The only way out is through.
With Eva trapped in imminent peril, Bash rushes to save her and take down the False King once and for all. Eva desperately searches for a way out of her predicament, even as circumstances beyond her control bring her back to the secret kingdom that once had been her home.
As sides form in the forthcoming war, not all are eager to believe the False King they thought vanquished is still bent on taking control of the faerie realm. With enemies closing in, and not even sleep safe from the nightmares that are all too real, the fate of the realm will come down to a race against time.
Secrets from the past merge with the present as Eva struggles to unravel the truth that might change her fate. But will she be forced to choose between her kingdom and her future—or was that destiny a lie all along?
Dana Evyn's The Mirror in the Mountain picks up right where The Other Side of the Mirror left off and oh boy was this book a doozie! This book really put my heart through the ringer as there was a certain level of danger that was amped up to the max and my heart was beating at an accelerated rate nearly the entire time! Circumstances felt dire at the best of times and it was a race to read as fast as I could to see how things would turn out!
We pick up where we left off, so it's like no time at all has passed for the characters, even though it was a handful of reads for me! Lol. Eva has given herself over to Aviel in order to save her friends and found family. She is now once again his prisoner and at his mercy...which as we know he has next to none of. Escape is near impossible and every time Eva tries she gets knocked down and out. Seriously the level of danger and hopelessness ran rampant with my feelings in this one! So many times we see the heroine able to duke it out with the villain with only a few scrapes and bruises. I don't want to say this scenario was refreshing, but it felt different, I guess. Failure is a part of life, we don't always get to succeed, so Eva's "setbacks" were unique in a sense.
But naturally, Eva can't and won't remain a prisoner forever and it's not long before she is able to escape Aviel's clutches once again and is reunited with Bash and her friends and her brother, Tobias. She is also reunited with her best friend, Quinn, who we learned is a part of this world Eva now lives in. You almost forget that Eva was from our modern world, I mean she's moved around a bit between worlds as it turns out, but she spent a good chunk of time in the modern world.
Now Eva and her friends must plan for battle. Dealing with Aviel is about to come to a head. They learned that there is a magical mirror called the Seeing Mirror and basically whoever can get to it first, between Eva and Aviel, will become the High Queen...or King should things take a dastardly turn. They will effectively become the one and only ruler of this world Eva has begun to think of home and she will do anything in her power to stop Aviel from becoming that one and only ruler...whatever the cost.
You want to talk about high stakes, seriously, just read this series! Because omg, this book is the definition high stakes. I don't think my heart ever raced as much with a book as it has with this series so far! The danger is intense! And then let's do a 180 and talk about the romance because that is certainly steamy too! Bash and Eva's anima bond definitely makes things heated between them. There were quite a few romantic interludes between them in this one. They were never overtly graphic but there was definitely an open door to the scenes as well. I feel like it's probably somewhere in between, but then again, I've never read any of the supremely spicy books, lol!
Things wrap up in a neat little bow at the end of this one. So much so I was almost puzzled at how we were calling this a trilogy. Well, it turns out in the next book we will follow two other characters as they go on a quest to help out our main characters. For it does feel like Eva and Bash's story arc has come to a conclusion. Yet the third book seems to entail that something will happen to interrupt their HEA ending and these "new" characters will have to save the day...and likely fall in love because this is romantasy we're reading! Lol.
The Mirror in the Mountain was a heart-racing read that kept me reading late into the night and held me captivated! This world is so easy to get lost in that you forget there is a reality outside the door. I am quite eager to see what will happen next with our new heroine and hero and what kind of unrest will enter this kingdom that just seemed to be on the verge of peace, but luckily I have that next book in hand...on the cusp of a busy weekend, but I'll get a few pages read at least! Lol.
If you're looking for that romantasy read to get your heart pumping and keep you up late at night then be sure to check out Dana Evy's The Mirrored Trilogy as it will completely consume your mind and heart in all the best possible ways!
Overall Rating 4.5/5 stars
