A dying, blue woman, moths, and screaming masses grace the first few pages of Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor. Almost immediately, the narrative shifts to an adventurous, young boy, playing in a hazel wood. This boy, called Lazlo Strange, is an orphan obsessed with a city lost to the rest of the world. Lazlo’s imagination soars with the wonders of this place with a false name, Weep, as he absorbs as much magic as he can just from the stories he hears of it. The reader watches as Lazlo is saved from his childhood home by his love of stories, and bad fish, and is transported to the library of his dreams. Here, in Zosma, does Lazlo finally fill his craving for Weep with every book ever written of its mysterious past and sudden departure from the world. In Lazlo’s time, no one believes that Weep had even existed, but one day, a day Lazlo had only dreamed of, Tizerkane warriors ride up to the Great Library of Zosma atop beasts called Lys, thought to only exist in myth. They come asking for Zosma’s brightest scholars of every variety, in hopes that they might be brought to Weep to fix a “problem” the citizens experience there. Despite his position and limited talent, Lazlo is invited to join their party. This is Lazlo’s chance to see with his own eyes what he had spent years studying, but when they arrive, Lazlo realizes Weep’s “problem” is something he could not have ever imagined. From there, Laini Taylor spins a tale bursting with fascinating mythology, a city in complex emotional strife, and character relationships relatable to virtually any reader.

The magic and whimsy of Strange the Dreamer alone is glaring proof that Laini Taylor is unlike any other young adult author writing right now. However, when compared with her Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy, Strange the Dreamer shows that Taylor seems to have an affinity for monsters. Luckily, this is not an exhausting fact, because Taylor writes her monsters with some of the most beautiful language used in recent young adult fiction. This language carries over into every other aspect of her novel, especially in her imagery, for example, as when she writes of a mysterious, encroaching spell, “It was fog- tongues of white vapor extruding between the knuckles of the fur-dark hills- but it moved like a living thing, with a curious, hunting intelligence” (365). Along with this beauty, Taylor adds fascinating details to the complexity of the world she creates around Lazlo’s story. One in particular that stands out, would be the second vascular system of spirit that runs in the humans of this world. Partnering with the fact that there is magic, alchemy exists within this story, and strangely, the idea of being able to extract one’s spirit like blood from a vein is incorporated into this world’s science. The entire subplot surrounding this idea is endlessly intriguing and delightfully refreshing when compared to other, modern young adult fantasy novels’ reuse of many magical tropes. Aside from the uniqueness of concept and intricate language, Strange the Dreamer also offers characters that can universally be described as charming. From Lazlo narrating out loud his arrival at the Cusp, to Suheyla’s morning meals, the reader is enchanted by the ounce of charm that Taylor integrates into all of her characters. At points, one could argue that Taylor’s dialogue is lacking, but the emotion of every conversation is felt. The emotion is especially felt in the relationship between the Godspawn and the people of Weep. Besides the violent memories and tensions that were the result of them, Taylor presents very subtly the theme of colorism. What is so ingenious about her approach to this topic is the fact that it is presented in the story’s plot with action, instead of told to the reader outright. By the end, Taylor inserts one single statement that encourages the reader imperceptibly towards the conclusion of this theme. It is an interesting method that seems to make this common injustice stick with the reader more firmly, as opposed to the theme being obvious. In the world of young adult fantasy, Strange the Dreamer succeeds in being a stand out, imaginative, heart-breaking, and gorgeously written story that will change seasoned reader’s expectations going forward.