Strange the Dreamer discussion

This book was recommended to me by a small book store employee and I did love the Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy, but I am not sure yet about this book. It definitely displays Laini Taylor's amazing imagination and makes me want to be friends with her. It did not pull me in and make me want to get home just to read it. Obviously I am not articulating clearly what I did not enjoy about the book and I can't quite pinpoint it. So help me out folks what did you think. I will likely read the next book but will wait for the library version.

Yes!! This book got me back into reading. Can't wait for the next one.

It actually did. Despite the fact that the plot seemed to stall in spots (i.e. my interest dissipated), the end got me. I want to see how Minya plays out as a character - I'm equal parts rooting for her and hoping she gets crushed at this point.

If i saw the next book in the series i will actually read, but it will be to finish what i started

Definitely! I really love this book but then again I'm a sucker for fantastical worlds and gods and fantasy so I'm a little bias in that regard. I'm really excited for the sequel and even pre-ordered it.

It made me want to read the next book so much that I actually bought a Kindle and pre-ordered the sequel. Which is significant because I swore I would never buy a Kindle!

I will definitely read the next book, but its not one I am dying to read. I do enjoy Laini Taylors vivid imagination, so it is likely I will try all her future works.

How could you not want to read the next book? Strange the Dreamer finished with a cliffhanger and many loose ends. I will say though that Muse of Nightmares is a little more fast paced and confusing (I read the DOSB trilogy after this though, so I didn't know about the whole multiple worlds and portals until afterwards)

Here's my thing. I LOVED Strange the Dreamer. But I'm not going to move on to Muse of Nightmares. My reasoning is this. I liked Sarai , but I didn't like her enough to want to read a novel from primarily her POV you know?

mapmakerdani wrote: "Here's my thing. I LOVED Strange the Dreamer. But I'm not going to move on to Muse of Nightmares. My reasoning is this. I liked Sarai , but I didn't like her enough to want to read a novel from pri..."

Kind of like Lazlo's story, Muse of Nightmares isn't just about Sarai =)! It goes very in-depth around Minya's history, what happened to the rest of the babies that were born during the gods' reign, the mysterious bird, and connects to other stories in subtle ways. No pressure if you don't feel like reading it, but if you weren't interested in reading it because you didn't love Sarai, I just wanted to warn you that it isn't only focused on her!

With that ending how could I not want to read the second book? Although I do and probably will always prefer Strange The Dreamer.

There's way more to the story of "Muse of Nightmares" than just Sarai. I love Strange the Dreamer and read Muse of Nightmares shortly after. It's an interesting continuation of the story of Weep but also the children living in the citadel and how they got there. I was very pleased by the ending of book two and the duology is one of my faves. Laini's style of writing and creating these unique stories just got me :)

I absolutely loved Strange the Dreamer, and as soon as Muse of Nightmares became available in paperback, I bought it. Haven't read it yet, it's next on my list, and I can't wait. I read Daughter of Smoke and Bone a few years ago and loved that, but never got around to buying the next 2 books in that trilogy, so they're on my "to buy" list too! I think Laini Taylor is one of the best authors I've ever read, her worlds are just beautifully written

I had the same dilemma with Strange The Dreamer as I did with Daughter of Smoke & Bone (the first book). I liked the imagery in both of them. The writing was superb. The characters were engaging and their friendships were well wonderfully portrayed. And the world building and concepts were unlike anything I've read before.

But with both books, I couldn't stand the romance. It felt corny, forced, tedious to read about and especially in Strange the Dreamer, it didn't add anything to the book. Sarai and Lazlo could have been friends and the story could have stayed the same, sans the butterflies in the stomach and the hormones flying all over the place. I mean, writers tend to forget that friendship is also a very strong feeling and that two people can be very close to one another without wanting to make out. I would really have loved it if this book was about Lazlo and Thyon, their history and the growth of their relationship. Alas, that was not the case.

I highly doubt I'll be reading Muse of Nightmares...

I definitely LOVED strange the dreamer. To me, it was that book I couldn´t put down. I read it in just two or three days. Lazlo was a really interesting and complex character and the whole dinamic of the book was extraordinary.
Until the very last part. The ending was just okay. A little bit forced in my opinion, but okay.
I was expecting SO MUCH from muse of nightmares and it turn out being an unnecesary book to give the reader more Sarai and Lazlo scenes and some random new characters that didn´t add that much to the first book. It did, however, explore some background for Minya.
I would recommend just reading the first book.

Ashwillread wrote: "mapmakerdani wrote: "Here's my thing. I LOVED Strange the Dreamer. But I'm not going to move on to Muse of Nightmares. My reasoning is this. I liked Sarai , but I didn't like her enough to want to ..."

That's true, the second book will come with a lot of mysteries. And the POV maybe will be like the first one, sometimes with some characters (probably Lazlo, Sarai and the others, like... the present and the past). I believe that Laini Taylor loves this hitory, so she wouldn't mees up this.

Nope...! I thought the characters were precious little doofuses (Lazlo was one of the most relatable figures I had encountered in a while), but the plot didn't inspire me to pick up the next one. Didn't want to continue the story, nor have I done so. :P

Oh, okay. Everybody thinks about the things that they want.
Maybe I liked the book because I am too young and I hadn't read a lot of books. :3

Yuun wrote: "Oh, okay. Everybody thinks about the things that they want.
Maybe I liked the book because I am too young and I hadn't read a lot of books. :3"

I liked it Yuun and I have read ALLOT of books. I found it very original and odd and enjoyed it.

The odd thing is it is being touted as a duology. So it seems she is not writing a third book, which is disappointing. I want to have an ending a true ending the second book did not feel like closure at all.

Strange the dreamer book is still to this day my favorite book! I loved it honestly! It does take a bit to understand the world but I recommend it to pretty much anyone who asks for a book recommendation. I understand it's not for everyone but I think it is definitely worth the read. I will admit I have the second book but I haven't read it yet mainly because I am nervous, but that's just me being the overthinker I am lol.

I loved the first book. Still, I agree that the pacing of the story can leave the reader feeling like skipping a page here and there. My only real complaint is that Strange the Dreamer wasn't a stand alone. *Don't hate me* I am usually all for expanding on a world I know takes time to create, but I feel that the first book was so beautiful and large part of what created that beauty was a sense of mystery. For me that diminished in the second book and the line of suspense was broken. Even so, I may go on to number three if only to finish what I started and because really I love to see some original world building!

I loved this book, but disliked the ending. I think it was too brutal for me, and now I'm afraid of reading the sequel... whoops...