Should You Start? Wayward Children Series

Released Titles: Every Heart a Doorway, Down Among the Sticks and Bones, Beneath the Sugar Sky
Author: Seanan McGuire
Publisher: Tor.com Publishing

Has this happened to you? You’re intrigued by a cover reveal or title announcement, only to be completely derailed when it says “the sequel to…” or “book three of the ___ series…” and you realize there are prereqs like it’s college all over again. And even though you love reading, your TBR stretches to the moon and back, so how do you know if an in-progress series is worth jumping into?

With the arrival of Beneath the Sugar Sky (today!), I’m here to give you a spoiler-free rundown of the Wayward Children novellas, so you can decide whether or not to jump in. Here’s a hint…

Series Sum Up: The Graceling Realm

Author: Kristin Cashore
Spoiler-free, except if you haven’t read Graceling then the Bitterblue section will spoil some things, because that’s how sequels work.

If you’re looking for these on the shelves, the top row of the header image has the US/CAN covers, the bottom row is for UK/AUS/NZ. I included both because I believe the UK covers much more accurately capture the series vibe. Honestly, the US Bitterblue cover always reminds me of toy keys when in truth it’s the heaviest book of the three.

Just no.

Also, I’ve found it’s not a rare occurrence for someone to DNF (did not finish) Graceling and give up on the whole series. I was one of those people until this January. If this applies to you, KEEP READING. There is valuable information for you in the section on Fire. And if you did like Graceling, then you’re good for whole dealio. With that, away we go!

Series Sum Up: Six of Crows

Author: Leigh Bardugo
Books: Six of Crows, Crooked Kingdom
Spoiler-free for both books

In Ketterdam, nothing speaks louder than cold hard cash. From the upscale merchers making trades in the Exchange to the flashy gang members hustling marks in the back alleys of the Barrel, money is the key to unlocking the world. No one is more aware of that than Kaz Brekker, who has built the foundation of his criminal empire on being willing to take on any job, earning himself plenty of cash and the nickname Dirtyhands. So when a job with impossible stakes and an astronomical payout arises, Kaz knows he’ll need a very special crew to pull it off.

Elephant & Piggie: End of an Era

If you have even a passing familiarity with children’s literature, then odds are you’re familiar with the work of Mo Willems. Pigeon, Knuffle Bunny, Elephant & Piggie; they’re all extremely lovable and extraordinarily popular with the under-10 age segment. And the odd 20-something. Walking into a library, you might not realize that there are actually 25 Elephant & Piggie books, because they are always checked out.