Muse of Nightmares Review

Quick warning: Don’t read the synopsis if you haven’t read Strange the Dreamer yet!

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?

Oh, god. I loved this book. So much. There was an unexpected issue with my copy of A Clash of Kings, which I had planned to read before Muse of Nightmares, and it got pushed back, making room for Muse. I’m so glad it did. 

There are several authors I’d like to task with the job of writing my life to see their way with words take on my mundane life and make something beautiful out of the ordinary. Laini Taylor is one of those. I’m just in love with her writing. The word “obsessed” could also be said. She writes the most amazing descriptions and has the most beautiful imagination. It’s evocative and strange in the best way. She also sums up events and feelings in simple sentences that hold so much and make me wonder how people hadn’t strung those words together in that same way before because yes, of course that’s how it should be described. It’s beautiful and emotional and funny and wondrous. I want to rave about her writing all day, but I can only throw so many adjectives at you that make the same point: you need to experience Laini Taylor’s writing for yourself. Also, this book was unique in that it was true third person omniscient. Within the space of a few sentences, we knew the inner thoughts and motivations of several characters. I don’t see it often and I really enjoyed it. It goes without saying that it was executed perfectly. 

I suggested not reading the synopsis for the first book in this duology, Strange the Dreamer, because it’s better to go in blind and let yourself be surprised as the tale unfolds. I recommend the same for this book. If you still haven’t read Strange the Dreamer, fear not—I won’t spoil any of the events of either book. I’m keeping it pretty vague. But wow. StD left us with a lot of questions and we get all the answers and more in MoN. Everything exploded all over the place. There was action, surprises, tons of conflict and the world becomes even more vast and unbelievably intriguing. I loved every second of this plot and had no idea how any of it would unfold, but I couldn’t stop reading and I wasn’t disappointed. It all made perfect sense and was unpredictable. There were ups and downs with action, origin stories, and certainly a fair amount of emotional turmoil. One of the things I loved about StD was that people weren’t just good or bad—they were realistically somewhere in between. That continues and goes even further in MoN. Besides all the imaginative, fun, wild events and realizations, there was a real focus on emotions and working through them. It was complex and difficult and overall fantastic. 

These characters. Oh, how I love them. They’re just sweet. Especially Lazlo, though we weren’t in his head as much for this book given that it is named for Sarai. Feral, Sparrow and Ruby continue to be incredible characters. They’re so well written and realistically young. They’re riddled with confusion, anger, guilt and more but they’re still teenagers and come across as such. I’m still a massive fan of Minya as a character. She’s so brutal but we really explore her in depth in this book. The same can be said for other characters such as Eril-Fane and Azareen. We dive deeper into their lives, pasts, and emotions. We also meet two new characters in this book and their whole story just blew me away. It’s ugly and sad and imperfect but all of these characters are fantastically written. I cared so much. 

This book was everything I wanted it to be and much more. Emotional, exciting, surprising, and just more unexpected, unbelievably creative storytelling from Taylor. I highly, highly recommend this duology. This sequel lives up to the first book in every way possible. 

5/5

Have you read Muse of Nightmares? Did you like it as much as Strange the Dreamer? Let me know in the comments!

Thanks for reading, 

Madison