A review by katiescho741
Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor

5.0

I'm always worried that sequels will be a letdown, but this one was better than the first! I fell in love with the world of Weep in Strange the Dreamer and Muse of Nightmares both expands the world and wraps it together. Questions are answered, characters develop, and even more stories of horror, despair and love are revealed.
I was worried about the book opening with Kora and Nova, as I thought maybe it would muddy the waters of the storytelling. But their story is woven seamlessly into the main narrative and the storytelling and world building are phenomenal. I love dark fantasy and there's plenty of that in this book, but also plenty of happiness and light.
I loved that all the "bad guys" were complex and interesting. Minya is tragic and complex and brilliently written. There are plenty of reveals in this book but they never feel like corny twists for the sake of it. The story of Skathis, Isagol and the rest of the terible gods is unfolded gradually and everything builds up to an excellent climax.
I loved the ending.

Spoiler

I'm really not someone who like happy endings usually, and bringing people back from the dead is one of my pet hates in books. So it's a testament to Taylor's writing and world building that I loved that Azareen and Eril-Fayn got their fresh start, and that everyone ended up happy ever after.

This book is a wonderful, dark fairytale.