Dreams of Gods and Monsters by Laini Taylor
Publication Date: March 26th 2015
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton General Division (Hodder Paperbacks)
Notes: first published April 17th 2014
Blurb: By way of a staggering deception, Karou has taken control of the chimaera rebellion and is intent on steering its course away from dead-end vengeance. The future rests on her, if there can even be a future for the chimaera in war-ravaged Eretz.
Common enemy, common cause.
When Jael’s brutal seraph army trespasses into the human world, the unthinkable becomes essential, and Karou and Akiva must ally their enemy armies against the threat. It is a twisted version of their long-ago dream, and they begin to hope that it might forge a way forward for their people.
And, perhaps, for themselves. Toward a new way of living, and maybe even love.
But there are bigger threats than Jael in the offing. A vicious queen is hunting Akiva, and, in the skies of Eretz … something is happening. Massive stains are spreading like bruises from horizon to horizon; the great winged stormhunters are gathering as if summoned, ceaselessly circling, and a deep sense of wrong pervades the world.
What power can bruise the sky
From the streets of Rome to the caves of the Kirin and beyond, humans, chimaera and seraphim will fight, strive, love, and die in an epic theater that transcends good and evil, right and wrong, friend and enemy. At the very barriers of space and time, what do gods and monsters dream of? And does anything else matter?
ReviewDreams of Gods and Monsters sees Karou and Akiva trying to unite Chimera and Misbegotten into an army to battle Jael’s forces. It is imperative he is not successful in his mission to bring human weapons into Eretz but there are deceptions which must be maintained, unknown forces at work and new players entering the game.
This is somewhat of a hard one for me to review. Laini Taylor’s writing was as incredible as ever, she has a way with words that lift the story from the book and submerge you in it. She really makes you feel for the characters, which is also why I struggled about with Gods and Monsters.
Our heroes are under fire and suffer setbacks and betrayals and losses. And it hurt my heart. For a lot of the book there is almost no hope for Karou and co, Taylor paints a very real picture of what it is to be in the middle of a war. Maybe it’s naive of me but I do like to have that feeling where, no matter how dark it gets, there is always light and I struggled knowing that. So I ended up often reading a bit before putting it down for a while because as much as a page turner as it was it was a hard read. And a long one.
That said perhaps the last hundred pages or so were amazing, the way it all came together and the hard won peace made it worth it. Though it’s clear it is not over for Karou, Akiva and Eretz, indeed an even bigger war is coming. CAN’T THEY JUST HAVE PEACE AND MAYBE SOME SLEEP!
Dreams of Gods and Monsters was beautifully written, heartbreaking and intense and an epic conclusion to the series.
3 1/2 – ★★★★Find Dreams of Gods and Monsters
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Find Laini Taylor
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