A snippet of a story, McGuire gives us back an adventure from book 4, and actually introduces the pivotal character in shaping Lundy. In doing so, she tells us more about the rules of monsters in the world and while the scene is short (and sad) it feels like a fundamental part of the story. I wish she hadn't cut this and the other such scenes from the novella ( )

Dark but amazing ( )

Juice Like Wounds, a short interlude in @seananmcguire’s Wayward Children series from @tordotcompub, drops us back into Lundy’s time at the Goblin Market and we are given answers to what happened to Mockery and why Lundy left the Market for the first time.

While being a short story, this tale is no less powerful than any of the other novellas that comprise the main series. For fans of Lundy and her time at the Goblin Market, this will be a heartbreaking yet beautiful return to that world.

You can find the story on Tor’s website or by simply googling Juice Like Wounds. ( )

But while we have the luxury of leaving, they did not; they were trapped by the cage of their own choices, prisoned by the moment they had made.

Three go in, two come back. It's not a spoiler! It's right there in the opening! But I wanted to meet Mockery, on whose life and loss so much depended in [b:In an Absent Dream|38244358|In an Absent Dream (Wayward Children, #4)|Seanan McGuire|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1525436165l/38244358._SY75_.jpg|59926216]. So I ignored the warnings. (Lots of warnings!) I said I was sure. I walked through this little door of a story. And now I have that certain sorrow, where before I had only hints of danger, just like I knew I would.

I have a certain sorrow, but I'm not sorry, of course. Even though I suspect my heart belongs to the Moors, In an Absent Dream was my perfect Wayard Children story, and I am so happy to see the Goblin Market again, even in grief. The jabbed reminders that the Market is Wicked as well as Logic were well laid and most delicious. I do wonder why this small piece of the tale was sent to live on its own over here, and I do wish I had stopped reading the longer work the first moment Lundy came running home to read this as I almost did. Ah, well. I have the luxury of leaving, and the luxury of coming back again. All of these books are holding up very well to reread, and now I know how it's properly done, so the next time around will be perfection.

On that note, you'll definitely want to start the novella first and then come to this, either after the first third of the book or after finishing. And, although I normally preach reading McGuire's series strictly in publication order, I see In an Absent Dream is being marketed as a good jumping on point. Maybe it is. I don't know why you wouldn't jump on with [b:Every Heart a Doorway|25526296|Every Heart a Doorway (Wayward Children #1)|Seanan McGuire|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1431438555l/25526296._SX50_.jpg|45313140], though. In any case, however and by whatever road you get here, this lovely little morsel is available free from Tor right over here. ( )

In one word: wow. A great, dark short story centered around Lundy and the Market from IN AN ABSENT DREAM.

https://www.tor.com/2020/07/13/juice-like-wounds-seanan-mcguire/ ( )