A Theory of Dreaming

Sequel to A Study in Drowning

By: Ava Reid

Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld, Gary Furlong

Return to the immersive, lush, and dreamlike world of the instantly bestselling dark academia fantasy A Study in Drowning as the aftermath of their first discovery pulls Effy and Preston on a final adventure and brings their haunting love story to its end in this stunning sequel and final book in the duology.

All stories come to an end.

Effy learned that when she defeated the Fairy King. Even though she may never know exactly what happened at Hiraeth, she is free of her nightmares and is able to pen a thesis with Preston on the beloved national fairy tale Angharad. She has finally earned a spot at the literature college, making her the first woman in history to enroll.

But some dreams are dangerous, especially when they come true. The entire university—and soon the entire nation—is waiting for her to fail. With the Fairy King defeated and Myrddin’s legacy exposed, Effy can no longer escape into fantasy. Who is she without her stories?

With Effy under threat, Preston is surprised to discover a rage simmering inside him, ringing in his ears like bells. He begins to dream of a palace under the sea, a world where he is king—visions that start to follow him even in waking.

As the war between Llyr and Argant explodes, Effy and Preston find themselves caught in the crossfire: Effy losing her dreams and Preston losing himself in his.

Are dreams ever truly just dreams?

Deep. Moving. Good. Wonderful audio

This duology is deep, serious, and full of surprises. The characters are so real. Real life problems. Real life feelings. Real love.
Reality vs fantasy. Depression. Feminine oppression and feminine strength. Bullying. Academics. Facing the reality of life. While it has elements of fantasy, it has much we can learn about life. It’s along the lines of Divine Rivals and One Dark Window duologies.

Definitely not what I was expecting

While the first book will always hold a special place in my heart, this book felt like it didn’t really know what to do. A lot of plot points are just dropped, it doesn’t feel like there’s an overarching plot and the relationship between Effy and Preston is nothing like it was in the first book. The characters are pushed in a weird direction that leaves them feeling more hollow and not as fleshed out. I also had an issue with the climax/main conflict of the book as it felt extremely underwhelming and all over the place. That being said, I did enjoy the addition of the new characters in the book, the atmosphere was built in a way Ava Reid is know for (that being gothic and mysterious), and I did like getting to know more about Preston’s family but for me that’s where the praises end. Overall, if you liked the first book I say you get this and enjoy it as “bonus content” rather than a full fledged sequel.

I really loved the first

I felt a little lost in this second book. It all came together for the most part at the end. I’m not sure if I was distracted while listening or if the story really was all over the place as I felt. I still enjoyed most of the story though and liked the ending we got for Preston and Effie.

Lacked solid story line

unfortunately this book did not come anywhere close to being as good as the first. I barely made it through this book (I kept falling asleep 15 mins I each listen). Whereas the first book I couldn't stop listening and fished right away. It lacked a solid storyline, was very anticlimactic and the characters fall apart.

😔

I was excited for there to be a mermaid/underwater type kingdom, so I bought the audiobook immediately. I’ve come to realize that I truly hate Effy. Preston, his roommate, his underwater world, and his teacher were the good parts of this book, if there is such a thing here.