I absolutely loved this. It’s a 2017 Hugo nominee, and is one of the ones I read in preparation for voting.
It’s about an older woman who teaches at a woman’s college. One of her students leaves, and because the student is the daughter of one of the board members, the Vellitt Boe leaves to go bring her back.
Vellitt Boe lives in the Dreamlands, and as she travels across them we learn about her past and her environs.
The Dream Quest of Vellitt Boe is one of the many “woke Lovecraft pastiches” that have come out in the past few years, but I’m not complaining at all. It’s wonderful and a complete delight.
I read this at a campground in the middle of Wisconsin over Fourth of July holiday, and there’s a small shoutout to a town about 30 minutes away from where I was. Small world!