Come Tumbling Down

Wayward Children, Book 5

By: Seanan McGuire

Narrated by: Seanan McGuire

Length: 3 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's Summary

Locus Awards - Nominee - 2021

Hugo Award - 2021

The fifth installment in New York Times best-selling author Seanan McGuire's award-winning Wayward Children series, Come Tumbling Down picks up the threads left dangling by Every Heart a Doorway and Down Among the Sticks and Bones.

When Jack left Eleanor West's School for Wayward Children she was carrying the body of her deliciously deranged sister - whom she had recently murdered in a fit of righteous justice - back to their home on the Moors.

But death in their adopted world isn't always as permanent as it is here, and when Jack is herself carried back into the school, it becomes clear that something has happened to her. Something terrible. Something of which only the maddest of scientists could conceive. Something only her friends are equipped to help her overcome.

Eleanor West's "No Quests" rule is about to be broken.

Again.

The Wayward Children Series

Book 1: Every Heart a Doorway
Book 2: Down Among the Sticks and Bones
Book 3: Beneath the Sugar Sky
Book 4: In an Absent Dream
Book 5: Come Tumbling Down

©2020 Seanan McGuire (P)2020 Macmillan Audio

Critic Reviews

Locus Awards - Nominee - 2021

Hugo Award - 2021

 "[Come Tumbling Down is] Grotesque, haunting, lovely." (Kirkus starred review) 

Narrated?

I enjoyed this book. But I don't think Seanan has the range for multiple characters. Her previous narrator: Cynthia Hopkins did a fantastic job using her voice skills to separate characters. The story was well written and I enjoyed it.

The best books for lonely times

The books in this series are balm to the soul when we’re living in a time of uncertainty and isolation. Grateful to these stories for all they ways they comfort.

Author’s writing is great. Narration not so much.

Love this author and the characters. They are complex and vivid and unique. But the author shouldn’t read her own books for the audio version.

Not as good as the previous books.

While I did enjoy it, I didn't enjoyed it as much as some of the other books in this series. The stand alone books are great, but when it comes to continuing the story there are some inconsistencies. Still enjoyed it though. I will say the narration wasn't the best. While it is cool to hear it read by the author, it fell flat.

Great!

This is an absolutely fabulous listen! Hearing Seanan perform was truly an excellent experience that leaves you wanting more.

Another excellent Wayward Children book

Seanan McGuire returns to the world of the Wayward Children by finishing the story of the sisters Jack and Jill and their strange world of The Moors. As always, the story is engaging and interesting and keeps you listening right up to the end.

Seanan McGuire herself performed this one. It's slightly better than her narration in Down Among the Sticks and Bones, but still not as polished as a professional narrator. It didn't detract from the story, though.

Read by the author!

Another great foray into the world of doors and lost children, with twists and turns and character development to keep you satisfied!

Just as Good as the Previous

Of you liked the first four, this one just keeps giving! Really looking forward to number six :)

Another great listen from Seanan McGuire

I absolutely love this whole series. This was just as entertaining as the other books. Hope there's more to come.

Probably the second best of the series

I've never felt this series lived up to the promise of the first book, but this one comes closer than the others. The mer-girl is still more of a token than an actual character, but Jack really gets to shine in this one and we get to see more of the moors. It's far better than Sticks and Bones. Worth reading.

Not as good as expected

When I read the blurb of this book, I was really excited because I loved Every Heart A Doorway and Down Among The Sticks And Bones and I was expecting it to be a little like them with Jack and Jill. And honestly it was a god book, but I think maybe I placed too high an expectation on it going in because it didn't quite hit what I was expecting.

I love Kade and Christopher. I honestly think they're the best characters in the series (and Nancy, I really liked Nancy) and I just want them to be happy. It feels like the books are moving away from Eleanor and onto Kade as the leader and I'm pretty ambivalent about it because I don't have a particular attachment to Eleanor.

But the books also feel like they're starting to focus on Cora a lot, and I know the next book to come out that progresses the plot of the series is about Cora and I really don't like her as a character. She feels incredibly flat to me because all that she seems to think about or how everybody looks at her is just about weight and her appearance. Numerous times, its thought by the other characters that its surprising that she's as light on her feet as she is considering her body mass and this has never been a thing for the other characters in previous books so I don't know why it feels like Cora's thought patterns (because she only ever seems to think about her weight and everything relating) are suddenly leaking across to the rest of the characters. Shes also a pretty negative character in general so I wonder if she'll end up attending the sister school where the kids who want to forget their worlds go.

But in general, I want the school to have more "dark world" kids because Christopher is the only one left and I'm not a great fan of the nonsense worlds.

love

I loved this almost as much as the first book, I liked it more than the second cause jill wasnt in this. I wish the narrator for the first book wouldve narrated it cause her voice for kade is so good but the author is good as well! I liked how this had a (almost) conclusive ending to the story of jack and jill.

amazing

loved this so much. Seanan does a great job narrating and I will never get sick of the wayward children. best adventures!!