Nothing quite hits the fantasy spot for me like Rebecca Ross’ books lately. Having previously read her three other books, I went into this novel with high expectations, as I loved every one of her others. Dreams Lie Beneath did not disappoint. It was the perfect mix of enemies to lovers (with some nuances), intrigue, revenge plots, secret identities, curses, magic, dark forest vibes, and more plot devices to keep a reader’s attention than a Sharper Image store has gadgets (I may have dated myself with that analogy).

First and foremost, the best thing about all of Ross’ books (so far) are that they are categorized as YA and are actually YA appropriate. This book did not have any sexual situations, adult language or content, and it had themes in it that provoke thought about the nature of vengeance and its destructiveness on those who seek it as well as those from whom it is sought.

At the mention of vengeance, it bears highlighting, though it may not be necessary, that this book is an enemies-to-lovers romance after a fashion. The trope is one of my favorites (and one of my most widely read for leisure), and Ross does it right in this one. The turmoil our MC feels as the attraction grows for her self-appointed sworn enemy drums up nostalgia for the great works of romance like Pride and Prejudice without feeling campy or just reproduced.

The side characters here are definitely a boon to the main story and romance. Each of them are well interconnected with the other characters and don’t simply float out in the narrative nether, making appearances for the sake of convenience and ticking boxes for the sake of opinion. They all fit well like threads in a tapestry and give the book quite a bit of enhancement that moves the story along and helps provide support in the most clever ways, all while in danger of stealing the show but never really doing so.

My only complaint to file is that Dreams Lie Beneath is a standalone. Such a rich world with a wonderfully complex magical system and characters that leave me wanting to know more about them should have a series. I was sorry to leave this world. I hope one day I will be able to go back there again in a new story.

My most heartfelt thanks to NetGalley for the ARC, for which I give my own opinion.

Another excellent YA fantasy by Rebecca Ross.

As with all of her other work, I loved this novel. I specifically love her unique style of storytelling—I want to describe it as YA fantasy comes to afternoon tea. There is this amazing combination of snappy pacing and strong premise that mix with a softer, almost quiet, character and relationship focused part. Personally I feel this is rare, and one of the stand out aspects of this book,

Also, I love the worldbuilding and felt this worked very well as a stand-alone. Would definitely recommend for fans of atmospheric, romantic, and mysterious fantasy!

I hated putting this book down! From the magic to the slow burn rivals to lovers. It had me reading at any free moment!

I felt like the main characters were very well thoughtout and believable. Some of the outer character I felt could have a bit more substance, but everyone had their own distinct personalities.

I think I would have liked more information on the magic system and how each type was different or how they could be used. But I loved how dreams and nightmares are incorporated into the magic and plot!

For a standalone YA this has everything to keep you interested and enjoying the ride!

Ross you did it again. You have now become an auto-buy author for me. I have adored every book I have read by Ross, but this one has easily become my favorite book of hers.

This book is full of lush details and hidden gems. The rich character development and intricate world building is perfect combination of complexity and subtly, as the details are raw and invigorating but in a way that is easy to read and leaves you starving for more.

The world of magic and *dreams* has so many beautiful tropes that will suck you in from page one. If you like your enemies to lovers, slow burn romance, one bed trope with a splash of hidden identities, this is FOR YOU!!!!

This book has so many plot twists that truly help suck you deeper into this mysterious and enchanting world. 5⭐️

This was not what I thought it was. I’m a bit sad but maybe I’ll try again in the future???? We’ll see.

3.5/5, rounding up because it was a fast, fun read with some great atmospheric visuals

Clem works with her father as a Warden, tasked with protecting her town from the nightmares brought to life by a century-old curse. When unwanted visitors appear, poking after the old curse, Clem’s life is shattered. All she has left is her prodigal magical skill and a burning desire for revenge against those who have wronged her. But- of course- things aren’t as simple as they seem and Clem may have to make unlikely allies to stay alive and- just maybe- end the curse once and for all.

First, some positives:
The way the premise of the book is presented is genius.
We learn the exposition, the story of what happened in Seren a hundred years ago, slowly through an amazing spooky card game. It’s like Pres meets Bloody Mary, where if you end the game with one of the Seven Wraiths, the seven who betrayed the duke and unleashed the curse, in your hand, you will have horrible nightmares. It’s perfect- spooky, fun, and visually compelling (you know I want to draw the cards).

The way dream magic works is also so fun. In order to dissolve the nightmare, the magician has to find the key. It’s like the little thing you notice in a dream that helps you wake up and is a clever conceit that makes things more complicated than just battles against dream monsters.

On the downside- having a protagonist with a half-frozen heart puts the story into a bit of a bind. She will either come off as emotionless and unengaging, or not remain true to the premise in frustrating ways. Unfortunately, Clem-as-Anna sometimes hits both of this pitfalls. Her callousness never really goes far enough to feel truly tragic or effecting and she warms too quickly to a few characters in a way that makes it hard to believe her stone heart will hold.

As is unfortunately too often the case, I found her and her love interest to be less interesting than the side characters. I like both of them fine, but he’s the classic love interest who claims to not be nice but most definitely is, and she’s the super skilled, professed hardass who’s a secret softy. At times, they feel generic in a way the premise and magic elements don’t. To keep things spoiler free, I will just say that there is a set of twins whose story I think would be a more compelling lens to the same premise as this book.

Anyway- I read this in a weekend and thoroughly enjoyed it despite its issues. I’d still recommend it. The premise is great, the story is twisty and fun, and the side characters make up for the less compelling main pair.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins for an eARC of the book in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you, Netgalley and HarperCollins, for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Dreams Lie Beneath feels like a combination of the magic and writing style of Sorcery of Thorns and the political intrigue of The Cruel Prince. Rebecca Ross created a unique storyline and an intriguing cast of characters that causes the reader to become invested in the lives of Clem and Phelan. This standalone fantasy asks the question, "How much of your dreams and nightmares are real?"

The magic system in the book was very interesting. The author does not devel too deep into the different types of magic and instead focuses heavily on the job of Territory Warden and their use of defensive magic. I really like the idea of nightmares becoming a reality that needed to be defeated.

One of the larger criticisms I have for this book is I felt confused about the backstory of the Duke and the curse for about 70% of the book. Despite the author having explained what occurred up the mountain several times throughout the story. I also didn't like the last chapter. It felt unnecessary for a standalone novel, and I do not understand what the author was trying to hint at. I think a lot of this book can be left up to interpretation. The author left the character differences between Anna and Clem very vague, and I didn't really like that. I prefer books with less ambiguous endings.

Overall, I rate the book three and a half stars. Parts were a little too confusing and vague, and there are several plot wholes that the author never addresses. You need to think about this book to understand the plot and the author's intentions, but if you think too much, you just get confused again.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion.

I enjoyed this book. It was a solid read, and the world building, specifically, was very good. I enjoyed the “folklore” aspect a lot, how it mingled with customs and traditions. The romance was well done, it didn’t feel quick or stodgy. Ross did a good job tying the story together.

My only qualm is with how easy it was, in the end. I wanted the stakes to be higher. The nightmares in the mountains were not as terrifying or as “high stakes” as I expected them to be—good versus evil, it didn’t feel urgent for me as a reader, and then everything was tied neatly up.

Thoroughly enjoyable YA magical fantasy! I loved so many things about this book. The writing is whimsical and detailed, the characters are intriguing and unique in their own right, and you can’t go wrong with the enemies to lovers trope! LOL - All in all, surpassed my expectations!

Such an amazing standalone that was perfect in plot and pacing. A different take of dreams and nightmare elements. I loved the characters. Definitely for fans of The Night Circus and storytelling fans of Strange the Dreamer.

Beautiful concept of the magic around banishing nightmares that briefly come to life. This was one of those fun fantasy novels that had me up til 2 am to finish it! Really enjoyed the plot and liked how the characters interacted with one another. Hoping there will be more titles in this series!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read and review this book.

This book is just as wonderful and fanciful as the cover suggests. The characters are all well-written and robust. The ambiance is amazing. And the plot moves along nicely. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in Azenor and its interesting folklore and legends. The magic system is perfect, not too complex, and just enough for the characters to accomplish the plot. I will definitely be ordering this book to have a paper copy on my shelves!

I will without a doubt be buying this book for my own collection. I am an avid fantasy reader, and in my eyes this book is without flaws. I truly think that it encapsulates everything a fantasy reader would want, while adding a layer of its own originality that makes it so special and unique. This quote in particular just spoke to me, "One does not realize how powerful a dream is, in the sleeping world as well as the waking one, until it has been stolen from them." There is just something so melodic and special about the way this author tells this story. There were so many times where even though this book it thought to be fantasy, I thought a lot of the quotes or situations could be applicable to the readers real life as well. This book truly felt like it was written with a reader like me in mind. It has everything I could want from a story, it has enemies to lovers, hidden identities, one bed, revenge, a fiesty main character, pride and prejudice, cruel prince, Hazel wood, and Night Circus esque vibes that truly made this book one to look out for. Because I read a lot of fantasy, I tend to find some themes redundant. But THAT WAS NOT THE CASE with this book. I love the complexity of this multilayered magical world. This simultaneously felt like a slow burn, that also kept up a good pace throughout. I will say that as someone who has frequent nightmares, the premise of the book would be a nightmare in my own life... but also it made it that much more addicting to read. I love Clementine. I love her name, I love her character, I love who she from start to middle to finish. I loved the twists and the turns in this book and thought that they were both unexpected, but also made sense. Overall I am just obsessed with this book. I think it is absolute perfection and I am so excited to rave about it long after it is published, because I truly think that this book is a force of nature. Rebecca Ross is for sure an auto buy author for me from here on out. Utterly brilliant.

Thank you NetGalley, author Rebecca Ross, and HarperCollins Publishers for giving me a free arc copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
4 stars
The narrator did a great job reading this story. The narrator had a very neutral accent which made the story easy to follow.
What I appreciated most about this book is how well the characters were developed! Each character had their own journey, secrets, and place within this world. The premise and the world building were very interesting. I liked the concept of battling nightmares for the residents within the communities. The enemies-to-friends-to-lovers was well done between Clementine and Phelen. It was slow and layer, which added another element of mystery around their working relationship. The author paced this story well. There was a great balance of action, information of the world and magic systems, and romance! I found myself completely immersed in this story and the outcome of how all the plot line would wrap up. This book is defiantly worth the read especially for those who love fantasy! I can't wait for another new release by this author!

The story was okay, but the magic systems were confusing!! There was so much and so many different names for everything, I couldn't for the life of me remember them all and had to keep flipping back to figure out what was happening.

Things weren't explained very well, the world building could use some help and it just wasn't fast paced enough for me. I feel like this will be popular to fans of, "Sorcery of Thrones."

Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

*Received an e-ARC from NetGalley*

All I can say is wow!!!😍 What a nice fresh story, definitely not the 'same old same old'. A lot of Fantasy books lately tend to blend together, but this was something unique that I thoroughly enjoyed!
It took me a few chapters to really get into the story, but once I did I didn't want to put it down! I definitely recommend reading this book!

I couldn’t put this one down! Unique story with lots of magic and a slow burn romance. Clementine was a delight and one of my favorite characters of the year!

A magical, suspenseful novel about a city guarded by wardens every full moon by nightmares that are from their own people that they are sworn to protect, placed there by a curse from centuries ago. This book had me guessing whose character was genuine and trustworthy or who was deceptive and vile. How will Clementine know who to trust and how will they survive in a continuous loop the curse has plagued them to endure?

“He turned my fire into smoke, my wind into dust, my light into shadows.”

A great enemies to lovers, slow burn romance with a lot of favorite tropes- including a dagger to the throat! A must read!

Dreams Lie Beneath by Rebecca Ross

496 Pages
Publisher: Harper Collins Children’s Books / Quill Tree Books
Release Date: November 2, 2021

Fiction, Children’s Fiction, Teen & Young Adult, Sci Fi & Fantasy, Magic

Clementine Madigan and her father were wardens who helped protect the city from nightmares that came to life. When her father is replaced and the family is forced from their home, Clementine takes on the persona of Annie and applies as an assistant to the warden. Phelan, the new warden selects her to help him walk without realizing who she really is.

What starts off as an act of vengeance to get Phelan removed from his position and her father reinstated, becomes so much more. Phelan is different than she expected and decides she can even like him. The book has a steady pace, and the characters are well developed. It is written in the first-person point of view. If you like books about magic with intrigue, you will enjoy this one. I look forward to reading more books by this author.

Azenor is a realm cursed by nightmares. Clementine and her father are wardens who slay the nightmares that come to life on the full moon. But when 2 magicians win her town away from her, she wants revenge.
I loved the world building here and the magic system. Clementine is a relatable character with depth.
I really enjoyed this one!
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an early copy to review.