Customer Reviews

The Looking Glass Wars #2: Seeing Redd - Audio Library Edition

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This second volume in Beddor's "The Looking Glass Wars" series decides to pick up the story where the earlier volume left off. With a war-weary Alyss trying to consolidate and rebuild her kingdom and become accustomed to the responsibilities of rule while dealing with all the loss and pain of the past. Trouble is looming, all too clearly in the future and Alyss has many enemies and plotters to face that seek to dethrone her and claim Wonderland for their own. For those who haven't read The Looking Glass Wars, this book won't be easy to read without having the back story from the original.

Of course, there's no doubt with the title that the main villain of the first book will be back. Redd is now loose on Earth, gathering together a dark force of exiled Wonderlanders and villains who flock to her side. Like the first volume in the series, this one relies on some references to the classic work of Alice in Wonderland as well as other literature and mythology--but from there it departs into its own territory. Redd is out to retake her place as reining sovereign of Wonderland and to crush all resistance and goodness that might oppose her. King Arch of Boarderland is a scheming, chauvinistic tyrant who wants to undermine Alyss and Wonderland for his own ends--and has a weapon that threatens the destruction of both countries if used. Against them is Alyss, and her band of faithful Wonderlanders who seek to restore peace and white imagination to the land. In its way it is an interesting plot and characters, but it just doesn't completely work.

To be honest, this series has an identity crisis. The idea of basing a story on the original writings of Lewis Carroll but changing the original perception is intriguing and not without some merit. But Beddor takes only the surface images and suggestions--ignoring Carroll's deeper satire and symbolism and suggesting that, in fact, Carroll is a foolish man who keeps getting the story wrong. Granted, this is the author's prerogative to do--but it may put off admirers of Lewis Carroll who find the depiction unpalatable. Likewise, the original Alice stories tend to work without a sense of good vs. evil--everything is kept much more ambiguous. Beddor's work follows a much more strict aligning of good and evil and places the players in their assigned roles without much wiggle room. A bigger problem is the tone and setting: the prospect of Alyss being a princess, then Queen of Wonderland and the champion of White Imagination in a place where talking caterpillars live and tarty tarts are served sounds like something out of a kiddie story. There's a strange sense of naiveté about the fantasy background that is a bit like someone setting up a Disney animated movie--and then throwing live action battle scenes into it. The violence is overkill--quite literally. Beddor's story keeps trying to play two contrary tunes that don't mesh well and made reading it an uneasy experience.

There are deadly characters who sound more at home in an X-men movie. There are weapons of massive violence and death, pain, betrayal. There are dark plots that would be more at home in an epic fantasy for adults. Redd kills her own parents when they deny her the throne. Dodge Anders is trying to deal with his desire for revenge and love for Alyss. Hatter grieves for his lost love. Some of the depictions of these characters are quite good: the Jack of Diamonds being one of the more surprising, and Hatter coming into his own. But these are overshadowed by the two-dimensional depictions of the main villains and Alyss herself. Alyss is all good, white imagination. Redd is all bad, black imagination. The extremes of Redd and her band are caricatures--when so many of the other characters are trying to achieve a more rounded appearance. And then from the dark and violent--there are scenes like the one where Redd treats the caterpillars to Tarty Tarts for information and the whole tribe of them act like a group of lost boys from Peter Pan. It's too silly and trivial in a story that has become so dark. Likewise the constant presence of "cute" Wonderland references--dormouse snouts, chessmen, card soldiers, etc. -keep pulling the reader out of the story and disrupting the tension. Beddor's writing feels like it wants to leap out of the strict black/white, good/bad mentality, but doesn't quite know how to break down the child-like pardigm and put something more complex in its place.

The first book in this series was a bit on the questionable side for younger readers because of the violence inherent--this book really doesn't merit being termed a children's book at all. It is an adult fantasy novel that has some interesting ideas and plotting, but ultimately fails to be written to an identifiable audience or have a consistent tone. Unlike the previous story, that has a positive and defined conclusion, Seeing Redd doesn't wrap up all the outstanding storylines and readers will have to wait for the third book at least to see what happens between Redd and Alyss. Older readers of fantasy who have some knowledge of Lewis Carroll's work may find some enjoyment in these books, but they are not for readers who are uncomfortable with excessive violence. Those who like these books may want to look into Garth Nix's Keys to the Kingdom series and Shannon Hale's Goose Girl and Enna Burning.

Happy Reading! Shanshad ^_^

Now that Alyss Heart is restored as the rightful Queen of Wonderland, life is improving for its citizens. The long reign of Her Imperial Viciousness, Redd, smothered the spirit of the people. But now the future looks bright, and the amazing queendom seems to be on the road to recovery.

Alyss, her friend and guard Dodge, Homburg Molly, and all the other core characters know not to grow complacent. Not all of Wonderland's wonders are beneficial, and this becomes obvious when outlying forces are slaughtered with no warning. Besides fighting to keep Wondertropolis safe, they need to find the source of the attacks. The truth splits into many truths, with are sewn with lies, as layers of deceit are peeled away to determine the most frightening of prospects: Has Redd returned?

In the second installment of "The Looking Glass Wars" series, author and movie producer Frank Beddor expands yet again on Lewis Carroll's classic world of Wonderland, taking massive liberties as he goes.

In THE LOOKING GLASS WARS, Book One of the series, readers met Alyss Heart as a young child adopted into a London family after fleeing her murderous aunt, Redd. Once grown, she returned to Wonderland to battle for and regain the throne to the queendom. It was a bloody introduction with as much violence as wonderment.

In SEEING REDD, the violence soars to higher, more vicious levels, as befitting Redd's self-given title of Her Imperial Viciousness. It seems that for every few pages of plotting, character building, or other action, there's at least one page where people are beheaded, maimed, or otherwise killed.

The slowly developing love story between Alyss and Dodge seems to surge then halt and surge again, while another love story sprouts from nowhere. Other plot points seem to work in a smooth manner. The settings are wildly imaginative as the characters travel in places not seen in the last book.

The story is good and world solid, but the sheer volume and styling of violence end up detracting from an otherwise fine fantasy interpretation.

Reviewed by Christina Wantz Fixemer
on 08/22/2007

3.5-Books on WUAT = 4-Stars on Amazon

Seeing Redd is the second book in the Looking Glass Wars trilogy by Frank Beddor.

Often the middle book of a trilogy is just filler between the introduction of the characters in the first book and the final conclusion of the third. This book is not filler. Beddor takes the world he introduced us to in the The Looking Glass Wars and adds levels of complexity. We see outside of the borders of Wonderland, and those lands are just as deliciously demented as Wonderland itself. As well the characters continue to grow and discover themselves. Alyss learns that it is harder to keep a throne than it is to win it.

The story picks up a few months after The Looking Glass Wars ended, Alyss has moved into a restored Wondertropolis and Heart Palace, but she has barely settled in before attacks begin on the outposts of her kingdom. Has Redd returned, or is this a new threat? Homburg Molly is a central character in the story as she tries to prove herself worthy of her post. Her ferocious loyalty is used against her and she finds herself a pawn in a plot to remove Alyss from her throne.

Like the first in the series, Seeing Redd starts off slowly. It is very much like setting up a line of dominos. When Beddor sets the dominos to falling, the story become a wild ride indeed to a conclusion that sets the stage for a terrific closing book to this delightful trilogy. I will be waiting impatiently for the last book in the trilogy to make its appearance.

Armchair Interviews says: Grab a seat in your favorite armchair and read this excellent fantasy series.

I want to start off by saying, that Seeing Red was another great installment of the LGW. Seriously right after I was done with the first book, I had to go out and order the other! I've loving the Dodge/ Alice relationship but I can't say anymore because I don't want to spoil anything. The seller however deserves most of the applauds. I ordered this book back in April and I really wanted to show the sellers how much I really appreciate their good customer service. Even though they sent me the wrong edition (paperback instead of hardcover and an advanced addition at that) they not only responded to my email asap but let me keep it the edition. I'm honored to say that their "mistake" edition was ALOT better condition than the other one I received from another seller. Will definately order from them again and get Book Three!

This is the second book in "The Looking Glass Wars" by Frank Beddor. I'm always nervous about the second book in a trilogy because it always seems to be the weakest link of all of them. Usually it is just a book full of story build up so that the author has something huge to end it with in the last book. This wasn't the case with this one. Beddor does a fantastic job of making this a fun to read part of the overall story.

The characters progress along very well from the first book and through this one. As you can probably tell from the title the book focuses a lot on the character "Redd". It's fascinating to watch what becomes of her and her cohorts and how that relates back to the other main characters in the trilogy. Along the way there are plenty of twists and turns that you don't see coming at all.

While, in my opinion, this book isn't your typical middle book in a trilogy because it has such a great story that could stand by itself; it does do a wonderful job of making you eager to read the final book. There are plenty of open story lines and ways that this whole thing could still play out. Beddor is a wonderfully refreshing author and I can't wait to read the third and final book in this trilogy.

Overall Rating: 4/5

Once upon a time, I read a book called Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor and fell under the spell of its intriguing theme, whimsical style, and odd cast of characters. Then I read Seeing Redd and fell out of love. In this second book of the Looking Glass trilogy, Alyss has taken her proper place on the throne, Redd is in hiding on Earth but biding her time for when she can return to Wonderland and defeat Alyss, and Arch (King of Boarderland) has risen as a new enemy to the throne. With a city needing repair in the wake of its destruction by Redd and enemies for Alyss to defeat, you'd think Seeeing Redd would hold my attention. Yet by the time I reached the last chapter, I felt as if I had run a marathon. The style and characters have grown stale. I also understood why the critics had condemned Beddor for tampering with our beloved Alice in Wonderland. There was far too much politics and battles in a tale that should be witty and weird.

Thankfully, for I really wanted to read what happened next in Wonderland, there were a few nifty scenes. For example, there is also a quick interaction between cards that I liked. Yes, I said cards. This is a book based on Alice in Wonderland and therefore has preposterous characters. Sadly, they seemed more real in the first book. Yet these two cards moved me. They are comparing their attitude towards war. Two Card was feeling bored and wishing for war. Four Card was happy enough for calm, having seen too many battles. Yet at the first sign of battle, he vows to survive-and I wished this for him, even as the Glass Eyes fighters surrounded him.

In this example, Beddor shows a vulnerable or human side to his characters. If only more of his characters had been similarly portrayed. Then I might not have yawned through Beddor's first lengthy portrayal of Alyss' bodyguard. Molly is engaged in a virtual simulation of battle. She arms herself with this gadget and that gadget, leaps from one enemy to another, and yet I never cared whether she lived. Fastforward several chapters later, when she is a prisoner of enemy Arch but has also been revealed to be daughter of one of the lovable characters from Looking Glass Wars and moreover is showing fear. Now suddenly I care.

It really wouldn't take much to move me, but most of the time Alyss and everyone else are acting so controlled that they bore me. Surely, this doesn't have to happen when our book characters grow up. And in reality it doesn't even in Seeing Redd. For there are two characters which are very interesting indeed: Redd and The Cat. How dismal that a trilogy whose first book captured my imagination for months after reading it should with its second book engage me most when its enemies parade its pages. The critics are right to be outraged.

Wait, there's more that's wrong. Think about a trait that you tolerate in a friend. Then think about how much more you despise that trait when at odds with your friend. That's how I feel about Beddor's descriptions. In Looking Glass Wars, his whimsical style and astounding characters far outweighed his unimaginative portrayal of Wonderland. In Seeing Redd, every new page instead fills me with this growing sense that Beddor's writing might be helped by some classes in descriptive writing.

It took me a few chapters to pinpoint the reason for my distaste. After all, Seeing Redd is not completely devoid of descriptions. Here is one of the Capitol: "The crystal-shimmering spires and agate-mosaic artworks, floors inlaid with jasper and pearl, walls of quartz and stone and glittering mortar." Not until I read the description of Arch's kingdom, and thought that it sounded like a tourism brochure, did I understand the biggest problem. It's sort of the difference between the advertisements that try to sell consumers on all the nifty features of a product compared to the ones that focus on an individual's experience with the product. Beddor's descriptions lack heart.

As do his characters. The playful Alyss who sold me on Looking Glass Wars has been diminished to an adult who shows controlled calm even when her kingdom is under seige. There is also such limited whimsy. Everyone is reserved; everything that happens is serious. There simply is no passion. Even the long-awaited kiss between Dodge and Alyss reads like a token scene, rather than a magical heart-throbbing moment. Frankly, a personalized travel guide would probably prove a more dramatic read that Seeing Redd.

Seeing Redd is an amazing sequal to the looking glass wars. As Alyss is put to the test to wether she or her evil sister belongs as queen. Also in the meantime she has to figure wether or not she belongs with Dodge, her true love and best friend.

While this book is a smooth transition from the first, the original was much better. The original had a much broader storyline, based more on charecter relationships and growth than on graphic, bloody, vicious fighting and death. This book lacks tha feel of a well thought out story written from the heart, giving you the idea that Frank Beddor never planned to continue the story until the original became popular. It seems more like an attempt to make money.

After reading Looking Glass Wars, I was really looking forward to this book. I was hoping this book would fill in the blanks that the first left. I was hoping it would develop Wonderland and the characters better.

To my disappointment, it did none of those things. There were too many fighting scenes and the story flew by way too fast. That's a real bummer because I still like the concept very much. I WANT to like this series. However, my hopes are now with the third book.

I wanted to learn more about my favorite characters: Alyss, Redd, and Hatter (I realize Hatter now has a graphic novel series going on, but I still think we could have learned more about him in this one).

I would recommend this book to older kids, but definitely not to grown ups (unless they plan on reading it with their kids as I did). There isn't enough background or character depth that the older audience usually demands.

This is the second book (out of three) in the Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor. I really wanted to love this series. Somehow I found this book even more boring than the first one. These books just focus too much on strategic war than on what makes Wonderland awesome; imagination.

In this book King Arch is plotting to overthrow Wonderland but his plans are interrupted when Redd returns and, once again, causes issues for new Queen of Wonderland, Alyss Heart.

This story was okay. I am a little irked that Alyss only seems to use her Imagination as a weapon, and that she uses it in such limited way. Redd actually seems quite a bit more creative with her Black Imagination. I loved that Beddor tried to expand and give more dimension to the character of the Hatter. Unfortunately it fell short for me; I thought the Hatter's character was actually weakened by the fact that he wandered somewhat aimlessly through his own personal issues.

I guess, just like the first book, the characters seemed more like outlines than actual characters to me. I had trouble reading this book. At points I found it outright boring and skimmed through sections. When the goal of reading a book becomes solely to finish it; I start to say that the book wasn't all that great.

The story was okay, the characters have potential, but the book didn't excite me and I only marginally enjoyed reading it. I am beginning to think that me and Beddor's writing style just don't get along.

This book is not as contained as the first one...it kind of stops in the middle of things. So, I will most likely read the third and final installment, Everqueen, but after that no more Beddor for me.