⭐️⭐️⭐️ — Cool concept, fun tone, but needed more depth

This had a really fun and engaging tone, with dry wit and sarcasm that made the characters enjoyable to follow—especially in such a dark, urban fantasy setting. The coming-of-age arc was solid, and I appreciated a main character like Ness who wasn’t instantly brave or powerful.

That said, the world-building felt too shallow for the high-stakes premise. The rules of the nightmare world weren’t clear or immersive, and the lack of detail made the plot feel a bit low-impact. Ness’s growth also took longer than I’d hoped, which made her arc feel a little stalled at times.

Still, it’s an entertaining read with a unique vibe. Great for readers who like character-driven stories without too much heavy world-building.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I thought the concept of the story was genuinely intriguing. It’s set in a town where going to sleep can mean waking up as your worst nightmare—quite literally. Ness knows this all too well. Her sister once woke up as a giant spider and killed their father right in front of her. Since then, Ness has been paralysed by fear. The only place she feels even remotely safe is at the Friends of the Restless Soul, an organisation where people are trained to fight and banish nightmares.

Ness does just enough to remain a part of the group, but always holds back slightly to avoid putting herself in real danger. However, the city is overrun with nightmares, and hiding from them forever isn’t an option.

I really enjoyed this story—it kept me turning the pages. The friendships that formed around Ness were a highlight, and I also appreciated the creepy, well-imagined nightmares. The only drawback is that the main character could become a bit wearing at times. Ness’s fear, and the traumatic image of her sister, were brought up so often that I occasionally found myself skimming those sections. Fortunately, she does begin to grow and gain confidence towards the end, which was a satisfying shift. I’m definitely looking forward to seeing what the next book has in store.

City of Nightmares indeed. My god, this was a wild ride! Loved every second from the characters to the world! Simply couldn't put it down.

I really loved Schaeffer's first trilogy and came into this with high hopes! I am not a horror girlie and this perhaps had more than I expected, however the humour kept it from being too much - it's a brilliantly funny and engaging book.

The concept of the nightmares was fascinating, and it was also refreshing to see a main character who was actually scared.

I will definitely be picking up book two! 4 stars.

A Gotham inspired city, full of strange beings! This book unleashes chaos, and it does it so well!

Thank you for my copy!

This was such a unique story! Turning into your own nightmare is something that I haven't read before and I was hooked from page 1!

I have to read the rest of the series!!
Amazing story. Did not disappoint at all.
It was well-written and humorous with a fast pacing, and I was never bored at all. So quick and easy to get through, I couldn‘t put this down.
I didn‘t expect or know where we were heading with the book and I was partly really confused and guessing where it was going.
Loved the characters, their relationships and their development, it was so cool to follow them.

I really enjoyed the first book in this duology- the world building was really interesting and the characters seemed to be fleshed out well. I thought the main pair were written well and they had a lot of depth to them- some of the side characters felt a little under developed by they weren't really seen so that wasn't too much of an issue. I enjoyed the writing was it expressive and helped show the world the story took place in. I feel like there were a few moments were it didn't work entirely for me but there weren't really enough to drag down the work overall. I'm looking forward to finishing this series as i feel like it's a great read!

A city filled with dangers, cults and criminal underground and a main character so good and so relatable I couldn't not love.

I was drawn in by the concept of the book - if you dream when you sleep you will turn into your worst nightmare. It was a decent read, but not a favourite. Good if you're after a YA horror.

This book was so enjoyable with a really interesting premise and excellent execution I can’t wait to read more by this authour

Really enjoyed this book. Not what I was expecting at all but such a unique idea where if you dream you turn into your worst fear. The main character was relatable and loved her bad ass best friend and Cy can't forget him. Was definitely YA but that's not a bad thing. Fast paced would have liked to have expanded on of few parts that felt a little rushed. Will 100% be picking up book 2.

This was such a compelling, page turner of a read. I loved the characters, Ness ended up being really likeable and realistic. Cy is just a sweetheart. This is the first I've read by Rebecca Schaeffer but I'm now excited to read more. I loved the world and the nightmare concept was something new to me, Really excited for Cage of Dreams.

It took far too long to set the context of the world, and the tone made it hard to determine how seriously to take things. The characters felt like caricatures and it all was just a little difficult to wrap my head around.

I really enjoyed City of Nightmares, it’s was so imaginative and fun. I liked the world building and it was unlike anything I’ve read before! I also really liked the characters, Ness was so relatable and cool. Overall I’d recommend this book and I’ll definitely carry on with the series.

Outstanding!
I was completely captivated by this book and loved its wild journey made wilder by the authors notes at the end describing by her second chance.
The premise of this book intrigued me and it never disappointed. I enjoyed thr nightmare/monster descriptions. They were suitably horrific and/or tragic. The vampires especially were an interesting take on the idea. MC felt refreshing and realistic. I enjoyed that she ran away from trouble rather than towards it and her emotional journey throughout the story was rewarding in its payoff. I adored Cy and really felt he elevated the story. The combination of them both made the story flow easily and fast paced and it left me satisfied with their relationship. I am eager to read more and hope there are more in the series.

This book is full of dark humour and delightful chaos. There's some neat discourse about vampires in the book, like why we as a society keep romanticizing them in questionable ways, and why abusive relationships keep getting romanticized in media. I love that Ness is not a typical heroine, not even the typical morally grey and tough-as-nails antiheroine.

I was delighted by this book!
I recommend it to anyone because the writing, the plot and the world building was everything!

I did not expect to love this book as much as I did! I was obviously pulled in by the premise, but you know what? It was so so much more than that!

We travelled across so many important topics, the subject matters were literally on point! Schaeffer has nailed the main character in this one, she's suffered trauma, she's flawed and just can't bring herself to trust in her own abilities just to do life. The self doubt made her such a relatable MC and I was rooting for her the whole way.

Not to mention the havoc that the nightmares brought into the fold! I mean, who would want to be turned into their own worst nightmare! This book is so heavy on the important subject matter, but delivered in such a way that its pure genius! A thouroughly fun, witty and banter filled book to keep you engaged and just the right level of WTF at each page turn!

I also was lucky enough to have listened along with the audio too. It made for a fantastically immersive read and it was paced so well by the narrator! 100% would recommend an immersive read of this if you've not tried one before!

Okay the premise of this book is so weird, and it's exactly why I wanted to read this book. I really didn't want to put it down, it was a little predictable, but because the premise was so unique, I really wanted to know how it ended.

What also kept me going, was that the MC actually acted like someone who is in the middle of a dystopian world where you can wake up als your worst nightmare. They were actually afraid, instead of being this fearless person that can take on the entire world with zero training. Honstly, it was very refreshing!