The Way Between the Worlds    by Ian Irvine Order:  USA  Can Warner, 2002 (1999) Paperback     Reviewed by Hilary Williamson The Way Between the Worlds is the fourth and final episode of The View From the Mirror. As such, it answers many puzzling questions, such as who killed the crippled girl, who is the 'thrice betrayed', who was Maigraith's mother, and how did this struggle between races begin? As usual, and especially at the beginning, the loose coalition of good guys blunder about, obstructing each other as much as their enemy. To save Llian, Karan gave her word to aid Rulke, and keeps it. Llian, desperate to help her, is shackled (and almost killed) by his erstwhile allies. Llian, Karan and Maigraith all have the usual cliff-hanging (literally) adventures. This time it's not only Whelm in pursuit (d9ja vu for Karan) but intelligent Void creatures called thranx, who are just as hard to evade, and almost impossible to kill. Romance is in the air as well - Llian and Karan, naturally; Maigraith is drawn to Rulke, while Yggur still wants her; Tallia (one of the nicer characters in the story) is attracted to Lilis' dad Jevi; and Shand speaks of his own lost love Yalkara. The allies spend a great deal of time figuring out how to make the golden flute (in order to break the Forbidding), while Rulke continues to use his construct to move between the worlds. Finally individuals of the three races get home, some even get what they deserve in the process. Llian has grown through this quartet from a bumbling, selfish dreamer to a braver man willing to sacrifice himself for Karan (she hasn't changed much, but then she didn't need to). But, despite all his trials and adventures, Llian's still naive, as evidenced by Rulke's final words to him; 'History is as it is written, that is the only truth.' This episode brings the series to a satisfying conclusion. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Fantasy books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews