Encanto: Nightmares and Sueños

by Alex Segura

Return to Casita where we find seventeen-year-old Bruno from Disney's hit animated film Encanto, where readers will finally learn what happened to make people never want to talk about him.

Fans will love this dark and mysterious young adult novel by Alex Segura, a NYT bestselling author who also wrote Poe Dameron: Free Fall and Araña and Spider-Man 2099: Dark Tomorrow.

Seventeen-year-old Bruno has never really fit in with his family—why can’t he be as outgoing as his sister Pepa, or as friendly as his sister Julieta? Does he like being the awkward loaner who never seems to find where he can fit in? But it’s hard to be popular when you have the power to tell the future and people don’t always like what you are telling them. So Bruno devises an act, and begins to model the behavior he feels the town wants to see in a hero.

But is being dishonest to himself and others the right path to walk down in order to make friends, or is Bruno just kidding himself as he hides from his own destiny that threatens to destroy all he holds dear?

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Audiobook, Media Tie In

384 pages, Hardcover

Published December 3, 2024

About the author

Alex Segura is the bestselling and award-winning author of Secret Identity, which The New York Times called “wittily original” and named an Editor’s Choice. NPR described the novel as “masterful” and The L.A. Times called it “a magnetic read.”

Secret Identity received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, and Booklist, was listed as one of the Best Mysteries of the Year by NPR, Kirkus, Booklist, LitReactor, Gizmodo, BOLO Books, and the South Florida Sun Sentinel, was nominated for the Anthony Award for Best Hardcover, the Lefty and Barry Awards for Best Novel, the Macavity Award for Best Mystery Novel, and won the LA Times Book Prize in the Mystery/Thriller category.

His upcoming work includes the YA superhero adventure Araña/Spider-Man 2099: Dark Tomorrow, the follow-up to Secret Identity, Alter Ego, and the sci-fi/espionage thriller, Dark Space (with Rob Hart). Alex is also the author of Star Wars Poe Dameron: Free Fall, the Anthony Award-nominated Pete Fernandez Miami Mystery series, and a number of comic books – including The Mysterious Micro-Face (in partnership with NPR), The Black Ghost, The Archies, The Dusk, The Awakened, Mara Llave – Keeper of Time, Blood Oath, stories featuring Marvel heroes the Avengers, Sunspot, White Tiger, Spider-Man and DC’s Superman, Sinestro, and The Question, to name a few.

His short story, “90 Miles” was included in The Best American Mystery and Suspense Stories for 2021 and won the Anthony Award for Best Short Story. Another short story,“Red Zone,” won the 2020 Anthony Award for Best Short Story.

Alex is also the co-creator of the Lethal Lit podcast, named one of the best fiction podcasts of 2018 by The New York Times.

A Miami native, he lives in New York with his wife and children.

Reviews

[Joe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very boring plot. So glad I didn’t buy it

[Lin Reads · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately what works against this book is what likely attracted people to it: Encanto as a film already exists. Because Encanto takes place so far in the future, it removes a lot of stakes from the book, but also dampens a lot of the lighter moments.

Strangely it relies on the reader having watched the movie due to the amount of overt nods to the movie. This would otherwise be confusing to any readers that haven't seen the movie. Also the woman whose fish dies, her last name literally means dead fish, and...that's silly even for me. The prophecies don't line up with the established timeliness either, it really suffers from relying on the movie.

Worst of all is that it was very slow going, and I just didn't believe I was reading Bruno, but reading someone impersonating him. I don't know, it was jumbled and unfortunately I did not finish it.

[Mela Sidro · Rating 2 out of 5]

I FINALLY finished this after having started it back in January as a buddy read.
I kinda hate to say this about anything Encanto, but...
This was really bad.
The writing was ok, but the story was extremely predictable to the point where I physically rolled my eyes near the end when something I predicted at the very beginning was confirmed.
There were also several world building choices that made no sense but were added in for some reason, which took me out of the story the few times they showed up.
Even after finishing the entire book, I'm still not sure why they were included when they didn't add much to anything and only made things feel kinda wonky.
The story itself was also held back by the fact that this is meant to be a prequel.
All the character development means nothing since we already know what happens later, which only makes everything feel stilted and forced.
At least we get to see more of how the Madrigal triplets were in their youth. That was really cool.
It was a giant waste of time overall, though. I unfortunately wouldn't even recommend this to a die hard Encanto fan.

[Vail Chester · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's not like I'm expecting wonderfully written prose when it comes to these officially licensed fanfics from Disney, but I AM EXPECTING AN ADHERENCE TO THE CONTINUITY!
Pepa got married at 17? The actual name of the town is Encanto?! A vengeful bad guy lurking in the shadows since the miracle occurred? Making Bruno a hero only for him to be constantly villainized after he goes into self-imposed exile?
It's points like this that I wonder if the author even saw the movie or if he just looked at the Wikipedia page for a couple of details to throw in (or if somebody was singing "We Don't Talk About Bruno" ad nauseum and he thought he could get away with what he gleaned from the song). Seriously, the only canon he threw in was the beginning and the end of the book.

Do not get me started on the villain of the story. The original film's villain was LIVING UP TO THE OLDER GENERATION'S EXPECTATIONS; here, they actually have chapters of a twisted individual who holds a grudge against the Madrigals monologuing to himself about how his plan is coming together when in reality his motivations and "plan" are completely asinine, and like Bruno pointed out, he had no escape plan IF his hunch about disrupting the magic by killing the Madrigals was right; furthermore, his confrontation in front of the MAGICAL HOUSE THAT LOVES ITS FAMILY would've amounted to nothing if the author remembered that Casita was alive and could've fired a shingle at his head or shuffled its floor tiles so that he couldn't stand; or Felix...he existed cuz of Bruno's constant moping over "ruining" Pepa's wedding...where the eff was he when his wife was being threatened by a madman with a knife? I know the Madrigals all have superpowers, but this generation's not exactly the X-men or Quirk heroes here; so why have a bad guy that they can't actually fight?

Can't really stand the writing on this either. There's a difference between "we gonna talk about Bruno" and "we're going to constantly reiterate how isolated & freakish Bruno feels for pages and pages and pages!" Then when Bruno decides to act against his neurodivergent nature, it's lots & lots & lots of his family talking about how this isn't right and he's been acting weird...er. Even in the endgame when there's a major confrontation, Bruno's epiphany of who he is & focusing on the positives goes on & on & on!

It does end a little bittersweet as we see how Bruno keeps looking out for Mirabel as she sees a similar struggle for her being the new weirdo of the family, but doesn't really save the story.

I'M [ROBERTO] AND I'M AFRAID OF NOTHING!

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

So here's the thing with writing a prequel after the fact.... everyone knows how it ends. Sometimes finding out how characters got there in the first place is interesting, other times the conflict tension is lacking because you already know what happens. Unfortunately, that's what happens here. Also, if readers are not already familiar with Encanto, they're going to be very confused.

I was looking forward to getting more of Bruno's story, since he is definitely one of the more interesting characters in the movie. But so much of this novel focuses around the premonition Bruno has of living in the walls exiled by his family. Which we already know happens, so that takes any of the potential tension away from the mystery that's being solved in this book. Good idea, but this one didn't quite stick the landing for me.

Anthony Rey Perez does a decent job with the audiobook narration, though there are a few voices that I personally found very difficult to understand. Overall I had to keep messing with the volume because it was either too loud or too quiet.

Advanced Reader’s Copy provided by NetGalley, Disney Audiobooks, and Disney Press in exchange for an honest review.

[Jasmine Galloway · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for an arc of this book in exchange for honest feedback. I loved that Bruno got a bit more of a backstory but I think it’s so hard to write his story with his family accepting him while also knowing what happens later. I thought some parts were repetitive and it seemed to push the same 3 ideas over and over again instead of just showing you those themes throughout. I did enjoy reading about this family and Bruno more and I loved what they added at the end. Overall I think some stuff could be edited out (mostly the repetition) and this could be rated higher.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just can’t with Abuela Alma. I KNOWWWWWW… I know… I get it… she’s not “the villain” and she “changed” but man, so much bad shit happened to everyone at Casita BECAUSE of her beliefs and closed-mindedness and stubbornness and refusal to listen to anyone else and as someone who has suffered from Generational Trauma…, I just can’t with her…

I get it. At the end of the day, she is a fictional character. But that fictional character just brings so much pain inside of me to the surface and so… I just can’t…

I do understand… This is a me problem.

[Amandatory Reading · Rating 3 out of 5]

Encanto is my favorite Disney movie and Bruno is one of my fave characters! A book about his backstory sounded great and I couldn’t wait for some of that movie magic. Unfortunately, the story fell flat for me and became boring. I had a hard time finishing it and even skimmed a few parts to get through it. Maybe Bruno isn’t so interesting after all? Or maybe it’s just the book itself? I did enjoy reading more about Encanto and getting to meet new characters. There were parts I did enjoy with Pepa and Julieta. The epilogue was a nice touch, too.

[Hilary Redman · Rating 2 out of 5]

An alternative story featuring Bruno. I was incredibly bored by the story line as it goes nowhere fast. Then I was annoyed at the last quarter as it is very repetitive and takes forever for it to end.

[Saeed McKoy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love this story very interesting take on the characters before the movie story.

[Damita Perez · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story I didn't know I needed of Encanto. We follow Bruno as he struggles to feel loved and needed with a gift that feels like a curse. He, of course, has some friends, an old man no one trusts named Padilla, a boy his age named Roberto and his sisters who try to be understanding.

When Roberto tells him maybe he just needs to change himself to be better liked, he does, and Roberto is right. People are coming to him with smiles and appreciation. Was lying the correct thing to do, though?

I adored how this set up the Encanto movie and getting a better peek at what kind of problems could come from the gifts the Madrigal family were given.

I hope to see so many more stories of the Madrigals and their family.

[Lisa Andres · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley and Disney for an ARC of this book.

Here's the thing: prequels -- especially prequels to established IPs -- are tricky to pull off. After all, the reader (presumably) knows how this is going to end.

When done well -- I'm looking at you, Suzanne Collins -- the prequel can be a gut-wrenching tragedy, because you desperately want it to be different, but you also know it can't. It's...inevitable.

When *not* done well...well, I fear you get something like this book.

And I love Encanto! Love all the characters! And I desperately wanted to love this book.

But I found myself...bored at times, and just zoning out as I was reading. Before I get into why, let me just say what I think could have been better:
If Disney had approached this like their Star Wars Point-of-View books -- where they round out the established story with different perspectives -- I think that could have been a game-changer. Imagine vignettes / short stories from the POV of all the characters, including the Fish Lady in the village, or the guy who lost his hair, or Luisa's donkeys, or Casita. Instead...

--this book is almost 400 pages long. And it's about 250 pages longer than it needs to be, for what happens. The plot is basically: Bruno feels like an outcast; something bad is coming; something bad happens; Bruno has a revelation; Bruno feels like an outcast. We don't need 400 pages for that.

--It is also extremely repetitive. Many of the chapters were just repeating Bruno's anxieties or "the villain's" evil monologue.

--What happens to "the villain" [<--redacted for spoilers] At the end, they're just taken outside out the village (or, to the edge of it) and...never heard from again? They don't play a role in Encanto (the film), so...what happens to them? And the trauma itself is never referenced.

--It was also frustrating to read Bruno's arc -- to have him realize that he was loved and valued -- and then to have it basically undone. Part of the reason he goes into the walls of Casita to protect Mirabel is because he feels like a burden and unwanted: otherwise, he would have stayed to protect her outside, which she clearly needs. So, if you undo that growth by fast-forwarding 22 years...what's the point?
To me, the more interesting part would have been what happened during that interval: how did we get from Bruno accepting himself to seeking refuge in the walls of Casita?

--Also, where was Felix?!? Like, yes, I know he was "visiting family" -- but (1) he and Pepa are married so it was just weird that we ret-conned that and then had him absent from the book and (2) if his family is so far away from Encanto that he has no clue what's going on (because some major shit goes down in this book) and doesn't come back, then why can't "the villain" also get away to the edges of Encanto? Or why can't they leave, period? If Encanto was created to protect them, why did it let "the villain" in to begin with?
I always got the impression that the events of the film were the first time that Encanto was threatened -- or, rather, that it was the unresolved accumulating trauma that was finally coming to a head.

There was potential here...but with a prequel, I feel like you either have to be okay ending on an unresolved, tension-filled note, or you have to more effectively ret-con it so that the characters are more psychologically complex. And this book fell flat on both of those counts for me. Maybe I expect too much from these Disney-IP-books, but given how wonderful I usually find the film plots...the books could be so much more.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I absolutely love the movie Encanto. Bruno is a wonderful character. So to see that there is a book about Bruno and how he learned to deal with his gift was amazing. Or so I thought....
I really wanted to like this book. I really did. It does have its' own unique charm. I liked seeing Alma in the role that Mirabel eventually takes up. But unfortunately, it didn't turn out so well.
The author went rogue quite a bit and deviated from what was already canon on several topics. Examples include but not limited to: Bruno's intent in telling Pepa it will rain on her wedding, Casita wasn't as sentient as in the movie, the way Bruno's powers work, and the individual rooms in Casita (it would have been great to see Pepa and Julieta's rooms in the fashion of the movie).
Also, Bruno's incessant whinging and ongoing pity party was exhausting. Every scene he was in was just more of the same.
Finally, the story was extremely predictable. The synopsis on the book jacket and information in the prologue was enough to figure out the book.
To be fair, going in the audience already knew everything would turn out ok. So writing a prequel to a beloved movie is a tall order. But the deviations from Encanto canon drove me insane. I recommend a pass on this one.

[Kuroyuri · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an easy read (HUGE font size). I liked the tie-in to the main timeline with Mirabel at the end, and it was nice to get a closer look at Bruno's perspective.

The story itself was kind of basic though, I figured out the "twist" very early on (it was quite obvious) and the villain kind of felt like a teenager's Wattpad OC, complete with a kind of shallow edgy backstory. The pacing is kinda off, since the twist is obvious so early on it feels like the rising action just drags on and on, then the climax is a bit of a letdown (especially all the characters inaction of just standing there when the villain does something to the mentor character that you would not expect in a Disney story), and then the resolution feels like it gets dragged out too until the epilogue.

The relationships of the Madrigal family were explored pretty well, especially between the triplets and Alma (before all the grandkids were added to the mix), and the overall message of being yourself and not trying to fit into the mold to appease other people was nice.


I've had "We don't talk about Bruno" playing on loop in my brain for the past week haha

[Yessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

A prequel to the movie 'Encanto,' this book covers Bruno's development into his own powers. There were some parts that I kind of sped through. There are big chunks of the book where nothing really happens, which can be boring for a middle grade reader. The characters fall perfectly in line with their personalities in the movie, so Segura did an excellent job with that. However, the ending doesn't perfectly align with the Bruno we see in the movie. I'm sure it can be explained away by time passing, but it was a little strange to see the Bruno going into hiding be so different than the one that came out. This must have been a difficult book to write, because you can't have too much character growth, as that happens more in the more, especially with Pepa accepting him and his visions, but some of the character choices didn't make sense. The mystery is an obvious one for older readers, but could be surprising for young ones. A fun read for fans of Encanto, and a good addition to middle grade collections.

[~Cyanide Latte~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was excited to see this when I was looking over shelves in a bookstore, and I knew I'd have to get it. Encanto is really one-of-a-kind amount Disney movies, and getting an entire book centered around Bruno and some of his struggles was really special. I have a couple of issues with minor details in this book that I feel kind of ignore or forget the events of the film ever-so-slightly, but overall it's a solid read. I do feel the "hidden" threat is pretty obvious from the off, but it's not bad when you consider that that particular plot element also deals with a toxic friendship and abuse tactics that aren't easily spotted when you're either in that relationship or haven't become familiar with spotting the red flags. And I also really enjoyed the way this book gave us more of Pepa and Julieta as well (though it does have more focus on Julieta, and I would have preferred a more balanced split between both sisters.) I do highly recommend this for fans of the film and of Bruno as a character.

[Larissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a rough book. I love the Encanto world and was so excited to get a book that finally talked about Bruno. He is such a dynamic character and with so little known about him this book had room to run and give us more of the character we learned to love. Sadly, this book did little to add to the world let alone any back story that helped me love Bruno. The story is dull, there is very little that draws you in. Bruno who comes off in the movie as a dynamic character is one noted throughout the novel. I do love him trying to figure out who he is, and how best to be true to himself. However, the journey to this just is not engaging. The book is way to long to have so little plot and repeats itself constantly. I really wanted to like this book. I just can’t get behind it.
Thank you to Disney Publishing Worldwide and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

[Rhiannon Fiust · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received an ARC copy of this book via NetGalley but all opinions expressed are my own.

I went into this book with high hopes of loving it because Bruno is one of my favorite characters, but I honestly didn't enjoy it as much as I had hoped. I appreciated that we readers got more of a backstory on Bruno but overall the book and storyline was a bit too repetitive for me. I know it's more of a middle grade book, but as a children's librarian I do read plenty of middle grade. I also found it tough to get through the story where his family was more accepting of him because I know what comes later. Overall though the book was still fairly enjoyable.

I'm sure the kids in my community will love it so I will likely be ordering it, but I just couldn't bring myself to give more than three stars.

[Samantha Smyth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted this book to be amazing because Bruno is an interesting character. The story is not bad per se, but it has faults that make it jarring to read if you loved Encanto. There are GLARING continuity errors. Every time one came up, it would break the rhythm and flow of the story for me because it was irritating.

The story itself is fine and even has some sweet moments of character development for other characters. The epilogue is sweet and well done.

Also, the author uses a lot of Spanish dialogue without translations in the text. there are no footnotes or glossary in the book either. If you do not know Spanish, you will either have to infer from context (which is fine on occasion, but gets old after a while) or use an outside resource. They handle the mix in if Spanish MUCH better in the movie (restating things in English and using for emphasis sparingly).

[Riley Goldstein · Rating 3 out of 5]

“I want people to love me for who I am—not what they want me to be.”

I wanted to like this book. I so very much wanted to LOVE this book. And honestly, it wasn’t bad, but it failed to meet expectations. I love Encanto, and Bruno is my favorite character, so maybe my expectations were too high.
But this story just didn’t match up to the story we know. It left some minor plot holes especially in terms of characterizations. I just didn’t feel pulled in. I kept noting what felt… of.
It was well written, and the story overall enjoyable, even if I found the end of the conflict a bit odd. Was it predictable? Yes, but its a kids book and it didn’t overall feel boring.
I wouldn’t say don’t read this - like I said, it’s not bad. But I wouldn’t run out to buy a copy asap either.

[Jdetrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

As usual for Alex Segura, a book much deeper than it would first appear, bringing up questions of being yourself and what that even means. I'm a big fan of Encanto, and revisiting that world, in a time before the film, was incredibly enjoyable, especially spending time with characters that don't get as much room in the film as the movie's stars. But it was really in the character study of Bruno, someone who sees himself as an outsider and wishes to change that, that the book hit home. Who has not, especially when they were younger, felt that way? And who has not tried to change themselves to fit in? Segura turns Bruno into a fully realized human being, setting up some of the events of the film, yet still writing a very satisfying stand alone book.

[Annette · Rating 4 out of 5]

The moment I discovered that this book existed, I had to order a copy. It's BRUNO! We all wanna hear more about Bruno! And this book didn't disappoint. I loved Bruna as a teenager. I loved the challenges he faced and how he dealt with them. Mostly because they were so realistic. I think a lot of teenagers reading this will recognize his situation (and hopefully they'll get the message), while a lot of no longer teenagers reading the book will remember the feeling, in most cases not too fondly. I also loved how this book eventually tied in with the story we know. The epilogue was lovely and after reading the rest of the story it was really easy to understand why Bruno did what he did!

[Justine Ridder · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was very bored for the majority of this story which was very disappointing since I was very excited to learn about Bruno's past. I got characters mixed up constantly. I think this was because of the way the audiobook was narrated or possibly the way the chapters started. It always took me a bit to figure out which point of view I was in.

This book was just very blah in my opinion. I think most kids are going to have a hard time continuing with this one. Many kids may pick it up because of the Encanto intrigue, but most will not finish the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Disney Audiobooks | Disney Press for giving me an advanced copy for an honest review.

[Denise Morse · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Encanto, I think it’s one of the top 10 Disney movies of all time and this book is a hit or miss prequel. I enjoyed a lot more he diary of Julieta and learning a little more about her, Pepa unfortunately remained very one dimensional and Bruno was interesting. I liked learning more about Bruno but I had a hard time with how repetitive the story became. I wanted to see more of a through line to the movie but had some trouble with that. It was interesting and I learned some but could have been better.

[bri · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was hard to read. It didn’t feel like I was reading a story from Bruno. It gave me imposter vibes.

You do have to have watched the movie prior to reading the book or you would be lost on the references in the book.

I have watched the movie and it relied heavy on the movie. I wanted this to be its own kind of story. Bruno’s backstory without so much of the present.

Honestly the book didn’t make me like Bruno more if anything it showed why no one likes him to begin with.

I made it to page 200. I couldn’t stand reading anymore. I usually am a fast reader and i struggled!

[Rebecca Morrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think anyone giving this story a poor review didn't finish the book. Yes, the past of Bruno could get repetitive and it was very obvious who the bad guy was, but the dynamic of a family we grew to love in the film is worth it. I loved the ending and what Bruno does from afar for his family. If you've ever been curious about this character, I suggest a read. It's short chapters move quickly, making it an overall good read.

[Julia Pika · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley & Disney Publishing Worldwide for the copy in exchange for an honest review. Sadly, I DNF'ed at 20% of the way through.

This was incredibly dull and with very little world-building, it was mainly just depressing to see Bruno get worse and worse as the idiot village sees him as a monster for existing. I would've preferred to see a book from his point of view AFTER the movie and see how he adjusts after being alone for so long.

[Angela Sandoval · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this one but it didn't really meet my expectations. It was generally entertaining, even if a little slow and repetitive, especially at the beginning. A storyline with more action and less thinking about his feelings might have pulled me in a little more. But it was fun to learn a little more about who Bruno was. I'm sure our middle school readers will pick this one up with or without a recommendation, just because it's about a favorite movie character.

[Aidan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the idea of a backstory for Bruno since he was my favorite character in the movie, but this book misses the mark. It had moments that were repetitive and it couldn't hold my attention. I didn't finish it. I got about a third of the way through and just couldn't bring myself to finish it. I'm sure a child may enjoy it, however, so my library will probably end up ordering it.

[Engel Dreizehn · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC copy...feel very the twisted tales fans would like this as it is a darker take on Encanto or rather more so the focus is on the "outsider" emotions of teen Bruno feels towards his gift and place in town. Very much the readers will feel for Bruno low points and happy when he feels sincere thoughts. Interesting to see how Encanto is like before Mirabel and her generation arrives.