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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Una vez más que Cornelia Funke logra dejarme sin aliento. De esos libros que uno desea terminar enseguida porque no puede esperar para saber cómo sigue la historia y a la vez quiere que nunca se acaben. Desde el primer libro es claro que esta saga apunta a un público más adulto (que lamentablemente puede ser escasamente captado por su clasificación como libros "juveniles"), pero creo que en esta tercera entrega se hace más evidente esto último.
Pese a que me encantó, debo decir que no lo encuentro tan perfecto por dos motivos. El primero es que me resultó que el inicio del libro no estuvo del todo bien resuelto: la "búsqueda" del libro, la aventura que se va a desarrollar termina de redondearse muy tarde. Casi que parece que Jacob no tiene motivos para ir a buscar a su hermano. La segunda crítica es que, la trama a veces se vuelve un poco como un drama romántico y le quita lugar a la aventura, que es lo que me había fascinado de la segunda entrega.
He leído críticas sobre la forma de escribir de Cornelia. Respecto a eso, pienso que es muy personal: por momentos se extiende sobre aspectos que no se vinculan tanto con la trama (como descripciones de objetos mágicos) y por otros elide información que ayudaría a conocer más a los personajes (por ejemplo, en Reckless I: ¿cómo hacía Jacob para pasarse tanto tiempo al otro lado del espejo?) Pese a esto, transmite imágenes tan poderosas que no hace falta nada más, hay cosas que se entienden aún sin palabras si uno se deja atrapar por sus mundos.
Recomendable, sobre todo para animar a adultos a que redescubran la literatura fantástica. Espero que llegue pronto a mi país, ya que yo sólo lo pude conseguir a través de alguien que viajó afuera.
Pese a que me encantó, debo decir que no lo encuentro tan perfecto por dos motivos. El primero es que me resultó que el inicio del libro no estuvo del todo bien resuelto: la "búsqueda" del libro, la aventura que se va a desarrollar termina de redondearse muy tarde. Casi que parece que Jacob no tiene motivos para ir a buscar a su hermano. La segunda crítica es que,
Spoiler
si bien todos estábamos esperando que Fux y Jacob estuvieran juntos,He leído críticas sobre la forma de escribir de Cornelia. Respecto a eso, pienso que es muy personal: por momentos se extiende sobre aspectos que no se vinculan tanto con la trama (como descripciones de objetos mágicos) y por otros elide información que ayudaría a conocer más a los personajes (por ejemplo, en Reckless I: ¿cómo hacía Jacob para pasarse tanto tiempo al otro lado del espejo?) Pese a esto, transmite imágenes tan poderosas que no hace falta nada más, hay cosas que se entienden aún sin palabras si uno se deja atrapar por sus mundos.
Spoiler
Y en este libro en particular encuentro ambas cosas: tardé en hacerme una idea de las criaturas de espejo, no entendía cómo eran, pero por otro lado hay escenas como la de la muerte del Hada Oscura que son maravillosas.Recomendable, sobre todo para animar a adultos a que redescubran la literatura fantástica. Espero que llegue pronto a mi país, ya que yo sólo lo pude conseguir a través de alguien que viajó afuera.
This time we're crossing into unknown territory so there is even a map at the beginning of the book (or maybe the publisher only included it because it's fashionable now).
Anyway, there are as few illustrations as in the second book (only at the beginning of the chapters, meh) but they are as gorgeous as ever (yay)!
As you know by now, Jacob and Fuchs are still a team and we're still travelling through the world behind the mirror that gets savaged by progress (yes, I don't like it one bit), the war with the Goyl and the ramifications of the two previous books.
However, this time we're moving far to the East, to what is Russia in our world. Varangia it's called in Mirrorworld and full of tame bears wearing human clothes, fire birds, Russian witches (Baba Yagas), colourful houses, lots of magical items and old old old forests that I wish so much still existed in our world today.
As characters, there is the so-called "Spieler" (player), an Erlelf, who definitely isn't a good guy. What happened to him and his kind was not very nice but apparently they had been bad before and are now simply seeing themselves as victims, using every available resource (and there are many) to get their revenge although their punishment was justified.
Revenge is the general force for Will (Jacob's younger brother) too. I must admit that I don't like Will very much. In the first book he was a victim, lost in an unknown world, needing his brother, being overwhelmed by a curse. In this book he was supposed to be a victim of Spieler's too, but he was just so whiney and selfish on one side, completely stupid and annoying on the other, so I couldn't sympathize with him.
And we get to see John Reckless, Will's and Jacob's father. I'm not sure I should start writing about this man. In short: I HATE HIM! With all my heart! Not enough that he abandoned his family, no. He's addicted to fame and glory while simultaneously being the greatest coward that ever lived. He's the one bringing all the progress to Mirrorworld for which alone I'd want to kill him. But he also has no real interest in his son, even when he's standing right in front of him and uses every person in his life just as long as they are deemed good/useful enough. Urgh! You have to read it all to understand the dimension of his awfulness. Unfortunately he does not die a violent death in this book like I had hoped.
As a new character we get a man from our world. That was spicing things up a bit and creating a few quite funny interactions. Also, I think, he's the one bridging the story to book 4 and its' setting (the Mirrorworld version of Canada, I think).
It was also nice to have the old characters like Alma the witch and Chanute again. It balanced the whole thing and showed where Jacob really belongs. And it made up for all the awful chapters about our world in the first third of the book (they were written as wonderfully as the other chapters but I don't want to read about our world, I like Mirrorworld much better, just like Jacob, and couldn't get behind the mirror soon enough).
And then we have Jacob and Fuchs. I usually hate when love stories are included but here I was really rooting for them. Having met when Fuchs was a little girl (before the first book) and having been the bestest of friends, they grow to need one another. At first only like friends, then like brother and sister and then ... well. Thanks to the fox fur that makes Celeste (Fuchs' human name) shapeshift, she's also aging sooner (which is logical considering that most animals, foxes in particular, age faster than humans). In the second book her age and that of Jacob caught up with one another and after what happened at the end of book 2, not even they can deny their feelings any longer. But thanks to Spieler, it's complicated. I usually really hate that because it's unnecessary drama but here it's never too much. Sure, the suspense was killing me, but it was still fairly realistic (considering we're in a world where fairy tales are true). And yes, there is a happy ending. Sort of. Well, it is happy for these two and that's all I really wanted (that's a lie actually, I'll explain later).
Also, I love the immportals the author created. Not the Erlelfen although they and their powers are pretty amazing. I mean the fae. Especially the Dark One (I'm not going to tell you her name or I'll have to die for that ;p ). I felt for her sooooo much. And that is why the ending of this book was so bitter for me. *claws out eyes crying*
And then the end of the book. So many questions!
How many mirrors are there and have the others gone through too so we'll be rid of the Erlelfen soon or will the others think of something else?
How soon will the still lasting curse work on Spieler?
Who is the fae's white hope (to me, there are two possibilities)?
What will become of Will and Nerron and Sixteen?
And what the fuck will Will do about Clara - or has he forgotten her already, being as despicable as his father?
Thanks to a conversation with the author, I know there will be more books. If the author has any say in it, it will be 3 more. And I think I know where the 4th will be taking us (at least in part, it's possible she will have to split the narratives to show happenings on two different continents).
I can only hope that I won't have to read too much from John Reckless' and only a few chapters (until the whole Spieler-thing is resolved) from Will's POV! But the new continent should make a very interesting setting for lots and lots of new magic and I know that Native Americans / Native Canadians have lots of great tales and magical creatures.
See you (soon I hope) on the other side of the mirror!
P.S.: Just heard from the author - the 4th book will NOT be set in Canada but in Japan!!!
Anyway, there are as few illustrations as in the second book (only at the beginning of the chapters, meh) but they are as gorgeous as ever (yay)!
As you know by now, Jacob and Fuchs are still a team and we're still travelling through the world behind the mirror that gets savaged by progress (yes, I don't like it one bit), the war with the Goyl and the ramifications of the two previous books.
However, this time we're moving far to the East, to what is Russia in our world. Varangia it's called in Mirrorworld and full of tame bears wearing human clothes, fire birds, Russian witches (Baba Yagas), colourful houses, lots of magical items and old old old forests that I wish so much still existed in our world today.
As characters, there is the so-called "Spieler" (player), an Erlelf, who definitely isn't a good guy. What happened to him and his kind was not very nice but apparently they had been bad before and are now simply seeing themselves as victims, using every available resource (and there are many) to get their revenge although their punishment was justified.
Revenge is the general force for Will (Jacob's younger brother) too. I must admit that I don't like Will very much. In the first book he was a victim, lost in an unknown world, needing his brother, being overwhelmed by a curse. In this book he was supposed to be a victim of Spieler's too, but he was just so whiney and selfish on one side, completely stupid and annoying on the other, so I couldn't sympathize with him.
And we get to see John Reckless, Will's and Jacob's father. I'm not sure I should start writing about this man. In short: I HATE HIM! With all my heart! Not enough that he abandoned his family, no. He's addicted to fame and glory while simultaneously being the greatest coward that ever lived. He's the one bringing all the progress to Mirrorworld for which alone I'd want to kill him. But he also has no real interest in his son, even when he's standing right in front of him and uses every person in his life just as long as they are deemed good/useful enough. Urgh! You have to read it all to understand the dimension of his awfulness. Unfortunately he does not die a violent death in this book like I had hoped.
As a new character we get a man from our world. That was spicing things up a bit and creating a few quite funny interactions. Also, I think, he's the one bridging the story to book 4 and its' setting (the Mirrorworld version of Canada, I think).
It was also nice to have the old characters like Alma the witch and Chanute again. It balanced the whole thing and showed where Jacob really belongs. And it made up for all the awful chapters about our world in the first third of the book (they were written as wonderfully as the other chapters but I don't want to read about our world, I like Mirrorworld much better, just like Jacob, and couldn't get behind the mirror soon enough).
And then we have Jacob and Fuchs. I usually hate when love stories are included but here I was really rooting for them. Having met when Fuchs was a little girl (before the first book) and having been the bestest of friends, they grow to need one another. At first only like friends, then like brother and sister and then ... well. Thanks to the fox fur that makes Celeste (Fuchs' human name) shapeshift, she's also aging sooner (which is logical considering that most animals, foxes in particular, age faster than humans). In the second book her age and that of Jacob caught up with one another and after what happened at the end of book 2, not even they can deny their feelings any longer. But thanks to Spieler, it's complicated. I usually really hate that because it's unnecessary drama but here it's never too much. Sure, the suspense was killing me, but it was still fairly realistic (considering we're in a world where fairy tales are true). And yes, there is a happy ending. Sort of. Well, it is happy for these two and that's all I really wanted (that's a lie actually, I'll explain later).
Also, I love the immportals the author created. Not the Erlelfen although they and their powers are pretty amazing. I mean the fae. Especially the Dark One (I'm not going to tell you her name or I'll have to die for that ;p ). I felt for her sooooo much. And that is why the ending of this book was so bitter for me.
Spoiler
I didn't want her to die. An immortal who had grown to actually love only to get her supposedly non-existing heart broken? Who, despite all the pain and fury, still doesn't kill half the world? An immortal who felt so much with non-immortal creatures that she was really wanting to help (like when she lifted Will's curse in book 1 or warned Jacob about her sister)? She was really great - something that cannot be said about her red sister. I wanted her to succeed with the Golden Yarn. Which she did but I don't think she actually enjoyed the prosepct of being who she had been before meeting Kami'en. Also, I wanted the situation with her and all her sisters to stay the same because I'm afraid all the magic will completely fade away now.And then the end of the book. So many questions!
Spoiler
What happens to Kami'en's son?!How many mirrors are there and have the others gone through too so we'll be rid of the Erlelfen soon or will the others think of something else?
How soon will the still lasting curse work on Spieler?
Who is the fae's white hope (to me, there are two possibilities)?
What will become of Will and Nerron and Sixteen?
And what the fuck will Will do about Clara - or has he forgotten her already, being as despicable as his father?
Thanks to a conversation with the author, I know there will be more books. If the author has any say in it, it will be 3 more. And I think I know where the 4th will be taking us (at least in part, it's possible she will have to split the narratives to show happenings on two different continents).
I can only hope that I won't have to read too much from John Reckless' and only a few chapters (until the whole Spieler-thing is resolved) from Will's POV! But the new continent should make a very interesting setting for lots and lots of new magic and I know that Native Americans / Native Canadians have lots of great tales and magical creatures.
See you (soon I hope) on the other side of the mirror!
P.S.: Just heard from the author - the 4th book will NOT be set in Canada but in Japan!!!
This third volume is a bit of a new beginning. The repercussions of Will having followed his brother have been resolved so new adventures awaited.
New adventures meant that Will once again travelled to Mirrorworld. *doh* Though this time he has good reason (though it is far too easy to lie to him if you ask me).
Most surprisingly, though, was that the book started with Jacob‘s and Will‘s father, John! Yep, the asshole is alive and well, but simply never returned to his family.
In the goyl kingdom, Kami‘en has a successor - a goyl of such peculiarity that his own mother hadn‘t wanted him until the Dark Fae made him beautiful (and saved his life). And therein lies the problem: she loves the boy. Actually, she loves Kami‘en. But she is done getting hurt all the time. Which is why, when the young prince vanishes and she is blamed, she goes in search of the Weaver who can cut the Golden Yarn binding the fae to the goyl king.
Funny, how that worked out in combination with Will‘s desire for revenge.
Jacob and Fox are caught in the middle, especially thanks to Spieler,.
This book infuriated me the first time I read it and it was no different now. John is a despicable man and certainly doesn‘t deserve the title „father“. Not that Amalie is a better mother. Or Kami’en a better husband (or lover). I felt so much for Jacob, Niomee and the prince.
And Spieler‘s demand for as well as his other plots had me gnashing my teeth also.
So much to hate, so much to be furious about - I felt like a goyl!
Nevertheless, I can‘t help but be in awe at the intricate and always unique characters the author creates. Whether you love them or hate them, they are never two-dimensional.
What delighted me especially in this 3rd volume was the new setting. I marvelled at the tales and myths Cornelia Funke weaved into this dashing tale that had us travelling far into the east, to Varangia with its zars, Cossacks, Baba Yaga, rusalkas, golems, flying carpets and more. Just the right setting for such a tragic story of treachery and betrayal, unrequited love and desperate pain.
For those interested in the print version, see my review here (I included some exemplary illustrations). However, I can assure you that at least the German audiobooks are just as worthy what with the music that adorns the beginnings and endings of every chapter and conjures exactly the right frame of mind and emotional response for this reading experience. Not to mention the fabulous job the narrator is doing.
I can‘t wait to finally continue the tale now that the next book is out.
New adventures meant that Will once again travelled to Mirrorworld. *doh* Though this time he has good reason (though it is far too easy to lie to him if you ask me).
Most surprisingly, though, was that the book started with Jacob‘s and Will‘s father, John! Yep, the asshole is alive and well, but simply never returned to his family.
In the goyl kingdom, Kami‘en has a successor - a goyl of such peculiarity that his own mother hadn‘t wanted him until the Dark Fae made him beautiful (and saved his life). And therein lies the problem: she loves the boy. Actually, she loves Kami‘en. But she is done getting hurt all the time. Which is why, when the young prince vanishes and she is blamed, she goes in search of the Weaver who can cut the Golden Yarn binding the fae to the goyl king.
Funny, how that worked out in combination with Will‘s desire for revenge.
Jacob and Fox are caught in the middle, especially thanks to Spieler,
Spoiler
one of the fabled earl elves who aren‘t as bound / extinct as the fae thoughtThis book infuriated me the first time I read it and it was no different now. John is a despicable man and certainly doesn‘t deserve the title „father“. Not that Amalie is a better mother. Or Kami’en a better husband (or lover). I felt so much for Jacob, Niomee and the prince.
And Spieler‘s demand for
Spoiler
Fox‘s and Jacob‘s first childSo much to hate, so much to be furious about - I felt like a goyl!
Nevertheless, I can‘t help but be in awe at the intricate and always unique characters the author creates. Whether you love them or hate them, they are never two-dimensional.
What delighted me especially in this 3rd volume was the new setting. I marvelled at the tales and myths Cornelia Funke weaved into this dashing tale that had us travelling far into the east, to Varangia with its zars, Cossacks, Baba Yaga, rusalkas, golems, flying carpets and more. Just the right setting for such a tragic story of treachery and betrayal, unrequited love and desperate pain.
For those interested in the print version, see my review here (I included some exemplary illustrations). However, I can assure you that at least the German audiobooks are just as worthy what with the music that adorns the beginnings and endings of every chapter and conjures exactly the right frame of mind and emotional response for this reading experience. Not to mention the fabulous job the narrator is doing.
I can‘t wait to finally continue the tale now that the next book is out.
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I forgot how beautiful Funke’s writing in this series is! It continues to impress me.
I liked how it explained the multiple worlds and the logic behind them. Also how it stopped portraying the fairies as these all powerful beings, and how all the magic was interconnected and everyone had weaknesses. The cliffhanger is quite frustrating though.
I admit, reading it this far after the other books makes me a bit confused, since it’s easy to forget everything that happened in previous books. I really want to reread this once then entire series it out, cause they’re good books it’s just hard to remember all the details and aspects of the world.
I liked how it explained the multiple worlds and the logic behind them. Also how it stopped portraying the fairies as these all powerful beings, and how all the magic was interconnected and everyone had weaknesses. The cliffhanger is quite frustrating though.
I admit, reading it this far after the other books makes me a bit confused, since it’s easy to forget everything that happened in previous books. I really want to reread this once then entire series it out, cause they’re good books it’s just hard to remember all the details and aspects of the world.
4-4.5 stars. I love the series so much and can't wait for the next installations.
The 3rd book in the series is very tightly connected to the previous ones so I maybe wouldn't recommend starting here, but it did develop many new plots, places and ideas.
Different adventurers travel the Mirror world - a world just like ours geografically where fairy tale magic is real with all the consequences and implications - and I love how the author plays with the concepts. "The Golden Yarn" is quite convoluted with all the narrators and politics, Big Secret Magic and Big Love Triangle. Even though some characters like the Bastard did all the same things they did before with no development, I still cared about the characters, had fun and wanted to know what's coming next.
The 3rd book in the series is very tightly connected to the previous ones so I maybe wouldn't recommend starting here, but it did develop many new plots, places and ideas.
Different adventurers travel the Mirror world - a world just like ours geografically where fairy tale magic is real with all the consequences and implications - and I love how the author plays with the concepts. "The Golden Yarn" is quite convoluted with all the narrators and politics, Big Secret Magic and Big Love Triangle. Even though some characters like the Bastard did all the same things they did before with no development, I still cared about the characters, had fun and wanted to know what's coming next.
adventurous
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Forget the stupid rebranding. The title of this book is Heartless.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Einen Stern muss ich für die Herzfolter abziehen, die in der zweiten Hälfte ruhig etwas gnädiger hätte sein können.