TQ's Book Count 2026

[The Queen]

#23: Spelunking Through Hell by Seanan McGuire. Book 11 in the Incryptid universe of cryptozoology and magic, and one I somehow skipped. In this one: 55 years ago, Grandpa Thomas saved Grandma Alice’s life by making a deal with the crossroads (an evil world-animating spirit). They had five years of happiness, and then the crossroads abducted Thomas and whisked him off to a dying planet in a bottle dimension. Alice could not attempt to follow immediately because she was pregnant. Shortly after giving birth, she dropped off her 3-year old son and newborn daughter with best friend Laura, and begins her search. The book begins 50 years into the search: the evil crossroads have been expelled and replaced by the Anima Mundi (via Alice’s granddaughter) who has revealed that yes, Thomas is still alive. Alice assembles the tools she needs and heads out on a dimension-hopping quest to find and liberate him.

I love this story and the characters in this universe for how they accept personal failings and embrace their own potential; that they believe deeply in their convictions and yet when when something is proven wrong, they don’t get stuck in denial. They react, but they keep moving and base their decisions and actions on the new information and evidence rather than emotion, or tradition. The people that care bout each other don’t lie to themselves or each other. It’s a nice place for my brain to relax.