Books › In an Absent Dream
In an Absent Dream
208 pages
A dark, rule-bound fairy tale about the exact price of growing up and the tragic weight of our choices.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like stepping into an autumnal, twilight world where every action has a precise and unyielding cost. The narrative unfolds at a steady, deliberate pace, wrapping you in a melancholic atmosphere that is both deeply comforting and laced with impending dread. The prose is lyrical and sharp, reading like a cautionary fairy tale that respects the intelligence of its audience while breaking their hearts. It is a story steeped in the rigid logic of debts and bargains, exploring the heavy burden of choice and the painful, inevitable transition out of childhood. This is a perfect match for readers who crave bittersweet, atmospheric fantasies where magic is real, but never, ever free.
- Mood
- autumnal
- eerie
- tragic
- nostalgic
- Tone
- melancholic
- cautionary
- philosophical
- bittersweet
- Pace
- steady
- Themes
- the cost of growing up · burden of choice · rigid adherence to rules · loss of innocence · belonging versus expectation
- The writing
- Lyrical, precise, and slightly detached, reading like a dark, modern fairy tale with a sharp edge.
- The arc
- Begins with the quiet hope of finding a logical sanctuary and slowly descends into the heartbreaking inevitability of a tragic, irreversible choice.
- Who it's for
- Readers who love dark, rule-bound fairy tales and ache for stories about the painful, uncompromising transition between childhood and adulthood.
Content notes
- grief
- bullying
- body horror elements
- death
About the book
This fourth entry and prequel tells the story of Lundy, a very serious young girl who would rather study and dream than become a respectable housewife and live up to the expectations of the world around her. As well she should.
When she finds a doorway to a world founded on logic and reason, riddles and lies, she thinks she's found her paradise. Alas, everything costs at the goblin market, and when her time there is drawing to a close, she makes the kind of bargain that never plays out well.
Description from Open Library.
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