Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear (Wayward Children, #10)

by 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 Belyrreka, 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 Belyrreka, there are dangers, and trials, and Nadya would soon find herself fighting to keep hold of everything she had come to treasure.

• ISBN10: 1250848334
• ISBN13: 9781250848338
• Publish Date: 17 February 2025
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Tor Books
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 160
• Language: English

Reviews

[Quirky Cat]

Book Summary:

Nadya likes to say that she had three mothers—the first gave her up, the second was her country, and the third took her in and tried to change her. She was born in Russia but moved to the Americas, where the expectations continued to mount.

Until one day, the young girl found a doorway. She didn’t realize it was a door until she went through it, and what she found on the other side was a world of giant turtles, rivers, and great dangers.

My Review:

Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear was a slightly difficult book to pick up. It was easily the hardest in the series for me because I already had an idea where it would go. The one downside to this format is that the stories bounce back and forth, giving readers insight into the future.

As with many children's tales, Nadya's story is heartwrenching. She was taken in by a family determined to "fix" what wasn't broken and was lucky enough to find a doorway she didn't know she was looking for.

Unfortunately, this story is also heartbreaking for the readers. The very format of the series tells us that Nadya will not get to stay in the place she'll come to love. That's why I hesitated so long to read it.

Still, it was worth the read. Did I cry a little bit at the ending, even knowing it would come to pass? Maybe. I will not admit to anything. However, Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear may have raised more questions than answers. Every other backstory helped me understand the character more, but this one left me wondering how Nadya was forced out of her world. What did she do to become unsure? (If I missed it and you know, please feel free to say something!)

Highlights:
Urban Fantasy
Magical Worlds
Doorways to the Unknown
Wayward Children Series
Be Sure

Trigger Warnings:
Controlling Parents
Risk of Drowning

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