A Dream So Dark

The Nightmare-Verse, Book 2

By: L.L. McKinney

Narrated by: Jacob York, Jeanette Illidge, Matthew Barnes

Length: 12 hrs and 7 mins

Publisher's summary

"With memorable characters and page-turning thrills, A Blade So Black is the fantasy book I've been waiting for my whole life. Alice is Black Girl Magic personified." (Angie Thomas, number one New York Times best-selling author of The Hate U Give)

In L. L. McKinney's A Dream So Dark, the thrilling sequel to A Blade So Black, Alice goes deeper into a dark version of Wonderland.

Still reeling from her recent battle (and grounded until she graduates), Alice must abandon her friends to complete her mission: find The Heart and prevent the Red Lady's rise. But the deeper she ventures into Wonderland, the more topsy-turvy everything becomes. It’s not until she’s at her wits end that she realizes - Wonderland is trying to save her.

There’s a new player on the board; a poet capable of using Nightmares to not only influence the living but raise the dead. This Poet is looking to claim the Black Queen’s power - and Alice's budding abilities - as their own. 

Dreams have never been so dark in Wonderland, and if there is any hope of defeating this mystery poet’s magic, Alice must confront the worst in herself, in the people she loves, and in the very nature of fear itself.

An Imprint Book  

"Mixing elements of Alice in Wonderland and Buffy the Vampire Slayer... a delectable urban twist on beloved fairy tales." (Entertainment Weekly)

"A dark, thrilling fantasy-meets-contemporary story with a kickass heroine." (Bustle)

©2019 L.L. McKinney (P)2019 Macmillan Young Listeners

Amazing sequel

All the things that made book 1 so amazing are still here and I'm very excited for book 3! The "caterpillar" cracked me up and I loved the couple new faces as well as all the old.

My *only* criticism is I wish they had kept it as only Jeanette as the narrator. She was amazing, of course, and she does most of the book, thankfully! But the other two... oi. I really struggled to like the male narrators, they eventually grew on me but every time it was their chapter I found myself missing Jeanette.
Jeanette's performance is an easy 5 but the others were, at best, a 3. So I averaged it at 4.

Yep. I still like this series.

I continue to enjoy fantasy/sci-fy with different cultural identities within the narrative.

Alice's mom seems exactly like my mom. That was a hoot!

More, please!

Everything you thought a STRONG BLACK MOM would be

Both book 1 and 2 A..MAZ..ING!!! Alice's mom is so my mother saying your whole name when she is angry. Know when you lying letting you continue to speak to hang yourself further in said lie. Best friends who were there for her even through they were mad at her. OMG The twins (Dem & Di) so enjoyed them when they were in play hope they have a bigger role in next book. I really have to go back and listen to when Alice met Hatter because I can not picture him (since I wasn't really listening ) and I just have a creepy vibe with their relationship but that is a personal issue nothing to do with the book. Mattie is another character that I really liked.

*only issue I have is they left things hanging like the necklace the grandmother gave her and being told when not wearing it always keep it in box. I was expecting to find out her grandmother had superpowers or was in Wonderland when she was younger. Also what happen with Chester how did he explain is missing time to his parents, what happen to the whole in his chest? To many unanswered questions. I hope next book (A Crown so Cursed) explains it.

Awesome

Loved This Book!!! It was Amazing!! The storyline was absolutely amazing. I can't wait to read it again

Amazing….Again

The Sequel was just as awesome as book 1. All the characters & story lines fell right into place. The narrators were good as well. Seriously can’t wait for book 3!!!

Better than book one!

This book was fantastic. The storyline kept me wanting more. I love how it dealt with the real world fears as well as what Alice faced in Wonderland. It was terrific.

Great Sequel!

The story moved quicker than the first book, which I enjoyed. I was not a fan of the multiple narrators. The male voices had very different voices for the main characters, especially Courtney. Jeanette was fine on her own. I appreciated the thought, but not the execution. Overall, great sequel and looking forward to the next.

Well Done

Great second installment.

I personally struggled with one of the relationships but overall this was another great story. I hope she has more in store for us.

I think Jeanette could have read for all the characters. She is a great narrarator!

change is good

loved the change up from the original version. ❤️ took a minute to figure out the characters, buy was definitely a good change.

Could have a little less girl guilt

I really enjoyed this book. It has so much diversity in it's characters without shouting about how diverse each character is. The story is captivating and I ran through books one and two in less than a week. The world rules were consistent and made sense throughout the story. There were also unanswered questions making me excited about the next book, but no lame cliff hanger forcing me to wait for the next book.

My only complaint, which I see often in scifi books with strong, fighting women, is the unnecessary level of guilt that the women seem to always carry with, even when it is clear as day that whatever they feel guilty about wasn't their fault or just couldn't be helped. It weakens the character and falls into a pattern that this book's storyline, with all of its diversity and refusal to lean on stereotypes, should just be above. She shouldn't feel guilty about everything. And again, a common trait in books with string, butt-kicking women and girls. But other than that I would definitely buy this book again.