Muse of Nightmares

July 15, 2018
Love and hatred haunt survivors in this otherworldly sequel.It's been 15 years since the people of Weep slaughtered the gods and godspawn in the seraph-shaped citadel, an event known as the Liberation by the citizens of Weep...and the Carnage by the five godspawn who secretly survived. But an explosion revealed their existence and killed 17-year-old Sarai. Yet she remains, anchored by malevolent Minya and still in love with Lazlo Strange. Grief-stricken Lazlo experiments with his newfound smith powers and reunites with Sarai in exotic, erotic dreams. Also sharing narrative duty: fellow blue-skinned, magically gifted godspawn Ruby, Feral, and Sparrow--absorbed in their own romantic triangle--Minya, literally haunted by lives lost in the Carnage, and the mysterious Nova, fleeing a wintry wasteland in pursuit of her sister Kora and revenge. Freed from isolation, the godspawn struggle to connect, wondering about their parents--both Mesarthim "gods" and unwilling Weep humans--and their missing fellow godspawn. Taylor (Strange the Dreamer, 2017, etc.) dances between fantasy and sci-fi, indulging in gods, magic, alchemy, and lost desert civilizations, only to subvert them with spaceships, interdimensional travel, and alien worlds. Depending on readers' tastes, this is ornate, emotionally charged, and poetic--or florid, overdone, overstuffed, and angst-y. The people of Weep are brown-skinned, but godspawn turn blue when they are in contact with mesarthium.A sequel that surpasses the original. (Fantasy. 14-18)

COPYRIGHT(2018) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

September 1, 2018

Gr 9 Up-Following directly after the acclaimed first novel in Taylor's lush series, Strange the Dreamer, this sequel finds the lovers Lazlo Strange, former librarian-turned-warrior, and his beloved, Sarai, thrown into an impossible situation. Lazlo, while trying to preserve the citadel of the Mesarthim, is unable to save Sarai from a terrible fall. Impaled on an iron gate, Sarai dies only to be brought back as a ghost by Minya, a child with the power to control the dead and a uncontrollable need for vengeance against the Seraphim who travel between multiple worlds wreaking havoc on the lives of lesser beings. Now they must all find a way to work together to free the worlds from the godlike Seraphim despite overwhelming odds. The author of the "Daughter of Smoke and Bone" trilogy has created an intricate universe that will both intrigue and repel readers. Unfortunately, the constant switching between scenes, points of view, and plot lines is confusing and somewhat detracts from what would otherwise be truly lovely world-building. VERDICT Purchase where Taylor has a loyal following and where the previous title is popular.-Jane Henriksen Baird, formerly at Anchorage Public Library, AK

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from August 1, 2018
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* Near the end of Tony Kushner's Angels in America, the revival of which just closed on Broadway, Prior Walter, a man living with AIDS near the turn of the millennium, confronts a literal angel about his own refusal to die. Death usually has to take life away, he says. I don't know if that's just the animal. I don't know if it's not braver to die, but I recognize the habit; the addiction to being alive. So we live past hope. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)

September 1, 2018
At the end of Strange the Dreamer (rev. 3/17), godspawn Sarai plunged to her death from the floating blue citadel overlooking the city of Weep; now the vengeful Minya, still intent on invading Weep, is holding Sarai's soul in thrall. In interspersed chapters, in another world, another young woman is dealing with her own trauma. After being rejected by the Mesarthim, forcibly separated from her beloved sister, and married off to the highest bidder, Nova uses her own formidable powers to regain control of her destiny. By the time Nova appears in the main narrative, readers have learned how her story fits among the puzzle pieces of the plot. The only thing that remains is to figure out how both Minya and Nova can find a measure of healing, redemption, and peace. As always, Taylor's prodigious imagination is on full display: marvelous world-building, suspenseful plotting, complex characterization, finely crafted prose, and grand thematic flourishes make her one of the most formidable contemporary writers in the YA fantasy genre. jonathan hunt

(Copyright 2018 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

January 1, 2019
Vengeful Minya is holding Sarai's (Strange the Dreamer) soul in thrall. In interspersed chapters, in another world, Nova is dealing with her own trauma. By the time Nova appears in the main narrative, readers have learned how her story fits among the puzzle pieces of the plot. Taylor's prodigious imagination is on full display: marvelous world-building, suspenseful plotting, complex characterization, finely crafted prose, and grand thematic flourishes.

(Copyright 2019 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)