I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Lost in the Moment and Found by Seanan McGuire Series: Wayward Children #8
Published by Tordotcom on January 10 2023
Genres: Adult, Fantasy
Pages: 208
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: Everything has a price: that’s what one young girl learns in McGuire’s latest Wayward Children story.
“Elodina is gone…The great tale of her being shall be extended no more; she is gone to the Library where all of us must one day be Returned, and she will pay no overdue fines on her soul.”
Antsy is a nine-year-old girl who runs away from her creepy stepdad and finds herself in another world, in this eighth entry in Seanan McGuire’s popular portal fantasy series. McGuire always tackles various themes and issues in her stories, mostly dealing with identity and being accepted for who you are, but Lost in the Moment and Found goes to a darker place as Antsy is on the verge of being sexually abused and groomed by her new stepfather. Luckily, she follows her instincts and leaves home before anything can happen.
Antsy is five when her beloved father dies of heart attack, and she’s six when her mother remarries a man named Tyler. Antsy knows right away that she doesn’t like Tyler at all, even if she doesn’t understand why. Antsy’s mom wants her to get to know her new stepfather, but she feels uncomfortable being around him. And then one night he comes into her bedroom while she’s sleeping and tells her there are ways they can get along with each other. But Antsy’s heard enough, and the next day she sneaks out of the house and runs away.
She winds up in front of a dusty shop with a window full of random objects. Written above the door are the words “Be sure,” and when Antsy opens the door and walks through, she soon learns she’s entered a different world. Inside the shop is an old woman named Vineta and a talking magpie named Hudson, who explain that the shop is a place full of things that people have lost. But the shop is also full of doors, doors that open into many other worlds. Vineta tells Antsy that she can only leave if the door to her old world reappears, and until that time, she has to stay.
Antsy soon agrees to accompany Vineta on her trips through these doors, which open onto markets full of wonderful food and objects, but little does she know that there’s a price she pays every time she steps through a door.
I really enjoyed Antsy’s character. She’s a young girl who is confronted with some of life’s harsher truths, and she is smart enough to get out while she can. When she steps into Vineta’s shop, she feels safe—for a while. Later when she learns that Vineta and Hudson have been hiding something important from her, she makes another choice to change her fate. Like many of the other children in the series, there’s a moment when she realizes that you can’t always trust adults, and that becomes the moment when childhood starts to fall away.
While the story is too short to really delve deep into the characters or develop a solid plot, I still enjoyed Antsy’s journeys into other worlds and the discoveries she makes along the way. And just when I thought there wouldn’t be a connection to the other books, McGuire came through at the end with a strong, emotional finish. The next book in the series doesn’t even have a title yet, but I’m already looking forward to another adventure in McGuire’s always surprising world.
Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.
I’m awfully behind with this series since I’ve missed some of the more recent issues, but seeing how it’s still going strong makes me hope that once I get back to it I will find some very engrossing stories.
Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Maddalena@spaceandsorcery recently posted…MY 2022 IN BOOKS
There’s really no reason for her to stop, lol. Portal fantasies have endless possibilities:-)
Oooh, I didn’t know about all the other doors. It sounds like this one would have made for a great full-length novel. I’m so looking forward to reading it though – and I know it’s a special book for McGuire, hitting closer to home than all the other ones she’s written so far. I hope it can help kids in the same predicament…
Roberta R. recently posted…Offbeat Offline: December 2022 (+ Announcing New…Short???…Hiatus)
I hadn’t read that, that it was personal for her. But it certainly had lots of emotion:-)
I’m not sure if I’ll get around to trying this series this year but I’d certainly like to. I’ve collected the previous 7 as ebooks so I just need to make the time. 🙂
todd recently posted…My Favorite Books, Films and Anime in 2022
They would actually make a great binge read:-)
Robin enjoyed this one too. I have yet to read as much of this author as I want to read.
Anne – Books of My Heart recently posted… City Under One Roof by Iris Yamashita
I’ll be looking for Robin’s review!
I didn’t connect very well with the first book when I read it so trying the others in the series isn’t super high on my list right now. Or you have to talk me into reading them. I’m glad you enjoyed this one though, even if it was a little too short. Thanks for sharing!
Stephanie @ Bookfever recently posted…It’s Monday! What are You Reading?
The series doesn’t always work for me, some books just aren’t as good, but I still love the world and the characters, and I’m always curious to see what she’s going to do next:-)
I really do look forward to diving into this series sooner rather than later. It sounds like a fun world, even if she couldn’t develop her characters or the world more in those few pages. Great review! 🙂
I think it’s best to binge this series, the you can see all the connections among each book.
This sounds like a really interesting installment. These have become a little hit or miss for me, but I’m feeling really curious about this one.
Me too, hit or miss. But I can’t seem to stop reading them, lol.
I still need to start this series. I’ve had it on my kindle forever but it’s always out of sight, out of mind for me.
That’s pretty much what Kindle books are for me too:-)
I skimmed this review because I like to go into these books without knowing too much about them – from what I picked up in your post, it sounds at least like another good read in the series, for those of us who keep eating them up!
I hope you enjoy it!
I feel like I’ve really missed something good by not keeping up with this series and now it feels like I’m so far behind. Maybe one day though. Never say never.
Lynn 😀
They are pretty short…
Wonderful review! (I held off on reading it until I finished the book — I love reading these books knowing nothing in advance). I agree, the twist at the end connecting it to other books is great, and I can’t wait to find out if we’ll pick up that thread in the next book.