The Looking Glass Illusion by Sara Ella | a bookish review

 Read Time: 7 minutes 

The Looking Glass Illusion 

by Sara Ella 

| A bookish review |

Hello, Sweet Friend! 

Today I am sharing my book review for the upcoming novel by Sara Ella: The Looking Glass Illusion!!! EEK! This was such a fun book to read and the perfect follow up to The Wonderland Trails which I highly recommend reading and is currently a Readers’ Choice Finalists for the 2023 Realm Awards! 

Random question of the day: would you rather go to a tea party with the mad hatter or paint roses red with the Cheshire Cat? 

I also want to say thank you to Sara Ella and Enclave Publishing for letting me read this e-ARC book!! I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions and thoughts expressed are my own. 

Now, without further ado, let's get into this book review!!

“However this ends, I will not cower before lies.

So I will rise where I kneel. 

And seek the truth that waits ahead.” 

― Sara Ella, The Looking Glass Illusion 

Rating: ★★★★.5

Cleanness: ★★★.5* 

Oh. My. Wonderland! This was such a fun book to read! I loved getting to go back to wonderland and I am sad this is the FINAL book in this series. *cries* It was so good and THE ENDING! *heart eyes* It was just PERFECT! I absolutely love how this story ended and wouldn’t want it any other way (I mean unless we could have more books to the series then that would be amazing because I love this world and the characters XD).

Characters 

The characters are my favorite thing about this story! They are all so good and the character plot twists were INSANE! I feel like I’m going to have to leave some things out because then it would spoil everything and we can’t have that now can we? 

Alice: I love Alice in this one. I like that she is still the strong girl she is from book one but that she is growing and maturing really beautifully. In this story Alice gets to really find out about her past and all the missing memories she has. She finds more about her mother, Charlotte, Wonderland, her abilities and more. I love the journey she went on from the start of the book to the beautiful ending. 

“I have something sharper than a sword.

I have faith.” 

Chess: My Favorite! I love Chess! It was so much fin having a POV from his perspective and getting to see his struggles, his hard backstory, his love for his brother and Alice, and seeing him mature into a leader. I love his transformation from being more focused on himself to caring about the people around him (thought even his selfishness was rooted in love). His humor! I love his humor and I laughed out loud multiple times! XD 

<spoiler: HIS HAIR! I started tearing up when his hair style was explained. He dyed it pink because of his mom and to remember her and so that his brother would remember her! *crying* He is such a good brother! <3 

“And that’s the story of how I died. The end.” 

Knave: I really love Knave in this book! I didn’t know what to think of him in the first but now I am a huge fan of his! I can’t spoil it but I love finding out who he is and just…ahh! He is such a good character! 

<spoiler: I LOVE LOVE LOVE that he is Alice’s cousin and the crown prince of England! I was not at all expecting that and I love it so much! Long Live King Knave! XD 

“And Knave Heart…A brooding boy I’ve yet to figure out and have come to trust all the same.” 

Charlotte: I loved getting to know more about Charlotte and seeing how much she is like a mother to Alice. I love their relationship together and her story! Her story had so many unexpected turns! It was crazy! Absolutely CRAZY! 

“…servanthood is the mark of true royalty.” 

Madi: I love Madi Hatter! She is such a good friend and I love seeing her and Alice’s friendship grow! <3 

<spoiler: Stark Hatter: I love seeing the lost wonders again! That was so cool and finding Stark! He is so wise. He had some of my favorite lines and he is such a sweet big brother to Madi! I loved seeing his and Chess’s friendship grow back together!  

“Given enough fear, people will do or believe most anything. They’ll behave in ways they never would have and believe a lie because it is easier, more convenient, than the truth.”  

<spoiler: Kit Shire: Kit was an interesting character to me. I do love that he was found and that he and Chess got to reconnect and be brothers again! Their ending was a really sweet one! I will say, since this is in the spoiler section, that I was a tad bit confused on the conversation he has with Chess. Like I still feel like it was weird how he acted when he knew that Chess saved his life. I was just a bit confused about his reaction. 

<spoiler: Dinah. Queen Scarlet. *mouth drop* I’m still reeling over those plot twists. 

“Being Wonder isn't born, it’s a gift…”

Story 

The story was really fun and had a LOT of plot twists *shock face* and things I did not at all except which was so much fun! I LOVE that there were TWO POVs!!! It was so good! <3

I did miss the puzzles and games of the first book. Those were so good and this book doesn’t really have that. *sigh*  There are some riddles but mainly it is just nonsense things coming together and finding out it is not really nonsense at all (if that makes sense XD). 

I also love all the little hints to Alice Through The Looking Glass and even Lewis Carol that were sprinkled throughout the story. *heart eyes* Now, I haven’t read the entire Alice Through The Looking Glass but the things I did see and read in it I could find hints to in this book which was just marvelous! I do think I would recommend reading Alice Through The Looking Glass before reading this one to get a better grasp on what is even happening in this the Fourth Trial but that is just in my opinion. XD

I will say…there were multiple times I felt…a little…lost in the story. So many things (all fun and wonderous) would be happening and that would make it hard to focus on the actual story. It was at times very nonsensical though isn’t that what wonderland is? So, I liked the nonsense but it was also at times a bit hard to follow as such a half a star has been taken off the rating. Sometimes I liked the nonsense and how it reminded me of reading Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland but others…it was a bit too hard to follow or understand. I feel like the next time I read it (as I will definitely be reading it again) I’ll be able to understand it more the second time around. 

Some Quotes I Love:

“However this ends, I will not cower before lies.

So I will rise where I kneel. 

And seek the truth that waits ahead.” 

“I’ve never been one to ponder on logic or reason unless it concerned my own concerns. The nonsensical has forever intrigued me.” 

“…the namesake of the boy I’ve..what? Fallen for? That seems far too cliché and not quite fitting. 

Because I didn’t fall. I leapt. I leapt into his arms, and I haven’t been the same since.” 

“And Knave Heart…A brooding boy I’ve yet to figure out and have come to trust all the same.” 

“Never underestimate the least or the small.” 

“She became Wonder, not by birth but through belief.” 

“Slay the Jabberwock, find the king.”

“The Ivory King is the designer of the true Wonderland.” 

“I suppose we were all children once.” 

“I sense courage. And where there is courage, there is always hope.” 

“The longer you stay in your own mind, the more space you have. The more space you have, well…” 

“All that’s left is to alter history itself.” 

“Even an anomaly of science can’t change truth.” 

“And that’s the story of how I died. The end.” 

“I’m not ignoring you. I’m thinking.”

“Sounds painful.”

“It is.” 

“Looking back is not my style.”

“Start at the beginning. And when you get to the end, stop.” 

“By simply believing in another reality, that reality becomes concrete, tangible, true. And, just as anyone can become Wonder, so anyone can unbecome Wonder. We all chose what to believe. Our beliefs shape who we are. They change us. And that’s what having the Wonder Gene is all about.” 

“Given enough fear, people will do or believe most anything. They’ll behave in ways they never would have and believe a lie because it is easier, more convenient, than the truth.”  

“They’ve abandoned truth for comfort and given themselves over to temporary pleasures in lieu of what’s truly lasting.” 

“We’re afraid of the truth, and it’s more comfortable to keep living the lie.”

“The Trial has not failed us yet, and neither has the king.” 

“…servanthood is the mark of true royalty.” 

“I have something sharper than a sword.

I have faith.” 

“If we let our fears consume us, we inevitably become them.”

“Being Wonder isn't born, it’s a gift…”

My Spoiler Notes To Myself While Reading XD  

You can read ALL SPOILERS (ones blocked out in black) on Goodreads but DO NOT READ UNLESS YOU HAVE FINISHED THIS BOOK BECAUSE I SPOIL EVERYTHING! XD

So Alice is the niece of Charlotte (her adoptive sister) and the queen of England. Her mother is a princess and she used to live in a palace. 

That’s right! She used to be friends with Madi years ago. She is remembering what she had forgotten and now is unforgotten.

Alice’s mother is Cathrine R. Pillar—the one who discovered the gene. The one who disappeared. A wonder. I remember that from the first book. 

Queen Scarlet is an imposter. A lier. Not Queen. 

…someone missing (stark hatter) has been found! 

Alice finds Kit but is he to be trusted?

Eek! Knave (who I’m now loving) and Alice are cousins!!! Knave is the crown prince of England! XD 

Alice is the only one who can enter the looking glass—the final “riddle”. 

Alice became a unicorn.

Knave became a Lion. He likes Madi!!! 

Nooooo. Madi likes Jack. 

Knave is the son of the Queen & King Of Wonderland. He was born to be the king of wonderland. 

Dinah is Scarlet with a spell. She is controlling it all. She took Knave from Charlotte. 

The Queen’s husband’s name is Lewis (a reference to the author XD)! 

Is God…wonderland? 

The jabberwocks are fear. 

WHAT??? Dinah hurt/killed Chess??? What??? 

Okay. Failed alarm. Chess is fine. XD

Aww! *cries* Chess dyed his hair pink to remember his mom after she died and so his brother wouldn’t forget his mom either. He is such a good big brother!I love him! 

Chess is dead? Again? For real? What is happening?!? 

Dinah started the fire that killed the before king and Alice’s dad. 

Oh. My. Word. Alice forgives Dinah. Wow. 

Being Wonder is being a Christian. 

Hurray! Chess is alive and Alice is the Queen of wonderland. 

“Wonderland is King.” So is it a picture of God then? 

The ending was PERFECT! Knave & Alice are uniting the people! Chess & Alice are still together & Knave and Madi like each other! Jack is a great disability rep! I’m so glad I can add him to my list (if you know you know XD)! <3 

*Cleanness: 

This book is clean! Hurray! If you read my last review on Goodreads then you know what a happy feeling this is to me after my last review. XD 

There was some fighting, injury, blood, death (though not in a gory way), etc. The Jabberwocks are a source of fear throughout the story. It is found out that a villain killed multiple people and has been manipulating and hurting people. 

There are magic teas. 

There is some kissing but it is really sweet and nothing more. 

Spoiler but it was found out that one of the characters was abused as a child by the parent. 

Besides these few things, it is a clean story and I highly recommend reading! 

The Pinterest board : 

Okay, if you know me, you know how much I love book aesthetics! So without further ado, here is my Pinterest board for The Looking Glass Illusion!  

https://www.pinterest.com/fablerosemc/book-%2B-fandoms-part-ii/the-looking-glass-illusion/ 

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Discussion Time

I hope you liked this book review!!! Thank you so much for reading this post! <3 

I want to hear from you! Meet me in the comments and tell me what you thought of this post? Have you read The Wonderland Trails? I would love to chat! 

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Love, Moriyah 💛