Libba Bray illuminates the dark side of the American Dream in her long-awaited sequel to The Diviners (2012), weaving xenophobia, industrial progress, Jazz Age debauchery, government secrets, religious fervor, and supernatural horror into a sprawling and always entertaining narrative. Romances among the major players get significant time in the spotlight: Evie O’Neill, now “America’s Sweetheart Seer” of radio fame, finds herself pushed into a publicity-driven relationship with fellow Diviner Sam Lloyd; their combative (and often alcohol-fueled) exchanges are among the funniest in the novel. Follies girl Theta struggles to maintain her interracial romance with Harlem healer Memphis while keeping her own abilities secret from him. And musician Henry DuBois’s efforts to locate the boy he left behind in New Orleans lead him into friendship with fellow “dreamwalker” Ling Chan, whose Chinese-American community is being vilified as a deadly sleeping sickness sweeps across New York City.
Lair of Dreams was not as scary as The Diviners (which gave me nightmares!) and I felt that the sleeping sickness story line fell a little bit flat. I usually don’t like stories told with multiple narrators because usually one or more of them isn’t as interesting and I find myself skimming those chapters in order to get back to the story of another. But each of Bray’s characters has an amazing and distinct voice that makes you fall in love with them.
As with the Diviners, Lair of Dreams has left me wanting more. Hopefully it will not take another three years for Bray to release the third book in the trilogy.