This Dream Will Devour Us by Emma Clancey

Title: This Dream Will Devour Us

Author: Emma Clancey

Genre: Fantasy

Publisher: Allen and Unwin

Published: 29^th April 2025

Format: Paperback

Pages: 384

Price: $24.99

Synopsis: An intoxicating mix of magic and the machinations of the rich and powerful creates a compulsive, bingeable read for readers who love Krystal Sutherland and Karen McManus.

‘Dark, deadly and decadent – prepare to stay up late to finish this one. Emma Clancey is a debut to watch.’ Amie Kaufman, NYT bestselling author of The Isles of the Gods

Sometimes you have to kill a dream to escape a nightmare.

Nora is the opposite of lucky. She’s still wrangling her dead dad’s debts when a mysterious illness lands her brother in hospital. But her fortunes take an unexpected turn when she wins the lottery to attend the Lamour family’s exclusive magical Dream Gala. If Nora can win over the Lamour heirs, she’ll get a coveted spot in their magical training program – and the money she needs to save her brother.

There’s just one problem: Nora never bought a lottery ticket.

Determined to discover who wants her at the Gala – and why – Nora plunges headfirst into magical high society. Caught up in a decadent world of brutal billionaires and cutthroat celebrities, Nora is soon in over her head. When her search for answers uncovers a sinister conspiracy, will Nora stay silent or risk the wrath of a family powerful enough to get away with murder?

~*~

Nora and her brother Hayden live in New York – a city we all know well. It’s our world, with all the technology we know, but with magic, and a drug that can change people and save lives called levic. But like healthcare in the US, healthcare and levic is expensive in this world. Nora’s life is less than ideal and lucky. She’s grappling with her father’s debts after his death, and her brother is in hospital, struck down by a mysterious illness. There’s one way she can change things, and this starts when she is invited to the Dream Gala at the home or brutal billionaire family, the Lamours, focused on brothers Remy and Henri. Winning a lottery that she never bought a ticket for to become a Dream Engineer is just the beginning of this mystery.

Throughout the novel, as they move between New York, Paris and Sydney, Nora is determined to find out wanted her at the gala and why. To do so, she must plunge headfirst into a magical society and decadent world, filled with brutal billionaires and cutthroat celebrities were nobody really knows who to trust.

Uncovering the sinister conspiracy that could cost lives is the core mystery of this novel, coupled with the integration of the high cost of healthcare in the US – a commentary on the system, perhaps. As a modern fantasy, this novel uses what we know in our world, like planes, cars, phones and other technology, and throws in magic to give it something a little bit different, and history is what it is – nothing has changed in this urban fantasy. It might seem strange, but it works – there’s no conflict between the technology and magic in this novel, They work together and as separate entities that make Nora’s world relatable and mysterious.

It also explores ideas of trust and misinformation – and how people are manipulated and abused by systems they don’t know anything about, but that know everything about them. It’s a novel filled with intoxicating mysteries, dangerous drugs, and twists and turns that you won’t see coming. It’s unlike other fantasy novels in many ways – from its contemporary setting to the idea that magic works with science so seamlessly – something that readers may not expect when they read fantasy. Everything has worked well in this story from beginning to end, even when sometimes, they seem sudden and abrupt.

This book has so many layers to it, and there should be something in it for everyone. It felt more like a novel celebrating unity and friendship as well, with undercurrents of distrust. It Is a book where as a reader, it was never clear who I could trust apart from Nora. It’s a cleverly crafted story of glamour and secrets; of the things we desire that aren’t what they seem. Many people only ever see the world of celebrity and riches as luxurious, but what this book does is reveal the darker side it can embody. The things we don’t get to witness, and shows the harms of manipulation and taking advantage of people who never asked to be part of a dangerous world.

It keeps readers on their toes as the Lamour family drags everyone around the world on their whims, and assumes everyone wants to be them. This Dream Will Devour Us is a mystical novel that is luxurious and enthralling, and will capture imaginations of readers.