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In an Absent Dream
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
169 posts | 161 read | 1 reading | 85 to read
A stand-alone fantasy tale from Seanan McGuire's Alex-award winning Wayward Children series, which began in the Alex, Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Award-winning, World Fantasy Award finalist, Tiptree Honor List Every Heart a Doorway 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. The Wayward Children Series Book 1: Every Heart a Doorway Book 2: Down Among the Sticks and Bones Book 3: Beneath the Sugar Sky Book 4: In an Absent Dream
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review
Nessavamusic
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

Another great installment in this portal fantasy series about children who enter doors to other worlds and return to ours greatly changed. I really liked this one and wished it could have been longer. 4.5⭐️
#bookspin pick done & a #bookspinbingo!

BarbaraJean I loved this one! I think it‘s my favorite of the series. 5mo
34 likes1 comment
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groofay
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
Pickpick

I did not expect to like this anywhere near as much as I did, but if I've learned anything from the previous three entries, and now this one, it's that apparently Seanan considers tearing my heart out fair value for finishing a goddamn book.

BookmarkTavern This one is one of my favorites of this series. 💙 And I totally feel the same way. (edited) 9mo
groofay @ozma.of.oz It's going to be really difficult to top Every Heart a Doorway for me, but this one with that ending is the closest so far for sure. 9mo
BookmarkTavern Yeah, those two are almost tied for me. ❤️ 9mo
3 likes3 comments
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Lizpixie
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

Bk2 of #20in4 #readathon & bk7 of May is done. The 4th book of the series, this tells Lundy‘s tale of door hopping into the Goblin Market & learning the consequence of her actions. While again, not one of my faves, it does give you a really good idea of the rules that govern the “alternate worlds” the doors lead to. I don‘t think the author had a great childhood, she writes about being an outcast too well for that! #BookspinBingo #SeriesLove2023

TheSpineView You are rockin' t his! 11mo
Andrew65 A fantastic total already. 👏👏👏 Are you able to focus on your reading more now. Has the health situation improved following the COvID infections? 11mo
Lizpixie @Andrew65 thanks lovely! The brain fog is slowly lifting, but it‘s wrecked everything else and doesn‘t look like letting go anytime soon. My pain & small fibre autonomic neuropathy has been on a rampage for a year now from long Covid & shows no sign of improvement at all. I‘m so tired honestly, it‘s a struggle to keep going. But my family need me so🤷🏻‍♀️. How are you & your wife? Please be doing better than me🙏 11mo
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Andrew65 Pleased to hear at least some signs of improvement and you can read a bit more. Long COvID is a pig, as well as the impact of other conditions we already suffer from.
A year on the tablets are controlling my Crohn‘s disease better but still big issues with GERD and constant acid reflux. Also fed up with a string of long lasting infections - this year so far finger, toe, and skin tag infections. Just getting over the toe infection that I had 👇
(edited) 11mo
Andrew65 that I had to see a doctor about whilst I was away. Of course there are risks from the medication too. Basically still isolating, groceries delivered, away in Motorhome but keep away from others and do click and collect for groceries. 11mo
Andrew65 My wife is good at moment but keeps being hassled about kidney issues, and told the doctors / hospital wants no further exploratory investigations. Kidneys aren‘t causing her issues at this time, Knee issues make her quite immobile. (edited) 11mo
Lizpixie @Andrew65 I‘m so sorry sweetie, I rarely leave my house anymore as well. I‘d love to know for sure how this monster was loosed on the world, I hope they‘re paying for it whoever they are. Coz we certainly are. My 32yr old daughter has had a heart attack & minor stroke after 3 rounds of it, I‘m broken from 2 & the hubby now has heart issues as well as struggling with depression, neither of which he had before his round. Long Covid isn‘t taken as👇 11mo
Lizpixie seriously as it should be here, don‘t know what it‘s like for you guys. Though I‘m sick to death of doctors like your wife so it‘s all a “what the f*ck do we do now” for all of us I suppose. 11mo
TheAromaofBooks Great progress!! 11mo
Andrew65 @Lizpixie So sorry to hear all that. I‘ve only had it once but my Crohn‘s Diagnosis came six months after it. U.K. is the world leader o believe in ignoring Covid and saying it‘s over. We‘re all on our own. Seriously worry about the long term fir our future generations with all these repeated infections. Sending all my love and best wishes ❤️

Doctors seem sone of the worst at ignoring and not respecting Covid.
11mo
45 likes10 comments
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Robotswithpersonality
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
This post contains spoilers
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Mehso-so

Well, glad that's over with. Kind of hoping this trend of loving one and then being thoroughly depressed by one is not the pattern I continue reading on in the Wayward Children series past the first four. A skillful fable wrapped around some very grown up ideas about successful socio-economic structures and the rights of children, but really anything that gives off those Fae vibes re: deals and fine print isn't going to end happily.

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IamIamIam
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

I enjoyed Lundy's story much more than I thought I would! What happens if you get to decide just how much you want to stay in the world where your door leads? For Lundy and her Goblin Market, sometimes fair value means giving up something precious and intangible.

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IamIamIam
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Enjoying this much more than I expected! We met Lundy in book 1 and lost her as quickly. Halfway through her story, I'm in love with her!!! 🥰🥰🥰

Shemac77 I love this series! 2y
IamIamIam @Shemac77 It's way outside of my comfort zone so I'm readout surprised at how much I'm enjoying it!!! 2y
Shemac77 It‘s very different. Good for you for going outside your comfort zone! 2y
25 likes3 comments
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Nelnjali
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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The vet visit Smokey had this morning has him tuckered out, but I'm enjoying the cuddles while I read another excellent book in the Wayward Children series.

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Jgacreations
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

Another great one in this series. Each book is dedicated to a different main character.

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AmandaBlaze
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

Book 4 of the series gives Bundy's backstory. Her doorway led to a beautiful world full of rules and Fair Value. The ending, while bittersweet, links it to Eleanor and Wayward Children's home. Moon was one of my favorite characters.

AmandaBlaze I forgot to tag this as a #SeriesRead2022. @TheSpineView 2y
TheSpineView Great job! 2y
19 likes2 comments
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ElleMNOpe
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

I love this series! This installment takes us to Christina Rossetti's Goblin Market, something I never knew I needed in a book, but could read forever. The characters are diverse & beautiful & full-bodied. The plot moves quickly & is gripping. There were so many things to love & so much to feel. These little, short novellas have so much packed inside. They make my heart feel incredibly full before smashing it to bits in one way or another.

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Eggbeater
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

1st book finished for #20in4 #readathon

This 4th book in the Wayward Children series could really stand by itself. In it we explore Lundy's world, the Goblin Market, and how Lundy came to be a child aging in reverse. This book had a Neil Gaiman, fairy tale flavor to it. I enjoyed it a lot.

@Andrew65

Andrew65 Brilliant start 👏👏👏 2y
Soubhiville This is my favorite fairy world in the series. 2y
50 likes2 comments
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swynn
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

Fourth in McGuire's "Wayward Children" series featuring refugee children from portal fantasy worlds, this time set in a "Goblin Market" world, where principles of fair trade are magically enforced. WC is my favorite of McGuire's series, with just the right mix of fantasy, adventure, and melancholy, and this entry fits right in.

BehindthePages Love this series ❤ 2y
31 likes1 comment
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peanutnine
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

Another great story in the Wayward Children series. This one focuses on Lundy's backstory in the Goblin Market. Of course we already know how it ends, but never with much detail. It was interesting thinking about the rules of the market and to see her try to find her way in both worlds.
Book 4 of #OutstandingOctober @Andrew65

Andrew65 Going well 👏👏👏 3y
40 likes1 comment
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LazyOwl
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

After the more light hearted adventure of the last book, I was pleased to discover that this book feels much more like the first two. This one launches into a world with definitive rules of the goblin marketplace. I loved it and loved the narration.

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Read-y_Picker
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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My September #bookspinbingo card is done! And I realized I forgot a book so I added the tagged, which I was planning to read anyway.

@TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Yay!!! Looks great!!! 3y
24 likes1 comment
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Emmybird01
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

5/5 for this one! I loved getting to hear Lundy‘s story. It was so sad though. I just want to hug her. The fair value system in the Goblin Market was so interesting. I love getting to see all the different worlds. I will be continuing the series and recommend it!

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TieDyeDude
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

'Juice Like Wound' is a side quest describing events referenced in the Wayward Children book "In an Absent Dream." Tragic and captivating.
tor.com/2020/07/13/juice-like-wound-seanan-mcguire

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archaeolibrarianologist
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Exbrarian
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

This one was great! 4th book in the series and it might be my favorite.

Enchanted_Bibliophile This is also my favourite in the series 3y
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underground_bks
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

This fourth book in the Wayward Children series follows the young Lundy into the Goblin Market—a world where fair value must always be given and received. If you‘ve read the first in the series, you know how Lundy‘s journey ends, and this made for a pretty heart wrenching read toward the end. I feel like I have a book hangover! That said, the Goblin Market was so fascinating and I loved spending time with Lundy (and Moon and the Archivist!) there.

Soubhiville This was my favorite in the series (so far 😉) 3y
underground_bks @Soubhiville if forced to choose, this would probably be mine too, but I‘m so excited to see if that holds true! Just started the next one and then of course the 6th comes out in January and there‘s centaurs!! 3y
Soubhiville @underground_bks I hadn‘t heard that yet! How exciting! 3y
underground_bks @Soubhiville tagged the new one! And Tor just announced there will be at least 10 in the series! 3y
Soubhiville I‘m so happy to hear there will be more, I love this series! 3y
24 likes5 comments
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BookmarkTavern
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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This one is my favorite! 💙💙💙 The fourth Book in Seanan McGuire‘s Wayward Children series is up now to download for free in mobi or ePub format before 11:59 PM ET, December 3.

Available only in the US and Canada.

https://ebookclub.tor.com #torbookclub

WJCintron Done! This is great!!! Thanks for sharing! 🙏😃 3y
BookmarkTavern @WJCintron Check back tomorrow for the fifth book in the series! ❤️ 3y
WJCintron @ozma.of.oz I definitely will! I own the physical copy of the first one but I missed the other two. It‘s a great series! Again thanks for sharing. Have a great day. 3y
BookmarkTavern @WJCintron I‘m always happy to find other people who love this series! The sixth one is actually getting published in January, if you haven‘t heard yet! Hope you enjoy them! 💙 3y
WJCintron 🙌 @ozma.of.oz Awesome!!!! 😃 3y
53 likes5 comments
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Allietaylor16
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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I enjoyed the first three books, so I‘m taking advantage of quiet time at work and listening to this one!

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chlolovesbooks
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5

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rsteve388
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
Pickpick

This was an enjoyable book, because it focused on Lundy as a young girl who goes to the goblin market and learns about fair value and rules of this logical world. Due to a Bargain she makes she ages in reverse. Good book, great narration. Easy four hour book.

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rsteve388
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire

When we can all congregate again, I want to host Book Camp in Colorado.

Everyone brings a tent and some.books to read and we read during the day, we take hikes to places that are great reading spots. And we tell stories at night and discuss what we are reading.... We have group names like: The Doorstoppers (for folks who love books 500 pages or more) etc.

Anyone want in?

Hestapleton I‘m not in Colorado but I love this. 4y
MidnightBookGirl I will gladly come to Colorado. 4y
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LibrarianRyan Im not a camper, but I could comeback to the state for a visit. 4y
rsteve388 Woo! 4y
Beatlefan129 I don‘t camp, but I‘m in CO and love the idea of hanging out with Litsy people 4y
Meaw_catlady I‘m in! 4y
Lreads I would come to CO. I‘ve never camped before so someone would have to show me the ropes! 🙃 4y
rsteve388 Done! I will do that. 4y
katy4peas Fun! 4y
25 likes10 comments
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Eggs
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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A stand-alone fantasy tale from Seanan McGuire's Alex-award winning Wayward Children series, 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. #absence #aboutaugust

ShyBookOwl Just finished book 3. Picking this one up soon! 4y
Eggs @ShyBookOwl 👏🏻👏🏻 4y
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brindille
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

"Home is an end to glory, a stopping point when the tale is done."

My favourite in the series, so far. Absolute perfection.

?5

?▶️Summer Kpop Readathon:
[STRAY KIDS-Levanter] a door-themed book ✔

#seananmcguire #waywarchildren #summerreadathon #straykids

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ReadingEnvy
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

I‘d read the first three Wayward Children books and felt they‘ve gotten better each time... and yet sometimes they can be so disconnected from one another I long for more continuation and harkening back... maybe this story will come up again.

Katherine opens a door inside a tree and that is the first time she visits the Goblin Market, but you have to be careful what you promise.⤵️

ReadingEnvy There is a lot in this novella about loneliness and friendship, what home is, and who you are vs what others expect. This is another book I‘ve read for this summer‘s Reading Envy Summer Reading challenge - to finish those series that remain partially read. There is already a book 5 to follow this one.
#readingenvysummerreading #hoopla
4y
toofondofbooks Exactly what I felt when reading them 4y
ReadingEnvy @toofondofbooks it's almost like we need them to be novels instead of novellas 4y
42 likes3 comments
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TobeyTheScavengerMonk
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

“What‘s the Goblin Market?”
“It is a place where dreamers go when they don‘t fit in with the dreams their homes think worth dreaming. Doors lead here. Perhaps you found one.”

I can‘t help but think that the prequel nature of this book is what stops it from being perfect.

Lundy‘s story & the world of the Goblin Market were wonderful, but the ending felt like it had to twist unnaturally to fit what comes after. Still great though.

batsy Are those Princess Mononoke playing cards? 😍 4y
TobeyTheScavengerMonk @batsy Yes! Pictures on the cards go through the movie sequentially! They‘re so cool and make perfect bookmarks. 4y
63 likes4 comments
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TobeyTheScavengerMonk
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Lundy‘s door may have opened onto the Goblin Market but the descriptions all reminded me of the Faerie Market that shows up in Neil Gaiman‘s Books of Magic and Stardust.

In other words, in my imagination this book was illustrated by Charles Vess.

#SummerOfShort3

NikkiM5 I added because i felt the Gaiman vibes in your review 4y
TobeyTheScavengerMonk @NikkiM5 The Gaiman vibes are indeed strong! This is 4th in an excellent series about a home for kids who have been kicked out of their portal fantasies and every other book (2, 4, and the upcoming 6) are prequels, telling the stories of the original adventures of different characters. Start with 4y
NikkiM5 @TobeyTheScavengerMonk thanks, I am adding Every Heart a Doorway now 😊 4y
44 likes3 comments
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TobeyTheScavengerMonk
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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“There are many good things in the world, and each of them happens for the first time only once, and never again. Do you understand?”

#SummerOfShort3

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TobeyTheScavengerMonk
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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“All children are [remarkable]: no two are sliced from the same clean cloth.”

#BigBackYard #SummerOfShort3

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TobeyTheScavengerMonk
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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“Children are capable of grasping complex ideas long before most people give them credit for, wrapping them in a soothing layer of nonsense and illogical logic. To be a child is to be a visitor from another world muddling your way through the strange rules of this one, where up is always up, even when it would make more sense for it to be down, or backward, or sideways.”

Drawing Rapunzel in the driveway. #SummerOfShort3

mabell Got the hair! 👌 4y
Cinfhen I love this photo ❤️ 4y
readordierachel That is an excellent Rapunzel. 4y
batsy Agree with @readordierachel 🙌🏽 4y
58 likes4 comments
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TobeyTheScavengerMonk
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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“In a house, on a street, in a town ordinary enough in every aspect to cross over its own roots and become remarkable, there lived a girl named Katherine Victoria Lundy.”

#Starting #FirstLines #SummerOfShort3

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Enchanted_Bibliophile
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

I adore these books!
With each instalment and new world discovered McGuire is rising in ranks to the top of my favourite list.

This one focus on Lundy and her story. 🤩 And from the moment I've been introduced to Lundy I wanted to know where she was and what happened to her. So this book was a wish come true. And what an adventure it was.

Lucky I own the next book as well, because I need it not to end here...

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UnRuLee
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

Man this one was a lot. I LOVE the Goblin Market and the peculiar (but logical) way that the rules work. But of course, since it‘s a prequel and we know where Lundy has to land, it‘s tough to watch. Still loved it, but I‘m excited to dive back into Jack and Jill‘s story in book five.

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BookmarkTavern
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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📕 In an Absent Dream by Seanan McGuire
✒️ Eva Ibbotson
🎥 Inception
🎶 Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls

#manicmonday #letterI @JoScho

JoScho Thanks for playing 🧡🧡🧡 4y
46 likes1 comment
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SoManyBooksNotEnoughTime
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

I absolutely loved the fourth installment in the Wayward Children series. I think I may have found my door/world. Here we are given the background of Lundy, the teacher who we were introduced to in the first book. Her world is known as the Goblin Market. It's a logical world, full of rules, where everything is meant to be fair and even. By the end of the book we come to understand the cause of Lundy's reverse-aging.

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Lindy
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

I enjoyed this quick read, a portal fantasy with elements of Rossetti‘s Goblin Market. Fourth in the Wayward Children series, but also a standalone prequel to the story of the Home for Wayward Children‘s unusual psychologist, Miss Lundy.

Centique I loved this one 😍 4y
Lindy @Centique I find this series hit or miss. Fortunately, this one was a hit. Unfortunately for me, my book club insists on reading all of them. 4y
Centique @Lindy yes! Every second one or so seems to be a bit half hearted. We‘re due another good one I think. 4y
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Lindy @Centique Did you read Come Tumbling Down? I expected to enjoy it because I liked Down Among the Sticks and Bones but it was kind of meh. January 2021 is when the next comes out and there will be unicorns —that sounds promising. 4y
Centique @Lindy I thought it was meh too - and also Beneath the Sugar Sky. 4y
Lindy @Centique I bailed on Beneath the Sugar Sky. I knew my fellow book club members would forgive me. 4y
44 likes6 comments
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Lindy
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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…eagles with wings whose span must have been measured in exclamations instead of inches.

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Lindy
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Figures, not people: she wasn‘t sure the word ‘people‘ was big enough to encompass everything she was seeing. Some of them were no bigger than her hand, soaring along on green moth‘s wings, their hair like candle flames that flickered in the sunlight. Others were so big she could have mistaken them for boulders, with skin as gray as granite and hands almost as large as her body.

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BookmarkTavern
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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#7Days7Books Day 3

7 books that left an impression on me with no explanation.

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SkeletonKey
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Finishing up this series. Didn‘t care for the third one very much but I‘m giving the next two a shot. So far, the fourth is much better.

Soubhiville The forth is my favorite so far! I‘ve got the fifth but haven‘t started it yet. 4y
SkeletonKey The second was my fave and why I want to get to the fifth, but the fourth is really good so far! 4y
BehindthePages Awesome books! 4y
SkeletonKey @Letora - They‘ve been great! 4y
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danimgill
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

I love this series, and this entry about Lundy was no exception. The writing is smart and fairy-tale-esque even as it actively deconstructs some fantasy tropes. Looking forward to my hold on the next one coming in!

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Samary
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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I read book 3 so quickly I didn't even post about it, so here is book 4 🤣 this series has me, heart and soul. I want to visit all these worlds!

#waywardchildren #inanabsentdream #goblinmarket

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IftyZaidi
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

The fourth book in Seanan McGuire's Wayward Children series, though it could probably be read as a standalone too. McGuire's novellas continue to be beautiful, unexpected, compelling and twisted takes on traditional fairy tales. Highly recommended.

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BacklistReader
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

Finished this one last weekend as well. I really enjoyed my time in this series and I‘m excited to be able to come back soon.

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sparrowssavvy
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

Another great book in this fun series!

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CaitlinSiem
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Pickpick

While I greatly enjoyed this tale, I didn‘t love it as much as the first three in the series. It was more melancholy so that might‘ve been why. Or maybe because I didn‘t have a whole lot of interest in the main character? I don‘t know. I think I‘m just nitpicking. It was a good listen.

ChasingOm I felt the same way. 4y
21 likes1 comment
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Soubhiville
In an Absent Dream | Seanan McGuire
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Here are my February reads 😊
The only 5⭐️ was In an Absent Dream, but I enjoyed the majority of them. No bails this month!

erzascarletbookgasm 👏 Great reading month! 4y
megnews I want to get to A Single Thread soon. I love Tracey Chevalier. 4y
Eyelit Can I borrow upright women wanted sometime in the future? 4y
Soubhiville Yes absolutely @Eyelit 😁 4y
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