SOME FARAWAY PLACE

At 19, Rose finally develops a supernatural ability like the rest of her family.

This follow-up to A Neon Darkness (2020) fills in the background of Rose, a secondary character from the Bright Sessions podcast. It also connects to the story of Damien, the complicated protagonist of the previous novel. Rose has the ability to dreamdive—or enter a powerfully lucid dream state and experience the dreaming minds of others. The dream world is the perfect place to escape to when things are tough in the real world, so Rose starts to sleep her days away instead of confronting her problems. With this addition, Shippen continues to expand her fascinating universe populated with sympathetic characters and to flesh out their lives. She fills in the most important background knowledge needed to make the story accessible, but it does not stand alone as well as the other novels in the series do. This entry contains everything that makes the universe of this world appealing, including sympathetic, complex characters; magic powers that cause more problems than they solve; and comfortable diversity. One unfortunate blemish is a minor Deaf character’s reliance on her best friend and fellow patient as her interpreter for group therapy, something that is portrayed as cute instead of as the ethical violation it is. Rose and her family are White and Jewish; Damien is White, and the supporting cast is broadly diverse.

A must-read for Bright Sessions fans.