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nyree42's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
4.0
Beautifully written, magical and hopeful yet challenging and dark story about mysterious people with otherworldly and dangerous powers, and the city who fears them. Glad I read it when the second book is available to pick up immediately, since it ends on a cliffhanger.
On the negative side:
Note that the adult/minor relationship tag refers to a 20-year-old in a romantic relationship with a 17-year-old, which I personally think is close enough in age to be acceptable in the world of this story, although other readers may not agree, as in our real world it seems rather sus for a 3rd year college student to be dating an 11th grader in high school.
There are also descriptions of a sexually active 15-year-old with their teenage lover, plus mentions of another young couple who are sleeping together. All the teenage sex, despite not being graphically described but only alluded to artistically, was rather off-putting because an adult writer should not be encouraging her adolescent readers to engage in sex - it leads to consequences like STDs/STIs, unwanted pregnancies, and emotions that are too complicated for most young people to understand.
This inevitably results in broken hearts and emotional trauma in the majority of cases, which then leads to some (or many) people having difficulty finding love as adults because their teen romances ripped a hole in their heart they've not been able to repair so far. For real, I know people in their 50s who still haven't recovered from their adolescent entanglements and that's why they are single today... and that's why their would-be partner is also single. These are consequences that resulted in the unhappiness of two people (much like Eril-Fane and Azareen in this book, although in their case they had no choice in the matter).
So if you're a teenager reading this review - don't be inspired by the exploits of the young lovers in this book, and instead wait until you're older to chase... "that." You'll have more of a chance to mature and develop so that you also meet somebody mature who can give you the true love you'll want to receive and give in return.
On the negative side:
Note that the adult/minor relationship tag refers to a 20-year-old in a romantic relationship with a 17-year-old, which I personally think is close enough in age to be acceptable in the world of this story, although other readers may not agree, as in our real world it seems rather sus for a 3rd year college student to be dating an 11th grader in high school.
There are also descriptions of a sexually active 15-year-old with their teenage lover, plus mentions of another young couple who are sleeping together. All the teenage sex, despite not being graphically described but only alluded to artistically, was rather off-putting because an adult writer should not be encouraging her adolescent readers to engage in sex - it leads to consequences like STDs/STIs, unwanted pregnancies, and emotions that are too complicated for most young people to understand.
This inevitably results in broken hearts and emotional trauma in the majority of cases, which then leads to some (or many) people having difficulty finding love as adults because their teen romances ripped a hole in their heart they've not been able to repair so far. For real, I know people in their 50s who still haven't recovered from their adolescent entanglements and that's why they are single today... and that's why their would-be partner is also single. These are consequences that resulted in the unhappiness of two people (much like Eril-Fane and Azareen in this book, although in their case they had no choice in the matter).
So if you're a teenager reading this review - don't be inspired by the exploits of the young lovers in this book, and instead wait until you're older to chase... "that." You'll have more of a chance to mature and develop so that you also meet somebody mature who can give you the true love you'll want to receive and give in return.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Slavery, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Sexual harassment, and War
amallard's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.25
I put this down as lighthearted but you might like to check the content warnings, because I get that folks who resonate with the writing may feel differently. To be clear - I'm not dismissing or downplaying these traumas. I am dismissing the way they were done here, please don't come for me, it just elicited nothing in me.
Revision: theadult/minor relationship did elicit something in me because wtf was that, lads, wtf wtf that was not cool but it was written as Something Beautiful.
Let me splat down the good. Imagery was a happening thing. Backstory was a smoothly-delivered thing. Dialogue was a frequently-fun thing. Mystery was a suspenseful thing.
Let me splat down the bad I could take. Imagery sometimes happened too much. Tropes sometimes delivered too stereotypically. Explanation was sometimes exposition. I run low. Let's move on.
What did I ardently dislike? Unmarked spoilers from here on out.
Look away if you don't want spoilers.
Look away.
Okay.
Returning to the point made above: a guy who has been raised with four girls his whole life says that they're like sisters to him...but not quite. He then proceeds to have sex with the littlest, who is fifteen. She's fifteen. I don't care if they gave her a fake birthday so she could pretend to be sixteen - she's fifteen. Also, as someone who was raised with not-brother brothers, this whole speel is so gross to me. What, are adopted siblings not siblings? Does biology trump everything? Are platonic bonds worthless? Is that the case here? They. Shared. A. Mother.
I don't like Sarai but I'm being brave about it. Passion brings a character to life, makes me care for them. Give them an interest. Give them a hobby. Let me know how they spend their quiet minutes, their free time when they can steal it. Lazlo had a passion, Minya had a passion, Calixte had a passion, Sparrow had a passion, even the "it-might-be-love-what-we-have" paedophile had a passion.
Luckily, so did Sarai. You're gonna call me hypocritical but hers was complaining. I'm a very positive and optimistic character on the whole, with a lot going for me; I assure you that my hobby is not. If you think I'm being harsh on this book, please remind yourself of the last paragraph.
My final issue. Maybe we can kick it off with an anecdote: at one point in this book, a girl forces a man to kiss her. He's deeply uncomfortable - no, more than that. He's in a very traumatic situation and she uses him against his will.
It's played for a laugh. It made me wonder if I was being too SJW about the whole thing. But it struck me as upsetting, and a dismissal of consent. If the roles had been reversed, it would have been blatantly wrong, right?
That excuse, that the perpetrator was a girl, ties into the heternormativity that permeates this. By default, the girls only think about kissing boys, the boys only think about wanting girls. Guys are masculine and strong. Girls are pure and chaste. There's a couple of token sapphics who break the mould, plus some dweeby dudes, but it's a deeply straight book.
I’m not “obsessed with forcing diversity” or “pushing an agenda” and i am not trying to overlay stories with my own false reading of queer-coding when it doesn’t exist. But it’s funny to me when a writer writes a book with homoerotic overtones, when all the coding is blatantly THERE, and then they try to do damage control. Please please believe me when I say this story felt like it was supposed to be gay.
We get introduced to Thyon Nero and he is magnificently beautiful and desperately alone with the truth of his sins and secrets, and he’s a prince but he carries the scars of his beatings, and Lazlo’s a pauper but he knows those wounds well, and when they meet in the present day there is an immense amount of fear fluttering between them, and nerves, and history, and disappointment. And there is a smart man, with an insight that rivals Lazlo’s, that grounds where his dreams. And there is a good man buried somewhere within him. And there is an interesting journey for him to take to that stage.
Look, there are intended enemies-to-lovers which have worse setups than this. It’s so natural. It’s the story offered that has a spark.
Did Taylor miss the opportunity? Did she have too many plans for the way things already went? Not much would have been lost if Lazlo and Sarai had been friends instead; on the contrary, I think an intense platonicism would have been so beautiful. He could have carried his lifeless friend’s body and its impact would not have been lost. She could have visited her friend’s dreams and their visions together would not have been diminished.
Revision: the
Let me splat down the good. Imagery was a happening thing. Backstory was a smoothly-delivered thing. Dialogue was a frequently-fun thing. Mystery was a suspenseful thing.
Let me splat down the bad I could take. Imagery sometimes happened too much. Tropes sometimes delivered too stereotypically. Explanation was sometimes exposition. I run low. Let's move on.
What did I ardently dislike? Unmarked spoilers from here on out.
Look away if you don't want spoilers.
Look away.
Okay.
Returning to the point made above: a guy who has been raised with four girls his whole life says that they're like sisters to him...but not quite. He then proceeds to have sex with the littlest, who is fifteen. She's fifteen. I don't care if they gave her a fake birthday so she could pretend to be sixteen - she's fifteen. Also, as someone who was raised with not-brother brothers, this whole speel is so gross to me. What, are adopted siblings not siblings? Does biology trump everything? Are platonic bonds worthless? Is that the case here? They. Shared. A. Mother.
I don't like Sarai but I'm being brave about it. Passion brings a character to life, makes me care for them. Give them an interest. Give them a hobby. Let me know how they spend their quiet minutes, their free time when they can steal it. Lazlo had a passion, Minya had a passion, Calixte had a passion, Sparrow had a passion, even the "it-might-be-love-what-we-have" paedophile had a passion.
Luckily, so did Sarai. You're gonna call me hypocritical but hers was complaining. I'm a very positive and optimistic character on the whole, with a lot going for me; I assure you that my hobby is not. If you think I'm being harsh on this book, please remind yourself of the last paragraph.
My final issue. Maybe we can kick it off with an anecdote: at one point in this book, a girl forces a man to kiss her. He's deeply uncomfortable - no, more than that. He's in a very traumatic situation and she uses him against his will.
It's played for a laugh. It made me wonder if I was being too SJW about the whole thing. But it struck me as upsetting, and a dismissal of consent. If the roles had been reversed, it would have been blatantly wrong, right?
That excuse, that the perpetrator was a girl, ties into the heternormativity that permeates this. By default, the girls only think about kissing boys, the boys only think about wanting girls. Guys are masculine and strong. Girls are pure and chaste. There's a couple of token sapphics who break the mould, plus some dweeby dudes, but it's a deeply straight book.
I’m not “obsessed with forcing diversity” or “pushing an agenda” and i am not trying to overlay stories with my own false reading of queer-coding when it doesn’t exist. But it’s funny to me when a writer writes a book with homoerotic overtones, when all the coding is blatantly THERE, and then they try to do damage control. Please please believe me when I say this story felt like it was supposed to be gay.
We get introduced to Thyon Nero and he is magnificently beautiful and desperately alone with the truth of his sins and secrets, and he’s a prince but he carries the scars of his beatings, and Lazlo’s a pauper but he knows those wounds well, and when they meet in the present day there is an immense amount of fear fluttering between them, and nerves, and history, and disappointment. And there is a smart man, with an insight that rivals Lazlo’s, that grounds where his dreams. And there is a good man buried somewhere within him. And there is an interesting journey for him to take to that stage.
Look, there are intended enemies-to-lovers which have worse setups than this. It’s so natural. It’s the story offered that has a spark.
Did Taylor miss the opportunity? Did she have too many plans for the way things already went? Not much would have been lost if Lazlo and Sarai had been friends instead; on the contrary, I think an intense platonicism would have been so beautiful. He could have carried his lifeless friend’s body and its impact would not have been lost. She could have visited her friend’s dreams and their visions together would not have been diminished.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Xenophobia, and Blood
lizzie24601's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Holy SHIT this book is so good. Incredible worldbuilding and a memorable cast of characters. It takes a bit of time for you (and Laszlo) to figure out what this book is actually about, but god, sharing that discovery with the protagonist is so worth it. It's got it all - magic, adventure, romance, rivalry, politics, and... the moral dilemma of how much empathy you should give to people who did terrible things, and their descendants who could do the same.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, Rape, Slavery, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Blood
seforana's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Grief and Death of parent
dlrosebyh's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Instead of the other way around, the dream picks the dreamer, and Lazlo Strange, a war orphan and young librarian, has always worried that his dream made a poor decision. He's been obsessed with the fabled lost city of Weep since he was just five years old, but it would take someone more daring than him to go across the globe in quest of it. Then, in the shape of a hero known as the Godslayer and a group of legendary warriors, an incredible opportunity arises, and he must grasp it or forfeit his dream for all time.
As with any fantasy book, you have to be patient as the world building takes up 37273928393% of the book. Being bored with the world building at first—which is a big thing for me—left me a little hesitant of this book, but after I grasped it, I was fully immersed.
In a fantasy story, you would typically have to follow a number of characters, such as the sarcastic, arrogant side character, their love interest, and their toxic ex. The toxic ex is wanted by the duke, but the criminal is plotting to kill the duke, and so on. But I really like how the characters in this book were limited to a minimum. As the author also spent a lot of time developing their characters, it made me value them as characters more.
I kind of lost some of the fun because I guessed how it would end, but there is a cliffhanger. I can't wait to read the sequel because the first book was fantastic in and of itself. I'll undoubtedly become more engrossed in the world-building and fall in love with the characters even more than I already do.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Blood
Moderate: Rape, Slavery, and Kidnapping
Minor: Sexual assault
lilifane's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
NO! What do you mean "To be continued"!?!?!
I knew there was a sequel, but I was not expecting the first book to end on a CLIFFHANGER!
At least it's already written and published... But I didn't plan to read Muse of Nightmares this month, or even this year? Guess I need to squeeze it in somewhere in April.
Because this was SO good. Much longer than I had expected tbh, but I also couldn't put it down.
I loved the writing and world building, they are phenomenal. I also loved the plot, but this is definitely more of a "the journey is the reward" kind of story (only without the reward because it ends on a cliffhanger!!!). Yes, I want the plot to progress and all the mysteries and questions to be answered. No, I don't mind reading hundreds of pages of dream descriptions and fairy tales while I'm waiting. This is truly a love letter to reading and dreaming and story telling and magic. And it's such an interesting world with many interesting and complex characters and character dynamics and a heartbreaking conflict. It actually gets pretty dark and there is a lot of trauma. So much trauma. I have so many feelings for the characters and what they went through/are still going through, the decisions they made. It physically hurts. And I don't know how, but there better be some kind of happy ending.
I knew there was a sequel, but I was not expecting the first book to end on a CLIFFHANGER!
At least it's already written and published... But I didn't plan to read Muse of Nightmares this month, or even this year? Guess I need to squeeze it in somewhere in April.
Because this was SO good. Much longer than I had expected tbh, but I also couldn't put it down.
I loved the writing and world building, they are phenomenal. I also loved the plot, but this is definitely more of a "the journey is the reward" kind of story (only without the reward because it ends on a cliffhanger!!!). Yes, I want the plot to progress and all the mysteries and questions to be answered. No, I don't mind reading hundreds of pages of dream descriptions and fairy tales while I'm waiting. This is truly a love letter to reading and dreaming and story telling and magic. And it's such an interesting world with many interesting and complex characters and character dynamics and a heartbreaking conflict. It actually gets pretty dark and there is a lot of trauma. So much trauma. I have so many feelings for the characters and what they went through/are still going through, the decisions they made. It physically hurts. And I don't know how, but there better be some kind of happy ending.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, and War
doodeedoda's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Death and Death of parent
Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Blood
c_serpent's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I am a sucker for a few things. One of them is a story about gods. But a story about a city tormented for 200 years by false gods? That then the Godslayer killed?
Please do tell me more.
I messaged my best friend at one point while reading this book (it's her favorite) and said, "I want to eat this book. Which is WEIRD but it's like it has a flavor." The voice in this novel is a gift. It is funny, moving, poetic, and taught me some new words. Ya girl was a former ~*~ gifted child ~*~ reader and still rates shamefully high on vocabulary quizzes, and I learned words, bruh. That takes some work.
Lazlo is a gift. Sarai is a gift. I would do terrible things in the name of love for Ruza. I want to be Calixte's best friend. I want to kick Thyon in the teeth and if I had words for how much I hate Minya, my mother wouldn't let me use them.
It's hard to find a novel written in poetic voice that doesn't overdo it or make things needlessly obscure. Nothing was needlessly obscure here, and the prose sang. Moreover, I don't trust many people to do omniscient third person, but Taylor pulls it off. It never felt weird or contrived to me. I think I was about 50% of the way through the book before I even realised it was third person omniscient. The twists weren't completely unforeseeable but nor were they so obvious that everything was boring. And I appreciate that kind of foreshadowing.
This book deals with heavy issues (as in literal sex trafficking and the murder of babies), but it does so bearably. This book could have been completely grimdark, and it wasn't, and I love it for that. It is laced through with hope. And even though it ended on a cliff-hanger that made me yell, I know everything will be okay, and that is, I think, one of the most endearing qualities a novel can have.
Two stars have been awarded for the poetic voice, a star has been awarded for Sarai's brave little pacifist soul, a star has been awarded for Eril-Fane's tears, and a star has been awarded to Lazlo and Ruza's banter about mushrooms. Then I took all the stars away and gave them all to Ruza, because wow. What a guy.
Total score: 5/5 stars
Please do tell me more.
I messaged my best friend at one point while reading this book (it's her favorite) and said, "I want to eat this book. Which is WEIRD but it's like it has a flavor." The voice in this novel is a gift. It is funny, moving, poetic, and taught me some new words. Ya girl was a former ~*~ gifted child ~*~ reader and still rates shamefully high on vocabulary quizzes, and I learned words, bruh. That takes some work.
Lazlo is a gift. Sarai is a gift. I would do terrible things in the name of love for Ruza. I want to be Calixte's best friend. I want to kick Thyon in the teeth and if I had words for how much I hate Minya, my mother wouldn't let me use them.
It's hard to find a novel written in poetic voice that doesn't overdo it or make things needlessly obscure. Nothing was needlessly obscure here, and the prose sang. Moreover, I don't trust many people to do omniscient third person, but Taylor pulls it off. It never felt weird or contrived to me. I think I was about 50% of the way through the book before I even realised it was third person omniscient. The twists weren't completely unforeseeable but nor were they so obvious that everything was boring. And I appreciate that kind of foreshadowing.
This book deals with heavy issues (as in literal sex trafficking and the murder of babies), but it does so bearably. This book could have been completely grimdark, and it wasn't, and I love it for that. It is laced through with hope. And even though it ended on a cliff-hanger that made me yell, I know everything will be okay, and that is, I think, one of the most endearing qualities a novel can have.
Two stars have been awarded for the poetic voice, a star has been awarded for Sarai's brave little pacifist soul, a star has been awarded for Eril-Fane's tears, and a star has been awarded to Lazlo and Ruza's banter about mushrooms. Then I took all the stars away and gave them all to Ruza, because wow. What a guy.
Total score: 5/5 stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, and Murder
Moderate: Confinement and Pregnancy
midnightverde's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This fantasy novel is beautifully written. There are clues throughout the story to the mysteries of the lost city of Weep, yet there are still so many questions. The characters are full of depth and it’s easy to fall in love with many of them (and passionately hate others). There is a cliffhanger at the end of the book and I have to go put the final book of the duology on hold now.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment
Moderate: Pregnancy
panickedhonking's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Incest, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Colonisation