The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor

The story behind it all…

Everyone knows the story about Alice in Wonderland…but what if some of that was true? What if there was more behind the story than it would seem? Step into the looking glass and experience a one-of-a-kind adventure!

Welcome to Wonderland, home of the Queen of Hearts, Genevieve Heart, and Princess Alyss Heart. In the land where the royal family’s most powerful weapon is their imagination, the young princess Alyss is celebrating her birthday when her life is shattered. Her vicious Aunt Redd (still bitter that her sister got the throne instead of her) surprises everyone by storming in and brings Alyss’s life crashing to the ground. After her aunt murders her parents, Alyss is forced to flee for her life, with no one but her protector, Hatter. She must leave behind all that she ever knew—her home, the place where her powers were strongest, dear friends, and her parents.
Hatter and Alyss jump into the Look Glass, not know where they will end up, but the pair is separated during their journey and things begin to look worse than ever. Hatter is lost in a new world where he must search for his charge, and Alyss has gone from princess to pauper. Living with a bunch of other street kids, Alyss must adjust to her new life, and hope that Hatter will find her soon. But as days pass, Alyss’s hope of rescue dims and dims until she is adopted by Reverend Lidell, and forced into a dull life style where all her talk about Wonderland is considered nonsense.

Alyss believes that a golden opportunity has reached her when she meets author Lewis Carroll, who seemingly believes her story and will write a book about it! Perhaps with her story out there, people will finally believe her and she can get home! But Alyss’ dreams are dashed once again when Carroll morphs her story into unrealistic nonsense that leaves poor Alyss back where she started. Can she ever get home?

Alyss must fight on and realize her full potential, so that she, along with old and new friends, can take the steps to fulfill her destiny, and restore order and justice to Wonderland. Can Alyss prove herself worthy of the Wonderland throne? It won’t be an easy path, but rather, a path full of personal demons, danger, betrayal, and lessons to be learned. With such dangerous enemies like her murderous Aunt Redd and her army, Alyss must find the courage to push forth to fulfill her destiny and bring wrong doers to justice or she and her friends will die.

Although this book does tilt slightly towards more action, war, and strategy, it is an enjoyable adventure, nonetheless! The characters are well developed and the story is well written! Those who are looking for action, this is the book for you. This book does have some interesting ideas and points, but it would have been nice to hear more about the lands and environment of Alyss’s world. However, depending on you preference, war or environment, some may enjoy this novel more than others.

I would be very interested in The Looking Glass War's sequel, Seeing Redd, or any of the other books that Frank Beddor has written on Alyss and her Wonderland, if the author/publisher would like to send that over for review as well!