Muse of Nightmares

Sarai has spent her life among nightmares since the age of six, and she believed no horror could still surprise her. After the tragedy that closes the first book, she is a ghost, and Lazlo, the man she loves, has become a god. Neither is who they were, and both are still learning the limits of what they now are.

Minya, the dark-minded leader of the godspawn, holds them hostage. She wants vengeance on the city of Weep. Lazlo faces a choice with no good answer: he can save the woman he loves, or he can save everyone else. Sarai, the muse of nightmares, feels helpless, though she has not yet found what she can do.

Humans and godspawn are still reeling from the near fall of the citadel when a new enemy appears and breaks their fragile hopes. Old mysteries about the Mesarthim return too. The origin of the gods and their purpose remain unanswered, and so does the fate of the thousands of children born in the citadel nursery.

This is the second book in a fantasy duology and follows Strange the Dreamer, so it reads best after that one. Love and hate, revenge and mercy pull against each other as doors open onto new worlds. The book turns on whether heroes must always slay monsters or can save them instead.