This fourth entry and prequel tells the story of Lundy, a very serious young girl who would rather study and dream than become a respectable housewife and live up to the expectations of the world around her. As well she should.

When she finds a doorway to a world founded on logic and reason, riddles and lies, she thinks she’s found her paradise. Alas, everything costs at the goblin market, and when her time there is drawing to a close, she makes the kind of bargain that never plays out well.

If you’ve been keeping up with me for a bit, you’ll know that Seanan McGuire’s Wayward Children series got its hooks into me straight away. I completely adored the first three books in the series, and In an Absent Dream is every bit as fantastic & imaginative as the rest. In fact, I’d put this one just a teensy bit behind Down Among the Sticks and Bones as my favorite in the series so far!

In a recent Twitter thread about this series, McGuire mentioned that there’s a deliberate pattern to the books. The first book was set at Eleanor West’s Home for Wayward Children, the second was set in one of the worlds beyond the doors. Beneath the Sugar Sky was a little bit of both, but In an Absent Dream takes place almost exclusively in the Goblin Market, which is where Katherine Lundy finds herself after discovering a magical door, set at the base of an impossible tree.

Lundy is a key character from Every Heart a Doorway, and this serves as her backstory. After a memorably unmemorable birthday party, Katherine Lundy comes to a brilliant & beautiful conclusion. She likes who she is. She’s not going to change who she is for anyone, even if it means living in a bit of solitude. She is the daughter of the school principal, her parents love her, and she has a good life. She prefers the company of books (relatable af), and is a diligent student.

And then she finds her door.

The Goblin Market is a place of endless curiosity for Lundy. There are creatures of all sizes & varieties, delicious pies, and books that get tucked into bed so they don’t have bad dreams.

There’s also five rules:

1. Ask for nothing

2. Names have power

3. Always give fair value

4. Take what is offered and be grateful

5. Remember the curfew

Lundy learns these rules with the help of her new (and only) friend Moon, a girl with owl eyes. Their friendship sits at the center of this book & provides some seriously gut-punchy moments…like…oof.

Lundy is faced with some incredibly difficult choices over the course of the book, ones that will change the trajectory of her life forever, and of course impact everyone who loves her. This book was probably the most emotionally raw of the four in this series…I was feeling pretty fucking gutted reading this one.

I don’t know what else I can say about the Wayward Children series….I think what Seanan McGuire is doing with these books is pure magic, and I wish everyone would read these. Each book is this perfect blend of weird & dark & danger & love & hope & acceptance…these books feel so incredibly timeless & important. All the stars for In an Absent Dream…ALL OF THEM!