Reviews tagging 'Adult/minor relationship'

Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor

8 reviews

kathrynleereads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Picking up only minutes after Strange the Dreamer ended, Muse of Nightmares, by Laini Taylor, was everything that its predecessor wasn’t… in the most surprising ways.

With the Citadel now in Lazlo’s control but still looming over the city of Weep, Muse of Nightmares opens with a whole new level of chaos. Citizens are fleeing, Eril-Fane is trying to corral the Tizerkane warriors, and Lazlo is meeting the other Godspawn for the first time.

Before we find out how the night's events play out, however, we’re introduced to Kora and Nova, sisters living in a desolate village, who have an incredibly different view of the blue-skinned “gods” that the people of Weep have come to dread. 

As the story plays out for the sisters, Lazlo, the Godspawn, and the people of Weep, the book really lives up to its name. 

Where Strange the Dreamer was all dreams and imaginary worlds, Muse of Nightmares is all horror and unimaginable crimes. The books were like two sides of a coin. Readers fell in love with the picturesque and awe-filled version of Weep, then had that whole idea spun on its axis until it was an ugly truth. 

There are very few times when reading a book that I can honestly say I experienced gut-wrenching horror, and Muse of Nightmares was the reason for many of them. 

All of the questions presented in Strange the Dreamer were finally granted answers, but they were the answers of nightmares.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Gore, Blood, Body horror, Suicidal thoughts, Genocide, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Trafficking, Vomit, and War

Moderate: Confinement, Kidnapping, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Medical content, Mental illness, and Misogyny

Minor: Infidelity, Abandonment, Abortion, Fire/Fire injury, and Homophobia

vanesst's review

adventurous dark hopeful medium-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Kidnapping, Murder, and Rape

Moderate: Animal death, Blood, Slavery, Animal cruelty, Confinement, and Death

Minor: Suicide and Adult/minor relationship

nyree42's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Trafficking, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Grief, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Pedophilia

Moderate: Child abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, and Racism

lizzie24601's review

adventurous hopeful tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

A well-done second half of the duology, though not as good as Strange the Dreamer imo. That's mostly bc Lazlo had such an interesting arch and growth in the first book, and in this book he's mostly just spending his time being Sarai's bf and Sarai doesn't really more of an arch than she does in the first book. SOOO much of the Lazlo/Sarai romance scenes could've been cut.

Nevertheless, there is some great character growth here, too - mostly for Minya and Thyon. The new characters were interesting and helped broaden the world. There's a little less adventure and mystery in this book, but Laini Taylor's writing is so good that you're still devouring each page, and it is quite a satisfying ending. (Obsessed with

Thyon's growth (I was so excited for him to reunite with Lazlo afterward) and with Sarai deciding to become a therapist at the end. Love that for her.

)

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Sexual assault, Torture, Child abuse, Death, Kidnapping, Murder, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Slavery

msradiosilence's review

dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Tldr; Minya gets a story, but so do other characters that were entirely unneeded. For an almost 600 page book, it was pretty boring.

Read my full review here: https://www.rainyreader.com/single-post/muse-of-nightmares.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Blood, Murder, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, and Violence

booksandprosecco's review

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Child death, Confinement, Death, and Violence

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship

corvicore's review

adventurous emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Grief, Kidnapping, and Suicide

Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual violence, Slavery, Sexual content, Rape, Trafficking, and War

Minor: Abandonment, Confinement, Drug use, Adult/minor relationship, Pregnancy, Homophobia, and Xenophobia

bookcaptivated's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Grief, and Gore

Moderate: Death of parent, Kidnapping, Murder, Suicide, and Violence

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Slavery, Genocide, Trafficking, and Xenophobia