The finale of Beddor's Looking Glass Wars trilogy finds Queen Alyss and her rival Redd working together to defeat King Arch of Boarderland, who has seized control of Wonderland. His intention to destroy the Heart Crystal, the source of all imagination, remains unchanged. Meanwhile, the Caterpillar Oracles slyly maneuver the major players into an ultimate confrontation to further a mysterious goal: to do what Everqueen requires. This novel feels rushed, as several divergent storylines in Wonderland and on Earth are brought to a close, but Beddor offers happy resolutions for favorite characters Hatter M., Homburg Molly, Alyss, and Dodge.

This final book of the trilogy that imaginatively re-envisions Alice in Wonderland doesn't quite synthesize the series' many threads. The plot tends to get bogged down in the complex mythology of its extraordinarily (sometimes extraneously) detailed fantasy world. Nevertheless, Queen Alyss's fans will continue to root for Beddor's powerful heroine.

Beddor returns to Wonderland in this final installment of his Looking Glass Wars trilogy. Desperate to regain their powers of imagination, Alyss and her Wonderland subjects must forge an uneasy truce with Redd to try to defeat Arch, the King of Boarderland, but the caterpillar oraclesÆ mysterious pronouncements make it difficult to know who is on what side. In the meantime, Hatter Madigan escorts his daughter Molly, resentful of his neglect while he served Alyss and her now-dead parents, to the real world to be placed into the care of Charles Dodgson/ Lewis Carroll. Unfortunately at this point in the trilogy, it is simply difficult to care. As with the previous volumes, the substance of this novel does not live up to the bookÆs gorgeous production values; the coverÆs menacing armored soldier promises a gritty and suspenseful story, but the reader is subjected to meaningless nonsense such as a desperate inventor who pulls out a clump of hair from his head and claims to have invented it. Other elements seem equally random and silly, and there is not the slightest bit of suspense as to how the story will end. It is impossible to recommend the book based on literary quality, but libraries will want to check their circulation statistics for the first two volumes to gauge potential interest in the conclusion. The upcoming 2010 release of Tim BurtonÆs film version of Alice in Wonderland may also spur additional curiosity.ùAmy Sisson.