Lost in the Moment and Found by Seanan McGuire is a standalone story set in the world of McGuire’s bestselling series, Wayward Children. I’ve long heard about this award-winning series but confess I’ve not read it. When I saw this book come up, I decided this was the opportunity to see if I wanted to commit to reading the entire series. If this book is an example of what to expect then sign me up. The writing style was simply lovely to read full of wonder, fantasy and whimsy. It reminded me a fairy tale in that it gave me a sense of that childhood wonder of reading about elaborate fantasy and heartwarming yet tragic characters. The book was quite short (around 200 pages) and felt more like a novella than a full novel. I’d definitely recommend this one. Thank you to Seanan McGuire, Macmillian-Tor/Forge and Netgalley for an advanced copy of this e-book.

Thank you NetGalley and Tor for the ARC! This is the 8th in the Wayward Children series and is sure to please series fans (like myself). Antoinette (Antsy's) story is full of emotion and betrayal, the loss of innocence, and the pursuit of finding oneself and what makes one happy.

Thank you NetGalley & MacMillan-Tor/Forge for this ARC.

I couldn’t put this book down. It is the epitome of magic. Antsy’s story is so heartbreaking, I loved her and really enjoyed her character. For a short book this really packs a punch.

I need the whole series in psychical form. There is so much re read potential

I received an eARC from Netgalley and the publishers, Macmillan-Tor/Forge, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: 5 stars
Release Date: 10 January 2023
Trigger Warnings: Grooming, gaslighting by an adult, death of a parent, hints at pedophilia and sexual assault.

Please note the above trigger warnings for this book. As Seanan McGuire mentions in the opening note of the book, Antsy runs away from home before any sexual assault takes place, however, it is hinted at and may be too much for some people, especially in conjunction with the grooming and gaslighting that does occur. Please practice self-care before, during, and after reading. As a side note, thank you to the author for including this trigger warning right at the beginning of the novel.

The Wayward Children series is one of my favourite series of all time. It is such a whimsical series, while also being full of amazing representation, life lessons, and situations where the reader can see themselves reflected. Lost in the Moment and Found is no exception to this. Once again, Seanan McGuire excels at showing life through a child's eyes in a way that any adult reading this can also relate to.

I love Antsy as a main character. She is very three-dimensional, and you can feel her pain throughout her time living at home before she finds her Door (and later on when certain informatin is revealed). It is very easy to empathise with her and feel anger on her behalf toward all those who have done her wrong. Without spoiling, I do want to say that the quick physical growth she goes through was such a great metaphor for the quick mental growth that Antsy also experienced.

We get some more insight into how the Doors work which was something I never knew I wanted. I was quite content with the information provide in previous books, but this really just added to the complexity and even potential danger of the Doors. I hope we continue to explore this, and my guess is that Antsy will provide some imperative insight regarding this in future books. If you've read the book, you'll know what I mean - that ending!!

There are two more books listed on Goodreads, and I am beyond excited to read them! This series has so much potential, and after this eighth book, it shows no sign of slowing! I really hope we continue to get more in this world, both stories that the fans (including myself!) are dying for (i.e., Eleanor, Kade, Christopher) and ones that we don't even know we want or need.

A good installment, I wish we'd gotten to see more of the various worlds, so much of the book seemed to get taken up with the dusty shop. Like the rest in the series, I really just wish they were full size novels rather than novellas.

There is not a title in this series that has disappointed yet! Each one is still so uniquely different and you can definitely read them on their own without the others. It (like many of the titles) does deal with a heavy subject that our main character runs away from. The author does give a warning but also hope. The idea that lost things end up in the world is a lot of fun and as most fun things are they come with a price. Newcomers to the series and old fans alike have a lot to “find” in this novel!

I don't know, maybe the magic of this series is wearing off for me. I didn't find the story or the main character or the Doors interesting. The school didn't appear until the end, and the students we know didn't appear at all. It felt like the author was going through the motions. I was glad it was a novella and not a longer book. Honestly, three stars feels generous.

I read an advance reader copy from Netgalley.

Lost in the Moment and Found by Seanan McGuire, McGuire is up to her usual tricks with this story of giving you not quite what you think you are getting. Read at your own risk! Very Enjoyable.

Thank you SO much for the chance to read this ARC, I always love getting a sneak peek of these gorgeous novellas.

I knew this was going to be good, but it may be a new favourite in the Wayward Children series. Antsy is an incredible main character who has a beautiful and unique journey in this series, and the vibes of the shop where she ended up were immaculate.

No spoilers but the ending also warmed my cold little heart and this was truly a ray of joy in my life!

For being such a short book, it sure had a long-lasting impacting on my life. I was expecting a light installment in the series, an addition, but nothing more. Instead, this became one of my favorites in the entire series and one of my favorite books of all time. I don't cry often while I'm reading, but I cried reading this. 100 pages filled with hard-hitting emotions that went straight to my heart did this to me, I guess.

Our main character, Antsy, is a strong and feisty main character, and she is one of the smartest protagonist I've ever read. It's so easy to root for her. So easy to want her to succeed. At this point, we are all aware of the beautiful writing of the author, but it feels even more true in Lost in the Moment and Found. You feel Antsy hopes and dreams, and doubts and fears, and desperation. You feel everything in such a short amount of time. I don't know how the author does it. Her words must be made of magic. No other explanation.
I'm sad to say I relate to a lot of Antsy struggles (even if in a slight different way), and her journey felt like my journey.
This book is rich in metaphors, and I would love to write a spoilery analysis at some point. It deserves to be analyzed, loved and studied.
It's a smart book, not only because the way it deals with abuse, but also because it adds so much to the world of the Wayward Children in a way I hadn't anticipated. A few books, while still stunning, feel like fillers, but this one explains so much. If you ever felt frustrated about this aspect, this one won't disappoint you.
If you love the series, you're going to love this one.

tw: abuse, neglect, child abuse, death of a parent, sexual abuse.

thank you to tor and netgalley for providing me with an e-arc! all opinions are my own

every time I read a book in this series I think, surely it cannot blow me away THAT much anymore. but here we are again. this might be the most heartbreaking installment in the series yet, but it also feels like a monumental part - it explains a part of the lore behind the doors that I hadn’t even considered, and did so in such a beautiful way.

I loved the atmospheric setting of the shop, made even more enchanting by Seanan McGuire’s exceptional writing. I loved Antsy so much and I wanted to take her in my arms and protect her. I loved that this book truly added to the overarching story of the Wayward Children, and it feels like I find my place in this world more and more with every new book. some of the previous parts occasionally had a few things I didn’t love, but this one made me feel the same In an Absent Dream did, which is my favourite in the series.

I cannot wait to get a hardcopy of this and just do a huge marathon of all the books out so far early next year. highly recommend!

My introduction to Seanan McGuire's work came through my discovery of her Wayward Children series a few years ago. Since then, I have steadily read through as much of her work as I could get my hands on. So, every time I see a new book coming out by her I do my best to get my hands on it. Happily Tordotcom gave me an ebook ARC on NetGalley, and I finished it in less than a day.

The Wayward Children series focuses on the stories of children who have gone through Doors. These are the Doors we hear about in stories. The Doors that lead to Alice's adventures, the ones that lead to Neverland, and the ones that lead to more sinister places. Not all children find the Doors, but the ones that do are asked to "Be Sure" before entering them.

In the newest installment, Lost in the Moment and Found, Antoinette, or Antsy as she's called by most, experiences her first loss while browsing the toy aisle in Target. Her father collapses and dies from a heart attack when she's just five years old. In a matter of moments her entire understanding of the world is upended, and she has to adjust to life without one of her favorite people in the world.

Her mother doesn't take nearly as long to adjust. Driven by loneliness and loss, she remarries to a man named Tyler. Antsy immediately doesn't like Tyler, although she's too young to put why into words. She watches him as he watches her, and everything appears to be fine until her mother announces she and Tyler are going to have a baby. By this time Antsy is seven years old, and she's become increasingly wary of Tyler. When he finally attempts what Antsy has subconsciously feared, Antsy runs away from home.

She stops running long enough to realize she needs help. She decides to go inside a thrift store and ask to use their phone to call her grandmother to come get her. The words above the entrance ask her to "Be Sure." She's sure she needs help, so she turns the knob and walks inside. There she finds the world for Lost Things and becomes Lost herself. It isn't until a few years later that she realizes just how much she's lost and what the Doors have cost her.

First of all, Seanan McGuire wrote an Author's Note at the beginning of the book with some trigger warning for readers about parental gaslighting and grooming. I like the trend in authors warning readers who may be sensitive to the contents of their books, and I hope it continues. I was nervous to read about these issues, but her warning definitely helped. I kept it in mind as I read since I knew nothing too triggering would happen.

That being said, I am so glad Antsy ran away even if it cost her more than she realized to do so. This story had a better outcome than many like hers do, and it was nice to see. Of course, many of the Wayward Children books deal with issues of childhood abuse and neglect, and the Doors usually open onto worlds that are just right for the children in those moments.

Antsy's Door is unique in that it opened onto a nexus world, which is a new concept for the series. The Doors go there when they aren't waiting expectantly for the children they're watching. So, Antsy is able to use these doors to visit many different worlds as long as the Door is propped open for her return. This introduces us to new ideas that I am anxious to see used in subsequent entries in the series.

A big theme in this story is loss – loss of innocence, loss of childhood, and loss of intangible traits are all explored throughout Antsy's experiences. I liked the metaphor of what Antsy ends up paying to the Doors that McGuire used to represent the loss of childhood Antsy would have surely experienced if she hadn't run from Tyler when she did. The message that childhood is important and it's loss is also important was still demonstrated without going into traumatic experiences too deeply.

Like many of the children throughout the series, though, Antsy makes her way back to her home world, but the changes she's experienced while in the world of Lost Things makes it impossible for her to return to her mother. She finds her way, like so many others, to Eleanor West's Home for Wayward Children. The story leaves us with Antsy at the door, so I'm hopeful we see more of her in further installments in the series.

Overall, I really enjoyed this story. I liked it so much that, when I was a little over halfway through it, I went to the library after work and picked up the rest of the series to re-read over the coming weeks. Antsy's story explores losses that we all experience at one point or another in our lives. The theme of loss throughout was handled in a unique and interesting way, and Seanan McGuire has a gift for exploring complex ideas and trauma in a captivating way. This is definitely a series everyone should try to read.

I gave Lost in the Moment and Found by Seanan McGuire four out of five stars. Like the rest of the books in the series, this installment explores life's complications in a whimsical and emotional way. Giving these children a means to escape their traumas and become something more, even if that something more isn't always positive. With unique language and thought-provoking metaphors this story manages to explore these issues in a meaningful way while still being a great read.

I received a digital ARC from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I think this is easily one of my favorite books in this entire series. I think this one carries more weight because the story (based on info in the author's note) draws on the author's own experience; it also works as more of an anchor story within the Wayward Children series, since it explains how doors work in more detail than we've previously gotten. My one complaint is that in the first part of the book, when Antsy is still very young, she comes across as much older; however, that also might be a result of the narrative style of the book, or the author's own personal experience (and adult perspective) influencing how this story is told. It doesn't "hurt" the story, but it is sometimes distracting / disorienting.

This story had me in a chokehold the moment I read the dedication and my heart was immediately broken into bits -- which reminds me, there is an author's note and content warning so please be mindful before picking this one up. Due to the one-connected, one-standalone pattern, this particular instalment isn't part of the main storyline and instead focuses on Antsy, a young girl who runs away from home rather than face the horrors that await her at the hands of her stepfather, and, stepping through a door (which also happens to be a Door), finds herself in a junk shop housing lost things; of which she, herself, has become one.

Unlike most instalments, main plot or otherwise, this doesn't have a lot going on. It's a very quiet book which is incredibly fitting considering the subject matter of the beginning and also the themes for the rest of the story. And while I didn't break down and cry (though I foresee one particular scene maybe being cause for many a tear, though I'm not sure why I didn't shed any myself!), this somehow still packed a punch.

This series had been on a downward trajectory for me up until the last book and I'm delighted that I've loved one of these enough to again award a four star (only the second ever). I hope that means we only continue to go up -- though I'd be just as happy to stay steady here! -- because I do love the concept of this series, I admire the themes, and often I'll even enjoy the characters. And yet somehow they never combine into a win. But this time? They did.

As this reads as a standalone, even if you aren't invested in this series already, I would highly recommend it.

I thought I would know how this book would go (a child gets lost in a magical world and then goes on adventures before unhappily finding their way back home). However, this entry in the Wayward series looks into the mechanics of the portals to the other worlds.

Do I have to say this is a great book? It’s part of the Wayward series. Of course, it’s great. I appreciated the more in-depth look at how the Wayward universe operates.

This review is based on an advanced reader copy provided through Netgalley for an honest review.

I love the recent novellas exploring outside of the school grounds, and this installment may be the furthest. While some familiar characters may appear, it's very briefly and this may be the darkest addition to the series.

There's a very candid look at aspects of grooming, emotional, and psychological abuse so the story may not be for everyone. The character growth displayed in such a short amount of time without feeling rushed is phenomenal though, proving how incredible a writer McGuire is.

This book feels very personal to Seanan McGuire, and that's a beautiful thing. It's deep and it's very poignant. My personal quibble with it is that it doesn't feel connected to the rest of the Wayward Children series and I miss that series. So on its own, with an important message, it's a lovely book. As a part of the series as a whole, I'm not as sold.

This is the eighth instalment in what is already one of my favourite series.

Danger at home has our protagonist, Antsy, running away and becoming 'lost'.
This story can be read as a standalone, but it does have subtle ties and references to other stories in the series. Darker themes are weaved together wonderfully with the hint of whimsy and magic that is so consistent within this series. Antsy's story was heartbreaking at times but there also remained an underlying current of hope.

This is the most solid entry in the Wayward Children Series since the first one, in my opinion. Some books in this series have felt like they were dashed off quickly and meant to check boxes more than because the author's heart was in them. Her heart feels like it's in this one.

Antsy (short for Antoinette) loses her father early. When her mother remarries, Antsy has an evil stepfather come into her life. The author's scenes of gaslighting and creepiness felt real and horrible. In the prelude to the story, the author notes that Antsy runs before anything too appalling happens. That doesn't keep the atmosphere from feeling tense. Antsy goes from a little girl who feels safe in her home to one without a refuge and anyone who grew up in a home that failed them in safeness will understand.

When Antsy runs and finds the Shop Where Lost Things Go, she discovers a place that she feels useful and important. She can open the doors that the Shop and its denizens need to get supplies and clients. But even here adults have use for children that is not in those children's best interest.

At the end of the book I was strongly reminded of climate change. Adults are borrowing from their children to get what they think they need. This exploitation has always been a risk for children, who don't have the experience or independence to protect themselves.

Even with these strong themes (or perhaps because of them) the book pulled me in. It felt a bit like Spirited Away to me, where a child is brought to a place where she doesn't know the rules or the danger and yet finds her strength anyway.

This series is so special. The beginning of this one is a little hard. But I think it makes the rest of it deeper. And the ending very bittersweet. I feel like this one could have been a little longer just to flesh out the story more, it seemed like less happened in this one compared to others. Always obsessed with the cover and I can't wait for the next one.