City of Nightmares

By: Rebecca Schaeffer

Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld

Gotham meets Strange the Dreamer in this thrilling young adult fantasy about a cowardly girl who finds herself at the center of a criminal syndicate conspiracy, in a city where crooked politicians and sinister cults reign and dreaming means waking up as your worst nightmare.

Ever since her sister became a man-eating spider and slaughtered her way through town, nineteen-year-old Ness has been terrified—terrified of some other Nightmare murdering her, and terrified of ending up like her sister. Because in Newham, the city that never sleeps, dreaming means waking up as your worst fear.

Whether that means becoming a Nightmare that’s monstrous only in appearance, to transforming into a twisted, unrecognizable creature that terrorizes the city, no one is safe. Ness will do anything to avoid becoming another victim, even if that means lying low among the Friends of the Restful Soul, a questionable organization that may or may not be a cult.

But being a member of maybe-cult has a price. In order to prove herself, Ness cons her way into what’s supposed to be a simple job for the organization—only for it to blow up in her face. Literally. Tangled up in the aftermath of an explosive assassination, now Ness and the only other survivor—a Nightmare boy who Ness suspects is planning to eat her—must find their way back to Newham and uncover the sinister truth behind the attack, even as the horrors of her past loom ominously near.

Bizarre and delightful

This story has a bizarre premise (people can turn into their worst nightmares in their sleep) but the story is highly satisfying and delightful. I will definitely be looking for more from this author.

Two hours in, I was mad it was only an 8 hour listen.

Genuinely enjoyed the plot and characters. Interesting world building that I want more of. Satisfying as a single read, even though I'm sure we'll see a sequel.

enjoyable story

loved the story, the writing style was different then her other books. a bit to descriyptive in some areas but overall a good listen!

Decent quick read

It was entertaining and a quick listen. The narrator was great. I enjoyed the supporting characters more than the main character but overall it was enjoyable for a deal of the day and all the story structure was there.

I would read future books from this author if there’s an older main character. The young age of the MC probably places this in MG or YA genre.

Fascinating, fun read!

I loved this book from the very beginning. The plot was great so were the characters. It was a perfect book for in between epic fantasy reads.