Reviewed by Alice DiNizo for Readers' Favorite

Jacob Reckless has been fascinated by his father's study with the mirror that says, "The mirror will only open for he who cannot see himself." Jacob has crept through that mirror by himself into an alternative world, but this one time that he uses the mirror as a portal into that world, his innocent younger brother William, follows him, is wounded and begins to turn to stone. Searching for the enchantment that will stop the change to William's skin and his personality, Jacob and William make their way through enchanted lands accompanied by Fox, whom Jacob previously freed from a trap, and by hospital worker, Clara, who loves William. They encounter the world of fairies and monsters, called Goyls, and come upon the landscapes of fairy tales, such as Hansel and Gretel and variations of Sleeping Beauty. The four find these, and other fairy tales, turned inside out on their quest for William's cure.

Reckless is a brilliant story which is highly well written and edited. The use of many different elements of fairy tales, such as the gold ball from "The Frog Prince" and Jacob's possessing a strand of Rapunsel's hair from which he forms a rope, is original and fascinating. The many characters in Reckless are totally believable and will draw the reader into the story. There is good action and suspense throughout the entire book, but the writing is complex and demands intelligence on the part of the reader. The story's ending hints at a sequel, and hopefully, there will be one just as good as Reckless itself.