I wasn’t sure what to expect with this one but wow I LOVED it!!
It was chaotic and I was here for it. We’re given a Gothem-esque city where not only do gangs and political corruption run rampant - the mayor has a pterodactyl (who used to be a person) on a leash she lets EAT reporters she doesn’t like, police bribes are a must if you want anything done and gang wars in the street are just a inconvenience when trying to get across town - but we also get a world where anyone who dreams in their sleep turns into their nightmare. We’re talking people turning into giant spiders, lizards, diseases … someone is afraid of being touched so his skin becomes addictive to anyone who touches anything he touches…. He gets eaten alive within a week 👀 this world is chaos but I loved every crazy second.
Our MC Ness is a self proclaimed coward and this is not an exaggeration.. she is terrified of nightmares, even those what are somewhat human like and are just existing. She abandons her friend to fight a nightmare herself and is constantly running and hiding. I mean, the nightmares are terrifying so fair enough but her fear is crippling her ability to live. I really enjoyed her progression throughout the book. It felt very natural and I enjoyed seeing her come into herself more. I also really liked that she was a coward as it’s not something we see often in out MCs and was an interesting concept to explore. Cy on the other hand was a really lovely companion. He’s quieter than Ness but had such a big heart and just needed a friend 🥺 I loved their interactions and how their friendship grew and evolved as the story progressed.
And the plot was great. Lots of surprises, action packed and also chaotic - we’re talking bombs, assassins, cults and more. Poor Ness gets wrapped in far more than she bargained for.
The whole story was a lot of fun to read and had me unable to put it down. It was an intense scary world but the writing made it more lighthearted and entertaining whilst also exploring topics like grief and trauma.
I need the next book asap! And I’ll 1000% be buying the authors first trilogy to fill in the hole this book has left.
Highly recommend if you like chaos and modern (? Modern ish? Had very 1920s vibes even though it is modern) settings.
