Strange the Dreamer

Very unsatisfied, the book sleeve was damaged as well as the binding of the book itself. Will be returning it, i was so excited

Laini Taylor wollte immer Schriftstellerin werden. Sie zog nie in Betracht, etwas anderes mit ihrem Leben anzustellen und hatte keinen Plan B. Trotzdem erschien ihr erster Roman erst, als sie bereits 35 Jahre alt war. Obwohl sie immer wusste, dass sie schreiben wollte, kostete es sie viel Zeit, herauszufinden, WAS sie schreiben wollte. In jungen Jahren verfasste sie hauptsächlich Fantasy, wich jedoch davon ab, nachdem sie das College abschloss. Sie sagt, dass sie versnobt war und versuchte, „literary fiction“ zu produzieren, sich dabei aber nie wohlfühlte. Erst Ende der 1990er fand sie durch „Harry Potter“ zu ihren Wurzeln zurück. Wir verdanken J.K. Rowling also eine der besten Autor_innen fantastischer Jugendfiktion, deren Roman „Strange the Dreamer“ nach dem Erfolg ihrer „Daughter of Smoke and Bone“-Trilogie mit Spannung erwartet wurde.Schon immer träumt Lazlo Strange von einer wunderschönen, fernen Stadt. Einer strahlenden, schillernden Stadt der Wunder, einer Oase mitten in der Wüste. Jahrhundertelang erzählten Handlungsreisende zauberhafte Geschichten über das exotische Juwel, das nur Ausgewählte betreten durften. Dann blieben die Karawanen plötzlich aus. Die Geschichten versiegten. Niemand wusste, was geschehen war. Aber für einen kleinen Waisenjungen blieb die Stadt ein Mysterium voller Abenteuer, durch die er das strenge Mönchskloster auf den Schwingen seiner Fantasie verlassen konnte. Bis der Stadt ihr Name gestohlen wurde. Plötzlich war alles, was aus Lazlos Mund kam, verzweifelter Kummer: Weep. Der kleine Junge spielte nie wieder und verschloss seine Träume tief in sich selbst. Viele Jahre später träumt Lazlo noch immer. Er träumt davon, Antworten zu finden und Weep mit eigenen Augen zu sehen. Als überraschend eine Gesandtschaft aus Weep eintrifft und um Hilfe bittet, ist Lazlos Chance gekommen. Mutig schließt er sich ihnen an, um die Geheimnisse der verlorenen Stadt zu lüften. Doch der Traum wählt den Träumer und Lazlos Traum hat gerade erst begonnen…Ach, Laini Taylor und ich. Es ist eine Liebesgeschichte. Zugegeben, sie ist ein wenig einseitig, weil sie nicht weiß, dass ich existiere, während ich ihr seit unserer ersten Begegnung in „Daughter of Smoke and Bone“ verfallen bin, aber was macht ein kleines Ungleichgewicht schon, wenn die Beziehung so erfüllend ist? Es erleichtert mich unheimlich, dass der besondere Zauber zwischen uns ungebrochen ist und wir noch immer harmonisch auf exakt derselben Wellenlänge schwingen. Als ich „Strange the Dreamer“ aufschlug, war ich doch ein wenig besorgt, ob unsere Verbindung diesen Test unbeschadet überstehen würde. Nach der Lektüre ist sie stärker und intensiver denn je. „Strange the Dreamer“ ist ein wundervolles Buch, das mir noch einmal zeigte, dass Laini Taylors Fantasie ein zauberhafter Ort voller farbenfroher Wunder und atemberaubender Ideen ist, in dem ich mich dauerhaft häuslich einrichten möchte. Sie stimuliert meine Vorstellungskraft in einem Ausmaß, das nur sehr wenige Autor_innen erreichen. Ihr bildgewaltiger, poetischer Schreibstil treibt mein Kopfkino zu Höchstleistungen an, weil sie trotz des grundsätzlich femininen und verspielten Charakters des Romans nicht nur Licht, sondern auch Schatten gekonnt in Szene setzt und dafür Symbole verwendet, die mühelos zu interpretieren sind. Sie hat ein unvergleichliches Gespür für die exquisite Ästhetik von Tragik und Leid, berührt die gesamte Klaviatur meiner Gefühle und macht es mir daher unglaublich leicht, mich in ihren Geschichten zu verlieren. Ich beobachtete mich dabei, dass ich mich während der Lektüre von „Strange the Dreamer“ voll und ganz fallen ließ, die Kontrolle abgab, mich überraschen ließ und Taylor einfach vertraute, dass sie mir jede Frage beantworten würde, bevor sie mir überhaupt in den Sinn kommen konnte. Für meine Verhältnisse ist das bemerkenswert, weil eines der zentralen Motive des Romans das Geheimnis ist. Von der ersten Seite an stellt das Geheimnis um die verlorene Stadt Weep die Triebfeder der Handlung und des Protagonisten Lazlo Strange dar. Doch da Taylor einen stetigen Strom entscheidender Erkenntnisse und Offenbarungen aufrechterhält und somit auch den Spannungsbogen konstant gestaltet, grübelte ich nicht ungeduldig auf den Informationen herum, sondern genoss stattdessen die emotionale Nähe zu Lazlo. Lazlo ist eine dieser Figuren, die man sich real wünscht. Seine positive und liebenswerte Persönlichkeit verströmt eine sonnige Ausstrahlung, an der man sich wärmen möchte. Er ist arglos, aufrichtig, selbstlos, fantasievoll und auf so charmante Art verträumt, dass ich von ganzem Herzen hoffte, dass seine Träume wahr werden. Leider lehrt „Strange the Dreamer“ Lazlo, dass die harte, kantige Realität unseren weichen, fließenden Träumen nicht immer standhält. Ich bete dafür, dass er in der Fortsetzung „Muse of Nightmares“ erkennt, dass er es selbst in der Hand hat, Realität und Traum verschmelzen zu lassen.Es passiert nur noch selten, dass ich so voller Lob für ein Buch bin wie für „Strange the Dreamer“. Wenn es passiert, ist es meiner Meinung nach nur recht und billig, dass ich das auch in aller Deutlichkeit ausdrücke. Falls euch meine Schwärmerei für „Strange the Dreamer“ übertrieben und kitschig erscheinen sollte, müsst ihr euch vor Augen halten, wie wenige Bücher ich lese, an denen ich überhaupt nichts auszusetzen habe. Jedes Jahr ist es lediglich eine Handvoll, die diesen Ritterschlag erhält. Tatsächlich sind es so wenige, dass ich mich manchmal frage, ob es an mir liegt. Zum Teil ist das bestimmt der Fall, aber Laini Taylor beweist, dass mit meiner Begeisterungsfähigkeit alles in Ordnung ist, solange Autor_innen die richtigen Knöpfe drücken. Kaum jemandem gelingt das so mühelos und zielsicher wie ihr. Zwischen uns wird hoffentlich immer diese ganz besondere und rare Magie knistern, die uns als Autorin und Leserin verbindet. Ich sagte es ja: Es ist eine Liebesgeschichte.

I just want to start off this review by mentioning how BEAUTIFUL this book is! I have the UK signed edition with the blue sprayed edges and it is easily one of the most asthetic books sitting on my shelf right now. This is made all the better by the fact that the story within the pages was just as beautiful as the actual book itself! I was completely hooked with the world that Laini Taylor has created and I absolutely need the next instalment... I needed it yesterday!The world building in this book is extremely vivid. I definitely felt transported to the world Taylor created - I wish I was there! Taylor's description was lyrical and poetic, which helped to lull the reader and keep them hooked! I loved the imagery created - both within the dream states and the "real world", especially in the sense of contrasting between a dreamscape and a harsh reality. I would revisit this world in the next instalment just to find out more about this world and the things inside of it!I really liked Lazlo from the beginning. He is extremely relatable to us readers (hello - librarian!) and he was an easy going character who I could see myself being friends with if he really existed. He always helped others without expecting anything in return (much to Thyon's chagrin) and it was fun watching him experience firsts with Sarai. I definitely feel like the ending has changed him in a big way - whether that is for the good or the bad remains to be seen, but I cannot see him doing anything bad. Well, unless Minya has her way.I think Thyon is supposed to be a character that we would struggle to get along with, however, I found him to be misunderstood. He was definitely difficult to love because of his attitude towards others, but at the same time, I feel like he struggled under the stress his parents put him under and he didn't know how to react to kindness. I feel like his upbringing has caused him to be suspicious of anyone helping him out and I think it's caused him to see a trick lying in wait when someone does help him, even when there isn't one. This makes him cautious and he distrusts most people around him - which is why he is misunderstood.I think what I enjoyed most about this story was the fact that we got multiple POVs. Most books are told through the eyes of the hero - so when I was introduced to both sides of the story - whether through Lazlo, Sarai, Eril-Fane, Minya's snippet etc. we are always getting all sides of the story. It helped to create an understanding as to why each character was feeling and doing what they were doing because each has a different understanding and experience of The Carnage. It keep the readers torn between all of the characters because it is so easy to understand why Eril - Fane and the community of weep has a hatred for the Gods and the Godspawn, but it was also extremely easy to understand why Minya has a hatred of Eril-Fane and the humans in general because of what she experienced. She was still a difficult character to like because of the lengths she will go to get her revenge, but I can understand why she feels the way she does... even if it was only through a snippet of a PoV.I really enjoyed Sarai as a character! She is one of the only characters who sees both sides of the coin from the very beginning and she is someone who has to deal with the fact that she can understand the viewpoint of the humans and the viewpoint of the godspawn - who she considers to be her family. She struggles to reconcile with the fact that she no longer feels the hatred that Minya does, and it takes her a while to actually start defying Minya in her own way. I enjoyed watching her grow along side Lazlo (Taylor - STOP BLOWING HOLES IN MY SHIP!!)... I can't say anything more without ruining it.Whilst the romance aspect happened pretty quickly, it didn't feel like an insta love kind of situation! I felt like it was right and that the two character fit together. I don't want to give too much of the story away which is why I'm being a bit vague about things... However, Taylor definitely does know how to throw a wrench in the works - first DoSaB and now this! :-OAlso, THAT ENDING!!! I CAN'T EVEN FUNCTION! I NEED TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!!Anyway, all in all I absolutely loved this book! The writing was extremely vivd and poetic and I loved the way in which Laini brought in all of the voices in various PoVs, without any of the PoVs blurring together. Each voice sung on their own and stood out and it was easy to discern who the character was that we were reading, even without an introduction to the character we were currently reading. I definitely cannot wait for the next instalment and gave this book 5/5 stars.

Rating: ★★★★★ – it was amazingGenre: young adult fiction, ya fantasyPros: beautifully written, bibliophile mc, fascinating world, banter!Cons: triggering Carnage descriptions, could use more diversity, no pronunciation guideTrigger Warning: Descriptions of the Carnage include the death of infants. It doesn't go into gory detail, it's a little more abstract, but it's still vivid and mentioned many times.The world of Strange the Dreamer is interesting and dynamic. I found myself wishing to know more about the history and customs -- of Weep especially, but all the other kingdoms, too. I'd love to have several more novels set there (about literally anything) so I could just live in this universe longer.The writing is beautiful. It's been a little while since I read one of Laini's books so, while I remembered I liked her writing, I had forgotten just how lovely it could be. The descriptive language paints masterpieces and it's a purely enjoyable experience for the reader.One of the best things in the book was the banter between characters. Lazlo and company had me giggling so many times. In fact, I kept stopping to read bits of dialogue to my husband so he could enjoy it too.The only real drawback for me was (as is often the case) the lack of diversity. This book has character descriptions that are ambiguous enough for one to decide for themselves whether many of the people are white or POC, and that is better than a lot of books in this genre. However, we know Laini Taylor loves to describe things -- her descriptive language really being a major draw for her books -- and we see this with her poetic depictions of the Godspawn with their blue skin. ("Blue as opals, pale blue. Blue as cornflowers, or dragonfly wings, or a spring -- not summer -- sky.") So there's no reason in the world she couldn't have given us some explicitly diverse characters. Overall, I'd say it's a step in the right direction for representation, but just not quite enough.I do wish the book had included a pronunciation guide for some of the proper nouns. Nothing takes me out of a story like constantly wondering if I'm saying names correctly. Luckily, Laini's writing drew me right back in again.The plot is really engaging. I honestly couldn't read fast enough! The foreshadowing was, in my opinion, done perfectly. Some books have foreshadowing that's too obscure, some have foreshadowing that's too obvious, but Strange the Dreamer had that perfect middle ground. I was able to predict a lot of things, but more because I was familiar with the genre than because the foreshadowing wasn't subtle enough. And another sign it was done right? Even when I expected something, it was still completely satisfying when it happened!If you liked Laini's Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy or you're a fan of Magical YA Fantasy, I definitely recommend reading Strange the Dreamer.

It's been a long wait for something new from Laini Taylor, I absolutely adored her writing in the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series but if anything she's honed her skills even more and Strange the Dreamer was even more beautifully written. She always manages to completely captivate me with the worlds she creates and when I fall into one of her books I never want to come back out again.Strange the Dreamer is the story of Lazlo, a young man who was orphaned as a baby and raised by monks before he discovered the magic of the great library and trained to become a librarian. Lazlo is in part a little like every book worm you'll ever meet, he's obsessed with stories and spends so much time with his head stuck in a book that real life often happens around him without him even noticing. Lazlo's biggest obsession is the mystery of Weep and he has dedicated his life to reading everything he can about the city that disappeared so long ago. It's been years since anyone was able to find Weep and nobody can even remember the city's real name but Lazlo longs for it to be discovered again and he would give anything to visit the place he has spent so long dreaming about. Lazlo is a dreamer but he's also smart, funny and very caring. He always tries to help people but never expects thanks for his hard work and is so grateful for every opportunity he is offered that he never takes anything for granted.This is also the story of Sarai, a young woman who has been trapped in her home for years with only her siblings for company. I don't want to get into too much detail about where Sarai is or how she ended up trapped there but her path crosses Lazlo's in the most unusual manner and I absolutely loved spending time with them both and watching the beginnings of their romance. Sarai and her siblings have been through something horrific but thanks to her unique talent she is the one best placed to understand both sides of the story and she longs for peace and freedom. She's such a compassionate girl, one who has seen the worst people have to offer but who also has great capacity for forgiveness and who tries really hard to look at the good in people.Once again Laini Taylor has created a world that you just want to dive into, there are so many beautiful and amazing things to discover but there are also dark secrets lurking underneath that will leave you reeling. Her characters are people you want to be friends with and even her villains are so complex that you can understand their actions even if you don't particularly agree with them. There is so much pain and fear between the two different groups in the story that it's going to take a miracle to pull them together but I have complete faith that if anyone can pull it off Lazlo Strange and the Muse of Nightmares can. Working together I think they can achieve anything.Strange the Dreamer is definitely one of my favourite books of the year and there is no doubt in my mind that it is going to be appearing on a lot of "best of 2017" lists. The Muse of Nightmares is right at the top of my 2018 wish list but I know I'll be rereading this book while I wait for it to be released.

**Original review on Goodreads and My Blog**This book is amazing! That's just all there is to it.When I got this beautiful book from UPS I about fell over. It is so freaking beautiful. The cover is so shiny and no amount of pictures can do it justice. You just have to see it for yourself.This book is so full of everything. How do I even review a book that is all over and made me sad and took me to a strange and mystical world.Lazlo Strange, whom I love, was an orphan boy who went on an errand to The Great Library and never returned. He loved books and was lost in them until he was found and they just kept him on instead of sending him back to the home. He became a librarian. But he was obsessed with the story of Weep and what happened there. He spent years writing his own journals about the place.Lazlo was know as "Strange The Dreamer" or Lazlo Strange. But he wasn't strange at all and the things he found out helped him later on. Sometimes dreams can come true.**********EXCERPT********** I'm going to Weep, he thought, and could have laughed at the pun, but he kept his composure, and when the Tizerkane warriors rode out of the Great Library and out of Zosma, Strange the dreamer went with them.**********END EXCERPT**********I'm not going to give out any kind of spoilers because this is a book you need to discover on your own. It's freaking amaze balls! Did I already say that?I will say there are a good bit of characters in the book, nothing confusing, but my favorites are Lazlo and Sarai. ❤Laini Taylor can write some beautiful words.**********EXCERPT**********Weep slept. Dreamers dreamed. A grand moon drifted, and the wings of the citadel cut the sky in two: light above, dark below.**********END EXCERPT**********Sarai is something else but I'm not going to tell you what she is and there are others like her. There is a really sad story behind all of that as well. But Sarai is wonderful and kind and different.**********EXCERPT**********Streaming forth into the night, the darkness fractured into a hundred fluttering bits like windblown scraps of velvet. A hundred smithereens of darkness, they broke apart and re-formed and siphoned themselves into a little typhoon that swept down toward the rooftops of Weep, whirling and wheeling on soft twilight wings.Sarai screamed moths. Moths and her own mind, pulled into a hundred pieces and flung out into the world.**********END EXCERPT**********Seriously, if you have wanted to get this book, get it and I hope you love it. I didn't understand every little bit about the book but that's okay because I still loved it. ❤Of course that ending . . . and there is so much more going on in the book but like I said, you need to read it and feel the magic. I don't even know where Laini Taylor comes up with this stuff. Just the way she writes is surreal.Now we have to a wait a billion years to get the next one. *Sob*