*RE-READ May, 2020*


4.5 stars

So...just to reiterate. This review will be full of spoilers for Strange the Dreamer and Muse of Nightmares. Read at your own risk.

After the end of Strange the Dreamer, I expected that this book was going to be just as heart-wrenching, as devastating, as brutal.

It wasn't.

Just for the record, I was looking forward to all of those things. I had in my mind what this book was going to be. Epic fantasy, lots of action and angst, death of beloved characters. And that's not really what we got. At all. In the end, I loved the book, but I don't think it's as strong as Strange the Dreamer, which it seems like is an unpopular opinion. That being said, I still gave it five stars because what it did, it did exceptionally well.

What I liked:

1. The writing. I love Laini Taylor's prose. I just eat it up. Her writing is so evocative and descriptive without being overblown. It's poetic and lyrical, but you can also see her sense of humor through her writing.

2. The characters, particularly the side characters. I still enjoyed Lazlo and Sarai in this book, but we got to see more of the side characters and their interactions with each other. Thyon and Calixte have some really great scenes. Thyon in general has a good arc through this series, although I wish we'd seen a little more of them. And then, something that was a surprise to me, but I also loved Minya's character/arc in this book. As we learn more about her childhood before the Carnage and we learn about the way her powers affect her, I couldn't help but root for her.

3. The Koraandnova storyline. When this book began with a completely different place and characters than we'd previously seen, I was intrigued. I loved that in this world, the Mesarthim are seen as servants to the Empire that rules their lives. I loved learning about how the Mesarthim are created. And even though we only see snippets of the sisters together, their bond was evident. This relationship actually produced the most emotion from me as I read this novel. I never felt annoyed to be taken out of the current action to be given another peek into their journey.

4. Learning the history of the seraphim and Mesarthim and how they came to be in Zeru. I especially loved the tie-in with Daughter of Smoke and Bone. It's been several years since I read the DOSAB trilogy. I've wanted to do a re-read on it for awhile now and when I realized the connections I almost wanted to shut that book and pick up DOSAB. I love that she created these two completely different worlds/stories and was able to connect them so seemlessly with only a few sentences.

5. More of Eril-Fane's and Azareen's backstories. We know going into the book a little about their past, but this book gives us more and I am here for it.


What I didn't like:

1. Pacing. I'm not actually sure if pacing is the right word for this, so let me explain. This second book takes place over the course of maybe three days. The first day takes up over 200 pages in this book. And to be honest, not much actually happens. Now, I'm a character-driven story kind of girl, but I wanted some action. I wanted more interaction between the godspawn and the townsfolk. I wanted to see Lazlo geek out over the library and all its books.

After they drugged Minya I thought the action would finally pick up, but it really didn't. That happens Day One and theirs still 80 pages before we get to Day Two. We learned some new things about Minya's past,which was great. The revelation about the Ellens was a big surprise for me. But there was also a lot (a LOT) of time devoted to the cutesy romance between Lazlo and Sarai. I liked their banter and obvious love for one another, but come on, guys. Priorities, please.

I guess I just expected this book to have a little more movement and show more of a passage of time.

2. Tropey trope. One of my least favorite tropes is killing off a character just to bring them back to life in the next chapter. When these characters were killed near the end of the book, I thought it was sad and tragic and ultimately kind of beautiful. They died trying to protect the people they loved. When they were brought back due to a previously undiscovered power, I thought it felt a little lazy and a little cheap.

3. The ending was a little too neat. It all just seems to tie up so neatly and quickly. After spending 200+ pages covering the events of one day, it made the ending feel a little rushed.

I do want to do a re-read of this series in about six months. I feel like this book suffered for me personally because of my own expectations of it, which aren't really fair to the book. I would like to go back in knowing what to expect and see what I think about it then. I still love Laini Taylor. I will buy any book she ever writes.