<b> "Yes, I'm petty and vengeful. No, I don't care." </b>

City of Nightmares snuck up on me, quite like the nightmare's Ness is so afraid of. This, however; was a pleasant turn of events.

For the first few chapters of the book, I was not intrigued, and while the story was unique, the MC fell flat but…. That shifted, unexpectedly and I can't say when because I went from reading slowly to reading voraciously without notice.

<b> My sister's worst nightmare was a giant, man-eating spider. I know because that's what she turned into when she went to sleep for the last time. </b>

This story is wholly unique (to anything I've ever read,) and I can't appreciate that enough. In Newham, the corrupt, monster-filled city of twisted politicians and literal monsters, sleeping means dreaming-- and dreaming means waking up as your worst fear.

Spiders? - Wake up as a giant spider
Flesh eating disease? - Wake up and become a flesh eating disease
Werewolf? - Wake up a werewolf, and this means whatever <i> version </i> of werewolf your subconscious is afraid of. This means there are MANY nightmare versions of werewolves, vampires, etc. out there.
I can't even imagine what my subconscious would conjure as my worst nightmare… maybe a giant black void? A raging, living, fire? Curious to know how this dream-lord would turn my absolute fear of being alone at a macro level (not micro) into a living nightmare but, I digress.

Ness meets a monster-boy who she fears, as she does every other moving breathing, living thing in Newham and this is where the book becomes hard for me. Separately I enjoy these characters, but together they fell flat and were hard to connect to. Actually in pieces this book was great, original, easy to read but still exciting… but as a whole something was just missing. <b> This is why reviews are hard, </b> and this is wholly my opinion. I hope someone else picks this book up and LOVES it but for me it was not quite <i> it. </i>

I'm glad the book snuck up on me, and was an enjoyable read. I will read the second (I haven't looked into that but without being a cliff-hanger, the ending was open for another book), and I would still recommend this book to friends that I know will enjoy it as much or more than myself

Thank you to NetGalley for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review. I really liked the concept, but the plot was very slow moving. The best character was Cy and he was barely in it. The ending was the best part.

I received a free copy though NetGalley for an honest review

This book is if the book Dreams Lie Beneath was urban and opposite. Where that has a strong, independent female lead who owns her life this one has a female character who is trying to find her feet and overcome many things about herself. I love that it is very plot based and fast paced. It has twists and turns and adventure!

A big thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins Children's Books for gifting me an eARC and early audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I fell for this book because it was pitched as Gotham meets Strange the Dreamer. But it more reads as The Raven Boys meets The Coldest Girl in Cold Town with the tiniest of sprinkles of Six of Crows. Which is bizarre and amazing in it's own right.

City of Nightmares by Rebecca Schaeffer is a YA fantasy novel fueled by literal nightmares. Ness lives in a world where dreams are forbidden. Mainly due to the facts that people's nightmares turns them into literal monsters. including the likes of her older sister, who nearly tried to eat her after becoming a man-eating spider. Ness will do anything to stay away from the monsters, including a "TOTALLY NOT A CULT" organization called Friends of the Restful Soul. Which leads to her becoming a mail person, and literally getting roped into a heist to save blood-thirsty monster that may or may not want to eat her. No big deal, right?

Before this, I attempted Schaeffer's first series, Market of Monsters, with little luck. I found myself enjoying the bloodier, action scenes and nearly snoozing during every other part. But this one is all action and no snoozing. Save for the kissy scenes as the end.

Overall, this is a great start to a new series, and I can't wait to see what else is in store for Ness and Cy.

Exhilarating is the only word I can think of to summarize my feelings towards this book…it gave me everything I wanted and more!Corrupt government, city full of nightmares, and an underdog hero?!? From the book cover to the actual plot it is pure ecstasy! I literal could not dream of a better novel that had creatures from literal nightmares to the perfect balance of dark humor. My only dilemma with this book was not wanting to finish it because I never wanted it to end and wanting to finish it because I was so invested with the story!

This was...not for me. While it was funny at times, I struggled with the writing style. It was was clunky, full of run-on sentences, and overly descriptive.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars

This book is delightfully weird. I went in thinking I wasn't going to really like it (when there's pterodactyl and vampire in the same sentence there's gonna be some doubt!) but ended up greatly enjoying it. The idea that you could be turned into your nightmare while you sleep unlocks a whole level of fear that Schaeffer conveys exquisitely.

Which is the problem our MC, Ness has. She doesn't just fear turning into a Nightmare, she's down right paranoid of it. She is the opposite of most protagonists we get in YA. She's fearful and weak, a self proclaimed coward. I really enjoyed her journey and growth as she learns to become something other than what she's been stuck as. Sometimes her inner monologue got repetitive, but it didn't detract too much for me.

The other characters within this story are great as well. Priya is the strong and loyal type. Cy, the misunderstood bad boy. There are a lot of twists and turns that keep the story going and none of it too predictable. I think my only real complaint is that there were a couple of points where the story becomes a bit preachy. It fit well for Ness's character, but not so much Cy's.

Overall, City of Nightmares is a fun read and I will be picking up the sequel to it (assuming there is one).

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

In a world where people can literally turn into that which they fear the most (i.e. their worst nightmare), corruption and lawlessness run amuk, as one might expect. Nineteen year old Vanessa Near (Ness) lives in such a city, Newham, which is one of the worst. Because her father was slaughtered by her sister when she turned into a giant spider, Ness is terrified that either she herself could become a Nightmare, or anyone in close proximity to her could become one and attack and kill her. "It's hard to stop being afraid when the whole world is literally full of monsters." If she had her way, she would hide in her little closet of a room at the Friends of the Restful Soul, which is definitely not a cult (or so she keeps telling everyone) and never leave. Unfortunately for her, the director at the not-a-cult is threatening to kick her out because of this. She volunteers to take a mail delivery trip (mail and packages need to be delivered in person because they will most likely get stolen otherwise), and this one decision changes her whole life. First, she meets a Nightmare (an adorable vampire by the name of Cy) and becomes locked out on deck with him, which, of course, sets off her Nightmare-phobia. As if that is not enough, the boat is blown to smithereens and she must rely on Cy to save her life, and not eat her in the process. It turns out, Cy doesn't want to be a Nightmare any more than Ness wants him to be one, and he fights his very nature every single day. When Cy and Ness realize that they are the only two survivors of the explosion, they race against time to find out how the boat exploded, and why.

Ness isn't your stereotypical heroine by any stretch of the imagination, and she would be the first to tell you this. She's scared of her own shadow, would much rather hide from a problem than confront it, and can't fight to save her life. But what she is, is determined. She's determined to find out if she was a target of the explosion or an innocent bystander (assassinations are commonplace in Newham and can happen for any reason at all), and she's determined to get her little closet sized room back! Cy is just as determined as Ness to find out if he was the target, and there are actually lots of reasons as to why he might have been, and if so, by whom.

The world building was very well done here. You really got the feeling of corruption and general weariness of just living through another day, but making the best of things. The characters were well written and Ness especially had some pretty serious character growth over the course of the book. It was interesting watching her come out of her shell little by little, usually drawn out by Cy, who was very emotionally vulnerable himself. They definitely brought out the best in each other.

All in all, I enjoyed this book very much and look forward to seeing where the next book in the series takes us.

5/5 stars.

*** I would like to thank NetGalley, HarperCollins Children's Books, and Rebecca Schaeffer for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I would like to thank Epic Reads for providing a digital copy of this novel. City of nightmares is a thrilling, engrossing novel that dissects the consequences of trauma. Vanessa Near lives in Newham, a city where people can become Nightmares, physical manifestations of their fears. Vanessa lost both her parents to Nightmares, with her father passing when her sister turned to giant spider. Her sister lost her life as well while in her spider form. Alone, Vanessa is forever afraid of these Nightmares, many who live among her in Newham. She joins the Friends of the Restful Soul, an association that focuses on the rehabilitation of people at the hands of Nightmares. Vanessa hopes to find a sense of family there. She looks up to her best friend Priya, who's everything's she's not. She's brave and wants to join the Nightmare Defense, to fight against the Nightmares plaguing the city. A boat ride gone wrong finds Vanessa facing another traumatic event. A chance meeting with Cyril, a Nightmare vampire causes her to reevaluate her fears about Nightmares. There are two central mysteries at the core of the book. Although I was not enamored with at least one of the revelations, I still found the story engrossing and I was intrigued enough to read this over the span of 24 hours to reach its conclusion. Ultimately, it was a satisfying read which leaves enough mystery for a sequel--one which I would definitely be interested in reading.

Ever since her sister turned into a giant spider and ate their father, and after a short stay with her aunt, Ness has been living at the Friends of the Resful Soul. They offer to pay what-you-can therapy for people whose lives have been affected by Nightmares. However, every time Ness encounter's a person turned NIghtmare her first impulse is to flee or hide, and this has gotten her into a bit of trouble with her organization. So as a last-ditch effort to not get kicked out of the only place she feels safe, she volunteers for the mail run, however that does not go at all as planned when it blows up with her on it. And all her fears about Nightmares are challenged when a cute Vampire boy saves her life and doesn't even attempt to eat her... The nerve...

I loved watching Ness overcome her INTENSE fear, and make friends with Cy and how they worked together to figure out what is going on in Newham. I also loved her relationship with her bestest friend Priya, whose goal in life is to take down every NIghtmare she encounters.

I literally flew through this in just a few hours, and minus one part that came off kind of preachy really enjoyed this book. Its super fast paced with a unique plot, I thought Ness was amazing and really liked Priya and Cy as well. I think the way this ended that we are going to get sequel and I would absolutely read that one too.

Ever since Ness' sister became a Nightmare, she's been scared of them ever since.

While the idea was original, and I did like Ness, our protagonist, I was hoping for a bit more when it came to the world building. It felt like Ness also stumbled into clues and made leaps in her deduction.
The chaos that happens in the actual city felt like a caricature - as if the author thought "there is no other way to show how crazy this city is other than the have a gun fight in the middle of the street"

I probably wouldn't read the next book and this could have been a standalone.

Vanessa "Ness" lives in Newham, a city of nightmares, literally. When people have nightmares, they turn into the creature or thing they fear the most. Her sister became a giant spider, killing her father, and leaving Ness afraid of almost everything. Ness lives at The Friends, which is definitely not a cult, with her best friend Priya, who is trying to be part of the Nightmare Defense; an organization that hunts and kills nightmares. When Ness survives an explosion with Cy, her life turns completely upside down. Someone is trying to kill her, but why? Just because she survived the explosion? For some other reason? In a city of nightmares, everything might not be what it seems and Ness will need to face her fears to find out what really happened and who might want her dead.

This book was a super fast read and super enjoyable. The premise is so unique and fun and it's super fast-paced. It's definitely set up to potentially have a sequel, and I would definitely read that as well. Overall, I really enjoyed the book and the characters were interesting and fun. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes fantasy/horror elements with a fast-paced mystery.

*In full disclosure I received an uncorrected digital proof from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

This is my first book by Rebecca Schaeffer. I was apprehensive about how much I would like this book because of the weird combination of politics and monster hunting that went on. In the description, it is compared to Gotham and Strange the Dreamer, and initially, I could see the whole Gotham thing because of the criminals running the town, but that is where the comparisons end. That was one of the reasons why I didn't look forward to this book. I thought it would be like a superhero tale, but it wasn't.
Ness was traumatized by her father's death at the hands of her sister, who turned into a monster. In this world, people turn into their worst nightmare. However, everyone thinks it is some kind of plague or curse but is it something more? Several years after her sister's accident, Ness works for the Friends of the Restful Soul, a group of people who try to help those affected by Nightmares. However, Ness is still completely terrified of Nightmares, so much so that her fear might compromise her position with her Friends. Ness finds herself willing to do anything to stay with her friends because she does not want to risk leaving, and that is how she finds herself in the middle of something way darker and more dangerous than Nightmares. During these troubles, Ness must confront her fears to start truly living her life or submit to the fear that keeps her frozen and locked away from everything and everyone around her.
What was interesting about this book was how Ness was facing physical nightmares and internal nightmares. This darkness appeared in many forms, and Ness struggled with both sides, whether that was her fear of the Nightmares that plague everyone or the ones buried in the back of her mind. That was neat because it really explores this idea that what hurts us or terrorizes us comes in so many forms, and Ness'sjourney through both of these situations shows the difficulty of confronting one's inner problems.
I loved this book, and I am so excited for the second one to come out, which can't be soon enough.

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins Children’s Books pub for this earc

This book was So GOOD. I mean you can never go wrong with a city full of Nightmares.

The concept of this book was very cool and unique. I liked how based on what your nightmare was, the rules were different. How the whole world is full of gray characters because there is no other way to survive. If you don’t kill the mosters, they will kill you.

Ness was a fun character to see the story through. I liked how she became less and less scared with every thing that happened to her but at the same time didn’t change completely. She still has a way to go in the next book, but we see her much happier where book 1 leaves her.

Her relationship with Cy is absolutely precious. I liked how he basically made her believe in people again and Ness kept reminding him that he’s not his father. They balance each other very well and I was very happy to see that they are only friends by the end of this book. They both need more time to go for something deeper.

I also was a huge fan of all the plot twists in this. Like how Ness’s sister became a Nightmare by choice. Or how everyone, including the Friends and Defense are evil and only there to make money off the Nightmares. Or the fact that the Phantom is real and now out in the world. I cannot wait to see where book 2 will take us.

Anyone who loves This Savage Song and Book of Night will definitely enjoy this YA sister.

City of Nightmares by Rebecca Schaeffer, 384 pages. Clarion Books (HarperCollins Publishers), 2023. $19.
Language: R (93 swears, 17 “f”); Mature Content: PG13; Violence: PG13
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH
Everyone knows that having a nightmare means that you’ll wake up as your greatest fear. Ness (19yo) is terrified of everyone who has turned into a Nightmare and everyone who might turn into a Nightmare – including her own potential to become a Nightmare. When her cowardice prevents her from doing her assigned job – again – the small, safe, windowless room she stays in is threatened. If Ness can’t find a way to function with her fear, she’s going to lose everything.
I couldn’t even get through two chapters before I had to share snippets of this book with my friends. Ness is a coward, in part, because she lives in terrifying circumstances – a reality that I cannot begin to imagine functioning well in. This reality allows the background of her story to be as entertaining as what Ness is doing in the foreground. Schaeffer makes these throwaway comments that had me laughing and engaged while Ness glossed over it. I’ve never had that kind of relationship with a story, and I loved it. And I’m still invested in the story itself. Ness’s character arc is full and natural, there are several overlapping plots and schemes to untangle, and the book ends in a satisfactory way while still leaving me excited for the sequel.
The characters are diverse in race, and Schaeffer describes skin tones of various shades. The mature content rating is for alcohol use; mentions of child trafficking, brothels, sexual assault, and sex; illegal activity; and innuendo. The violence rating is for mentions of assault, abuse, and assassination; fantasy violence; use of a range of weaponry, including guns; and murder.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

Thank you to HarperCollins and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

City of Nightmares by Rebecca Schaeffer revolves around 19 year-old Ness, who suffered through the traumatic event of her sister turning into a giant spider. Ness lives in Newham, the City of Nightmares, where people turn into their darkest fears and dreams when they go to sleep. Now, Ness works for the Friends of the Restful Soul, helping people move on when their friends and family turn into Nightmares. But what will happen when she meets a Nightmare named Cy who isn't so scary after all?

Here is a terrifying excerpt from Chapter 1:

"My sister’s worst nightmare was a giant, man-eating spider.
I know because that’s what she turned into when she went to sleep for the last time.
So I understand something about what it’s like to have a family member turn into a giant bug and try to eat you. It’s not hard to find people in this city who’ve lost loved ones to Nightmares, whether they became one or were killed by one. But people who turned into homicidal giant bugs are actually surprisingly rare.
I suppose most people have much worse fears than bugs."

Overall, City of Nightmares is YA urban fantasy set in an amazing world that you will want to live in. One highlight of this book is the tone. It made me laugh and made me scared at different points. Another highlight of this book is the relationships in the book. The friendship between Ness and her teammate Priya and the budding relationship between Ness and Cy were unexpected in this action-packed fantasy novel. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of YA fantasy in general, I highly recommend that you check out this book when it comes out in January!

I was given an Arc copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book was so weird and I loved every single second of it! There we do many twists and turns. There were so many “nightmares” from man eating spiders to vampires to a pet pterodactyl!!! I couldn’t put this book down!!

One of my favorite books of the year!

Definitely a solid 5 star read! I will be buying a physical copy for my shelf!

A delightful dip into young adult horror fiction sings with insight and vibrancy. Newham or Noom as it’s pronounced is a city of nightmares, graft, and corruption. Residents who are inadequately drugged to prevent it get turned into their worst nightmares or biggest fears. Nessy has a tragic history in that her older sister was turned into a giant spider who ate their father. As a result of being present, Nessy develops tremendous panic attacks. Terrified of that happening to her, she plots a shaky life journey. This is destroyed when a boat she rides on explodes and burns and she is saved by a vampire named Cy who swims her to shore saving her life. The two then team up to find out who the corrupt people/nightmares are who set out to kill the 600 passengers who died in the explosion. A fascinating tale of a quest to abolish irrational fear and to reclaim courage/ease in the world.

Sadly, this falls into the category of “fine, but not for me”. I was unable to finish it. The idea of it is very intriguing and seems right up my alley, but something about the writing was unable to hold my attention for any span of time. I would say this will be good for people who liked The Library of the Dead since its writing is similar.

I won’t be reviewing on Goodreads since I couldn’t finish.

**Netgalley Arc***

( 4)

Content Warnings:
Characters:
Ness: her sister turned into a human eating roach and ate her dad in front of her. Hides in emergencies. Screws up a lot.

Cy: a vampire who wants friends and has a shit dad

Priya: a fighter. Wants to join the nightmare defense. Ness’s best friend

General Summary:
In a world where people turn into their nightmares, our MC works the friends of the restful soul which passes out therapy pamphlets to the loved ones of the nightmare deceased. Becoming a nightmare however doesn’t mean you become murderous it depends on what your nightmare is. Some nightmares are contagious as well. When Ness, a member of a very culty not cult goes on a mail run The boat she’s on gets blown up and she has to face her fear of nightmares by befriending a vampire.

Review:
This book really grew on me. I wasn’t fond of the beginning because I didn’t like the main character at first but I loved to see her growth. Around 90 pages in I began to enjoy it. And I really liked the rest of the book. I wish it was a stand-alone rather than a series. The book wraps up nicely at the end and then in the epilogue they turn it into a series



Thank you to netgalley and publishers for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.