This was a tough read for me, because the amnesia/false memories trope is one of my least favorite in fiction. It makes me deeply uncomfortable, but that's a personal thing. I'm looking forward to reading Tybalt's half of the story in The Innocent Sleep - sort of - because I also hate it when one character is the only one who remembers the truth and everyone else thinks they're crazy. It's a whole thing. But I will push through, because the series and characters are worth it!

McGuire doesn’t pull any punches in this installment of the Toby Daye series. I found it unsettling at first, but after finishing the book, I realized that that was kind of the point. Toby is so different for most of this novel, it really brings home how much we’ve seen her change over the series. Part of the charm of this series is that McGuire has done her homework about Faerie and weaves information into the books as you need it without doing info dumps at you.

The stakes definitely felt higher in this book, I’m not sure if it was the plot or what, but I was on the edge of my seat while reading it and inwardly cheered at the ending. Again, DO NOT START WITH THIS ONE, start at the beginning – or, if you’re like me, go back a few books (or, hey, back to the start) and continue forward, you won’t regret it.

I received a free copy from NetGalley for my unbiased opinion.

#SleepNoMore #NetGalley

ARC received by Netgalley in return for an honest review.

Okay, now that this book is out I can finally write a review. This was by far one of my favorite books in this series. The last few were good but felt just a tad bit stagnant, like we were treading the same path over an over again. This one felt like a breath of fresh air. Toby had some real growth that made me tear up a time or two. I really loved that we did focus on what is happening at the start of the book, but it did feel a little fast paced towards the end. I have yet to read the next because of life things but I am hoping that can fill in some holes. In the end, this was by far my favorite of this series and I am so happy to be back in this world once more.

IT’S FINALLY HERE. This cliffhanger has been a killer.

In this latest novel in the series, we finally get to see what twisted world Titania’s magic has created. Toby in this reality is the obedient changeling daughter, raised entirely in Faerie, and knows her place in the pecking order (at the bottom.) In this version of reality shaped by Titania, the Faerie queen is worshipped, descendants of Maeve have been banished, and changelings are disdained and treated as disposable – the best that someone like October can hope for is to be well-treated as a servant in her mother’s household. As a result, October was raised to be something of a bigot, with a self-loathing streak a mile wide, pathetically grateful for her meager position. And that’s just the beginning of Titania’s warped version of reality.

It’s really interesting to take characters we've gotten to know so well over so many novels, give them completely different backstories and circumstances, and throw them back together to see how different everything is. It’s very weird to see Toby so meek, and fascinating to then watch as she slowly starts to change as she is removed from the influences that kept her down (primarily Amandine.) I loved the book except for the very last chapter. For that reason I’m docking it half a star to 4.5 (but rounding up because it was still a really good book.)

The short story included at the end of the print and ebook versions is a look at Rayseline’s story immediately before Sleep No More. It was good! Very interesting to get Raysel’s POV.

Now on to The Innocent Sleep and Tybalt’s side of the story!

CW: faerie bigotry and blood (though if you’re squeamish about blood I’m not sure how you got this far into the series without passing out)

October Daye was barely married, and had to Be the Serpent (paper) to save the day, Titania, Queen of the Fae, cast a spell that reshaped her magical world, giving her fake memories. A world in which half-breeds like her are treated as servants Even though she can Sleep No More (hard from DAW) when she discovers the magic, she still has to rescue her friends, take the spell off her, and stop Titania from making the spell permanent. This is a great addition to the series

I was scared to start this one, and do you know what? I was totally right! This book hurts so much! Mind me, the author was brilliant, and this is one of the most original books ever, not only in this series but in general, because what the author did here is pretty unique, if you consider the series as a whole. And I admit that without problems. What she did was amazing. But it was also quite awful, because how can you make me suffer so much? And how can you make your characters suffer so much??

To be really really short about the plot, in the last book our dear heroes unintentionally free Titania (that’s not technically what happened, but it fit and it is the short version so it will do), and she is not really happy about the state of the world so she invents a new world, that is more of her liking, trapping everyone, or almost everyone, in that realm (and in a couple of the nearest ones) in a fake reality created by her. In this reality changelings are not free to roam, they are “created” only to serve the pureblood, and the society is more rigid. There are other differences but this is the core of it. Ah, one last small thing. Since Titania is one of the Queens of Faerie (one of the three who created all of Faeries, not just a queen of a small realm) she is above revenge and small pettiness, so obviously this world is also keyed to make October suffer the most.
All things considered, she didn’t manage this part too well, at least! But what is not hurting October is hurting us readers. And it hurts a lot!

It hurts so much! And for different reasons. The main three are (from the less hurtful to the most)

1)We see an October that is not herself, and yet… yet she is, at least in part. And knowing her as you get to know her, and seeing her like this, is bad. And what’s worst is that she is happy in there. And this hurt so much more. In part because you see how a loving family (and loving here is to be taken loosely) could have made a huge difference and because the same thing, a happy family (so to speak) could become a chain. We have a lot of contradictions like that in the book and they all hurt something bad. (I am not saying that the book does not work or that the author did a poor job or that we have plot holes, not at all. I am saying that you get to see the two sides of everything and this makes you suffer more)

2)This point is a spoiler for the previous volumes. Be warned. So, we finally, finally get to witness the wedding, Toby and Tybalt managed it, at last, and… and we don’t get to see the happy couple. And it is so annoying! We waited so long for it!!! And it’s not enough that you have to wait 16 books for it to happen, no, once you see it happen you have to see the couple torn apart by Titania and her new reality. Argh!! It is maddening, really.
But this part is more annoying than hurtful. What’s distressing is that Toby has no memory of Tybalt. At all. While Tybalt wasn’t ensnared in the magic, he remembers everything! You can feel his pain so neatly and you are right there, suffering with him. This part was devastating. And still, still this is not the part that made me suffer the worst. Do you want to know what was the worst of the worst? Keep reading!

3)The Luidaeg. She is my favorite character in the series, and she had no easy life. Her past is so full of pain, damage, and sadness. But she was slowly going back to happiness, to wholesomeness and she was finally part of a (found) family again. And it was so good. And here she is confronted with a Toby who has no memory of her whatsoever, a Toby who is scared of her because she is the Sea Witch. And this, this was devastating.

I have used the word “hurt” so much in this review, so I am a tad sorry for the repetitiveness of it all, but it is that this book pained me to no end. But this is a testament to the fact that the author really knows what she is doing, and if you want to try a series that is still good after going on for so long, you should definitely try this one out!

I don't think a book long alternate universe of the Worst Possible End for all of our main characters was originally in Seanan's plans for this series overall, but man, how fucking awesome is it as a premise to go and write a spell-generated alternate universe for your main character and take the worst possible route for her development and existence in the world (because FUCK Titania) and then write her fighting herself out of it, however unknowingly? If nothing else, this book is going to seal for you that Titania is going to be our biggest bad here, and I'm admittedly mildly terrified of what is going to end up coming further down the route for this series with her as her our ultimate villain. We also get an idea of how the transition happened thanks to a novella in back that focuses on Raysel as all of this happens. Also long term interested to see how a major point we find out about in the back of the book plays out. (Being as vague as possible because again, major stakes raising again here.) In summary: seventeen books in and I still fucking love this series, let's goooooooooo.

The darker and one of the most intriguing novel in the October Daye series. Twisty, well plotted, entertaining: a page turner that kept me hooked and turning pages.
I loved it
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

In general this is a cool book, is well written, the mythology is compelling and the dark twist on faries is something that I like. I will admit that I noticed it was part of a series after I started reading, but I finished it anyway. In the end even without the previous knowledge I found the book really interesting, I kinda of liked to follow October as she starts to realize that something was amiss. Some of the characters I did not like but I think that is normal in any book, so is ok. I guess now I will read all the other ones as well.

*Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC*

An unusual entry in the long running series finds Toby struggling to come to grips with the fact that reality is not what it seems due to the Summer Queen Titiana's animosity towards her. What and who to believe?

I thought this was an incredibly well written sequel to the October Date series of books. This world has always been my favorite and the story did not disappoint. There was a lot of excitement and I loved reading about familiar characters I cared about. Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced reader copy.

After experiencing an intense cliffhanger in the preceding installment, I eagerly awaited the release of "Sleep No More" to uncover the unfolding narrative. Despite typically not favoring amnesia-based plotlines, I was curious to witness Seanan's unique approach to this trope. As the story advanced, I found myself gradually assembling the puzzle, appreciating the author's adept portrayal of an alternative world.

The vivid portrayal of October's journey, uprooted from her reality and thrust into a distorted version of Faerie under Titania's manipulation, thoroughly engrossed me. It allowed me to witness a different facet of October, with glimpses of her true self shining through, making for a captivating character transformation. The collective effort of the characters to dispel the enchantment and persuade October of her predicament added layers of complexity to the storyline. From start to finish, the book maintained an exhilarating pace, seamlessly blending action, magic, mystery, and humor. The inclusion of poignant moments added an emotionally resonant depth to the narrative. Overall, "Sleep No More" stands as a superb addition to the series, sure to satisfy devoted fans.

I now eagerly anticipate delving into the next book, which promises to provide Tybalt's unique perspective on the unfolding events, promising an intriguing exploration of his perceptions.

Sleep No More is the 17th book in the October Daye series by Seanan McGuire. At the end of the previous books, readers were left with uncertainty as to October, her romantic relationship, and the state of her world. Just when everything seemed to work out, everything went sideways, upside down and dizzy. In Sleep No More, readers find a very different Toby. She's now in her mother's tower, subservient in her life with her father, Simon, mother, Amandine, and sister August. She knows her place as a changeling, following the rules set forth by a discriminatory society. As a fan of the series, this irritated me. I found myself anger at October's subservience.

I will be perfectly honest, the first part of the book really had me questioning if I should just skim to the end and wait for the next book in the series. I held on, knowing McGuire was setting up some groundwork for the story. Eventually, Toby begins questioning the reality that now surrounds her and, with the help of her friends, finds the source.

As the story progresses, Toby is faced with the a question of whether living in the false reality where she has family and everything has a sense of rightness is better than the true reality. McGuire points out that it's hard to understand the importance of freedom when all you've known was confinement. I really liked the inclusion of this theme in the story. I think it really helped me to reconcile Toby's complete complacency and her lack of fight for the truth.

Overall, while I wouldn't say this was my favorite in the series, I did really like the book, how the plot developed, and the ending. Sleep No More is the only book in the series that has a companion book with the story from Toby's husband, Tybalt's, point of view. I look forward to seeing how things played out from his side.

A fantastic continuation of the October Daye series.

I really enjoyed seeing October’s newest adventure, and the rewriting of Faerie created an interesting alternate reality where we got to see a different side to familiar characters.

I can’t wait to read The Innocent Sleep and see how it all played out from Tybalt’s point of view.

One of the few long running fantasy series I still reach for every time a new book is released.

Pretty much exactly what I wanted from the next book. It lived up to the cliffhanger, had just a LOT of plot going on, and it was a lot of fun to see basically an in-canon-AU setting. I had a lot of fun reading it!

Also, I'm a sucker for amnesia plotlines and this one was actually really satisfying. So that was good! Listen, if you read the previous books and were frothing at the mouth, this one will give you exactly what you wanted.

Another excellent entry in the October Daye series!

Sleep No More picks up weeks after the events in Be The Serpent. Titania has trapped Toby in an alternate reality where she is treated as a lowly changeling. Worst part is she accepts that she’s a lowly changeling and deserves the maltreatment. She never had a daughter, never became a knight, and never married Tybalt. Have to hand it to Seanan McGuire, I never expected to see this side of Toby. Now we have an idea what her life would have been like if she had become submissive to her mother and follow the laws of Faerie. Luckily, Titania’s “perfect” version of faerie is not perfect and some of Toby’s loved ones were able to slip through and are determined to break the illusion even if Toby does not want to.

Overall, I absolutely loved the book and am eagerly looking forward to reading The Innocent Sleep. From what heard, that one is from Tybalt’s POV so I am looking forwarded to seeing the events through his eyes. Seanan McGuire definitely captured her audience with Sleep No More and I’m sure The Innocent Sleep will be just as good!

I thought this was an incredibly intriguing book. I am a big fan of the October Date series. The world building is very vivid with its intricately described details. The story was easy to read and had a lot of action and excitement that kept me spellbound. This story is captivating and quite fun to read.

It was a little slower than the rest of the series, and I did not love the time that it took Toby to snap out of her head. Overall I think it is the less fun and more obvious book of the series until now, but I understand why the author felt that there was a need for this book to be something of a "between" story, and I'm glad to follow along.

October and the rest of the inhabitants of three fey kingdoms have been enchanted by Titania right after the end of the previous book. Changelings are made to be servants to the full blood fey. Any that are water based were banished to the Undersea. All Cait Sidhe have been locked into their courts and only the Kings and Queens can leave to bring food to them all. Only a few have figured out what is going on and they are desperate to break the spell on October and have her be the hero everyone needs to break the spell before it is permanent.
This is not the book to start this but it is the book that so many people will be happy to get their hands on.

Review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley

I read a short way and stopped, puzzled. Backtracked. Started over. Then, I realized my “No Spoiler” rule had kept me from learning that this novel was going to be a version of Bizarro Daye.

October Daye is leading a subdued life as a changeling, well aware of how fortunate she is to have parent figures and a sister who care for her. After all, changelings are almost as low as humans in this world. Thanks be to Titania for blessing her with a wonderful family.

Titania what?

The truth of what is happening is revealed by none other than April of all… uh, people? Tobey doesn’t want to believe, but before long the evidence is overwhelming. Tybalt finally shows, being his glorious self, along with other characters we know and love (or at least know).

Great story that’s a little different from the rest.