Common Sense Media Review
By Sage Moreaux
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Death, gore, and romance in teen paranormal series spin-off.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
In SWEET NIGHTMARE, Calder Academy is a school for troubled paranormals, everyone from vampires to dragonshifters. With their powers suppressed, the students can't cause much trouble, but that doesn't stop trouble from finding Clementine Calder, who's lived on the remote Texas island that houses the school for her entire life. As a high school senior, all she wants is to graduate and get off the island. But one problem after another comes her way, including family difficulties, heinous chores, and an unwelcome run-in with her former best friend, and crush, Jude Abernathy-Lee. Just as Clementine thinks she has it all under control, a Category 5 storm hits and the school goes on lockdown. Now, forced to work with Jude, Clementine faces a waking nightmare that will change her life forever. A preview of author Tracy Wolff's series Crave, set in the same universe, is included at the end of the book.
Is It Any Good?
Fast-paced and full of action, this story blends a friends-to-lovers romance and elements of horror in a fine but unoriginal young adult paranormal fantasy. While Sweet Nightmare starts out entertaining enough, with a strong first-person narrative, the nonstop action sequences in this overly long novel go on far too long themselves, leading to a lack of excitement and some confusion during the last quarter of the story. Clementine exhibits some character growth over time, but the secondary characters don't have enough depth for the reader to care much about them. The love story pacing is fine, but while the romantic leads are supposedly longtime friends, there doesn't seem to be much other than animal magnetism and unspoken secrets drawing them together. Fast pacing, humorous chapter titles, and plenty of cliffhangers do keep things moving along pleasantly enough. The author poses more questions than answers, and while the narrative of this installment wraps up, fans will definitely be left wanting book two.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the amount of violence in Sweet Nightmare: Calder Academy, Book 1. Is it too much for a book written for teens?
How realistic is Clementine's ability to cope with so much bloodshed in such a short time?
Clementine perseveres through many trials, keeping her feelings bottled up. What happens when she finally lets them out? How might she have handled them differently?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Horror
- Topics : Fantasy ( Magic ) , School ( High School )
- Character Strengths : Communication , Courage , Perseverance
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Entangled: Teen
- Publication date : May 7, 2024
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 14 - 17
- Number of pages : 496
- Available on : Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : September 18, 2025
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