The tagline that calls this “Gotham meets Strange the Dreamer” is actually pretty accurate. Despite this, I was still surprised to find that it’s set in a fairly modern world. I suppose the synopsis didn’t really lend itself to a particular time period, but I did picture this as more of a traditional fantasy city setting. I was actually pleasantly surprised that it was more modern, with phones, trains, non-wind powered ships, etc. and it ended up feeling like a gritty version of Brandon Sanderson’s Steelheart world but with far more terrifying monsters.

Our main character Ness is introduced to us as she and her best friend are visiting a grieving woman with pamphlets from the Friends of the Restful Soul, the organization (cult?) that they both work for. The woman’s husband had just turned into a nightmare and had to be killed because you see, in this world if you allow yourself to dream you’ll turn into the thing you most fear. Since Ness’s sister turned into a giant man-eating spider years ago, Ness has been terrified of both becoming a nightmare and being attacked by one and she’s absolutely paralyzed with fear. She thinks she’s a total coward, but really she’s just traumatized and needs more therapy that isn’t provided by a cult.

Ness is forced to confront her fear when the ship she’s on is the target of an assassination attempt and blows up and the only way for her to survive is to accept the help of the vampire nightmare boy she just confronted. I love that the nightmares can be anything from the obvious man-eating spider, to mythical creatures like vampires, to the weirder example of a guy who didn’t like people much whose touch became addictive and people were constantly after him trying to get a high. It’s a really, really cool concept made even more interesting by the fact that some people retain their humanity/mental capacity when they’re transformed and they sort of assimilate back into society. So, there are accessibility considerations for, say, giant slugs. Oh, did I mention that the city Ness lives in is incredibly corrupt (hence the Gotham comparison) and it’s routine for political candidates to get murdered during election season?

Honestly, this book was a ton of fun for so many reasons. The author put quite a bit of thought into worldbuilding and the consequences and the infrastructure adjustments one might make in a world where dreaming could turn you into a 10 story tall monster. City of Nightmares did a great job exploring the subjects of trauma, loss, and overcoming fears and had great examples of navigating friendships and tough situations.

This one has for sure been a weird one!

Though entertaining for sure, sometimes the female lead can get a bit much.. at least for me. Living in a world where every one of your worst nightmares can become a reality, Ness is quite literally terrified of the outside world. Working in a place where these nightmares brought to life are their quarry well.. Ness is not succeeding at all. When forced with the reality of not having her home and safe place and when her last chance is literally blown up, Ness must face one of her greatest fears if she’s ever going to be able to live in peace again.

This one is for sure an entertaining read that while the female lead gets to be too annoying, the unique storyline more than makes up for it!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The synopsis for this book drew me in immediately, and I’m so glad I received an e-ARC for this one!

Ness lives in a world where nightmares roam the streets. Sleeping isn’t safe because if you go to sleep and then have a nightmare, you become that nightmare. Ness isn’t a brave MC. Ever since her sister turned into a giant spider that ate their father and several others, she has been terrified. She’s focused on herself and doing whatever it takes to survive. In an unexpected turn of events, Ness finds herself in the middle of an assassination conspiracy where she has to work with one of the nightmares she fears.

The world that Schaeffer created is dark and gruesome and wholly unique. Dangers awaits around every corner whether from nightmares or from the villainous humans that have learned to survive in this world. I just loved the concept so much; this is a world I’m going to be thinking about for a long time. The book itself was very readable, it is fast-paced and action packed. Really my only criticism is that some of the plot points weren’t needed and/or were only barely connected together; this made it where the plot progression didn’t feel natural at times.

Overall, I loved the story and the world. If anything in my review piqued your interest, I highly suggest you check this one out!

This was not my favorite Schaeffer book, but I think it's set up for a great series. In true Schaeffer fashion, it was weird and twisted what we "think" we think we know about creatures such as Vampires. I loved that it was all twisted up with nightmares. Schaeffer has such a way of crafting an interesting story that I will always jump at reading.

City of Nightmares, by author Rebecca Schaeffer, is part one of a two part duology that is planned by the publisher. Set in the city of Newham, where criminal syndicates and sinister cults reign and dreaming means turning into your worst nightmare, the worldbuilding here is fresh and exciting. Like the vampires and monstrous Nightmares that roam Newham, readers will find much to sink their teeth into. This book is being marketed as Gotham meets Strange the Dreamer.

In this world, people are turning into nightmares in their sleep. Some have gone as far as to take nightmare trauma therapy as well as taking drugs called Helomine to ensure they don't sleep. 19-year-old Vanessa (Ness) Near lost her family when her sister turned into a deadly monster, and went on a killing spree. Ness ended up with the Friends of the Restful Souls. Ness is terrified of all Nightmares, even though not all of them are mindless. She lives in a tiny room provided by the Friends of the Restful Soul, which basically is like the Salvation Army.

Everyone calls it a cult, but as long as they let Ness stay, she doesn't care. Because she's afraid of nightmares, she's a liability. Thankfully her roommate, Priya, a Nightmare hunter in training, often keeps Ness out of trouble. To prove herself, she agrees to go on a mail run to a resort on Patton Island. But, before she can finish the job, the ship explodes and the only survivors are her and a vampire named Cy who saves her life. Though he saves her life, she's still terrified of him until she learns whether or not he is going to attempt to bite her

Soon thereafter, Ness and Cy learn that the ships explosion wasn't an accident, and now there are assassins after Ness in order to silence them from talking. Ness soon digs into who brought the bomb on board and why, and the only people she can now trust are the boy who saved her, and Priya, the girl who is supposed to be joining the Nightmare Division group which has a whole lot of secrets of their own. Oh, and let's not forget the powerful mayor who has her own man eating pterodactyl or the fact that Ness meets an actual Nightmare who becomes extremely curious about her.

One thing this story has going for itself is that it doesn't take itself seriously. There's a bunch of dark comedy and Ness isn't your typical heroine who wants to save the world by somehow suddenly having strange and unusual powers to defeat the horrible nightmares. Nope, she's just a girl who got a bad rap as a child after her sister's episode, and has been living in fear that the same thing could happen to her. Plus, having Cy and Priya around let's her become someone she can actually like.

City of Nightmares by Rebecca Schaeffer
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This is a story about 19 year old Ness, who lives in a city where people are afraid to dream. When they dream the wake up to become their worst nightmare. Ness is afraid of everything and tries her best to hide in her little cubby hole. Until one day while on an errand, her whole life seems to explode.
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I wound up loving this book more than I thought I would.
The plot was well thought out and super different from other stories I’ve read and I LOVED THAT.
Ness was a great character with a great back story, I could understand her. She had this traumatic event when she was younger, it shaped her fear and made her (understandably) terrified of nightmares.
And then she met Cy, and the irony was beautiful.
I was expecting some reveals, but the reveals even surprised me. (No spoilers) I loved how it ended and would love to read more in this world.
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4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

The premise for this novel, along with the title immediately drew me in. I was extremely excited to get approved for this one. The story starts off quickly so as not to drag, and then it pretty quickly turns into a who done it. I went from learning about the world to wanting to know what the heck was going on. I was also intrigued by the characters and their motivations. This ended up being rather quick to read because of the pacing, and the ending left me wanting to read the sequel.

I will be withholding my full review until HarperCollins meets with and agrees to terms set out by the union. I look forward to adding my review here and elsewhere once the strike is over.

I loved this book so much but will be holding my full review until Harper Collins has agreed to the very reasonable terms set out by the union. I look forward to adding my full review when the strike is over.

My first ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read of 2023!
Out now!!

Holy smokes this book is amazing. If you have seen Gotham, or watched any of the Batman movies and thought “why in the world would you live in Gotham?? Just move already!” Then this is the book for you!

When you read it, go in blind. It will make the story even better, I promise! I loved that the main character has anxiety, she was so relatable and brave. But also not your average heroine that jumps into danger just to be the heroine! This book makes every character face their biggest fears head on, and it really makes you think!

This is the first book of a duology, BUT it doesn’t end on a cliffhanger (thank heavens) so you can read it now and not hate yourself for having to wait until September.

I highly recommend this dark and twisty young adult book! It’s so unique, and nothing like a typical YA book.

This was a strange book--not to say I didn't like it--it was just kind of odd...An interesting urban fantasy about nightmare-ish like creatures who are a living reality. An interesting premise.

“Dreaming means waking up as your worst nightmare”.

This sentence itself from the blurb is just amazing and I absolutely loved the concept. That’s all I had to read to request an arc! Also, of course the cover and the title drew me. That being said, I really enjoyed this book. I found it creative and unique. The story itself is fast paced and I never really knew what direction it was headed.

Our main character Ness was much too cowardly for me. Yes, that makes her more real and maybe relatable? But I just thought she was a bit too much. I wasn’t expecting her to be Katniss or Batman or something but she was too pathetic for me. I think that took away from the story for me personally. She does become a bit more brave at the end but by then, the book was over.

I will be continuing the duo-logy to see how it ends though and hopefully Ness will be growing a backbone.

Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book!

This book was excellent!!! As soon as I saw it was like Gotham meets Strange the Dreamer, I knew this would be a great book, but due to the HC Stike, I will hold onto my review until something gets resolved. Still, I would check this book out!

Corruption, assasinations, cults, and monsters. Nightmares coming to fruition and people living out their worst nightmares in full view. This book was just what I was wanting.

Ness lives in a city full of dread and monsters and being a self-proclaimed coward this can only be hell on earth. I loved the characters and how the story developed. I fell immediately into this world and didn’t feel rushed or confused at any point with what was happening.

I do feel that sometimes there were parts that dragged out the same conversations over and over but this only happened a couple of times and in real life I feel like when conquering our fears we tend yo go over those thoughts again and again.

The concepts and creatures that were brought to life were outstanding and I can’t wait to see how this series progresses. This being my first from this author I will be searching out other books in her repertoire.

Thank you to Netagalley and Clarion Books for an advanced copy of this publication for my honest opinion

Ness lives in Newham, a city full of the monsters people change into if they have a nightmare. Newham is really interesting, it's has a 1920s feeling and also practices prohibition and has many gangsters throughout the streets. In other words, it's a perfect vibe for the city of nightmares.

This book has a surprising amount of depth to it. At least it was surprising to me. Ness is terrified of nightmares, which, unfortunately, walk the streets here. They are living with a cult like group so they can keep their tiny room and sense of safety. However, when the lizard director threatens to kick them out, they wind up with a whole new set of problems.

I loved the whole vibe of this book. Ness's character is so relatable as are the side characters that are their friends. I loved this read and can't wait for the sequel!

What a way to start out 2023! While urban fantasy and vampires aren’t typically my favorite things, I wholeheartedly enjoyed City of Nightmares by Rebecca Shaeffer!

The story follows Ness, a 19-year-old self-proclaimed coward, which is not a great thing to be in a world where people turn into their worst nightmares when they dream. Trying to avoid being kicked out of her current residence, Ness ends up being involved in a life-threatening conspiracy theory with Cy, a nightmare-turned vampire.

I will start off by saying that I had high expectations for this book since it was compared to Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor. Although I wouldn’t quite say that it achieves the genius that Taylor does, it was a fantastic story! I would certainly recommend it, especially for people who enjoy fantasy, but maybe don’t read a lot of urban fantasy.

One aspect of the novel that I appreciated was Ness’s character development. She starts off as a bit immature, and for that reason, I think this book fits in the YA category, despite her age. Ness is a coward, and she’s not afraid to admit that. Part of what I loved about her was her authenticity. Why are all our protagonists fearless, strong people? The way that Ness embraced her cowardness, but also grew as a person was realistic and added a lot of depth to her story.

Additionally, there wasn’t necessarily romance in the book, but it definitely hinted at it. I’m excited to see what Shaeffer does with the next book in this series, as I’m hoping Ness and Cy develop a romantic relationship. The way we see their friendship progress over the course of this book was fun, and added a lot of tension to the novel. I liked that Ness starts off distrusting Cy, but the two are kind of thrown together through circumstances.

Finally, perhaps my favorite part of the book was the fantastical elements. The premise behind the story, that people turn into nightmares when they dream, was intriguing, and I think the author took that to interesting and unique places.

As a whole, I will certainly be adding City of Nightmares to my collection, and I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.

Overall

If that title doesn’t immediately grab your attention, this may not be the book for you. As soon as I read the title, I knew I had to read the book. I mean, to be fair, a city of nightmares sounds like the perfect locale for me. (Be forewarned: I am definitely taking it over, so best get in my good graces now!) Then, when I read the description and realized it was literally a city of nightmares, that people changed as they slept, that sealed the deal. It’s just the sort of deliciously dark book I’ve been craving lately.

City of Nightmares is a foray into a dark, dystopian world filled of nightmares . . . literally. Yet, in a world where everything seems out to get you, the truth may just be the scariest thing of all.

I absolutely could not put this book down once I started it. Read it in a day, in fact. The beginning starts with a bang, and it’s clear, right from the very start, what sort of world this is. The sort that most people wouldn’t want to touch with a 10-foot pole. Granted, I’m not most people and I would absolutely love to visit this place. Well . . . love may be a strong word. But still. I cannot wait for the next book in the duology, especially after the way this ended! Not a cliffhanger by any means, but definitely in a way that made me not ready to leave the world yet.

My Thoughts

- This world is dark and not for the feint of heart. Be forewarned. You’ll find no heroes here. To be fair, if there ever had ever been heroes living in Newham, I’m sure the city has long since stomped them out by now. It is a city by nightmares and for nightmares . . . and sometimes monsters look oddly human. I mean, they can’t all be man-eating dinosaurs, after all. Newham is the sort of dark, dystopian city where crime, corruption, and death is just a natural part of daily life and to be expected. No one bats their eyes. Why would they? The people in this city have become acclimatized to the horror of life in Newham. Luckily for us readers, we have not. Probably. I mean, I suppose I can’t speak for everyone. That means there’s almost a small thrill in discovering just how deep the level of depravity can get amongst the population of Newham. No? Just me? When you think you’ve seen your worst, think again. There’s always a new nightmare lurking around the corner.

- Enter our main character, Ness, who is suffering from understandable chronic PTSD after witnessing her sister transform into a Nightmare and devour their father. Pretty sure that’s enough to scar anyone for life (as if living in a city of nightmares wasn’t enough on its own). Though not all nightmares are terrifying murder machines (some are just out there trying to live their best lives), Ness’ PTSD doesn’t discriminate. Proximity to any nightmare sends her spiraling into a panic attack. Not the easiest thing to handle in a city like Newham, as one might imagine. My favorite thing about Ness’s character is that her fears and reactions seem so ridiculous to the other residents of Newham, but they’re perfectly reasonable to the innocent reader that stumbles into her story. It makes for a really interesting juxtaposition, one that challenges Ness’s assumptions as well as the reader’s. Ness’s whole character journey is about overcoming her fear, but that’s a lot easier said than done in a city of nightmares. Just saying.

- A setting as ridiculous and unexpected as Newham is absolutely perfect for a plot as complicated, twisty, and unexpected as this one, which had me rapidly turning pages wanting to find out what was going to happen next! One of the most brilliant things that Schaeffer is able to capitalize on in this book is the absurdity of a city where people could literally become their worst nightmares anytime they dreamed. The setting partners perfectly with the tongue-in-cheek wit and dark humor exhibited by the characters and narrative. Because make no mistake, these characters are mouthy and sarcastic. Would you really expect anything less in a city like Newham? The banter between these characters absolutely cracks me up, and the writing voice is engaging and relatable. It made it really easy to get into the story and live there.

- Even though, from what I’ve talked about, City of Nightmares sounds really dark (and in a lot of ways it is), there are a lot of lighter undercurrents and very uplifting themes. I know it sounds a little unintuitive, especially given the setting and description, but that’s part of what makes the story so great! Ness’s journey, for example. Her fear is totally justified, and I think you’d be hard pressed to find someone in real life who would consider it unreasonable. But Ness isn’t alone in this world, and her friends are trying to teach her that she doesn’t need to be afraid all the time and that she is strong enough to face her fears, which is a lovely message. I know it sounds a little unintuitive, especially given the setting and description, but that’s part of what makes the story so great! Ness’s journey, for example. Her fear is totally justified, and I think you’d be hard pressed to find someone in real life who would consider it unreasonable. But Ness isn’t alone in this world, and her friends are trying to teach her that she doesn’t need to be afraid all the time and that she is strong enough to face her fears, which is a lovely message.

A big thanks to Net Galley for the ARC ebook. City of Nightmares is full of anarchy and disturbing characters. It was a bit much for me, but I think some of my students would really enjoy the creativity in this book. I did get a little bored with the story and the characters. I think this genre just isn’t my jam. I would definitely recommend this book to teens who enjoy Marvel and DC.

Schaeffer is not necessarily new to me but she's been one I've had on my radar since last year for the release of City of Nigtmares. I could not stop reading for so many reasons...

Murder? Yes.
Monsters? Yes.
Nightmares that turn you into murdering monsters? Hell yes!

It definitely lives up to its synopsis too. A mixture of Gotham City meets Strange the Dreamer with a frustratingly but so darn relatable cowardly main character and her growing band of unique friends. I am honestly having a hard time on where to begin.

From start to finish, I was hooked. Ness lives in Newham, one of the most corrupt and violent cities around. The cops accept the best bribes for underhanded deeds, gangs run rampant, monsters terrorize the streets and human trafficking seems to be the least of everyone's worries. Safety is a pipe dream and getting in with the Friends of the Restful Soul seems to be the safest long-term option for her. Little does she realize how deep the corruption in her town goes and just how far the most unlikely person will go to get rid of someone too close to the truth. Even if they are slightly oblivious at first.

I love the weird and unusual and this book was right up my alley with atmospheric gotham-esque world building vibes, vivid prose and detailed descriptives of monsters, gore and violence (be still my dark heart). Plus the character depth not only builds a backstory you don't see coming but pulls a major character growth plot from coward to coping. I say coping because Ness suffers from what I would label as PTSD and high level anxiety attacks due to fear. It's a realistic and relatable growth too. Even if some of her actions drove me nuts at times.

There is also themes that are touched on like poitical corruption, the power of media, facing fears, the wrongness of romanticism of vampires and so much more. There are some areas that had a little mental repetition but its trivial when compared to the whole narrative that crashes together in an excellent ending. I cannot wait for the sequel!

Thank you Clarion Books for the gifted digital copy! All thoughts are my own.

Favorite Quotes:

“Our greatest fears are warped reflections of our greatest desires,” he explains.

“Everyone wants to be strong enough to defeat the things they’re afraid of.”

"But the only monster here is my fear. The only one being toxic is this terror in my mind warping my perception of reality."

I received this ARC only a few days before the release. But it was a quick, easy read and i finished it right away.

I give this 5 stars for the craziness and entertainment of this story. I’m pretty sure the author came up with it in her own nightmares one night. Maybe it’s a recurring nightmare; one she can’t escape.

Ok, so go look up the Movie Monsters vs Aliens. It came out in 2009 so not sure how many of you know about it (although it does have Reece Witherspoon in it). I have older kids so I was forced to watch this movie (multiple times).

So this story is like a mix of the crime of Gotham City (Batman), the Monsters or “Nightmares” from Monsters vs Aliens, and the Metahumans and crime lords of Flash and Arrow on the CW.

Yes, it’s that chaotic.

In this world, if you dream during your sleep, you will turn into a nightmare. They pump drugs into the public water, but they also have pills to take that will prevent you from dreaming when you sleep. But if you forget to take them and dream about turning into a roach, bam, you are a huge bug that tries to eat everyone.

So the MC watches her sister turn into this huge spider who proceeds to eat her father and 1 other person. It’s gory and she is traumatized and consumed with her fear of Nightmares.

She can’t hold a job and is about to be homeless when an accident happens that kills hundreds of people. But she survives. And now someone is trying to knock her off.

This is laugh-out-loud funny in many places. It’s gory and might actually trigger some of your own phobias. But I absolutely loved it! It was a very quick read; I was only given the ARC a few days ago and was able to read it over a few evenings.

Tropes:
No romance. Found family, morally grey MC, paranormal, crime lords, corrupt government, child trafficking, murder/gore, fear, anxiety, consistency.