First and foremost, thank you to the publisher and the author for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. I loved this story and it was definitely worth the read! I absolutely loved this book!!!

I have been obsessed with The Dallergut Dream Department Store for years, and I was so lucky to receive an e-ARC for the next installment, The Dallergut Dream-Making District.

We get a deeper look into Penny’s magical world and the found family of colleagues and companions she’s made over the last year and she embarks on a mission to uncover more about herself while attempting to better her customers’ dreams. We get Penny’s POV, but we also get to experience the clients’ dreams and follow up the morning after.

This book isn’t a typical low-stakes plot - it is a warm hug. Another reviewer described this book as consoling and I have to agree.

Somehow, Miye Lee’s talent makes this series a comfort while touching on some heavy topics through character development, “I believe in the virtue of resilience, but wouldn’t it be better is there was no need for it?”

I could go on and on about this duology and I will be dreaming that there are future installments, but I’ll leave you with one more quote from the book, “sometimes love is worth a little extra effort.”

This book (and its stunning cover) comes out on June 24th! Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for this eARC.

Sweet dreams 🌙

The first installment of this series was wacky enough as is but this sequel elevates both the absurdity and the heart of the

In most ways I actually favor this book to it's predecessor, it feels more complete and also a little heart wrenching. I love the connections between all the dreamers and the dreamsellers and makers.

It was nice to return to this odd realm of dream logic, even if I had to be once again subjected to the idea of onion milk.

This is a return to the dream world where Penny has completed her first year of employment at the Dallergut Department Store. She is up for her review after which she can continue on her career path. Her next assignment will be the Civil Complaint Center. It is lovely to continue Penny's journey.

Miye Lee’s Return to the DallerGut Dream Department Store is a charming and quietly profound sequel that reaffirms the series as a standout in the cozy fantasy genre. Set once again in the mysterious, whimsical dream department store, the novel expands the world with even more inventive insights into how dreams are made—this time with a touch of mystery involving some of the customers and their troubles. Penny’s continued growth as a new employee allows readers to explore deeper emotional layers of dream life, from nightmares that need tending to aspirations that quietly shape who we are. Lee’s gift lies in blending gentle magic with thoughtful reflections on rest, longing, and the blurry boundary between waking and dreaming. Inventive, soothing, and rich with detail, this book is a true comfort read for anyone who has ever wondered where their dreams come from.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing | Hanover Square Press for this ARC. This is my honest review.

I think I like the idea of this series more than I actually like the series. It seems right up my alley but something is lacking for me. I can't quite put my finger on it. I love the idea of a store full of dreams but I kind of want more of the dreams as opposed to the people working behind the scene.

I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Just like I wish I could do in my sleep, I loved returning to the Dallergut Dream Department Store and its cozy world! Penny, Motail, Mogberry, Dallergut himself, and their crew of coworkers are back at it, finding the perfect dreams that will help their customers best!

This felt like a perfect growth for book two, enhancing the readers’ understanding of how the dreams are made (from ingredients to senses), how dreams can be accessible to all (including blind people!), and the power of lucid dreaming. I wish I could have lived in this cozy world…but maybe I’ll find it in my dreams tonight!

Thanks so much to Hanover Square and NetGalley for a chance to read this in exchange for an honest review.

I didn’t expect a sequel to the original story but this is great continuation of Pennys story. My favorite part of this book is the narrative choice in how we experiment Pennys actions to how we experience dreams. Getting to set foot in someone’s dreams leads to a fun whimsical story. It manages to explore why people dream and how dreams, or lack there of, can impact everyday life. Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an arc of this book.

i liked this one. the setting was well-developed, the story was calm and interesting, and the characters were cool. 4 stars. tysm for the arc.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy

The Dallergut Dream-Making District by Lee Miye is the third person multi-POV Korean cozy fantasy sequel to The Dallergut Dream Department Store. During their second year of employment, Dallergut employees must go to the Company District to learn more about what customers are saying and how dreams are made. But Penny and Dallergut are taken to Complaints and have to attempt to fix what's going wrong for their customers.

Like the previous book, this is more of a slice-of-life with a fantasy setting and really highlights the ideal of retail employees who want to work in retail and do right by their employees. One of the reasons I loved this book and the last is because this spin on retail hits on something that I don't think we talk about enough: some people actually really like it as a job and it's not just teenagers or people struggling to find a career in their field. In an ideal world, the people who want to work in retail and are suited for customer service would be doing so and they'd be the dominant idea of a retail employee. It's idealism in the most grounded way possible: employees get to be creative and enjoy what they do and they will be able to see an impact on their work.

I really liked the bringing in of lucid dreamers and how they know about the dream world, but nobody actually believes them. There's a melancholy to it, particularly when these people lose the ability to lucid dream, but it adds a sense of how these two worlds are not completely separate and brings in that thread of sadness and longing that Korean media is fairly known for. There were also conversations about disability and the lack of limitations on imagination and hard work.

Of all the Korean and Japanese cozy fantasy that has been coming to the English market, Dallergut is absolutely my favorite. Lee Miye hit on something really incredible with how she tackles the themes and centers an employee instead of centering the people who come through the shop but still gives space to those customers. It's a circle of kindness and the importance of dreams, which in a world that seems to demand more and more of our time, reminding us that sleep is important is a pretty good shout-out.

Content warning for depictions of ableism

I would recommend this to fans of cozy fantasy and readers of Korean literature who want something warm to curl up with right before bed

Thank you @htpbooks @hanoversquarepress #partner for the gifted copies of this book!

I read the first book in this series a while back and absolutely loved it, so I was so excited to dive into book two — and I’m happy to report it totally delivered! This whimsical, cozy little book picked right up with the same dreamlike magic and charm I fell for in the first one.

The world of Dallergut is just so easy to get lost in. It feels like lemonade on a hot day, sprinkles on ice cream, or a warm hug from your best friend — sweet, happy, and simple joys bundled up in book form. Plus...have you seen these covers? Ugh! They are so ME! :)

What I especially love is how creative and thought-provoking this book is, while still being light, comforting, and just plain fun. The magical dream-making system is one of the most unique concepts I’ve read in a long time...I’m not going to lie, I kind of wish I could work in this district too.

If you’re craving something light fantasy, whimsical, and a little bit magical — this series is 100% worth adding to your TBR. Cozy, quirky, and guaranteed to make you smile.

I loved the first book and I am so happy it got a squeal. It was lovely to get to be immersed in this world once again, I love the stories found in these books.

I loved The Dallergut Dream Department Store last year and would have been content with just a stand-alone novel in this universe, but when I heard that Lee was publishing a sequel, I was thrilled! I was so excited to return to the dream world, to see how Penny would continue to evolve as a character after her growth in the first book, and to perhaps see a more in-depth (and maybe even slightly critical?) look at the dream world.

However....I was a bit let down by the sequel. The writing is still beautiful and dreamy (no pun intended), and the world of dreams is still a joy to read through. The characters are still interesting, though could have used a little more time to explore them again. I think if I had gone in with lesser expectations, I would not have been so let down, because it is very much in the same vein as the first in the series. The plot meandered about quite a bit (as I found in the first, so no surprise there), and the problems of the plot all seemed very surface-level, easily solved, and never leading to real growth.

I would still happily read more by Miye Lee, but perhaps I'll adjust my expectations for future installments. Thank you to Netgalley and
Harlequin Trade Publishing | Hanover Square Press for the ebook ARC. All opinions are mine alone.

Man, how did we get here? Last summer I devoured The Dallergut Dream Department Store and even begged for a sequel in my review. Be careful what you wish for, I guess? Maybe I just felt thrown off this time around because I think I thought Penny was going to have to work through this conflict with her parents and then that plot line goes nowhere? And maybe that’s on me, maybe I’m turning Penny’s complaints about her parents into a whole thing when it wasn’t but it made for a confusing reading experience. Otherwise this was a nice continuation of the series and expansion of the world. It did feel a bit same old same old at the same time though. I don’t know, maybe the idea blew my wig off last summer because it was so original and I didn’t know what to expect and now I do so that changed the experience?

Either way, I ship Penny and Maxim. Do people still say that?

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for a free eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The world that Miye Lee creates through the Dallergut Dream-Making world is really fascinating and I keep getting drawn back to it. Would love to read more installments about this world. I really enjoyed both books and look forward to more from this author in the future.

I absolutely loved the first book in the series! I was so excited to read the second one!

Penny has officially survived a year at the store so now she’s an employee of the dream industry! Penny finds out about the company’s secrets. She decides to get to the bottom of the complaints. Will Penny and her coworkers be able to bring their regular customers back? I really like Penny and her willingness to help others! She definitely my favorite!

This is a nice and easy read! It will have you feeling happy and cozy!

Thank you so much Harlequin Trade Publishing, NetGalley and Miye for the eARC!

Rating: ✨✨✨✨
Publication Date: June 24 2025

#TheDallergutDreamMakingDistrict #NetGalley

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin/Hanover Square Press for the e-arc!

I read the first book in this series last year and did not love it. I felt the story could have been better but it felt flat. I had high hopes for the sequel to get me but it also did not grip me as much. I do think there were certain elements done better but overall it was just an alright story. I like the world of this series but the characters and main story make it boring. I will not be continuing this series.

I really enjoyed the first book so I was excited to read this sequel too. It was great to see the cast of characters again, and seeing people reflect on their dreams and experiences made me think about my dreams and past as well. I loved the concept of the dream department store and I'll treasure this duology in my mind.

I thought that this was a great sequel to The Dallergut Dream Department Store which I had absolutely loved. The writing style and tone, one of my favorite aspects of the first book, had the same great vibe in the sequel that really immersed me in the dream-like nature of the book.

I really enjoyed getting to experience more of the dream world in this sequel and getting a 'behind the scenes' look at everything Penny was exposed to in book one. It added a lot of depth to the business of selling dreams in a fascinating way. Much like the first book, we mainly follow Penny in this book as well as some specific characters who interact with Penny in their dreams. All of the other Dallergut employees are also present and it was so much fun to read about them and all of their quirks again.

The emotions explored in this book felt quite raw and melancholic at times, but there was also a lot of hope and healing emphasized through the plotlines. I definitely was able to relate to the struggles of some of the characters as well as their processes of accepting the past in order to embrace their futures.

All in all, I really enjoyed returning to Miya Lee's dreamworld and getting to explore it more alongside Penny!

The Dallergut Dream Making District by Miye Lee is the sequel to The Dallergut Dream Department Store. Penny, who works at the front desk of the dallergut dream dept store, gets a pass to the company district. She works at the complaint department trying to remedy dreamers’ complaints. Each of the dreamers have moments of reflection within their dreams that change how they view their awake lives.

I recommend this heartwarming book for fantasy readers. It’s a deep dive into an immersive, imaginative world of dreams and how that could work as a business. The dreamers choose an adventure such as being a shark crossing the Atlantic Ocean and pay with emotions such as affection, longing, or happiness.

“Live in the present for the happiness you have now. Look forward to the future for happiness yet to come, and reflect on the past, for you only recognize happiness after it has passed.” Quoted from unedited proof.

Thank you Harlequin Trade Publishing and Netgalley for the advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.