Freakin’ amazing!!! As soon as I started reading I couldn’t put it down, the story, characters and brilliant writing just make you want to read more and find out what happens next!

The main character is Ness, a 19 year old orphan who resides with a maybe-cult, the Friends of the Restful Soul. After her sister became a Nightmare and killed their dad, Ness finds it hard to trust anyone and is fearful of all Nightmares. When Ness ends up on a job for the Friends of the Restful Soul, she doesn’t expect it to be anything other than a simple job, but it turns out nothing is simple anymore! She ends up running for her life with a Nightmare for company!

It’s fast paced, funny, gory and just a bloody good book! I’d recommend for ages 13+ due to the swearing and gore, but it’s all in context!

This was fun. A little bit darker than the average YA book, and that's a good thing. The plot is set in a world where you turn into your worst nightmare. Literally. Yikes.

The main character is Ness. She isn't particularly brave, she's not a fighter, and she's definitely not the person you'd choose to save anyone (you'd go with her friend Priya instead - she's quite the badass). I kind of liked her anyways, especially since she went through quite a lot of character development.

Occasionally there were passages that clearly were the author stating her own opinions via the characters (e.g. on monogamy and romance), and while I don't generally have an issue with authors doing that, it felt forced here. The statements weren't even questioned by Ness, they were simply accepted as true.

Overall City of Nightmares was a fun read, but it didn't quite live up to it's potential.

2.5 stars rounded up.

I was really looking forward to this, but to my disappointment it just didn't work for me. There was nothing outright bad about City of Nightmares, but there was also nothing that stood out to me. For a book set in a world populated by literal nightmares, the actual experience of reading it was pretty bland.

Let me first say that I did like the setting for this book, the titular city of Newham. Schaeffer manages to make it feel quirky and cartoony, as well as extremely violent. There is also a lot of nice detail on the nightmares themselves - the variety they come in, the way they've shaped the world. It's a fun setting.

Where I think the book falls down for me is with the characters. Everyone's personality can be summed up in one or two words. Ness, our main character, is cowardly and snarky. And by the end of the book she's lost the cowardice, making her indistinguishable from every other YA protagonist. Priya, Ness's best friend, is a badass who loves to fight monsters. Cy the vampire boy is worried about turning into a monster. None of them do or say anything particularly interesting, which made it very hard for me to care about them.

The plot had a few good reveals but ultimately, since I couldn't connect to the characters I had no investment in the story. I will not be reading the sequel.

Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for giving me an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me with a a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Set in a city filled with violence, crime, and—literal—nightmares, reminiscent of Gotham, Shaeffer easily sucks you into the dark and twisted world of Newham. We follow Ness, our self-proclaimed cowardly protagonist, who has a phobia of Nightmares after witnessing her sister turn into a giant man-eating spider years earlier. All she wants is a safe place in the world, and the (not) cult "Friends of the Restful Soul" provides that, on a condition: Ness must work within the world of Nightmares. Ness’s traumatic past and phobia shape and warp her interaction with the Nightmare-ridden city of Newham, and threaten her place in the organisation that has kept her safe for most of her life. Unable to keep a job, Ness is desperate and is now forced to face her fears or lose her place. But there are forces working against her.
 
I finished this book in less than six hours and enjoyed it for the most part. While a bit too straightforward and literal, the writing was fast-paced and immersive, with a sharp tone and bloody descriptions. Ness is a realistic main character, who is traumatised enough to fill about 300 pages with her dry and dark humour. She doesn’t always make the best decisions and isn't always the smartest character, but to me that makes her more relatable. She goes through some great development, and I’d love to see what she becomes once her overall arc is completed. The setting was by far the best part of the book, and I thoroughly loved the casual violence and gore.
 
A few of the twists were good, but I did not find the last few reveals at the end all that compelling, and I think going with the obvious answers would’ve been much better than the subversion Shaeffer tried to pull off.
 
A red flag for me, though, was the manipulative human-turned-lizard character, who runs the cult. I'm not sure what the intention was there, but it could easily fall into harmful tropes.
 
I’d recommend this for people looking for something with a gritty, gothic feel, and those who love Batman media, or the Amazon show ‘The Boys.’

I was so excited when I saw Hodder were doing City of Nightmares as I adored Rebecca Schaffer's Not Even Bones trilogy!

I was sucked into City of Nightmares instantly and I was drawn into it by the plot and the characters were interesting, there was one twist I never saw coming whatsoever which was a nice change as sometimes twists are obvious!

Definitely recommend Rebecca Schaffer's books and everyone should preorder this one!

This was so refreshingly weird! I loved the concept and was quickly immersed in the story. I also really liked the roaring 20s era vibe and gothic flavour of the story. Really enjoyed this. Will be checking out other books by the author.

Ever since Ness her sister became a man-eating spider and slaughtered her way through town Ness has been terrified of nightmares, wether this means another nightmare murdering her or being turned into one. No one is safe in Newham, Ness will do anything to avoid being turned into a nightmare or being killed by one.

I loved going on this journey with Ness, Cy and Priya. I loved this book from beginning to end. The development that Ness went through was amazing and I felt like it went very realistic and smoothly. Everything made sense. The setting of this book was amazing and I loved that the MC in this wasn't some strong, brave heroine like in so many other books. Following Ness from her scared, running away self to the brave and strong MC who overcame her fears was the absolute best and I loved every single minute of it!

Thank you Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for giving me the chance to read and review this book!
#CityOfNightmares #NetGalley

City of Nightmares was a strong kick to start an interesting series. First of all this story grabbed my interest with take setting at chaotic dark city which brimming with corruption, criminality and... monsters. With combination vibes between Gotham city and wicked Bacanno premises, I wish extra development in the future for this promising world building.

The author doing her magic with choosed unusual character as her FML. Ness isn't famous from her fighting skills or bravery but from her amazing auto fast reaction to running away and save her self during dangerous situation. She is a coward and basicly will become last pick for badass heroine candidate. But seeing her undertone characteristic growing stronger during this book become one of my proud happy moment. I saw diversity from all characters are well respected, their interaction looks natural, and their banter always funny dan witty.

I love the storytelling style, it is smooth and easy to follow. Enjoyable plot and twist but I still feel some of lack explaination expecially about The Nightmare itself. Actually it was my Hallowen treat, quick to read, really captiving and succeeded feed my darker reading appetite. Looking forward to the second book!!

Thank you Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for provided my copy. Really appreciate and my thoughts are my own.

A fast, easy read in which dark comedy is colourfully evoked against a backdrop of violence and crime, focused through the lens of its atypical yet realistic heroine.

3.5/5

pretty enjoyable, with an enticing plot and interesting characters. world building was also pretty convincing and the descriptions of the nightmares were quite unsettling.