OMG!! Not one but TWO books from Seanan in the October Dayne series? HOW does she keep topping herself! This one is from Toby's POV and it meshes PERFECTLY and seamlessly with Tybalt's POV and book. This is AMAZING! THANK YOU!!!!!!!

October is a changling who works in her mother’s tower. She has no rights or opinions of her own. Or is that what is really happening. 17th in the series. ARC from NetGalley.

So, this series is an automatic pre-order/stalking NetGalley for ARCs for me. I did a quick reread of Be the Serpent the night before to remind myself of everything that went before. And while I enjoyed this book, I didn't love it like I love so many other books in the series, including BtS. Without getting too spoilery, this starts right where BtS leaves off, so it's the Toby who's trapped in the illusions, and not the Toby we've grown to know over 16 books. And that's okay! But this was still only 3.5 stars for me. Meanwhile, I've been devouring The Innocent Sleep, and yeah, it's phenomenal.
Thank you very much to DAW and NetGalley for the ARC!

After my cliffhanger hangover from the last book, this was a much anticipated salve! I don't want to spoil anything, so I'll just say there was more of a conclusion to this arc than I expected, and we'll get Tybalt's POV in the next book. Also, the Luidaeg is still my favorite wisecracker! Love this series so much!

Seanan McGuire’s stories keep getting better and better. I always look forward to a new installment in the series.

Another excellent entry in the October Daye series!

SLEEP NO MORE picks up immediately from the absolutely killer cliffhanger which the previous book left us on; I won’t give spoilers for those of you who haven’t read the books or aren’t caught up, but the usual landscape of the series is immediately and completely overturned, leaving the reader delightfully off-balance and puzzling through the mystery right along with our narrator, the inimitable Toby. It was a fast-paced, suck-you-in, very rewarding read, even as you spend half the book screaming and hoping things will get back to normal, full oof a lot of great character development and fascinating plot turns. My one critique is that the ending felt a little rushed and a bit anticlimactic – but it wasn't enough to knock down the star rating, so pretty minor overall.

As always: I can't wait to see where this series goes next. Thanks so much to DAW Books and Netgalley for the advance copy!

This is the 17th book in the October Daye series. In book 16 we were left with a cliffhanger and that is exactly where this book picks back up. Titania, Queen of Faerie, has managed to cast a complicated illusion over our kick-ass heroine and convincer her to believe that she is instead a shrinking violet who meekly follows the orders of her "betters". I must say the first few chapters in this book really rubbed me the wrong way. I hated the brainwashed-Toby and couldn't wait for her to find her fire again.
Once Toby does begin to unravel the illusion and finds that she still has the heart of a hero, even if she was told to believe she wasn't one, the story begins to move. This book was better, in my opinion, than book 16 where it felt that the author had shoved as many side characters as possible into one novel that it was exhausting. Although there are many stumbling blocks on the trail to undo Titania's work, I didn't feel exhausted. I was mostly satisfied at the end of the novel with the conclusion. The progression of Toby's character from meek back to heroic felt like it was worth my time to read through. I also found myself with a an interesting mental exercise, wondering if we are more the results of our surroundings or if there is a core part of who we are the defines our characters.
I also appreciated the short story from Raysel's point of view at the end of the novel. I like seeing the events unfold from another character's point of view.

This newest installment of McGuire's October Daye series picks up immediately after the previous book and takes off running. Or, well, walking quickly, because that's what happy, obedient changelings do. Toby and much of fae is trapped inside an illusion, and her loyal family members have to save the day by convincing her that she's not just a servant created for her sister August. This conceit, which normally would cause me ridiculous anxiety, works really well here, and McGuire does a wonderful job of showing readers how Toby would always have been herself when faced with adversity. This book will make almost no sense to readers unfamiliar with the series, but hey--it's a great time to start at the beginning, knowing that this is waiting for you when you get there.

All I have to say is that I can't wait for people to read this one (which has been years in the making)!

The best yet. After 17 books, I thought I knew the way of things and Seanan still managed to surprise me. SLEEP NO MORE was fantastic and I can’t wait for Tybalt’s POV!

Thanks to Netgalley and to DAW for gifting me an early copy of this book and its followup, The Innocent Sleep. You'll find my honest review below. If you haven't read the rest of the series, especially Be the Serpent, please skip this review. I'm avoiding spoilers, but it might still reveal a little more than you'd want to know.

I don't even know where to begin... after the cliffhanger that Seanan McGuire so cruelly left us with at the end of Be the Serpent (I can still hear her maniacal laughter, unless that belongs to The Summer Queen...), I have been living in a state much like Toby - blurred, unreal, and going through the motions. This book brought me back to reality in all the right ways.

First, we have an entirely new world, thanks to You Know Who, evil jerk that she turned out to be... or do we? It seems that a few territories have been affected by magic, changing those who live inside them to who She wants them to be - to get the inconvenient ones out of her way, to trap her enemies where they don't question her, and to remake some parts of Faerie over into the one she always wanted. Of course, her magic isn't entirely capable of all of that, but that doesn't mean she is without a plan. Thankfully, not everyone is as vulnerable to illusions as the rest, but alas, dear Toby is VERY entrenched in her new life and new reality.

Cue the outsiders rocking her world.

This one was a romp through Toby's history, through the world of Faerie as we know it - and as She made it anew, and towards Toby's future.

Highly recommended for urban fantasy fans, folklore fans, Fae story fans... but PLEASE, I BEG OF YOU, start at the beginning. Don't just jump in here. You'll regret missing SO MUCH.

I won’t lie- this book took me a minute to get into. October running around as the complete opposite was disturbing (and made her kind of annoying for a bit). Once she runs into more familiar people who can remember the past, things get interesting and then I couldn’t put the book down. Be prepared for a slow start, but this gave an interesting twist. I’m curious how this altered reality ends up circling back around into the story later, because things always come back around with October.

I was lucky enough to receive a copy of Sleep No More in exchange for an honest review.

October is probably one of my favorite Fae heroines of all time. I was so excited to get the chance to dive back into this world, especially with where we left off in the previous book Be the Serpent.

I thought the premise of this story was genius! What better way to bring a fresh take to a long series then to have an evil queen wipe the memories of everyone in her kingdom and forget everything they’ve accomplished thus far!

This book made me fall in love with October again and see other characters in a new light. October may have forgotten her memories and become subservient to her family but her selflessness and determination to do what is right still lay beneath the surface. This story gave us an opportunity to explore the what ifs and watch October come into herself once more.

The only complaint I had was how quickly the story came to a close at the end. This may be book 17 in the series but there is so much more story to tell! I can’t wait to see what happens next to October Daye and her rag tag crew!

If you haven’t read the October Daye series by Seanan McGuire, what’re you waiting for? You won’t regret it!

Through NetGalley, I received a free copy of SLEEP NO MORE (Book 17 of the October Daye urban faerie tale series) by Seanan McGuire in exchange for an honest review. What happens when a fairy queen rewrites the world and the fair folk in that world? October is happy to serve her mother, Amandine, her father, Simon Torquill, and her sister, August. After all, as a changeling, October is fortunate to have such a loving home. However, when a violent act by a cruel nobel causes October to shed blood in violation of her mother’s strict prohibition against October bleeding, things begin to unravel. Soon, October, the delicate and sheltered servant, finds herself in situations where her old heroic personality rears its stubborn head. When Titania’s plot is uncovered, more than October will have to veer from their new paths to thwart the evil queen’s ride.

I liked this book and enjoy the series. I recommend this book to fans of the series. I recommend the series to fans of urban faerie tales abounding in murder, mysteries, adventure, and so very much bloodshed.

#SleepNoMore #NetGalley

This series is one of my all time favourites and after the cliffhanger ending of Be The Serpent, I could not wait to dive into Sleep No More. As with all Toby Daye books, Sleep No More is very easy and compelling to read, I devoured it over two sessions. Unlike the previous instalments, we follow a very different, pared down version of the kickass Toby we know and love. Titania's revenge rewrites the histories and present day lives of nearly everyone living in the Mists and two neighbouring Kingdoms, meaning we get a look at what life for these characters could have been in an alternate timeline. I did not care for it. It makes you appreciate how brilliant and vibrant a world McGuire has created so far and leaves you desperate for Toby to break the spell and get us all back to where we were. It felt very strange reading about a Toby who knows, and doesn't chafe too much, at her lowly place in the Summerlands hierarchy. But luckily we soon starting meeting familiar faces who challenge her. April, as always, is a delight to read!

I really enjoyed the interactions between the characters who remembered and knew the original Toby (and timeline) and those who were fully under the spell, I only wish there had been more Tybalt. I know he has his version of events in The Innocent Sleep, but I wonder if the story would have worked a bit better if it was formatted with alternating view point chapters rather than two separate books. I would have *loved* more Tybalt / Toby angst, but still, I very much enjoyed the ride. I also missed other key characters from the series, I know a few more pop in Tybalt's story but their absence made me desperate to go back and reread the whole series from the beginning again to see them and watch them become a family. That said, it was nice to have more August and Simon. I love Simon's character, he's been through so much and watching him grow and change has been a delight. I thought the way he got his memories back sounded fun so I'm looking forward to witnessing that whole interaction in Tybalt's book.

I felt the ending wrapped up a little quickly, I'd have loved to have seen Toby meeting Sylvester again and how he dealt with the aftermath as well as some of the other characters, but I guess that's to come next time! Overall, McGuire can do no wrong. Even a story in alternate timeline where our heroine is no longer the Knight of Lost Words is addictive, fun, shocking, heartbreaking and full of magic. I will never stop loving this series.

After the excitement of Be the Serpent, Sleep No More has readers catching up with October four months in the future when she is fulfilling her normal duties, manning the door of her mother’s tower, letting no one in of the weary families seeking sanctuary and safety. Done for the night, she accompanies her beloved sister to her uncle’s knowe, where she is assaulted by Sir Etienne’s new squire Quentin, who seems to hate the lesser changelings to a greater-than-normal degree.

In other words, things start out a mess! With four months past before the story begins, this is already one of October’s longer problems, and she (and everyone else) is so deep into Tatiana’s spell that they don’t even realize their current reality is anything different than what has always been. Luckily, Tatiana is not all powerful, and there are some things not even she can block completely. Quentin stomping October into dishes (ouch!) causes her to bleed, and October can still see true memories in her blood. That, combined with a reason to leave the tower, puts October back on the board and sets everything in motion.

With the nature of Tatiana’s spell, we don’t see a lot of the other characters in this installment of the series (and almost no Tybalt), but conversely, there is A LOT of character development here. Tatiana’s putting them on different paths allows readers to see different versions of the characters and delves into them in ways that they’ll have to deal with for books to come. Without October’s early intervention, Quentin is a pure-blood jerk, and he will remember the four months he spent like that, treating the changelings like garbage. August is perhaps a better sister in this reality (and Simon is definitely a better father), and October can see them in that light now, too. October, herself, is content to be a lesser citizen so long as she is loved. There’s a lot for these characters to work through and sort out, and probably a lot for Tybalt, too. After all, he was without his pregnant wife for four months in a reality where she didn’t remember he existed.

All in all, this was a necessary installment to the series, but without more of reader’s favorite characters, it probably won’t be a fan favorite.

I love the October Daye series, so I was pretty much guaranteed to enjoy this. With that said, this definitely isn't one I'm going to re-read a lot. It's basically an AU side story/character study, and it's obvious where there are pieces that Tybalt's version of the tale will fill in - but I'm also not totally convinced we need two whole books on it.

I always love Toby, but this one was fantastic. It was very interesting to see what might have been. Very excited to read the next.

What ? Who ? How ? Yes this book will have you scratching your head in bewilderment because what has happened to these characters we know ? Who has messed up their lives ? More importantly how will October remember that she is October, Changeling and hero !
Regular readers of this series will remember that Titania has the power to cast powerful illusions and this one is a doozy ! As this began it took me by surprise just how very different everyone was and I hate to admit it but Toby did seem truly happy and content but hang on because there are anomalies that even Toby cannot ignore. So begins a journey to self for Toby, risking everything she loves and discovering that family is what you make it and always worth the risk !
The writing as usual is top notch, the ideas in play astounding and the outcome as heartbreaking as it's joyful. This series and its numerous characters continues to surprise and delight this reader and is a huge recommendation for those seeking books about the Fae and just how cruel they can be .
This voluntary take is of a copy I requested from Netgalley and my thoughts and comments are honest and I believe fair

I read this book in one day, if I get fired from my job I am blaming Ms. McGuire for writing this book. It takes place four months after the end of Be The Serpent (not really a spoiler as you're told in the first few pages), and puts October exactly where she ended that book. This is a glimpse into an alternate Fairey, with all the characters we have grown to love over the previous 16 books thrown into a different world, one that will have consequences, some bad and some surprisingly on the good side. This world is Titania's perfect looking Fairy, one that has no place for the Cait Sidhe, the Undersea, and anything or anyone else deemed undesirable. Every Pureblood family (or those titled, I read it so fast forgive me here) must create a Changeling child in order to supply Faerie with servants, so imagine our intrepid hero dropped into this world believing that it is the only world. Faerie has always undervalued Changelings, failing to consider them in regards to Oberon's Law, Titania's Faerie says they're not people. They are diversions at best, servants perferably and always possessions. It's a further emphasis of the series ongoing themes, that the danger is coming from within/society is poisoned, and that othering is never good.

The plot hinges on October, obviously, even in an alternate Faerie she is written as a source of chaos. Throw her out into the world on a mission and watch as everything goes to heck and comes out so much better in the end. Once all the bleeding and screaming has stopped of course.

I'm reading The Innocent Sleep next, I can tell that there are a few moments in Sleep No More that aren't relayed fully for the purpose of filling out Tybalt's book with scenes specific to it. Thank you very much, DAW and NetGalley for this ARC!