Thank you to the publisher Small Heart Press and to NetGalley for the digital ARC, it has not affected my honest review.

"Dream of Death City" is a fascinating, complex beginning to a series that I hope will continue for a long time. This dark fantasy, set in a place called the Red Kingdom, follows Thora (a woman of the lowest caste system) and Diem (the investigator she works with) as they finish up on the worst case of their lives. It's here that Thora sees a side to Diem that terrifies her, but that's the least of the problem. After a Sun Noble (the highest caste) reports his daughter missing, Thora and Diem are sent to Death City, an island all but cut off from the rest of the Red Kingdom. Here people like Thora walk free and the old religion of the past still echoes as death gods walk the seas.

While in Death City, seeking this missing woman and trying to solve the murder of another, Thora comes to realise that she doesn't want to go back to her old life. Diem doesn't either, what he did on their last case has followed him and he knows there is no happy endings in the Red Kingdom. As time runs out, and the pressure grows, they're pushed to incredible limits. I adored this book from the first page! It's dark and gory, with excellent twists and grey characters throughout. Diem and Thora are perfectly matched with each other and I loved how things changed around them. The pacing was tight and kept me gripped to the last page.
I so hope there's a sequel. I hope even more that I get to read more with these characters in this world.

Fun in a way a lot of books aren't I loved the pacing and characters. Enough action to be fun and thought -provoking enough to make the story entertaining.

Really enjoyed this debut novel. The world building was really interesting and the characters were intriguing. Loved the first chapter, it was a really good way to pull you in. At times, it becomes a little repetitive, but overall a really interesting read.
Thank you (netgalley and publisher) for the arc. I will be following this series.

As much as I wanted to love this book, it was not the one for me. I was trudging through the story, filled with too many descriptions that didn't really immerse me into it, but pulled me away. There were a few times where I got completely lost in what was happening (which is a very rare occasion for me usually). The other thing was that I didn't quite connect with our main characters. It seemed that and author made Thora this "yeah, so what if I'm a slave, I will achieve something great regardless" type of girl, but the way it was described did not convince me she was like that, and you needed that to believe into the whole scenario our main characters went to.

There were good sides to the story though. The author did take time to master the writing style. It has a very visual metaphorical quality to it, plus the story is grim, but not disgusting. The book has a map at the beginning of it (always nice to have it when you are being introduced to a new fantasy world), and interesting illustrations at the beginning of each chapter.

The other thing is that I might have gotten into a reading slump after reading this, so maybe that is a me thing, not the book thing. Maybe I will give it a second chance later and try to read it again with a "fresh" mind, so I definitely implore you to check it if you think that might be something for you.

Honestly I dnf'ed this book. I didn't like it maybe it wasn't my cup of tea. Although the premise was really interesting I didn't continue reading it.

Good overall book. I've read others in this world, and not bad. About average in this series.

Ok to he a stand alone, or read with others in the series.

Fantasy but without all your standard tropes.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this book.

Sadly, I realized early on that I’m not the right audience for this book.
It is described as dark fantasy but felt a lot more dystopian to me, which is a genre I don’t like.

I tried to get into the story but the setting made it hard for me, and the extensive descriptions didn’t help.

I’m sure this is a great book if this is your thing, but it just wasn’t my thing. I’m giving it 3 stars because I don’t want to negatively affect the rating for a book that’s just not for me.

Unfortunately I couldn’t get into this book and it ended up being a DNF (did not finish) .
From reading the book’s profile I thought I would really enjoy this book as it’s something a bit different from what I usually read.
But I just couldn’t get into the book, the language used was SO hard to understand. I couldn’t get my head around it. So sorry :(

This was an interesting read with a storyline that was unique and kept my attention. I hope there are more books and this is going to be a series. Great characters and plot.

I have tried several times to read this and I’m having a really hard time getting into it. The writing is very wordy and the chapters are so long. It’s just not grabbing my attention and given how long it is in general, I’m gonna call it DNF early on. Not for me.

I honestly can't believe that I missed out on a book like this before, I've had it in my netgalley app for over a month, and I just picked it up last week, and that is one of my biggest regrets this year!
This book exceeded my expectations, I genuinely requested it only for the cover, but it was very very good, and way better than how I'm describing it!
The world building was so on point, it was great, super easy to imagine based on the descriptions, even the language of the book fit the setting the book came in!
The main character was very moving, I was rooting for her on every turn, and her partner's support made things even better, she was just as likable to the other characters as she was to me! Lol
One of the things that I was shocked of in this book, it didn't start out slow and then throw a bomb, it started with the bomb, and then slowed into the mystery reveal. And after that epilogue, I am dying for the second book, because it made me question everything I read, literally!

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with the e - ARC of this book.

This book is inspired by the latin saying Memento mori, as claims the author in the note. Definetely I can see that in many aspects of the story, however I was missing on something.
The book was very atmospheric and the colors mostly red, crimson and black have a crucial role in the story.
During the reading we have got a plenty of words like reckon, nought and true, which I suppose are part of a dialect or a language in the Red Kingdom, that was really interesting, but sometimes a bit overflowing. Also the rodents and moths are a whole theme in this story, but we do not have explanation why.
The main characters were ok, but I did not like them that much. Thora should have been the Battle axe and really clever woman, what I have not seen in her actions.
About Diem we did get only little information I would say too little, so I could not connect with him.
Weak points: Love intrest was not really believable for me and the ending was a bit meh.
However the atmosphere and the writing were exquisite.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5073711977

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, but I loved it. There's so much interesting worldbuilding and lore surrounding the characters, some that's mentioned fully some that's brought up in passing, that makes the setting their inhabiting feel fleshed out and real. There's hints of big things that happened in the past that directly impact the characters that I hope we get to learn more about in future books, i'm so interested to hear about the Dead Daughters and what happened to make the world what it is. The actual story revolves around Thora, a dust caste worker for an investigation house that gets sent along to an investigation in Death City, where a noble's daughter has gone missing. As the case unfolds, things turn out equal parts mystery and magic, with local superstition having a hand in how things are solved. There's a lot of moving parts to this story, but everything came together well at the end, and I liked how it set up for a future installment. I'm looking forward to reading more about the Red Kingdom!

Thank you to PJ Nwosu, Small Heart Press, and Netgalley for this free eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I am not really big on dark fantasy, but the premise of this book really drew me in as I am a sucker for mysteries. Nwosu was really able to set the scene and paint a picture of the world, which was supported by stellar prose. Descriptions could get a little long/off-topic at times, but this only served to build the world a bit more. The overall mystery was satisfying to say the least, and I would definitely recommend this story to anyone who is even slightly interested in the genre!

This book was unfortunately one I did not finish. The style of writing was very chaotic and nearly impossible to follow. The prologue lacks consistency and direction. The manner of speech of the characters was scattered. The plot seemed to be a weird mashup of medieval sleuths and a futuristic dystopia. It just doesn’t work.

"𝘐𝘯 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩, 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘢𝘭."

Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 (3.6)

Rating Guide Questions

1. Did the story catch your attention, after reading the first 1-3 paragraphs, enough for you not to be able to put it down? And if not, did it become ‘gripping’ at some point?
3. Not really, but I had nothing else to do so I continued. The weird writing style (British English?) was distracting at first but I got used to it at some point and just accepted it as the story’s language.

2. Genre-specific question: Was the writer able to make your transition to the story's world from the real world easy and smooth?
3.5. The transition wasn’t smooth but also not difficult. It was like reading a secret history of our ancestors or maybe a look into the future of the human race. Nevertheless, it wasn’t that bad but not remarkable.

3. Did the story leave a significant impact in your mind e.g. led you to an epiphany, made you reflect on life and its complexities?*
4. In a way. Given the liberties that I am able to experience, it’s quite difficult to imagine living a life stuck to a role decided for you since birth because your parents had that same role. And it was easy to feel for Thora in that way. Possibilities of freely choosing what you want to do in life kept the fire of hope burning in her despite the crippling fear that her world’s rules instilled in her. A silent protest in a way. If I wake up and find myself in that world, I don’t think I could also sit still and not do something about the current situation knowing what I know of the possibilities of basic human rights.
The concept also of justice was something to think of. How far could you really go in exacting justice? Would you trust a system you are well aware of is corrupt? Would you then take justice into your own hands? Would you try to find another way when you’re someone considered as nothing, as dust?
I guess all this made me keep reading despite the distracting way that the manner of talking of each character changes, making it difficult to tell where one character ends, and the other begin.

4. How about the characters? Were they well-developed (i.e. connect with them by relating to their experiences, or you can see them as an actual person because of their profound development through the story)?
4. Despite the 3rd-person POV used, it was still easy to appreciate each character and develop a connection with them. But as mentioned the inconsistent writing of their dialogues and thoughts was distractingly confusing.

5. For romance, either as the main plot or as a subplot, were the relationships between the characters to your liking?
4.5. It’s a complicated set-up plus they could die if they pursue the romance. What’s not to like? Seriously, Thora’s realistic approach their situation makes sense to me. I’m subtracting 0.5 because a miscommunication trope is there without a resolution (maybe on the following books?).

6. How was the climax and resolution of the story for you?
3.5. It was anti-climactic in a way that it came too early and the denouement ended feeling like such a drag. It was like hearing the start of the punch line of a joke, you’re excited because you can already imagine this will be one funny joke, but it turned into something else and you lose your ‘laughing momentum’. Did that make sense? It felt like the author wanted to go for a one-shot piece and decided to add all these other complicated details to at least make sure that if they decide to go for another book, it will still make sense.

7. If it's a book series, can't you wait to read what happens next?
3.5. Despite what was previously said, a part of me is curious about the bigger world of the Red Kingdom. However, I don’t really care if the POV would be focused on Thora or not. Maybe someone else with a stronger impact on the story and its world? I’m not really sure what the author’s goal is here but Thora’s story felt like it ended already in this book. Though if she has a more interesting adventure coming up, I would still be interested to read it.

8. Will you recommend it to someone?
3. I chose to request this book in Netgalley because of its synopsis tagline: “Chilling, dark fantasy with a heavy dose of *Sherlock Holmes* in this new series of twisty mysteries in fantasy worlds.”
I’m a super fan of Sherlock Holmes and it’s not there. Did not find it there. Nothing. Zilch. And was disappointing. So if you want to check it out because of that tagline, I do not recommend it.
But if you’re someone who generally likes fantasy books that deal with worlds found on controversial concepts like death as a religion, then check this out!


Note: This review is also posted on Goodreads, and a summary review will be posted on my blog kayenotes.wordpress.com a few days after the book's release date.

Rating: 4/5 🌟

Dust-Caste Thora is desperate to prove her worth and rise above her slave status. In the Red Kingdom, that is impossible. But, when Thora finds herself on her way to assist in her second investigation, the hope of one day being free is hard to keep at bay. A Sun-Noble's daughter has gone missing, and it's up to Thora, her investigation partner, Diem, and another lowly Dust-Caste, Effile, to find her. A dark tale filled with mystery and wonder. A story of survival for some, and death for others.

I truly enjoyed this book! I'm giving it four stars instead of five though due to the fact that, at least for me, some of the details and ideas Nwosu was trying to get across sometimes got lost in translation because of the language used in the book. The best way I can describe it is how you would imagine people from medieval times speaking. I'm not used to reading novels that dive so deeply into the use of language like that, so it took me a while to wrap my head around the formatting. I'm a big fan of small details, and I LOVED that Nwosu included excerpts of the Red Reform Laws at the beginning of each chapter. Inserting those laws and the use of chapter illustrations pulled me into the story even more. The story was fantastic and I found myself really rooting for Thora and Diem (though the epilogue made me rethink everything I thought I knew). I know this is the first in a series, so I would definitely be interested in reading the second book once it's available! If you are a fan of dystopian novels, mysteries, tales of crime, and swords, I would definitely recommend checking this out!

Maybe I'm the wrong audience for this book despite its excellent worldbuilding and the fairly high quality of the prose. Unfortunately, it's also so unremittingly bleak that I couldn't get any pleasure from it; I kept setting it aside to read other books and then had to drag myself back to it over and over.

One problem that may not be just about my personal taste: the idiom Nwosu has established for her characters' speech -- e.g., "reckon" used over and over, "true" interjected for emphasis in places that sound stilted: "I reckon these bruises here were made prior to her death true," for example. Rather than grow accustomed to this as I went on reading, I found it more and more jarring and intrusive.

I've read other books that use eccentric diction for their characters' speech -- Katherine Addison's books set in the world of The Goblin Emperor, for example -- and I'm at a loss to understand exactly why one such experiment should succeed and another seem forced. But there it is.

I'm giving this three stars because I think my negative reaction is owed in large part to my personal quirks as a reader rather than to the book's "objective" qualities.

Thank you to NetGalley and Small Heart Press for an ARC of Dream of Death City by PJ Nwosu

Unfortunately, Dream of Death City was a DNF for me. Despite being written stunningly with gorgeous prose (the opening was fast-paced and beautiful) the slow build-up and strange choice of language (TRUE?) made this book tedious. I believe Author (()) was unintentionally trying to do too much as this book had elements of Historical Mystery, particularly with how characters spoke with what I imagine might be a possible cockney accent plus Dune-Esque fantasy world with a slow-burn noir mystery ..oh and on top of that a slightly forbidden romance.
I think if you are an atmospheric/slow burn mystery reader then this book has the possibility of being an enjoyable foray into the fantasy genre however as a fantasy reader this book’s worldbuilding was lacking and the noir investigator angle was interesting. With both the world and pacing being off I could not slog through it.

I will not be posting this review on GoodReads Amazon Ect.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the e-arc.

I requested this book as I loved the stunning cover and the genre is my most read one. I didn’t know the author or their writing style, I was in for a treat after a reading slump. I was hooked from the start.



The writer created a full immersive experience starting with the amount of depth in the world building. I felt that I was at the Red Kingdom myself at all times. The evocative descriptions, aligned with the dark feminist portray of magic, heavily supressed by totalitarian laws was fascinating. I really enjoy a heavy political fantasy and this did not disappoint.

The death worshiping culture of the setting was very interesting and in the beginning, I struggled with the peculiar speech pattern, but once I was halfway through it it didn’t bother me as much.



I loved the characters, especially Thora, another perfect anti-hero character. I stand by it when I say that I love morally grey characters and both Thora and Diem were that and more.

Their relationship reminded me of Alex and Darlington in the Ninth House, which is one of my favorite books. They both have dark pasts, a darker position in the hierarchy of this empire whilst dreaming of seemingly impossible goals like freedom.

Their development throughout was so well done and I was very intrigued with their positions but also their past which was slowly revealed alongside the rest of the narrative.
I also appreciate when romance is not the main point of the story (it’s a preference) and enjoyed the way their relationship was explored, leaving a bittersweet and tangy taste of sadness within me.



I think this author is going to be an auto-buy author for me from now on. I cannot wait for further instalments of this book .