The idea is lovely. It is also done very well - you can absolutely feel those teens being in different worlds. The way the speak to one another, the way they behave and carry themselves. The added murder mystery was quite the surprise. Very excited to see what this series will do next-

I never thought a short novella could be so full of new and interesting concepts. Every Heart A Doorway felt like reading a fairytale, that was both heartwarming and eerie. I am so glad that I finally picked this up after finding a used copy at my local book fair (which is very rare, I normally don’t see english books there). I wish I could give this book more than 4 stars, but for me, the last fourth and the mystery felt short. I wished there was a bit more to it, but what can you expect in a short novella? Nevertheless, I enjoyed Every Heart A Doorway a lot!

This was so weird, it's cute ♥ The story follows a bunch of kids, that all went through different magical doors and lived years and years in worlds that seem to be a part of a huge magical universe. Back in the real world they can't adapt, their parents have difficulties to cope with their weirdness, so they sent them off into a school that's supposed to fix them. Until one day someone murders Sumi, a girl who travelled the Candy World. Some suspect the new girl, Nancy, just back from the Undead Lands, others the creepy twins from The Moor. Even though this is a novella, the characters are well crafted and their pain genuine. I could connect to every one of them. The writing is simple and carries the story well. This book is about finding your identity. I loved how open it was to literally everything: gender, sexuality, social standards and taboos. Okay, maybe the boys are a little underrepresented but that's beside the point. It's a quick and fun read, with a beautiful cover on top ♥ I'm so glad there is a second and a third book., that will hopefully show some of the mentioned magic worlds.

Dieses erste Buch aus der Wayward-Children-Serie hat so einige Auszeichnungen gewonnen wie beispielsweise den Hugo Award für die beste Novelle in 2017 und findet immer wieder auf Fantasyseiten Erwähnung, was mich dann doch irgendwann neugierig werden ließ. Es beginnt relativ vielversprechend: ein Heim für Kinder, die für einige Zeit in einer anderen Welt gelandet waren, aus zahlreichen Gründen wieder ausgestoßen wurden und wieder in ein normales Leben finden sollen – eine ungewöhnliche Idee und ein interessantes Konzept. Doch leider verpasst es die Autorin, aus diesem Konzept eine wirklich fesselnde Geschichte zu machen. Die paar wenigen Charaktere, die wir kennenlernen, sind zwar skurril, aber da es keine Vergleichsmöglichkeiten zu anderen Schülern gibt, lässt es sich schwer einschätzen, ob sie in diesem Heim „besonders“ sind oder sich wie all die anderen verhalten und nur beispielhaft hervorgehoben wurden. Wir erfahren auch nur sehr wenig über ihre Hintergründe und ihr Innenleben. Sie bleiben ziemlich eindimensional wenig unterscheidbar. Nun gibt es zwar einen Hauptplot, der sich um mysteriöse und bedrohliche Ereignisse dreht, aber all das wirkt ein wenig aufgesetzt, um der eigentlichen Idee eine Geschichte hinzuzufügen. Es passt einfach nicht recht zusammen, will man doch als Leser eigentlich mehr über die phantastischen Welten erfahren. 170 Seiten sind definitiv zu wenig für diese Story. Hätte die Autorin ihrer Erzählung hier und da etwas mehr Tiefgang verpasst und sich mehr Zeit dafür genommen, hätte das ein richtig gutes Buch werden können. So ist es zwar recht kurzweilig, aber ich denke nicht, dass ich die weiteren Novellen aus dieser Reihe lesen werde.

this book was very imaginative and lovely and unexpectedly dark - which i really liked! i enjoyed that it was short, and i enjoyed the dreamy atmosphere. the characters didn't seem that interesting in the beginning, but in the end, i warmed up towards our group of friends. one aspect i didn't find as strong was the murder mystery though. it was a bit obvious, so i'm not even proud of myself for guessing right (which i usually always am! and i almost never guess right.) the very end was super cool again. oh, and this story is also very diverse, so that's great, too. i can totally see myself being in the mood to continue this series in the future! but first, i need to get over this reading slump.

The idea is lovely. It is also done very well - you can absolutely feel those teens being in different worlds. The way the speak to one another, the way they behave and carry themselves. The added murder mystery was quite the surprise. Very excited to see what this series will do next-

My favourite kind of writing & type of story, macabre & beautiful & a bit odd <3 It's quite short, but I also find it fitting, can't wait to see if the next books in the series compare well to this very strong first book! Edit: So wait, Jack was aware the entire time that Jill is a murderess & has the makings & thought-patterns of one, & she didn't think of keeping a closer eye on Jill after the first murder or at least quietly suspect her? That's... unfitting?

Die erste Geschichte handelt von Nancy, die neu an Eleanor West's Schule für die Wayward Children ist. Ihre Reise durch die Tür hat sie ins Reich der Toten geführt, wo ihre Aufgabe darin bestanden hat, so still wie eine Statue zu stehen. Eine Fähigkeit, die sie zuletzt nahezu perfektioniert hatte. Und obwohl sich das für Aussenstehende (wie mich) langweilig anhören mag, so würde Nancy alles dafür geben, wieder dorthin zurückkehren zu können. Da dies aber nicht einfach so möglich ist, bleibt Nancy nichts anderes übrig, als sich in Eleanors Schule zurechtzufinden. Und dadurch lernt nicht nur Nancy, sondern auch wir Leser:innen die Schule der Wayward Children, die unterschiedlichen Welten, die sich hinter den Türen befinden können und einige andere zurückkehrte Kinder und Jugendliche kennen, die in späteren Bänden eine Hauptrolle übernehmen. Die erste Geschichte hat mir sehr gut gefallen, nicht nur, weil die skurrile Welt ganz neu für mich war, sondern auch, weil der Plot im ersten Band sehr spannend war: Kurz nach Nancys Ankunft an der Schule, werden nach und nach Charaktere, die wir gerade erst kennenlernen durften, nach und nach auf brutale Art und Weise ermordet und es gilt herauszufinden, wer hinter diesen Morden steckt. Die Auflösung hat mich zwar nicht so richtig vom Hocker gehauen, aber insgesamt hat mich dieser erste Band gut unterhalten, auch wenn es aufgrund der Kürze natürlich an Tiefe gefehlt hat - sowohl was das Worldbuilding, als auch die Charaktere angeht,

It's more like a 3.5 for me, maybe. I liked some stuff about it, like the different worlds these children explored, that it had some kind of mystery, and definitely some of the characters. I just really loved Christopher for some reason and I can't even say why, because we only get to know about him and his world in the last few chapters, but he made me laugh and I really appreciated him. Some things I disliked were how obvious the solution to the mystery was and how quickly it was all resolved. Furthermore Eleanor didn't strike me as the most competent head mistress - but I still liked her. Just don't approve of how little she was doing to protect her students. Nancy was a protagonist that didn't really interest me, but she wasn't annoying either. All in all it was a quick and enjoyable read but I kind of expected to like it a little more :)

Ich fand die Idee eines Buches über Kinder, die wie Alice in eine andere Welt verschwinden und nach ihrer Rückkehr Probleme damit haben, sich einzufinden und von ihren Eltern nicht verstanden werden, eigentlich ziemlich originell. Das Buch hat mir auch ganz gut gefallen, allerdings ist es zu kurz, um die Welt vorzustellen, die 6-8 für die Handlung relevanten Personen einzuführen und gleichzeitig eine Mordserie stattfinden zu lassen, die am Ende aufgeklärt ist. Dafür hätte das Buch mindestens doppelt so dick sein müssen. Allerdings hat es mich doch gut genug unterhalten, dass ich Band 2 auf meine Wunschliste gepackt habe.

It was weird, a little bit creepy, and everything I hoped it would be. The writing style disappointed as little as the story itself, full of lessons to learn and quotes to note down. Nothing at all I expected from the cover (and no, I have not read the blurb, I rarely do), but nonetheless beyond great. I know this won't be for everyone, but it most certainly has been for me and I am very grateful for it. I can't wait to get to the other books in the series

3.5* Ich mochte die Idee und die Atmosphäre der Geschichte sehr. Es war interessant über die verschiedenen Welten zu hören, in denen sich die Figuren zu Hause fühlen. Die Handlung selbst war zwar ebenfalls interessant, doch vieles ging etwas schnell und ich hätte gerne mehr Zeit mit den Figuren verbracht um sie besser kennenzulernen. Insgesamt war die Geschichte unterhaltsam und bin ich bereits gespannt auf die weiteren Teile.

If you're interested you can also find this review on my my blog. Well, the problem is that I did expect something different. This is the story of what happens to the children who go to fairy lands and underworlds and eventually have to return to our world. As you can imagine this is a hard situation to cope with. Once you've seen unicorns and ghosts and vampires why would you want to come back? Luckily there is a boarding school and therapy for such children! And this is where the novel takes place. A boarding school for the returned; part Hogwarts, part Asylum. I absolutely love that premise – especially because McGuire uses the various magical worlds she creates to talk about gender and mental health! However, there were a few things that threw me off. First of all I didn't know this was a YA book. Although I have to say that the creepy parts were VERY creepy, especially if this is aimed at a teen audience. Personally, I liked the creepy bits (some of which were positively gory…)! But the novel has its fair share of teenage trouble such as peer pressure and first love (or something like it). However, it also has murder and resurrection and ghosts and some really wonderful characters! Yes, the mystery is fairly short-lived. You can see the “Whodunnit” from miles away. Once the school and every character has been properly introduced, the plot becomes pretty rushed. And at only about 160 pages I was wondering about the longish exposition. So in terms of structure there is room for improvement. The second aspect that kind of annoyed me (though I'm not sure if this is the right word for it…) was that half-way through I found out that this is the first in a planned trilogy! I hate it when that happens because it takes away a lot of possibilities as to who is going to survive the whole thing. I loved McGuire’s writing; I loved the creepy bits, and the way she set up her world of many worlds. I love that she manages to talk about serious things without batting you over the head with them. I love how she clothes ugly, sad, and terrifying things into beautiful words and magic! I am definitely looking forward to the rest of the series hoping she will focus more on structure and plot balance in the next ones.