     private int recordNumber = 0;
+    private State state = State.TOP_LEVEL;
+
     private static final List<String> recordReaderFormats = Collections.unmodifiableList(
             Arrays.asList(ExternalDataConstants.FORMAT_ADM, ExternalDataConstants.FORMAT_JSON_LOWER_CASE,
                     ExternalDataConstants.FORMAT_JSON_UPPER_CASE, ExternalDataConstants.FORMAT_SEMISTRUCTURED));
@@ -49,32 +69,26 @@
     public void configure(IHyracksTaskContext ctx, AsterixInputStream stream, Map<String, String> config)
             throws HyracksDataException {
         super.configure(stream, config);
-        String recStartString = config.get(ExternalDataConstants.KEY_RECORD_START);
-        String recEndString = config.get(ExternalDataConstants.KEY_RECORD_END);
+        stream.setNotificationHandler(this);
         // set record opening char
-        if (recStartString != null) {
-            if (recStartString.length() != 1) {
-                throw new HyracksDataException(
-                        ExceptionUtils.incorrectParameterMessage(ExternalDataConstants.KEY_RECORD_START,
-                                ExternalDataConstants.PARAMETER_OF_SIZE_ONE, recStartString));
-            }
-            recordStart = recStartString.charAt(0);
-        } else {
-            recordStart = ExternalDataConstants.DEFAULT_RECORD_START;
-        }
+        recordStart = ExternalDataUtils.validateGetRecordStart(config);
         // set record ending char
-        if (recEndString != null) {
-            if (recEndString.length() != 1) {
-                throw new HyracksDataException(
-                        ExceptionUtils.incorrectParameterMessage(ExternalDataConstants.KEY_RECORD_END,
-                                ExternalDataConstants.PARAMETER_OF_SIZE_ONE, recEndString));
-            }
-            recordEnd = recEndString.charAt(0);
-        } else {
-            recordEnd = ExternalDataConstants.DEFAULT_RECORD_END;
+        recordEnd = ExternalDataUtils.validateGetRecordEnd(config);
+        if (recordStart == recordEnd) {
+            throw new RuntimeDataException(ErrorCode.INVALID_REQ_PARAM_VAL, KEY_RECORD_END, recordEnd);
         }
     }
 
+    @Override
+    public void notifyNewSource() {
+        if (hasStarted) {
+            // TODO(ali): WARN
+        }
+        recordNumber = 0;
+        state = State.TOP_LEVEL;
+        resetForNewRecord();
+    }
+
     public int getRecordNumber() {
         return recordNumber;
     }
@@ -84,12 +98,7 @@
         if (done) {
             return false;
         }
-        record.reset();
-        boolean hasStarted = false;
-        boolean hasFinished = false;
-        prevCharEscape = false;
-        inString = false;
-        depth = 0;
+        resetForNewRecord();
         do {
             int startPosn = bufferPosn; // starting from where we left off the last time
             if (bufferPosn >= bufferLength) {
@@ -102,16 +111,30 @@
             }
             if (!hasStarted) {
                 for (; bufferPosn < bufferLength; ++bufferPosn) { // search for record begin
-                    if (inputBuffer[bufferPosn] == recordStart) {
+                    char c = inputBuffer[bufferPosn];
+                    if (c == SPACE || c == TAB || c == LF || c == CR) {
+                        continue;
+                    }
+                    if (c == recordStart && state != State.NESTED_OBJECT) {
+                        // '{' is allowed at the top level, after '[' and after ','
+                        if (state == State.ARRAY || state == State.AFTER_COMMA) {
+                            state = State.NESTED_OBJECT;
+                        }
                         startPosn = bufferPosn;
                         hasStarted = true;
                         depth = 1;
-                        ++bufferPosn; // at next invocation proceed from following byte
+                        ++bufferPosn;
                         break;
-                    } else if (inputBuffer[bufferPosn] != ExternalDataConstants.SPACE
-                            && inputBuffer[bufferPosn] != ExternalDataConstants.TAB
-                            && inputBuffer[bufferPosn] != ExternalDataConstants.LF
-                            && inputBuffer[bufferPosn] != ExternalDataConstants.CR) {
+                    } else if (c == OPEN_BRACKET && state == State.TOP_LEVEL) {
+                        // '[' is allowed at the top level only
+                        state = State.ARRAY;
+                    } else if (c == CLOSING_BRACKET && (state == State.ARRAY || state == State.NESTED_OBJECT)) {
+                        // ']' is allowed after '[' and after capturing a record in an array
+                        state = State.TOP_LEVEL;
+                    } else if (c == COMMA && state == State.NESTED_OBJECT) {
+                        // ',' is allowed after capturing a record in an array
+                        state = State.AFTER_COMMA;
+                    } else {
                         // corrupted file. clear the buffer and stop reading
                         reader.reset();
                         bufferPosn = bufferLength = 0;
@@ -120,17 +143,13 @@
                 }
             }
             if (hasStarted) {
-                for (; bufferPosn < bufferLength; ++bufferPosn) { // search for record begin
+                for (; bufferPosn < bufferLength; ++bufferPosn) {
                     if (inString) {
                         // we are in a string, we only care about the string end
                         if (inputBuffer[bufferPosn] == ExternalDataConstants.QUOTE && !prevCharEscape) {
                             inString = false;
                         }
-                        if (prevCharEscape) {
-                            prevCharEscape = false;
-                        } else {
-                            prevCharEscape = inputBuffer[bufferPosn] == ExternalDataConstants.ESCAPE;
-                        }
+                        prevCharEscape = inputBuffer[bufferPosn] == ExternalDataConstants.ESCAPE && !prevCharEscape;
                     } else {
                         if (inputBuffer[bufferPosn] == ExternalDataConstants.QUOTE) {
                             inString = true;
@@ -174,14 +193,12 @@
         return REQUIRED_CONFIGS;
     }
 
-    @Override
-    public boolean stop() {
-        try {
-            reader.stop();
-        } catch (Exception e) {
-            e.printStackTrace();
-            return false;
-        }
-        return true;
+    private void resetForNewRecord() {
+        record.reset();
+        hasStarted = false;
+        hasFinished = false;
+        prevCharEscape = false;
+        inString = false;
+        depth = 0;
     }
 }
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataConstants.java b/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataConstants.java
index ce95435..9390d59 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataConstants.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataConstants.java
@@ -235,6 +235,9 @@
     public static final char CR = '\r';
     public static final char DEFAULT_RECORD_START = '{';
     public static final char DEFAULT_RECORD_END = '}';
+    public static final char OPEN_BRACKET = '[';
+    public static final char CLOSING_BRACKET = ']';
+    public static final char COMMA = ',';
 
     /**
      * Constant byte characters
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataUtils.java b/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataUtils.java
index 409b69b..8fb17bc 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataUtils.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataUtils.java
@@ -18,6 +18,11 @@
  */
 package org.apache.asterix.external.util;
 
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.KEY_DELIMITER;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.KEY_ESCAPE;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.KEY_QUOTE;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.KEY_RECORD_END;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.KEY_RECORD_START;
 import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.KEY_REDACT_WARNINGS;
 
 import java.util.EnumMap;
@@ -61,34 +66,27 @@
 
     // Get a delimiter from the given configuration
     public static char validateGetDelimiter(Map<String, String> configuration) throws HyracksDataException {
-        String delimiterValue = configuration.get(ExternalDataConstants.KEY_DELIMITER);
-        if (delimiterValue == null) {
-            return ExternalDataConstants.DEFAULT_DELIMITER.charAt(0);
-        }
-        validateDelimiter(delimiterValue);
-        return delimiterValue.charAt(0);
+        return validateCharOrDefault(configuration, KEY_DELIMITER, ExternalDataConstants.DEFAULT_DELIMITER.charAt(0));
     }
 
     // Get a quote from the given configuration when the delimiter is given
     // Need to pass delimiter to check whether they share the same character
     public static char validateGetQuote(Map<String, String> configuration, char delimiter) throws HyracksDataException {
-        String quoteValue = configuration.get(ExternalDataConstants.KEY_QUOTE);
-        if (quoteValue == null) {
-            return ExternalDataConstants.DEFAULT_QUOTE.charAt(0);
-        }
-        validateQuote(quoteValue);
-        char quote = quoteValue.charAt(0);
+        char quote = validateCharOrDefault(configuration, KEY_QUOTE, ExternalDataConstants.DEFAULT_QUOTE.charAt(0));
         validateDelimiterAndQuote(delimiter, quote);
         return quote;
     }
 
     public static char validateGetEscape(Map<String, String> configuration) throws HyracksDataException {
-        String escapeValue = configuration.get(ExternalDataConstants.KEY_ESCAPE);
-        if (escapeValue == null) {
-            return ExternalDataConstants.ESCAPE;
-        }
-        validateEscape(escapeValue);
-        return escapeValue.charAt(0);
+        return validateCharOrDefault(configuration, KEY_ESCAPE, ExternalDataConstants.ESCAPE);
+    }
+
+    public static char validateGetRecordStart(Map<String, String> configuration) throws HyracksDataException {
+        return validateCharOrDefault(configuration, KEY_RECORD_START, ExternalDataConstants.DEFAULT_RECORD_START);
+    }
+
+    public static char validateGetRecordEnd(Map<String, String> configuration) throws HyracksDataException {
+        return validateCharOrDefault(configuration, KEY_RECORD_END, ExternalDataConstants.DEFAULT_RECORD_END);
     }
 
     public static void validateDataParserParameters(Map<String, String> configuration) throws AsterixException {
@@ -329,13 +327,13 @@
         if (format != null) {
             // default quote, escape character for quote and fields delimiter for csv and tsv format
             if (format.equals(ExternalDataConstants.FORMAT_CSV)) {
-                configuration.putIfAbsent(ExternalDataConstants.KEY_DELIMITER, ExternalDataConstants.DEFAULT_DELIMITER);
-                configuration.putIfAbsent(ExternalDataConstants.KEY_QUOTE, ExternalDataConstants.DEFAULT_QUOTE);
-                configuration.putIfAbsent(ExternalDataConstants.KEY_ESCAPE, ExternalDataConstants.DEFAULT_QUOTE);
+                configuration.putIfAbsent(KEY_DELIMITER, ExternalDataConstants.DEFAULT_DELIMITER);
+                configuration.putIfAbsent(KEY_QUOTE, ExternalDataConstants.DEFAULT_QUOTE);
+                configuration.putIfAbsent(KEY_ESCAPE, ExternalDataConstants.DEFAULT_QUOTE);
             } else if (format.equals(ExternalDataConstants.FORMAT_TSV)) {
-                configuration.putIfAbsent(ExternalDataConstants.KEY_DELIMITER, ExternalDataConstants.TAB_STR);
-                configuration.putIfAbsent(ExternalDataConstants.KEY_QUOTE, ExternalDataConstants.NULL_STR);
-                configuration.putIfAbsent(ExternalDataConstants.KEY_ESCAPE, ExternalDataConstants.NULL_STR);
+                configuration.putIfAbsent(KEY_DELIMITER, ExternalDataConstants.TAB_STR);
+                configuration.putIfAbsent(KEY_QUOTE, ExternalDataConstants.NULL_STR);
+                configuration.putIfAbsent(KEY_ESCAPE, ExternalDataConstants.NULL_STR);
             }
         }
     }
@@ -411,30 +409,25 @@
         return value.equals(ExternalDataConstants.TRUE) || value.equals(ExternalDataConstants.FALSE);
     }
 
-    private static void validateDelimiter(String delimiter) throws RuntimeDataException {
-        if (delimiter.length() != 1) {
-            throw new RuntimeDataException(ErrorCode.PARSER_FACTORY_DELIMITED_DATA_PARSER_FACTORY_NOT_VALID_DELIMITER,
-                    delimiter);
-        }
-    }
-
-    public static void validateQuote(String quote) throws RuntimeDataException {
-        if (quote.length() != 1) {
-            throw new RuntimeDataException(ErrorCode.PARSER_INVALID_CHAR_LENGTH, quote,
-                    ExternalDataConstants.KEY_QUOTE);
-        }
-    }
-
-    private static void validateEscape(String esc) throws RuntimeDataException {
-        if (esc.length() != 1) {
-            throw new RuntimeDataException(ErrorCode.PARSER_INVALID_CHAR_LENGTH, esc, ExternalDataConstants.KEY_ESCAPE);
-        }
-    }
-
     private static void validateDelimiterAndQuote(char delimiter, char quote) throws RuntimeDataException {
         if (quote == delimiter) {
-            throw new RuntimeDataException(
-                    ErrorCode.PARSER_FACTORY_DELIMITED_DATA_PARSER_FACTORY_QUOTE_DELIMITER_MISMATCH, quote, delimiter);
+            throw new RuntimeDataException(ErrorCode.QUOTE_DELIMITER_MISMATCH, quote, delimiter);
+        }
+    }
+
+    private static char validateCharOrDefault(Map<String, String> configuration, String key, char defaultValue)
+            throws HyracksDataException {
+        String value = configuration.get(key);
+        if (value == null) {
+            return defaultValue;
+        }
+        validateChar(value, key);
+        return value.charAt(0);
+    }
+
+    public static void validateChar(String parameterValue, String parameterName) throws RuntimeDataException {
+        if (parameterValue.length() != 1) {
+            throw new RuntimeDataException(ErrorCode.INVALID_CHAR_LENGTH, parameterValue, parameterName);
         }
     }
 }