Muse of Nightmares (Strange the Dreamer #2)
Muse of Nightmares
(Strange the Dreamer #2)
By
If I mentioned the first book as phantasmagorical, then I'm not sure which adjective will perfectly suit this sequel.
I have no words.
Seriously.
Reading this duology was such a beautiful and magical journey. And an anxious one too. The first book was merely tip of the ice berg, the sequel deepened into the vast ocean of the story.
Which will make anyone sit at the edge of their seat.
The one thing which I deeply empathized with this story was how the author explains how anyone, and I mean ANYONE, can turn into a foe at the cost of their loved one. When the lives of their loved one is at stake.
From Eril-Fane to Minya to Novali.
How the suffering, the torment and demise of their loved one can break you so much, that you don't even notice or care about how much they are in turn breaking the others. Literally.
I didn't really blame Eril-fane in Strange The Dreamer. Why should I? The very thought of what his city has been going through for TWO centuries will make anyone with a drop of humanity in their hearts to flinch with disgust and fear.
Eril-fane had no idea where this species, who call themselves as 'God', came from.
He had no idea whether they can even be considered as human. He had no idea who these Mesarthim people are and how this Mesarthium metal works on which they walk on.
How could he have known that the babies, whom he so mercilessly slaughtered, could live their lives as humans, and not be any danger at all to the people in the city?
How could he have known their powers, having no idea what they'd actually turn out to be, won't be any danger to them as long as they stay away from the metal?
After what his city went through for two centuries, how could he have taken the risk of sparing the babies when he had no idea how they would turn out as adults? Who knows they'd want vengeance for the demise of their mothers/fathers? And with their unpredictable powers, what if they turn out to be invincible? Nobody knows.
I'm not justifying their deaths, at all, but I'm merely siding with Eril-fane. He just didn't have any choice. Those monstrous "Gods" broke him to an extent that left him no choice at all. They died. But left behind a very broken city too difficult to be repaired.
This lets me come back to Minya, whose rage and thirst for vengeance became too complicated for me to understand. It was fair in the first book, but when she didn't even show an ounce of sympathy and grief when Sarai passed away, and she was ready to let GO of her soul if the conditions she set were not met, made me go WHA-?
15 years ago, Sarai was one of the 4 babies which Minya saved, now did all these years of bubbling rage made her so apathetic that she won't even grieve the death of the very girl whose life she saved all those years ago? I gave her the benefit of doubt thinking maybe she won't really do that, and is only using Lazlo’s helplessness to sail her way to victory.
But the What If's will always remain.
Now when Sarai was able to enter Minya's mind (finally), I began to understand why Minya is the way she is. Yes, the Nightmares were nothing new for us. Babies getting slaughtered and Minya could do nothing about it. Could do nothing to save them. But when Sarai noticed how Ellens, being the motherly Ellens, weren't what they seem to be, I finally began to understand how Minya might have split her personality between herself and the very first ghosts which she controlled. Giving her motherly nature to Ellens and containing the entire rage and thirst for vengeance for herself. How strong she had to be for that.
I hated Minya by the end of first book and even in the first half of second book. But in the last chapters, after Minya was finally letting go of the ghosts, and relieving herself of the burden of their hate-fear-despair, when she was desperately hoping to reach any Mesarthium metal so that Sarai's soul doesn't fade away, my heart melted. And just in that moment, I forgave Minya for everything. And I believe deep down even she let go of the past when she saw Eril-fane ordering the medics to get Sparrow treated. Because she didn't see a slayer of babies, but a person who's trying to save a Godspawn.
And Eril-fane. Oh Eril-fane. I would have given such a bad rating for this book if he and Azareen would have really died. Maybe I should have known they'd get resurrected, when the author merely put their bodies aside in the story as if that's a matter which we shouldn't concern ourselves with.
Because even after the liberation, they had suffered so much. Being so near to each other, they were so much far apart. And they didn't have their happy ending at all. So them simply dying, just like that, would have been devastating for me.
And I so desperately wished the ending of the book be about them. So if I tell you I didn't curl up and stifled a sob when I read about their happy ending in the end, be assured that I'm lying. I am.
Coming to the third character in my list of characters who were too broken, Nova. Novali Nyoka-vasa.
Knowing about her story in the beginning was distressing. Coming across the name Korako was even more agonizing. Because Korako was the goddess of secrets in Strange The Dreamer, to which I paid no heed at all.
And the same Korako was Novali's sister.
Why. Just why.
I had no idea Korako was not a beast among the beasts who lived in Citadel. I had no idea she was a Prisoner there herself. And now she's dead, with a sister, after enduring a suffering of her own, embarking on an impossible journey to find her. To find and rescue her from her prison.
But like the sea has always been warning her, it was too late. Too late.
Korako turning out to be the white eagle was a surprise too. I suddenly recalled how Lazlo vaguely remembered seeing the white eagle as a baby.
So it was Korako who saved him. So that one fine day she can save her own self using him. Even after death, she made sure she could undo the mistakes she did during her lifetime, by helping out these helpless babies as much as she can. However she can.
I was wondering how one small event cascaded into such a chaos in both the books.
In Strange the Dreamer, Thyon's almost successful experiments tempted the explosionist to do a little experiment of his own, which led to the discovery of Lazlo being a Godspawn, and also led to the death of Sarai.
In this Muse of Nightmares, Azareen had this bad vibes all along when they visited the citadel again. They would have left the place too - after meeting Sarai, Sparrow and Feral - when Azareen asked them to, if Suheyla had not stopped everyone with her question about the fate of rest of the Godspawn.
That led to Eril-fane sharing his knowledge, and them finally going to the heart of the citadel to uncover the mysteries buried. And in turn opening a portal which made a new foe entering their world and resulting in an onslaught.
And again, I didn't blame the way Nova reacted after knowing what happened to Kora.
With the way Nova was treated back home, she expected her sister to save her. But upon knowing her sister herself needs saving, her entire personality changed. She became the strong sister Kora needs.
An an impossible journey for over 2 centuries didn't deter her determination at all. Her entire purpose in life was to find her sister and save her. How would such a person react after knowing perhaps it was too late? Too late to save the one she loves the most?
After Sarai made Kora's echo inside the white eagle meet Nova and save her from drowning in her emotions, I expected Nova to just.. move on and lead a new life? But when she jumped off the citadel into the red sea, I realised, she had absolutely no reason to move on. She shaped her conscience in such a way, she imagined no life without her sister in it.
Koraandnova was one. You cannot separate them.
The shred of Kora's echo inside the white eagle survived for so long just so that she can meet Nova for one last time.
Kora survived for Nova. And Nova survived for Kora.
There is no one without the other.
It hurt to know Nova finally let the sea swallow her whole, the sea which kept calling to her all those years ago.
I wondered how she could have tried searching for her Mother, Nyoka, to lead a new life with a family member. But I guess she was too broken to be fixed by anything. The sea kept calling her, the treacherous whisper kept whispering to her. And now she finally listened.
Reading this book made me want to go inside the story and give these 3 characters my shoulder for them to cry on.
And not just them, I wanted to meet the other characters too who gave me different emotions throughout the book.
Ruby and Calixte, for making me laugh throughout with their sassy behaviour.
Feral and Thyon, for amusing me with their meek self.
Sparrow, I'm sorting her into Hufflepuff.
The people of Weep or should I say Amezrou, for staying strong and not giving up.
Eril-fane and Azareen, to show how even two very broken people can resurrect the love which was buried long ago.
And lastly, Lazlo and Sarai. For teaching me to never give up on dreaming. Dreams make the impossible happen. Dreams make you invincible.
And lastly (this one's definitely the last, I promise), the author! For writing this amazing duology. If this wasn't amazing, this review would not have been consisting of around 2k words written by me.
Thank you for engraving this story in my mind.
Thank you for giving me a new, magical world to live in. ❤️
I have no words.
Seriously.
Reading this duology was such a beautiful and magical journey. And an anxious one too. The first book was merely tip of the ice berg, the sequel deepened into the vast ocean of the story.
Which will make anyone sit at the edge of their seat.
The one thing which I deeply empathized with this story was how the author explains how anyone, and I mean ANYONE, can turn into a foe at the cost of their loved one. When the lives of their loved one is at stake.
From Eril-Fane to Minya to Novali.
How the suffering, the torment and demise of their loved one can break you so much, that you don't even notice or care about how much they are in turn breaking the others. Literally.
I didn't really blame Eril-fane in Strange The Dreamer. Why should I? The very thought of what his city has been going through for TWO centuries will make anyone with a drop of humanity in their hearts to flinch with disgust and fear.
Eril-fane had no idea where this species, who call themselves as 'God', came from.
He had no idea whether they can even be considered as human. He had no idea who these Mesarthim people are and how this Mesarthium metal works on which they walk on.
How could he have known that the babies, whom he so mercilessly slaughtered, could live their lives as humans, and not be any danger at all to the people in the city?
How could he have known their powers, having no idea what they'd actually turn out to be, won't be any danger to them as long as they stay away from the metal?
After what his city went through for two centuries, how could he have taken the risk of sparing the babies when he had no idea how they would turn out as adults? Who knows they'd want vengeance for the demise of their mothers/fathers? And with their unpredictable powers, what if they turn out to be invincible? Nobody knows.
I'm not justifying their deaths, at all, but I'm merely siding with Eril-fane. He just didn't have any choice. Those monstrous "Gods" broke him to an extent that left him no choice at all. They died. But left behind a very broken city too difficult to be repaired.
This lets me come back to Minya, whose rage and thirst for vengeance became too complicated for me to understand. It was fair in the first book, but when she didn't even show an ounce of sympathy and grief when Sarai passed away, and she was ready to let GO of her soul if the conditions she set were not met, made me go WHA-?
15 years ago, Sarai was one of the 4 babies which Minya saved, now did all these years of bubbling rage made her so apathetic that she won't even grieve the death of the very girl whose life she saved all those years ago? I gave her the benefit of doubt thinking maybe she won't really do that, and is only using Lazlo’s helplessness to sail her way to victory.
But the What If's will always remain.
Now when Sarai was able to enter Minya's mind (finally), I began to understand why Minya is the way she is. Yes, the Nightmares were nothing new for us. Babies getting slaughtered and Minya could do nothing about it. Could do nothing to save them. But when Sarai noticed how Ellens, being the motherly Ellens, weren't what they seem to be, I finally began to understand how Minya might have split her personality between herself and the very first ghosts which she controlled. Giving her motherly nature to Ellens and containing the entire rage and thirst for vengeance for herself. How strong she had to be for that.
I hated Minya by the end of first book and even in the first half of second book. But in the last chapters, after Minya was finally letting go of the ghosts, and relieving herself of the burden of their hate-fear-despair, when she was desperately hoping to reach any Mesarthium metal so that Sarai's soul doesn't fade away, my heart melted. And just in that moment, I forgave Minya for everything. And I believe deep down even she let go of the past when she saw Eril-fane ordering the medics to get Sparrow treated. Because she didn't see a slayer of babies, but a person who's trying to save a Godspawn.
And Eril-fane. Oh Eril-fane. I would have given such a bad rating for this book if he and Azareen would have really died. Maybe I should have known they'd get resurrected, when the author merely put their bodies aside in the story as if that's a matter which we shouldn't concern ourselves with.
Because even after the liberation, they had suffered so much. Being so near to each other, they were so much far apart. And they didn't have their happy ending at all. So them simply dying, just like that, would have been devastating for me.
And I so desperately wished the ending of the book be about them. So if I tell you I didn't curl up and stifled a sob when I read about their happy ending in the end, be assured that I'm lying. I am.
Coming to the third character in my list of characters who were too broken, Nova. Novali Nyoka-vasa.
Knowing about her story in the beginning was distressing. Coming across the name Korako was even more agonizing. Because Korako was the goddess of secrets in Strange The Dreamer, to which I paid no heed at all.
And the same Korako was Novali's sister.
Why. Just why.
I had no idea Korako was not a beast among the beasts who lived in Citadel. I had no idea she was a Prisoner there herself. And now she's dead, with a sister, after enduring a suffering of her own, embarking on an impossible journey to find her. To find and rescue her from her prison.
But like the sea has always been warning her, it was too late. Too late.
Korako turning out to be the white eagle was a surprise too. I suddenly recalled how Lazlo vaguely remembered seeing the white eagle as a baby.
So it was Korako who saved him. So that one fine day she can save her own self using him. Even after death, she made sure she could undo the mistakes she did during her lifetime, by helping out these helpless babies as much as she can. However she can.
I was wondering how one small event cascaded into such a chaos in both the books.
In Strange the Dreamer, Thyon's almost successful experiments tempted the explosionist to do a little experiment of his own, which led to the discovery of Lazlo being a Godspawn, and also led to the death of Sarai.
In this Muse of Nightmares, Azareen had this bad vibes all along when they visited the citadel again. They would have left the place too - after meeting Sarai, Sparrow and Feral - when Azareen asked them to, if Suheyla had not stopped everyone with her question about the fate of rest of the Godspawn.
That led to Eril-fane sharing his knowledge, and them finally going to the heart of the citadel to uncover the mysteries buried. And in turn opening a portal which made a new foe entering their world and resulting in an onslaught.
And again, I didn't blame the way Nova reacted after knowing what happened to Kora.
With the way Nova was treated back home, she expected her sister to save her. But upon knowing her sister herself needs saving, her entire personality changed. She became the strong sister Kora needs.
An an impossible journey for over 2 centuries didn't deter her determination at all. Her entire purpose in life was to find her sister and save her. How would such a person react after knowing perhaps it was too late? Too late to save the one she loves the most?
After Sarai made Kora's echo inside the white eagle meet Nova and save her from drowning in her emotions, I expected Nova to just.. move on and lead a new life? But when she jumped off the citadel into the red sea, I realised, she had absolutely no reason to move on. She shaped her conscience in such a way, she imagined no life without her sister in it.
Koraandnova was one. You cannot separate them.
The shred of Kora's echo inside the white eagle survived for so long just so that she can meet Nova for one last time.
Kora survived for Nova. And Nova survived for Kora.
There is no one without the other.
It hurt to know Nova finally let the sea swallow her whole, the sea which kept calling to her all those years ago.
I wondered how she could have tried searching for her Mother, Nyoka, to lead a new life with a family member. But I guess she was too broken to be fixed by anything. The sea kept calling her, the treacherous whisper kept whispering to her. And now she finally listened.
Reading this book made me want to go inside the story and give these 3 characters my shoulder for them to cry on.
And not just them, I wanted to meet the other characters too who gave me different emotions throughout the book.
Ruby and Calixte, for making me laugh throughout with their sassy behaviour.
Feral and Thyon, for amusing me with their meek self.
Sparrow, I'm sorting her into Hufflepuff.
The people of Weep or should I say Amezrou, for staying strong and not giving up.
Eril-fane and Azareen, to show how even two very broken people can resurrect the love which was buried long ago.
And lastly, Lazlo and Sarai. For teaching me to never give up on dreaming. Dreams make the impossible happen. Dreams make you invincible.
And lastly (this one's definitely the last, I promise), the author! For writing this amazing duology. If this wasn't amazing, this review would not have been consisting of around 2k words written by me.
Thank you for engraving this story in my mind.
Thank you for giving me a new, magical world to live in. ❤️
Words: 1768
Chars: 9511
Comments
Post a Comment