Book Review: Every Heart a Doorway (Wayward Children #1) Seanan McGuire

Book: Every Heart a Doorway

Series: Wayward Children book 1

Author: Seanan McGuire

Genre: YA Urban Fantasy/Paranormal, Mystery

Eleanor West’s Home for Wayward Children

No Solicitations

No Visitors

No Quests 

Children have always disappeared under the right conditions; slipping through the shadows under a bed or at the back of a wardrobe, tumbling down rabbit holes and into old wells, and emerging somewhere... else. 

But magical lands have little need for used-up miracle children. 

Nancy tumbled once, but now she’s back. The things she’s experienced... they change a person. The children under Miss West’s care understand all too well. And each of them is seeking a way back to their own fantasy world. 

But Nancy’s arrival marks a change at the Home. There’s a darkness just around each corner, and when tragedy strikes, it’s up to Nancy and her new-found schoolmates to get to the heart of the matter. 

No matter the cost.

My Rating: 4/5 STARS

My Review:

Every Heart a Doorway is such a fascinating story that I think would resonate with so many readers.  The basis of the world in Every Heart a Doorway is about what happens to the children who were once lost in other worlds (e.g. someone like Alice from Alice in Wonderland) but are now back in the normal world.  I think it's so easy for myself and other readers to understand the world within Every Heart a Doorway because we've all felt something similar when we've finished some of our favourite stories.  We wonder where the characters went after and how it effects their life and this is the main thing Every Heart a Doorway explores.

I really liked the characters and I thought it was very interesting how their own experiences in the world they went to shaped their personalities and had such an impact on what they said or did.  Each of the characters had such unique experiences in their different worlds that made them really individual and stand out from one another and I really liked that.

It's hard to believe how short this book is.  I wanted there to be more but I'm also glad the story was so short.  I like how it wasn't unnecessarily prolonged and I found it refreshing to read a YA urban fantasy that told such an interesting and compelling story in less than 200 pages.  The story also had a creepy thriller vibe to it which I was surprised at but really enjoyed.

Overall I love the world in Every Heart a Doorway and I found the character back stories to be captivating.  This book is also quick to read and it leaves you wanting more of the story.