novelesque_life's review against another edition
4.0
So I read Lair of Dreams in December 2015 but totally forgot to review this book! Without any further adieu...
LAIR OF DREAMS
(The Diviners: #2)
Written by Libba Bray
2015; Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (613 Pages)
Genre: series, fiction, mystery, suspense, young adults, paranormal
RATING: ★★★★
***May contain some SPOILERS if you have not read The Diviners (Book 1)***
Lair of Dreams picks up from the first book left off...the fight against a supernatural serial killer has outed Evie's as a Diviner. Everywhere she goes the reporters follow her every move. Evie uses this to gain popularity on the radio as a Seer and becomes the darling of New York City. On the downside she is estranged from her uncle who is displeased with Evie going public. While Evie is enjoying her new social life there is a sleeping sickness that is invading people's dreams.
Henry Du Bois, pianist and songwriter, is looking for his lost lover and is walking in his dreams more frequently. In one of his dreams he meets another dream walker, Ling Chan. He asks her for help finding his lover as he is not strong enough on his own. The sleeping sickness is lingering at the outer edge as the two slip deeper into the dream world.
There are also other characters from book one in this book but these are the two major storylines I can remember from the epic book. This is a book that is meant for young adults but I would recommend this for at least fourteen or fifteen and up. The book is easy to read and get into but there are some themes I think might be for an older audience. But then again young teens are reading Gossip Girl so maybe I am being a bit overprotective, lol.
Libba Bray is a great writer that hooks you from the first page. The novel starts off like Great Gatsby with a twist of Daphne Du Maurier and so I was in heaven. Bray brings the Jazz Age to life and you can tell she has done her research. There is suspense that keeps you engrossed but it is the supernatural elements in the book that has you intrigued. The characters in this book are a bit like X-Men, in that they have special powers but more in the supernatural area. I recommend this book, and series, to those that like epic reads and an open-mind. Just beware this novel will keep you up reading and thinking about things that go bump in the night.
My Novelesque Blog
LAIR OF DREAMS
(The Diviners: #2)
Written by Libba Bray
2015; Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (613 Pages)
Genre: series, fiction, mystery, suspense, young adults, paranormal
RATING: ★★★★
***May contain some SPOILERS if you have not read The Diviners (Book 1)***
Lair of Dreams picks up from the first book left off...the fight against a supernatural serial killer has outed Evie's as a Diviner. Everywhere she goes the reporters follow her every move. Evie uses this to gain popularity on the radio as a Seer and becomes the darling of New York City. On the downside she is estranged from her uncle who is displeased with Evie going public. While Evie is enjoying her new social life there is a sleeping sickness that is invading people's dreams.
Henry Du Bois, pianist and songwriter, is looking for his lost lover and is walking in his dreams more frequently. In one of his dreams he meets another dream walker, Ling Chan. He asks her for help finding his lover as he is not strong enough on his own. The sleeping sickness is lingering at the outer edge as the two slip deeper into the dream world.
There are also other characters from book one in this book but these are the two major storylines I can remember from the epic book. This is a book that is meant for young adults but I would recommend this for at least fourteen or fifteen and up. The book is easy to read and get into but there are some themes I think might be for an older audience. But then again young teens are reading Gossip Girl so maybe I am being a bit overprotective, lol.
Libba Bray is a great writer that hooks you from the first page. The novel starts off like Great Gatsby with a twist of Daphne Du Maurier and so I was in heaven. Bray brings the Jazz Age to life and you can tell she has done her research. There is suspense that keeps you engrossed but it is the supernatural elements in the book that has you intrigued. The characters in this book are a bit like X-Men, in that they have special powers but more in the supernatural area. I recommend this book, and series, to those that like epic reads and an open-mind. Just beware this novel will keep you up reading and thinking about things that go bump in the night.
My Novelesque Blog
kstring's review against another edition
4.0
I love how Libba Bray is not scared to write a long book to get everything in the story that is necessary. Some authors will rush their stories to fit within the traditional page limit for their genre and audience. For example, most YA books are under 400 pages. I enjoyed every page of this book, though! I didn't think there was anything unnecessary and I loved how we could see the big picture the entire time but still be surprised at the end! Brilliantly crafted and definitely worth the read for lovers of the Diviners.
Writing style? Love love love! I love the little phrases they use--it really helped me feel like I was in the time period. Everything was natural and descriptive and interesting/engaging.
Characters? I still love them and I got really frustrated at some, which means at some point I created emotional attachments to the characters and started caring about their well-being. I was not very impressed with the romance line and it didn't seem to have much substance compared to the books I regularly read.
Story? Scary in all the right places! Gosh, I was really jumpy when listening to the end and it doesn't help I was listening in a quiet, dark place. I felt like the ending happened a little too fast for my taste, especially for how long the book was--I wasn't as drawn into it at the end as I was in the first book.
I saw that the Diviners was published in 2012 and this was published in 2015; for those of you not good at math, that's 3 years between books. I could tell that a lot of time had been put into this book and I was not disappointed in the slightest! I'm only disappointed in the long wait for the next one!! A lot of work was put into this book and it paid of 110%!! Excellent work, Bray. I look forward to our next meeting (hopefully sooner rather than later!)
Writing style? Love love love! I love the little phrases they use--it really helped me feel like I was in the time period. Everything was natural and descriptive and interesting/engaging.
Characters? I still love them and I got really frustrated at some, which means at some point I created emotional attachments to the characters and started caring about their well-being. I was not very impressed with the romance line and it didn't seem to have much substance compared to the books I regularly read.
Story? Scary in all the right places! Gosh, I was really jumpy when listening to the end and it doesn't help I was listening in a quiet, dark place. I felt like the ending happened a little too fast for my taste, especially for how long the book was--I wasn't as drawn into it at the end as I was in the first book.
I saw that the Diviners was published in 2012 and this was published in 2015; for those of you not good at math, that's 3 years between books. I could tell that a lot of time had been put into this book and I was not disappointed in the slightest! I'm only disappointed in the long wait for the next one!! A lot of work was put into this book and it paid of 110%!! Excellent work, Bray. I look forward to our next meeting (hopefully sooner rather than later!)
bigbookslilreads's review against another edition
3.0
While the setting and fantasy aspects are very interesting to read about, I found the story predictable and the characters were definitely grating on me in this one. Apart from Henry and Ling Chan, I think I found every other character frustrating, which did not make me as excited to pick this back up as the previous one. The romance in this is also not engaging for me at all. I don't really care about any of it at this point. I will still continue with the series, but I expected more from it, unfortunately!
Forgot to say that this was an uncomfortable read at times because of how relevant it is today. There are parallels to the coronavirus pandemic, and to the discrimination against Chinese people because of it. As sad as that is, I would recommend the book just because of that plot point!
Forgot to say that this was an uncomfortable read at times because of how relevant it is today. There are parallels to the coronavirus pandemic, and to the discrimination against Chinese people because of it. As sad as that is, I would recommend the book just because of that plot point!
kkbashwoe's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
mollyxmiller's review against another edition
5.0
My review is here at my blog:
https://mollyrmiller.wordpress.com/2015/12/16/lair-of-dreams-by-libba-bray/
https://mollyrmiller.wordpress.com/2015/12/16/lair-of-dreams-by-libba-bray/
stephzilla's review against another edition
DNF @ 50%
I just don't care about all of the extra side-plots that were introduced. It felt like mostly fluff.
I just don't care about all of the extra side-plots that were introduced. It felt like mostly fluff.
jailala's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Really enjoyed this one!
Read the first book and enjoyed it but this second one drew me in even further.
The characters are complex and layered which is good because there's a whole cadre of main characters. Ensemble casts frequently feel cliched but the author balances all of them and their individual stories soooo well!
The plot works very well with the alternate history and the author obviously did their homework.
Really recommend for anyone who loves urban fantasy, the roaring '20's or mystic/ghostie stories!
Read the first book and enjoyed it but this second one drew me in even further.
The characters are complex and layered which is good because there's a whole cadre of main characters. Ensemble casts frequently feel cliched but the author balances all of them and their individual stories soooo well!
The plot works very well with the alternate history and the author obviously did their homework.
Really recommend for anyone who loves urban fantasy, the roaring '20's or mystic/ghostie stories!
caseyblue75's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5