Enjoyable and sweet, yet ultimately nothing new in the way of the Walcott twins arc. I lowkey feel like McGuire is just rehashing the same details about Jack each time we see her in these books? But this one at least had some pretty moments (and I like Alexis) so it's worth reading if you really want to flesh out your whole "Wayward Children" experience. ( )

A little bit of unnecessary backstory for Jack and Alexis to while the afternoon away. Not bad at all, and I enjoy revisiting the doors. ( )

It's a good book...but I am getting rather tired of Jack and Jill. Yet another detailed bit, this time of how Jack settles in with her mad scientist mentor (and develops her phobia of dirt, and her coping mechanisms), and meets the girl that's going to be a deciding factor later on. So not quite as early as their arrival, but before any of the other stories about them (Jill is barely mentioned, mostly in order to contrast Jack's life with what hers (presumably) is). ( )

I like the sister's story but honestly? Why do I need 4 books about them when there's so much more characters to know about? ( )

IN MERCY, RAIN, by @seananmcguire, is the story of how Jack and Alexis meet, but more importantly, it’s also the story of how Jack *becomes* the Jack we know from the main series. Yes, it’s a short story, but McGuire is able to create so much nuance in this story, about Jack and her relationship with the people of the Moors and to Dr. Bleak, even giving us some small insight into his story, as well. The joy I find in these books is the infinite number of stories possible, and how in even something so short and to the point as this short story, McGuire is able to create something so much larger than the sum of its parts.

I’ve seen quite a bit of hate on this story, that it’s unnecessary, that the Wolcott twins are overused, and I’m not sure I understand. To me, the twins are some of the most interesting characters in a series already chockablock with interesting characters; I’ll take any new stories about them I can get.

IN MERCY, RAIN is free to read on tor.com, or you can purchase it as a Kindle edition.

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