The Pale Dreamer by Samantha Shannon

Publication date: 6th December 2016
Published by: Bloomsbury
Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy (YA)

This is a review of the kindle version

Publication synopsis
In the perilous heart of Scion London, a dangerous and valuable poltergeist is on the loose – and it must be caught before chaos erupts on the streets of the capital. Here, the clairvoyant underworld plays by its own rules, and rival gangs will stop at nothing to win such a magnificent prize.

Sixteen-year-old Paige Mahoney is working for Jaxon Hall, the most notorious mime-lord in the city. He thinks she is hiding a powerful gift, but it refuses to surface. Maybe this is the opportunity she needs to secure her position in his gang, the Seven Seals…

My Review
The Pale Dreamer is the prequel to The Bone Season, the first in a seven-part fantasy series of books about clairvoyants set in a futuristic alternate reality.  The second book, The Mime Order is soon to be reviewed on the blog, and the third book, The Song Rising, is due to be released in early March.

This novella takes us to the very beginning when Paige was first recruited by Jaxon Hall.  She is still unaware of the power of her gift and is trying hard to make an impression and be taken seriously. When she is given her first assignment, to help capture a poltergeist, she gets an opportunity to demonstrate her worth.

The story served to fill in some of the gaps from the previous books, giving us a better understanding of Paige and her relationship with some of the other gang members under Jaxon's leadership.

I enjoyed the book and I am quite excited about the next instalment (The Song Rising).  So much so that I recently re-read The Mime Order.  I was rather disappointed with it when I first read it but, on the second read, I saw it with a new pair of eyes and I gained so much more out of it - which demonstrates that I do get it wrong sometimes! One thing I was right about was that multiple visits to these books offer a better understanding of the series as a whole, and, in that sense it is a gift that keeps on giving.