''Every Heart a Doorway'' is a fantasy novella by American writer

Seanan McGuire Seanan McGuire (pronounced SHAWN-in; born January 5, 1978 in Martinez, California) is an American author and filker. McGuire is known for her urban fantasy novels. She uses the pseudonym Mira Grant to write science fiction/ horror and the pseudon ...

, the first in the '' Wayward Children'' series. It was first published in hardcover and ebook editions by Tor.com in April 2016.

Plot

Rarely, children may find doorways that transport them to other worlds. As a child, Nancy found a doorway that led her to the land of the dead, based on the story of

Persephone In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Persephone ( ; gr, Περσεφόνη, Persephónē), also called Kore or Cora ( ; gr, Κόρη, Kórē, the maiden), is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter. She became the queen of the underworld after ...

and

Hades Hades (; grc-gre, ᾍδης, Háidēs; ), in the ancient Greek religion and myth, is the god of the dead and the king of the underworld, with which his name became synonymous. Hades was the eldest son of Cronus and Rhea, although this also ...

. When she is returned to the real world, her parents do not believe her story. Nancy is sent to a boarding school for children who have had similar experiences. The students include Kade, who spent time in a fantasy world with goblins and fairies, Jacqueline "Jack" and Jillian "Jill," who spent time in a world of vampires and mad scientists, and Sumi, who spent time in a nonsense world full of candy and rainbows. The students were all altered by their time in different worlds where they were able to be their true selves, and most long to return to them. Sumi is found dead, as are several other students. Nancy and her friends learn that Jill is killing students in order to make a key which will reopen her own doorway. Jack kills Jill and then returns to her gothic world. Nancy finds her doorway again and returns to the land of the dead.

Reception and awards

''Every Heart a Doorway'' was critically acclaimed upon release, and received the following accolades: * 2017

Hugo Award for Best Novella The Hugo Award for Best Novella is one of the Hugo Awards given each year for science fiction or fantasy stories published or translated into English during the previous calendar year. The novella award is available for works of fiction of between ...

*2016

Nebula Award for Best Novella The Nebula Award for Best Novella is given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) for science fiction or fantasy novellas. A work of fiction is defined by the organization as a novella if it is between 17,500 and 4 ...

* 2017

Locus Award for Best Novella The Locus Award for Best Novella is one of a number of Locus Awards given out each year by ''Locus Locus (plural loci) is Latin for "place". It may refer to: Entertainment * Locus (comics), a Marvel Comics mutant villainess, a member of the Muta ...

* 2017

Alex Award The Alex Awards annually recognize "ten books written for adults that have special appeal to young adults ages 12 through 18". Essentially, the award is a listing by the American Library Association parallel to its annual Best Books for Young A ...

Series

The book is the first in an open sequence of novellas and short stories called the '' Wayward Children''.

Film

In July 2021,

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

acquired the film rights to the ''Wayward Children'' series.

References

{{Seanan McGuire Novels by Seanan McGuire American novellas 2016 American novels 2016 fantasy novels American fantasy novels Hugo Award for Best Novella winning works Nebula Award for Best Novella-winning works Tor Books books