A Dream So Dark (The Nightmare-Verse Series #2)

by L. L. McKinney

Overview

"The fantasy series I've been waiting for my whole life."

—Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times-bestselling 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 high school), Alice must cross the Veil to rescue her friends and stop the Black Knight once and for all. But the further she ventures into Wonderland, the more topsy-turvy everything becomes. It’s not until she’s at her wit's end that she realizes—Wonderland is trying to save her.

There’s a new player on the board; someone capable of using Nightmare creatures to not only influence the living but raise the dead.

Dreams have never been so dark in Wonderland, and if there is any hope, Alice must confront the worst in herself—and in the people she loves—and face the very nature of fear.

An Imprint Book

"The Alice I never knew I needed. The Alice I was missing. McKinney conjures a Wonderland for those of us who weren’t given the looking glass."

—Dhonielle Clayton, New York Times-bestselling author of The Belles

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250620835
Publisher:	Square Fish
Publication date:	09/19/2023
Series:	Nightmare-Verse Series , #2
Pages:	432
Sales rank:	223,814
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 8.20(h) x 1.20(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Named one of The Root’s 100 Most Influential African-Americans of 2020, L.L. McKinney is a writer, a poet, and an active member of the kidlit community. She’s an advocate for equality and inclusion in publishing, the co-founder of Juneteenth Book Fest, and the creator of the hashtags #PublishingPaidMe and #WhatWOCWritersHear. She’s also a gamer girl and an adamant Hei Hei stan. She is the author of A Blade So Black, A Dream So Dark, and A Crown So Cursed.

Editorial Reviews

"A breakout author." —Entertainment Weekly

"With memorable characters and page-turning thrills, the Nightmare-Verse is the fantasy series I've been waiting for my whole life. Alice is Black Girl Magic personified."

—Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The Hate U Give

"The Alice I never knew I needed. The Alice I was missing. McKinney conjures a Wonderland for those of us who weren’t given the looking glass. It is a feat of black girl magic!"

—Dhonielle Clayton, New York Times-bestselling author of The Belles

"McKinney’s follow-up to A Blade So Black proves she is a master of urban fantasy... Explosive from start to finish and guaranteed to send readers gleefully down a rabbit hole from which they’ll emerge begging for a third installment." —Booklist, starred review

"Complex intrigue... Rousing, nonstop twists help make this sophomore entry a success." —Kirkus Reviews

A Blade So Black:

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

"This really is Lewis Carroll by way of Buffy, and it makes for a fun, gritty urban fantasy." —NPR

"I loved the 'our world' framing and the 'other world' adventure so deeply. They were at such odds, but the overall effect was just chefkiss.gif perfect."

—E.K. Johnston, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of Star Wars: Ahsoka and A Thousand Nights

"Wholly original and absolutely thrilling—A Blade So Black kicks so much (looking gl)ass."

—Heidi Heilig, author of The Girl From Everywhere

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

"Retold fairy tales have been a popular trend... but you’ve never read one quite like A Blade So Black." —Nerdist

"A brash, refreshing, vitally diverse retelling of a classic... You need this book." —Tor.com

"A Blade So Black is a novel that roars mightily in the face of all those Wonderland tales that have come before. L.L. McKinney is on her way to someplace special with this debut; get onboard now." —Locus magazine

"This isn't a retelling, this is Alice in Wonderland 2.0." —BlackSci-Fi.com

"An epic about Black Girl Magic." —We Need Diverse Books blog

"An explosive, kickass debut... The Alice in Wonderland retelling the world has always needed." —Booklist, starred review

"Relentless action, spiraling stakes, and a fierce heroine... A heartbreaking cliffhanger will leave fans clamoring for a sequel." —Publishers Weekly

"A thrilling, timely novel that ensures readers will be curious for a sequel." —Kirkus Reviews

"With a modern flair, a rich backstory, and just enough emotional heft, this particular looking glass will have readers eagerly falling through it." —The Bulletin

"Teens will root for Alice as a strong, multidimensional black girl usually unseen in YA fiction... A must-purchase." —School Library Journal

"A Blade So Black is a modernized version of a well-known story that retains enough of the original to be lauded by both fans of the classic and readers wholly new to Wonderland." —Shelf Awareness

From the Publisher

2019-08-28
McKinney's sequel to A Blade So Black (2018) delves into the corruption of Wonderland's peaceful existence.

After an epic battle against the Black Knight and his Fiends, Dreamwalker Alice Kingston works to reckon with the death of her best friend, Chess, who was stabbed during the melee. When Chess is reanimated by Slithe, literally the stuff (blood) of Nightmares, and kidnaps the Poet Maddi, Alice must deal with her mother's declining trust in her as well as attacks from a mysterious bloody lady in order to find her friends. She journeys from our world to Wonderland and literally somewhere In-Between, which is "not here nor there, nor anywhere…it's pretty much everywhere," eventually being forced to face the deepest fears held in her heart. Wonderland takes shape through its ethnically diverse peoples, such as Xhosa-speaking healer Naette, and fantastical, Carrollian creatures, like Duma the Bandersnatch, a doglike animal with hooved feet, multicolored fur, and a purple tongue, and is much more interesting than the underdeveloped settings in our world. Readers meet characters whose personal relationships contribute to a complex intrigue that nicely complements the interspersed fight scenes, creating great balance and pacing. The addition of queer-coded Dreamwalker Haruka, a young Japanese woman, and a broader portrait of the Black Knight's history effectively complicate the plot without making it clunky.

Rousing, nonstop twists help make this sophomore entry a success. (Fantasy. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews