Dream Magic by Joshua Khan

Title: Dream Magic
Series: Shadow Magic, book 2
Author: Joshua Khan
Genre: Middle Grades, Fantasy
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Date: April 11, 2017
Length: x pages

This book was free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

A fabulously exciting sequel to the fantasy adventure SHADOW MAGIC.
People throughout Gehenna are disappearing, even the feared executioner Tyburn. Many of the nobles believe the kidnappings to be the work of the northern trolls, raiding south for the winter, and when Baron Sable and others head off to fight them, Castle Gloom is left guarded by only the squires.
Lily is struggling with her growing necromantic powers. The castle fills with ghosts, drawn like moths to a flame by the brightness of her magic. Zombies roam the country, some left over from those raised in SHADOW MAGIC, others awakened by Lily. Families are troubled by the returning dead, so Lily tries to incorporate them into day-to-day life, much to the resentment of the living.
Then Lily is attacked in her own castle by a mysterious sorcerer known as Dreamweaver, a young man determined to conquer Gehenna using jewel-spiders, strange crystalline creatures whose bite doesn’t kill, but sends victims to sleep. Lily soon discovers that Dreamweaver is harvesting dreams to fuel his magic.
Lily enters the realm of sleep known as the Dream Time, in an attempt to awaken all the captive dreamers. Instead she finds herself trapped within a dream, one where her family is still alive. With the help of Thorn and the ever loyal Hades, she must somehow overcome the evil Dreamweaver by using his own magic against him – and reclaim her kingdom.

Description from Goodreads

The world of Dream Magic is like a junior version of Game of Thrones set in Halloween Town. Replace dragons with zombies and Lily would be Khaleesi fighting to save her kingdom with magic and possibly a political marriage.

What I liked

Characters: The characters were all pretty well rounded, including the supporting characters and the villain. for Even Gabriel Solar is more then a stereotypically vain and selfish prince. I mean, he's still horrible, but the reason is pretty believable and you end up feeling sorry for him. I love that there's a list of characters in the front of this book, that's a great feature to help readers keep track of everyone.

World Building: This is a creative and fun fantasy world. Khan does a great job with descriptions and explanations without it feeling like an info dump. The four lands have very distinctive magic and cultures. Gehenna is an interesting land where a natural death isn't feared but celebrated. People still morn their lost loved ones but the loss is the terrible thing, not death. There are lots of little details that round out the world, from regional cultural practices, political machinations, interesting animals, and the economic impact of ghosts and zombies. The book's map is also a great addition and helps make the world more concrete for readers.

Illustrations: There were only a few black and white illustrations, but they were dramatic and well done. It's nice to have a few illustrations sprinkled into a story as its a feature that older kids appreciate.

Humor: Dark and wry, the humor is great and keeps a story that's frequently violent and bloody from being too scary. Khan hits snort-out-loud levels of funny without copping out to gross out humor.

Lily paused and reached into her pocket. "Oh, and when you see the doctor, please give him these. Perhaps he'll know who they belong to." She handed over two squishy balls.
Matilda frowned. "What are these? Dumplings?"
"Eyes. I found them in the Tower of Torment this morning. They must have fallen out of one of the servants."

What I'm on the fence about

It's a teensy weensy bit blood thirsty: This could be a great read aloud or pick for younger but more advanced readers, depending on your child. Like grade 3 or 4. Parents and guardians know their kids best, please read it first if you think it might scare them. Grade 5 and up will enjoy the darker aspects of the story.

Rating: 4.0

Kids are always asking for scary books. Since "scary" is subjective, I normally direct kids to something creepy. Dream Magic is in that great spot that it's creepy enough that it satisfies that "scary" itch and still age appropriate.

Have you or your child read Dream Magic, what was your favorite part. Did you find it too gorey for kids? Are there any creepy middle grades books that you recommend? I'm always on the hunt for them.