The latest in the Wayward Children series. This is the story of Nadya, a Drowned Girl who we met in a previous installment. As always, it’s interesting to go back and fill in the backstories of characters we already know. I didn’t remember Nadya very well from the earlier book, but I still found her story compelling. McGuire’s work is whimsical and well-written, as always. The world of Belyyreka was enchanting and it broke my heart when Nadya was taken away from it. I really hope that she somehow finds her way home in the next book or two!

Book 10 of the Wayward Children series takes us to another new world behind a door, this time that of Nadya, Russian orphan born missing part of her arm. She loves Russia, as she's been taught, and loves the tortoise she raised there, and doesn't want to leave the orphanage, but must when she's adopted by a religious American couple. Her adoption feels loaded and uncomfortable, like she hasn't been asked much about her choices in life and no one would understand why she might be happier. (And her adoptive mother certainly doesn't understand why she likes turtles.) The day she finds her door, a drowned world is opened to her, one that relies on her hard-shelled friends.

A lot of Nadya's story is lovely - born without part of her arm, she's never felt unwhole until her American parents want to give her a prosthetic. She's unsure how to verbalize how uncomfortable her lack of choice is to her parents because they learned only enough Russian for basic phrases until Nadya's English is deemed competent. Her drowned world is one where she can thrive and she's accepted by everyone easily. Of course, since this is the Wayward Children series, you have a sense of impending doom because we know Nadya is bound for Eleanor West's Home for Wayward Children, and her happy life must come to an end....

It’s taken ten novellas, but Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear is the first miss for me in the Wayward Children series. It’s worth noting, as a well established fan of Seanan McGuire that this “miss” in this instance means that I enjoyed it fine but my level of expectation is significantly higher for this series and its emotional resonance than it is for other stories.

Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear is the tenth novella in Seanan McGuire’s Wayward Children series which began in 2016 with the practically perfect Every Heart a Doorway. The general concept is that some children who don’t quite belong in whatever life situation they are in will find a doorway with the words “Be Sure” written above and when they pass through they are dropped in a weirdly magical world where the rules are all quite different but the child in question finds a place in which they truly belong. The series as a whole is about belonging, and the books alternate between the worlds through the doorway and the kids who come back home again and are very much not the same person they were before going through.

This is one of the through the doorway stories and features Nadya, her life in a Russian orphanage, her adoption into the United States, and her journey through a doorway. Nadya was previously seen in Beneath the Sugar Sky and frankly, at this point I don’t remember a thing about Nadya’s prior appearance or how she interacted with Eleanor West’s.

To that point, Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear felt somewhat more disconnected from the wider series (perfectly reasonable in a through the doorway story) but possibly more importantly Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear doesn’t *seem* to add much to the series / world beyond where it will certainly connect with other readers far more than it did with me. Coming off of the two Antsy books which had a truly compelling lead character and a new take on the wider universe (multiverse?), Nadya’s journey into the drowned world was lacking something.

Seanan McGuire is historically very good at layering her series work and seeding little bits that will pay off in big ways later, so I’m more than willing to be absolutely wrong in another three books about how this is secretly the second best Wayward Children book. I don’t expect that because despite the giant turtles, immigration, and physical disability, Nadya’s story is much less immediate and feels like it has been told before.

All of this sounds far more negative than I intend it to be and that’s one hundred percent tied to how much I love Every Heart a Doorway and how successful most of the Wayward Children novellas are. A novella that is absolutely fine and lovely only pales in comparison to those stories that shine as bright as so many from this series. It’s good. It’s doesn’t reach the heights of the rest of the series.

Final Rating: 4.5

I've loved pretty much every book in this series so far and I'm happy to say that this one was no different. I loved the setting and the turtles, but like the rest of the books in this series it's really the characters that shine! This book is Nadya's backstory, who we first met back in Beneath the Sugar Sky. Nadia was born in Russia with one arm, was abandoned by her mother to an orphanage and adopted by an American couple through a Christian missionary program. As you can imagine, she's gone through a lot in her short lifetime, and when her adoptive parents get her a prosthetic arm that she doesn't want she finds her door. After having a few books that really advanced the plot of the series overall, it was nice to get a story that was backstory again, and this book can be read independently from the others if that's something that interests you! The ending of this one was so heartbreaking, and I feel so awful for what Nadya has gone through.

I'm so grateful to Tordotcom for allowing me to read and review arcs for this series, it's one of my favorites for sure!

Seanan McGuire is always phenomenal and this story is just another example of why that is. This is another great addition to this series for existing fans, and could be a good jumping in point for new readers. This is one of my new favorites of this series. The world is interesting, the characters are extremely likeable, and the ending left me on the edge of my seat. McGuire's prose, as always, is beautiful. I have absolutely no complaints about this book!

Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear is an even-numbered installment in the Wayward Children series, and as such it is a portal fantasy in which we get to see one of the children first find their Door. This book follows Nadya, a Russian orphan who loves turtles.

Without getting into spoilers, I really enjoyed Nadya's character. She's tough, confident, and fiercely independent. I especially liked the discussion around her being born with a physical disability, but she doesn't see herself as anything less than whole, regardless of how others might perceive her.

The world that her Door leads to was pretty fascinating as well. I really liked the somewhat surreal quality of the environment and breathable atmosphere, and as always in McGuire's portal worlds, there are inherent dangers that come along with the more wondrous elements.

I would recommend this book for those who have enjoyed the Wayward Children series thus far, for fans of portal fantasy, for anyone who especially loves turtles, and for those who feel like maybe they don't always fit neatly into our world and enjoy stories of finding a sort of belonging.

Seanan McGuire’s Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear is a heartfelt and beautifully written addition to the Wayward Children series. This novella, which is a portal fantasy, dives into themes like disability, identity, assimilation, and adoption. The story follows Nadya, a Russian orphan with one arm who we first met briefly in Beneath the Sugar Sky. Having met her previously, we know she is ultimately cast out from Belyyreka, a world of giant turtles, talking foxes, and found family.

Unlike the other novellas in the Wayward Children series, this one is not a quest. Belyyreka is also less dangerous than other worlds in the series. This might make the story less compelling to some readers. However, I think McGuire's exploration of Nadya and her developing sense of agency makes the story interesting. In particular, I enjoyed the conflict of Nadya's adoptive mother projecting a sense of "incompleteness" on Nadya. There is also some exploration of the performance of parenthood.

Many thanks to Tordotcom and NetGalley for the opportunity to read Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear.

Great addition to this series! This one really tugged on the heart and made a lot of things about Nadya clear and easy to understand. Loved it. I loved getting to experience the drowned world. And I really want talking turtles. I am really glad to be back enjoying the various worlds. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC!

An ardent fan of this series, I enjoyed this one, until the very end. It ended rather abruptly and I wanted just a little bit more.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

The Wayward Children series, now in its 10th iteration, follows children who venture into portals to far distant realms. Sometimes the stories are about the aftermath, the often tragic return of the children to an Earth that they no longer consider home, or about how they came to cross in the first place. A few of them, I regard to be among the best novellas I have ever read; others fall flat. This one falls in the middle.

Nadya, born without an arm, doesn't miss the limb as she grows up in a Russian orphanage. Strong willed and pleasant, she has no expectation of am adopted home of her own, but is glad to help others find families. But when a Christian adoption agency comes, Nadya gains their attention because of her one arm. She is soon in Colorado, living awkwardly with people she must call Mom and Dad, missing the tortoise she raised to health back in Russia. Her one sanctuary is a nearby pond with turtles. After her parents force her to don a prosthetic arm--never asking her what she wants--she falls through a portal in the pond, landing in a world where water is strange and massive turtles form special bonds with their people.

One of the problems with the series conceit, really, is that all too often, the end must be tragic. I won't go beyond that, just in case this book is someone's first foray into the series. Here, however, the end is not only disturbing, but painfully abrupt. I was left feeling almost as if pages were missing, but there weren't.

Something I loved about this book was how it depicted disability and how it shows how different people regard disability. There is a powerful message here about agency, empowerment, and the importance of choice.

My thanks to NetGalley for making an eARC of this book available to me.

Beautifully written, this continuation of the Wayward Children series is pretty much what we've come to expect: a dark story about a child who didn't fit in to their world, transported to another world where their differences are what makes them fit in. Great world building.

A Naria-esque tale about the wayward journeys of a "drowned girl" who finds her door. This novella is worth dropping everything to spend an afternoon learning from talking foxes and adventuring with giant sea turtles. While it is the 10th installment of Seanan McGuire's Wayward Children Series, it can be read and enjoyed by new fans of the series who have not yet experienced books 1-9.

This might just be my favorite in the Wayward Children series yet! Nadya just had me so in my feelings with her thoughts on her adoption and the performative nature of her adoptive parents. I truly loved this one. And I cannot wait for the next? Hopefully there is another!

Thanks to Net Galley for the advanced reader copy of Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear!

Out of all 10 books in the series this is at the top of my list of favorites. I am so glad we finally got a book that takes place in a drowned world. The world building is magnificent and the story will warm your heart. You will also immediately want to go out and adopt a turtle.

I was skeptical since we have already gotten to know Nadya through the other books and know that she does make it back to her world. However, I enjoyed her story and it brought a new light to her character.

I look forward to each installment of this series and love that my favorite animal gets a huge part in this one (turtles)! As always you can read it alone or with the other books either way you are in for a great emotional time that will have you guessing if you are “sure”.

I have always loved diving into the worlds of the Wayward Children series. Though I haven't decided if I love exploring the worlds behind the doors or adventure with all of the students more. In Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear we follow Nadya who is taken from her orphanage in Russia to Denver, Colorado to live with new parents that force her into a prosthetic arm- not that Nadya wanted an arm she never missed to begin with. In Denver, Nadya misses Russia, the orphanage, and her beloved turtle so much she spends all of her free time at a local tuttle pond until one day she falls through a door to a drowned world. Nadya loves this world called Belyrreka and finds a family and her beloved turtles. Her life is wonderful until she finds herself swept back through her door.

I really enjoyed Nadya's story, I'm 89% sure we've already met her at Eleanor West's School for Wayward Children- I'm really due for a reread. Nadya is very easy to root for and very likeable. Belyrreka is a very fantastical world- if very wet. I'd be interested to see where it falls on the world compass.

Overall, this was a great installment to the Wayward Children series and I'm excited for the next!

The Wayward Children series is one of my most favorite series and as long as Seanan McGuire continues to write more, I will continue to read them. It is a fantastic and wonderful series about different children that enters a door that leads them to a different world that is more suitable to them and the adventure they take. Each book in the series is unique, which keeps me coming back for more so thank you NetGalley for the ARC!!!!

Nadya was born and orphaned in Russia until she was adopted by an American couple who was wanting a child but Nadya never felt like she fit in with her new family. They saw her as not whole because of a birth defect that resulted in her only having a partial arm so they fitted her with a prosthetic arm that was painful. Nadya wasn't asked what she wanted and began to wander until she fell through a door leading here to Belyrreka, the Land Beneath the Lake. She found herself in a water world with large frogs, beautiful ginormous turtles and ships that could sail beneath and above the surface.. In Belyrreka, she found herself and she was a Drowned Girl, who finally felt accepted and found the life and family she could have only dreamed of.
But, there are dangers, and trials, and Nadya would soon find herself fighting to keep hold of everything she had come to treasure.

3.5 * Rounded Up.

This was another solid installment in this series and while I really connected to the beginning of this and thought it might become a favorite it sort of fell a bit flat as it got to the middle and end. The immigrant experience of assimilating as a child to a new school was so well done, it felt authentic to my experience as well. I also loved the mechanics of the world explored behind this new door but I wanted a bit more connection to the new characters which we did not get much of. Overall I still enjoyed this book, it has beautiful writing and a very imaginative world. It just was not as strong as others in the series for me.

Thanks to Netgalley and Tor for granting me access in exchange for an honest review.

"Giant turtles, impossible ships, and tidal rivers ridden by a Drowned girl in search of a family in the latest in the bestselling Hugo and Nebula Award-Winning Wayward Children series from Seanan McGuire.

Nadya had three mothers: the one who bore her, the country that poisoned her, and the one who adopted her.

Nadya never considered herself less than whole, not until her adoptive parents fitted her with a prosthetic arm against her will, seeking to replace the one she'd been missing from birth.

It was cumbersome; it was uncomfortable; it was wrong.

It wasn't her.

Frustrated and unable to express why, Nadya began to wander, until the day she fell through a door into Belyrreka, the Land Beneath the Lake - and found herself in a world of water, filled with child-eating amphibians, majestic giant turtles, and impossible ships that sailed as happily beneath the surface as on top. In Belyyreka, she found herself understood for who she was: a Drowned Girl, who had made her way to her real home, accepted by the river and its people.

But even in Belyyreka, there are dangers, and trials, and Nadya would soon find herself fighting to keep hold of everything she had come to treasure."

I know I joke that no one publishes as many books a year as Seanan McGuire, but it's because damn, I admire that. Also, it's the first Tuesday of the year and look, a book...

I love this novella series. If you are looking for good fantasy novellas, I’ll always recommend the Wayward Children Series. This installment explored the backstory of Nadya, who we met in a few of the previous stories.

Nadya’s story starts in a Russian orphanage, then continues to America in an adopted family. She struggles with feeling abandoned and unaccepted by her new parents. The discussions relating to disability and how others perceive them felt poignant.

The world Nadya went to was a fantastical place with many different creatures. It was interesting to hear about Nadya finding her place and purpose.

If you haven’t started this series, you should! And if you have, make sure to check out this one when it comes out in January!