Come Tumbling Down - Seanan McGuire

Title: Come Tumbling Down (Wayward Children #5)
Author: Seanan McGuire
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 3.5/5
# pages: 206
Date read: April 2021

When Jack left Eleanor West's School for Wayward Children she was carrying the body of her deliciously deranged sister--whom she had recently murdered in a fit of righteous justice--back to their home on the Moors.

But death in their adopted world isn't always as permanent as it is here, and when Jack is herself carried back into the school, it becomes clear that something has happened to her. Something terrible. Something of which only the maddest of scientists could conceive. Something only her friends are equipped to help her overcome.

Eleanor West's "No Quests" rule is about to be broken.

Again.


I was glad to see this book once again focus on all the Wayward Children instead of just one or two. However, the Moors will never be my favourite place to visit, so that made me subtract a star.

Otherwise this was basically exactly what I have come to expect from the Wayward Children series, and only made me more eager to read Christopher and Kade's stories.

The Strangers - Margaret Peterson Haddix

Title: The Strangers (Greystone #1)
Author: Margaret Peterson Haddix
Genre: Sci-fi, Childrens/YA
Rating: 4/5
# pages: 358
Date read: April, 2021

What makes you you?

The Greystone kids thought they knew. Chess has always been the protector over his younger siblings, Emma loves math, and Finn does what Finn does best—acting silly and being adored. They’ve been a happy family, just the three of them and their mom.

But everything changes when reports of three kidnapped children — who share the same first and middle names, ages, and exact birth dates as the Greystone kids — reach the Greystone family. This bizarre coincidence makes them wonder: Who exactly are these strangers? Before Chess, Emma, and Finn can question their mom about it, she takes off on a mysterious work trip. But puzzling clues left behind lead to complex codes, hidden rooms, and a dangerous secret that will turn their world upside down.


Very thrilling story. Recommended for ages 10 and up (although I'd probably focus on the 'up' - might be a bit scary for most 10-year-olds), but definitely worthwhile reading as an adult as well. I found it very difficult to put it down - both literally and figuratively, as I've found myself thinking about it ever since.

The first few chapters had question upon question upon question piled upon the reader, and I was somewhat skeptical that Margaret Peterson Haddix would be able to provide a suitably satisfying answer to them. Fortunately she mostly did - and the 'mostly' is 100% my own fault, as I hadn't read the huge "parallel universe" tag in the back blurb, and therefore hadn't realized that it would have a sci-fi element. Once I got my head wrapped around that, I loved the story and will definitely be keeping my eye out for the next in the series.