Cornelia Funke

Jacob Reckless journeys to the Mirrorworld to tell his shapeshifting friend Fox that a fairy curse--a deadly moth in his chest--means he has only one year to live. The journey in Mirrorworld turns into a search against time and against a Goyl treasure hunter for an enchanted crossbow, which is known to strike down any army it faces, and less well known for its healing power when shot by a loved one

A Mirrorworld Novel

Fearless

Jeni Enjaian

I have to admit that I came to this book at a slight disadvantage. After reading, and loving, Reckless, I took a long break before picking up Fearless. Part of that may be because Fearless had not come out yet or was about to come out. I also did not take the time to refresh my memory of the Mirrorworld and the events of the first book. Thus, I spent a little bit of time in the first few chapters trying to figure out Mirrorworld and remember what happened with Jacob, Will, Clara and Fox in the first book. (I still don't remember some of that.)
Probably because of that, the difference between the two worlds, at first, felt a little fuzzy. It took several pages for me to figure out which world (ours or Mirror) Jacob was in at the beginning of the book which I think affected my opinion of the narrative as I entered.
Although I really did love this book, a couple things kept me from giving it five stars. First, it is very dark. Many of Funke's books verge on that but this one seemed to dip a little over the edge without much light/hope to balance the scales. Second, Funke's characteristically fluid narrative both sucked me in and confused me. One thing flows into another and if you read as I do (close to skimming but I do actually read the text), important events do not jump of the page which meant that I had to go back and re-read a couple times.
That being said. I continue to love Funke's writing. Inkheart will always be my favorite though.

Jacob Reckless returns once again to the Mirrorworld--filled with profound characters, extraordinary creatures, and epic life-or-death treasure hunts that could only come from the mind of the master storyteller of our generation, Cornelia Funke. Jacob Reckless has only a few months left to live. He's tried everything to shake the Fairy curse that traded his life for his brother's--legends such as the All-Healing Apple, the Well of Eternal Youth, the blood of a northern Djinn. And yet hope after hope is extinguished. After months of fruitless searching, Jacob journeys through his father's mirror one final time to deliver the bad news to Fox. But there they hear of one last possibility--an item so legendary that not even Mirrorworlders believe it exists: a crossbow that can kill thousands, or heal one, when shot through the heart. But a Goyl treasure hunter is also searching for the prized crossbow. Jacob must find it first--and somehow convince Fox to do whatever it takes to save him.

Fearless A Mirrorworld Novel

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