Published: October 2, 2018
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Series: Strange the Dreamer #2
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Pages: 514 (Hardcover)
My Rating: 4.0/5.0
Synopsis:
Sarai has lived and breathed nightmares since she was six years old.
She believed she knew every horror and was beyond surprise.
She was wrong.
In the wake of tragedy, neither Lazlo nor Sarai are who they were before. One a god, the other a ghost, they struggle to grasp the new boundaries of their selves as dark-minded Minya holds them hostage, intent on vengeance against Weep.
Lazlo faces an unthinkable choice—save the woman he loves, or everyone else?—while Sarai feels more helpless than ever. But is she? Sometimes, only the direst need can teach us our own depths, and Sarai, the Muse of Nightmares, has not yet discovered what she’s capable of.
As humans and godspawn reel in the aftermath of the citadel’s near fall, a new foe shatters their fragile hopes, and the mysteries of the Mesarthim are resurrected: Where did the gods come from, and why? What was done with thousands of children born in the citadel nursery? And most important of all, as forgotten doors are opened and new worlds revealed: Must heroes always slay monsters, or is it possible to save them instead?
Love and hate, revenge and redemption, destruction and salvation all clash in this astonishing and heart-stopping sequel to the New York Times bestseller, Strange the Dreamer.
CONTAINS SPOILERS
So, last year I read Strange the Dreamer and then proceeded to go on a Laini Taylor binge read because I was in awe of her writing. It was literally one of the best fantasy books (YA or otherwise) I’d ever read. It just struck all the right chords, much like The Name of the Wind once did. Naturally, I was very excited for Muse of Nightmares to be released and wrap up the story of Lazlo Strange and the city of Weep.
I’ve concluded that Laini Taylor starts a series and it’s wonderful but as it continues it changes. Not for better or worse necessarily, it just becomes a different beast. The best way I can explain this is with spoilers (warning #2), so sorry for that but here goes. In Strange the Dreamer, we’re discovering this whole new world along with Lazlo and we’re also reading about the lives of the Mesarthim children in the seraph above Weep. It’s a wonderful story of discovery and love and tragedy. And then there’s Muse of Nightmares. Tragedy struck and Sarai is DEAD – she just killed off a main character and now the villain here is hate filled little Minya because she’s holding Sarai’s soul hostage! She wants to destroy Weep and all its inhabitants and she has the means to do so because Lazlo can control the Mesarthium. Things are entirely turned on their heads and the story unfolds in a way that I didn’t see coming. I’m of the opinion that the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series did much the same thing.
OH YEAH, DID I MENTION DOS&B AND STRANGE THE DREAMER ARE CONNECTED. THOSE DARN ANGELS PUNCHING HOLES IN THE FABRIC OF THE UNIVERSE JUST MESS EVERYTHING UP. But for real, I nearly died when I read that part and realized the implications. Karou and Sarai could meet and wouldn’t that just be the coolest thing?
I thought this book was great, though not quite as great as the first one. A new character was introduced and her centuries long crusade to find her sister makes the two books feel cohesive, rather than awkwardly jolted from their trajectories. She was pretty cool, but kind of lost her marbles towards the end which was sort of sad but I was glad to see her go in a permanent sort of way. Didn’t like her that much. This was a solid sequel and if you liked the first one, you should obviously be reading this one because we all need some closure. And maybe some new openings too. This could be the next Cosmere-scale book universe!
Powder & Page 
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