The Dream-Quest of Vellitt Boe is a 2016 fantasy novella by American writer Kij Johnson, revisiting H. P. Lovecraft's The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath from the viewpoint of a woman. It was first published in trade paperback and ebook format by Tor.com.
 Cover of first edition | |
| Author | Kij Johnson |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | Victo Ngai |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Fantasy |
| Publisher | Tor.com |
Publication date | 2016 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Paperback, ebook |
| Pages | 165 pages |
| ISBN | 978-0-7653-9141-4 |
Synopsis
When a student at Ulthar Women's College runs off with a man from the Waking World, professor Vellitt Boe — a retired adventurer — must track her down and convince her to return.
Reception
The Dream-Quest of Vellitt Boe won the 2017 World Fantasy Award—Long Fiction,[1] and was a finalist for the Nebula Award for Best Novella of 2016,[2] the 2017 Hugo Award for Best Novella,[3] and the 2017 Locus Award for Best Novella.[4]
Publishers Weekly called it "absorbing" and "utterly irresistible", lauding Johnson for "(s)uperb worldbuilding and gorgeous prose".[5]
At National Public Radio, Amal El-Mohtar noted that the story is "perfectly self-contained", and can be appreciated without any knowledge of the source material on which it is based.[6]