This book is super inventive and refreshing. It follows Ness in the city of Newham (a spoof on Gotham) where people turn into their worst Nightmares. Ness's sister turned into one and killed their dad. Ever since, Ness is a deeply traumatized and anxious person. She's also super relatable and interesting in that she knows her own weakness very well and it makes for a very humorous if dark narration.

Excited for the sequel!

The premise was unique, but the execution fell a bit flat. The pace was far slower than expected based on the summary and genre. Some plot points and dialogue felt forced. There were too many unanswered questions, and the character growth was lacking. However, this might hit the mark for the target audience.

"City of Nightmares” is a solid start to a new series; the end of the book still feels like the very beginning of the story that’s to come. The plot is more of a slow burn. Some mysteries are solved, but others are left open, with potential for further character growth. Maybe I’m basic, but I certainly wouldn’t mind a romantic relationship developing between the main characters.

There are ideas and opinions about consent, relationships, fear, and anxiety interwoven in the narrative. The overall effect is an empowering tale, although sometimes the dialogue can seem forced in service of the author conveying a principle.

It’s hard to get an exact sense of time and place in this world of Newham and its surrounding locales. The city is New York City-like, but then the time is uncertain; televisions are a rarity, and there are cars, but not cell phones, though there are rocket launchers. It’s confusing. I get this world is full of corruption and monsters, but the setting outside of that is a bit amorphous.

The tone is also interesting - while 19, Ness acts very young. The writing is very YA, but the story has gore and horror. There’s also an undercurrent of humor, which is refreshing.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

4.5/5 stars! Amazing YA fantasy read. This book has everything! Humor, a catchy storyline, monsters, enemies to friends to maybe (hopefully) future lovers! It was a joy to read and I can't wait to see what is next from this author. The story begins with Ness, who is aggressively afraid of NIghtmares after her sister turned into a monster and ate her father. The entire population has to take pills or drink spiked water that keeps them from dreaming when they sleep, or they may become their greatest fears and run amuck through society as 'Nightmares.'

Within a few chapters, you've been introduced to Ness's best (and arguably only) friend Priya, who dreams of hunting nightmares as a profession, learn about the cult-not-cult that they are members of, and see Ness on a ship that blows up with only herself and a Nightmare as survivors.

The story gets quirkier and more outrageous from there, but it was always enjoyable. The final twist was a little hard to believe, but I'll buy it with the flamboyant flavor of this whole book.

I received an advance review copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

Apparently, this is the year all of my favorite YA authors disappoint me. Rebecca Schaeffer wrote one of the best YA fantasy series I've ever read with Not Even Bones. I am astounded that this is the same author.

City of Nightmares has an incredible premise. The world is full of literal nightmares- humans turned into horrors based on their bad dreams. Nightmares can be sentient or 'animal-like monsters, but the world's residents now largely drug themselves to avoid dreaming. They walk among monsters every day and have to learn to live with them in this new world.

Ness watched her sister turn into a giant spider, kill her parents and die. Now, she is acting as a courier for a secretive society. When her life becomes at risk, the only person who can help her uncover a web of deception and murder is a mysterious nightmare boy.

So before we dig into the plot, we need to talk about the writing. Rebecca Schaeffer is a VERY good writer, but you wouldn't know from reading this. Did she fire her editor? This reads like a teenager's early fanfiction- the prose is atrocious. I would compare it to Lightlark and Iron Widow. Character descriptions are limited toa few simple adjectives stuff like; "she was tall, black, and had curly hair". The dialogue often has cringy 2edgy or bad/corny comedy lines that really pull you out of the world. This should have really been my first warning.

The characters are charming- Schaeffer hasn't lost her ability to write characters you actually like to follow, thought their interactions can sometimes feel a little wooden. I really enjoyed Ness's relationship with Cy, the nightmare boy that saves her life. There is absolutely potential here and I think a lot of folks will find themselves attached to these characters.

So I wasn't expecting to have an ideological problem with this book, but this is where things really get going for me. Schaeffer wrote Not Even Bones- a book series about monster serial killers who do genuinely atrocious stuff. In this book, she's spitting some really weird ideology. One of her characters goes on a 7 page rant about how fictional media can make women normalize abuse done to them and romanticize it- and make men more comfortable abusing people. A huge debate in YA right now involved spicy romances, enemies to lovers/etc 'normalizing' abuse.

This author wrote books about serial killers. SERIAL KILLERS, and she spent a sizable amount of her book going on a tirade about how fiction tricks women into being more tolerant of abuse. I just thought it was really ugly, and I was sad to see an author who had previously embraced dark themes buy into these notions.

As a side note, coming from someone who has had pretty extensive involvement with domestic abuse and the care of victims, if anyone ever tells you that enemies to lovers, vampires, or weird spicy sexy romance books will affect your tolerance for abuse, get the hell away from them. Abuse is perpetuated through the manipulative and coercive actions of the abuser. 'Accepting' abuse comes from extensive periods of being broken down by that abuser. Sexy romance fiction is not poisoning the minds of women. I cant express how upset I am that this book pushes this concept so hard.


ANYWAY The plot itself is fun as hell, so if you can tolerate everything I just said, I found it compulsively readable. I personally am not comfortable with the themes used in the story, but someone else might find it less problematic and give it a shot.


EDIT FOR NETGALLERY: If Rebecca is still editing this book PLEASE LIKE RECOMMEND HER EDITOR IS FIRED AND GET SOMEONE WHO CAN MAKE THIS BOOK NOT SOUND SO IMMATURE. IT HAS POTENTIAL.

Imagine a world where dreams come true. Ah — no, no, not daydreams and hopes, but those horrifying nightmares that get a stranglehold on you in your sleep. This is the world of Newham. It's a world where people distort in their sleep, where vampires become real and your sister just might turn into a man-eating giant spider. Which happened to Ness. She lives in a state of crippling fear after her sister's incident, petrified by living Nightmares and manipulating her way to survival in an unscrupulous city... until she accidentally gets caught up in a scheme that ties her to the very Nightmares and fears she tries to run from. 

First off, I read this really quickly. Like really quick. Like in one day quick. That is rare for me. 

This is a bonkers book. It's dark (and bloody and nightmare-filled) but at the same time a total romp. I'm not a horror lover in any way, but this book somehow remained fun and light. Everything about the world created within those pages is slightly off... but in a free-wheeling way. There are coffee shops where the characters get fluffy, sugary coffees while at the same time being in awe of the new black-and-white TV inventions. There are giant talking lizards, gangs that take each other down suddenly in the streets, superhero-esque groups that fight the Nightmares, bloody skirmishes every day, mindful cults that pass out flyers to any passersby... an imbalance all stemming from the chaos caused by Nightmares appearing in the world. It's like stepping into a dream world, a comic book world. It works. 

The writing is rather simple. There are also a lot of "morals" or opinions very blatantly spelled out through the book. But most of these are well-meaning takes on how to respect other living beings or how to exist better in the world... and for the younger readers that this novel is targeting, I think that's okay. 

The relationships are very sweet. The book tries hard, despite the evils rampant in the story, to keep hold of a sense of goodness. And it succeeds, it seems — somehow the assassins, and gang warfare, and child kidnappings belong to the dreamlike comic-book world, and the care for others becomes the real heart. 

CW: It's not as graphic as it sounds, in any way. But... limbs being torn off, people contorting into monsters, children being kidnapped, parents being eaten, gun battles, assassination attempts, explosions...

Thanks to NetGalley and the editors for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

City of Nightmares by Rebecca Schaeffer was an interesting and unique YA fantasy!

Schaeffer's writing is some of best I've laid eyes on!
To create such a compelling, thought-provoking story such as this one she has to brilliant!
This story pulled me in and held me captive till the end.
Dark, bizarre, gritty and enthralling, the story is fast paced with phenom world-building!
And the characters are so flawed yet so amazingly complex. Very compelling!
I cant believe it's over! And definitely look forward to more!
I'm giving this a five star review! Mainly because of the writing!
If a story can hook me like this one, it deserves it IMO!

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank you to NetGalley and Clarion Books for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The authors note really got to me in this one..I'm glad she has a support system as she does and that this work made its way to my shelf.

It's got very VC Schwab and Scholomance school vibes happening (even though no one is in school). I liked that there was no real romance between any of the leads, bc it means characters can be developed in their own and Ness can create her own destiny.

The twist at the end was sad, but it does embolden and change Ness and how she approaches this Nightmare world. And how she has to choose between the evils in front of her.

2.5 stars. Those looking for a quick, breezy read with nightmares lurking, lovely friendships and how we sometimes create our own reality will like this (leans YA for sure).

#CityOfNightmares #NetGalley Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this novel. I encourage you to check this one out!

This book was just so coo it has something for everyone.The world-building and storytelling here are great.One of those books that totally absorbs and grips you to make sure you put everything aside and focus on it from the beginning to the end. If you’re looking for a unique read, pick this one.

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the publisher for allowing me to read this eARC!

This was dark, creepy, fun, weird. I've never read a book where people turn into their nightmares. The details about them turning into human size insects and eating people...it gave me the ick... and I loved it. I also loved Ness and the friendship dynamics in this book. The world building was exquisite. This is one of the most unique stories I've read in awhile and I can't recommend it enough.

"Our greatest fears are warped reflections of our greatest desires...Fear only has power when what we're afraid of takes away the things we value most."

Ness is a 19-year-old with quite an interesting backstory - 8 years ago, her sister was turned into a Nightmare, a giant spider who consumed their father along with several other folks. This traumatizing event that left Ness orphaned. She is so terrified of becoming a Nightmare herself or having a Nightmare murder her. She starts off the story as a bit of a coward, but by the end she's developed into a total badass who faces her fears head on instead of running away.

Ness' best friend Priya is an ultimate badass, she's fearless - I think she may be my favorite character throughout this entire story.

We also have Cy, our Vampire friend who helps Ness work through her fear of nightmares. I was expecting more romance between the two of them (especially in the beginning where we are told that we should not be romanticizing vampires and throughout the book we are reminded that it's toxic to romanticize monsters, I expected that to be foreshadowing a forbidden love), but I am not upset with how things end up -- there's potential for this relationship to bloom in the next book.

What a unique story! I can honestly say I don't think I've ever read anything quite like this - I didn't find myself comparing this to anything I've ever read before.

The overall theme of this novel is FEAR. We are changing the narrative of fear so that we are no longer victims! I appreciated the way we were able to bear witness to the impacts of CPTSD - there's a scene where Ness has the option of sleeping on a couch or a bed, but she instead chooses to sleep in a small closet by herself out of fear. I appreciate the inner monologues we have from Ness where she's working through her emotions and analyzing herself. I am really excited to see what happens in book two.

I would highly recommend this book to readers looking to read a dark fantasy with twists and turns - readers who face their own fears and have anxiety may find this to be an empowering story, I know I did!

I am beyond grateful for HarperCollins Publishing and NetGalley for granting me access to an Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for my honest feedback!

This book has all kinds of crazy things - people who turn into their worst nightmares, a corrupt city where murder and kidnapping are the norm, a cult run by a lizard man, and a mayor with a man-eating pet pterodactyl - and I loved it! This is a super fast paced exciting read and is different from anything I’ve read before.

I appreciated Ness and how she isn’t your typical MC, she constantly lives in fear due to trauma in her past, but her character development is great. I loved Cy as well - I wasn’t expecting vampires in this book but it was a pleasant surprise. Their friendship is really sweet and they’re very funny together. I’m hoping it turns into a romance in the next book.

I enjoyed all of the twists and mysteries and not knowing what kinds of crazy things were going to happen next. Looking forward to the next one and seeing what Nightmare boy gets up to.

Thank you to HarperCollins Children’s Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

CITY OF NIGHTMARES
by Rebecca Schaeffer
YA Fantasy Dystopia
NetGalley ARC

This is a world where when you fall asleep you could wake up transformed into your worse nightmare, the thing that scares you the most. Sometimes you are still somewhat human, but most of the time, you're a monster.

Ness knows what it's like when family turns into a nightmare, and now she is afraid, she runs and hides from everything, which isn't great living in Newham, a city where the people can be more monstrous than the nightmares.

Such a great blurb, but sadly makes the book sound a lot more dramatic and scary than it really is. It's not bad, it's a great idea, and for teenagers, it's a great story, but what really turned me off was how much the MC whined about being a coward, especially when it came to nightmares, because of what happened to her sister that made her so afraid, and how bad her life was in general. Even at only 7%, I was irritated with her whining. But she wasn't timid about hurting another person to get what she wanted.

This book is in first person so the whining was repeated in every chapter. Why she was the way she was, why she felt so safe in the (not) cult. I know it was to make you feel bad for the MC but I was getting sick of her, and her excuses for not doing anything about it. I do get it, some things are very hard to fix.

Not even close to being as disturbing as the author's Market of Monsters series, this one seems to be aimed at a much younger crowd, though parents should use caution because of the violence.

If there hadn't been so much whining I could have given it one more star...

3 Stars

City of Nightmares
by Rebecca Schaeffer
Pub Date: 10 Jan 2023

Ever since her sister became a man-eating spider and slaughtered her way through town, nineteen-year-old Ness has been terrified—terrified of some other Nightmare murdering her, and terrified of ending up like her sister. Because in Newham, the city that never sleeps, dreaming means waking up as your worst fear.

Whether that means becoming a Nightmare that’s monstrous only in appearance, to transforming into a twisted, unrecognizable creature that terrorizes the city, no one is safe. Ness will do anything to avoid becoming another victim, even if that means lying low among the Friends of the Restful Soul, a questionable organization that may or may not be a cult.

But being a member of maybe-cult has a price. In order to prove herself, Ness cons her way into what’s supposed to be a simple job for the organization—only for it to blow up in her face. Literally. Tangled up in the aftermath of an explosive assassination, now Ness and the only other survivor—a Nightmare boy who Ness suspects is planning to eat her—must find their way back to Newham and uncover the sinister truth behind the attack, even as the horrors of her past loom ominously near.

This was one of the coolest, dark YA fantasy stories I have ever read. Ok, maybe one of the coolest stories I’ve ever read, period. The concept of a Gotham-esque city steeped in corruption and nightmares was out of this world. It actually made me want to visit just for the experience of being able to see it, because the descriptions were amazing. Also, I am obsessed with the whole turning into your worst fear nightmares. Such a brilliant concept that was exquisitely delivered. The characters Ness, Priya, and Cy were all dynamic in their own personalities but such a great balance for each other. I really want to be friends with them all, and go hunt sea monsters with Priya. I absolutely cannot wait to have a physical copy on my shelves!!

What a fun, weird book. I didn’t expect to like it as much as I did but once I started it, I couldn’t wait to dive back in. The idea is fantastic and one I haven’t seen written about before (at least not so literally). Giant people eating spiders made me nervous at first but once a hot vampire got thrown in i was fine 🤣

The story is very interesting, one I have never encountered before. I will say at times it had me thinking I would not like to turn into any of my nightmares. It held that fear factor you need when dealing with the things the main character has on her plate.

4.5 stars!!! It is not often I pick up a Young Adult Horror However, this synopsis grabbed my attention and I am so glad I received an eARC for this book! It is even more uncommon for me to complete a book in one sitting and I somehow managed to finish this book before lunch!

JANUARY 10TH IS COMING - GET PREPPED FOR A BOOKSTORE RUN!

This is the first book in the City of Nightmares (series? Duology? I'm unsure) but I am so excited to read the second one already! it hurts that it isn't available to grab ASAP. This novel is riddled with uncertainty and does so well with the "YA" horror. Strange birds, cults run by a lizard boss, so much weirdness and I absolutely loved it.

I DEVOURED this book (much like the MC's man-eating sister who killed her family, very traumatic for our girl, Ness)

Thank you Rebecca Schaffer for giving me a movie in my brain, I wasn't even seeing words on paper through most of it, just happily hallucinating the world you built for us all.

I loved this author's first series so when I saw she had this new book releasing I knew I needed to read it. Rebecca Schaeffer writes such fascinating, unique, and dark stories. I like that her stories are for older young adult readers and delve into darker themes but still hold that whimsy and ease of YA. I wouldn't mind reading something with adult characters though. I once again loved this world she created of villainous characters. This is yet another original story to add to her collection. I loved the friendships and the commentary she included about friendships and fears. I enjoyed the diverse cast, she does this so well, and the anxiety rep. I didn't feel a connection to the characters though. As someone who becomes the main character when I read, I didn't want to be Ness. With her anxiety and fears, I didn't want to be in her head. I didn't think the plot was strung together very cohesive either. It felt very disjointed like each plot was connected to another by the barest of threads That jealous girlfriend plot, what was that??? It went no where and had such a thin connection. All in all I gave City of Nightmares 4 stars. It had its issues but the originality and themes explored made it one I'd recommend.