Once again this was a re-read for me. I had to go back and read book one and two of this series after reading book three.

Out of the three I have to say this was my least favorite. I thought the plot was slow at times, yet at others it moved too fast. One of these times was when Ezekiel fought Luther or Gallowglass, I thought that scene could have been longer.

Again I liked most of the characters in this book, Dante was still my favorite, next to Ezekiel for how they acted bravely. And Bea's character improved greatly in this book, instead of being a whiny girl who wouldn't accept facts she now is able to comprehend things that are going on around her and she bravely fights back.

However I really disliked Luther's character, he just bothered me from the start, and I also felt that his friendship with Nyro just wasn't shown enough for me to care about what happened to him. Nyro makes it clear that he was best friends with Luther but when we first see the two of them we really don't witness this and afterwords Luther has already started to become Gallowglass. I also don't understand how he died... or why he jumped.

Though this series is great I feel not enough is explained within each book. Luther wasn't explained very well at all, and then Set most definitely wasn't explained well at all. (And since I read the third book already I know he never really does get explained well)

Besides the lack of explanations and some annoying characters I still enjoyed this book and series very much =)

I really enjoyed the first book and was disappointed with the direction the second book took the story.
Part of the appeal for me with the first book was the archaic dystopian society. The asylum setting of the first book was eerie and fascinating, but once the characters escaped from the controlling society on the island the story struggled.
The Odylic force that became a prominent focus in the books seemed like a weird mix of science fiction and magic that was poorly thought out and used. The authors explanation of the force was very wishy-washy and confusing. It is treated like this amazing holy grail of science/magic and only the lost son of the famous scientist that discovered it can save everyone. Think Luke Skywalker and the Force, but badly done. I found myself skipping over parts when characters talk about meditating to enter the Odylic field.
Characters that could have been fascinating just were not developed. Everyone was a chlique character you'd find in any work of fiction; the lost hero, rebellious love interest, all wise mentor, etc. I found most of the characters a bit annoying, especially when we were shown their inner dialog. The traumatic events that could have shaped a unique person were instead just used to tie the books together. "Remember when you were tortured in the asylum back on that island we escaped from in book one?" "Yeah, that sucked."
I found finishing the book difficult, because I wasn't enjoying the story anymore but wanted to know what happened. I was sadly disappointed.

The Cracked Mirror is the sequel to [b:The Hollow People|176967|The Hollow People (The Promises of Dr. Sigmundus, #1)|Brian Keaney|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320494115s/176967.jpg|170966]. It's a good book but not quite up to the caliber of its predecessor.

Okay, de volta à saga de «As Promessas do Dr. Sigmundus»...e a mais um livro, o segundo da trilogia, que só dá para descrever como mau.

And yet, continuo a achar impossível parar de ler - ou, pelo menos, não querer saber como é que a história acaba. Mas que é terrível, sem sentido, mal escrito e all and all pura perda de tempo e desperdício de papel? Lá isso é.

Tome-se como exemplo os meus sentimentos em relação a outro livro: Catcher in The Rye. Esse livro, tal como disse na altura, não me encheu as medidas. Uma história esquizofrénica com um personagem principal que faz da esquizofrenia eufemismo. Cada palavra irritava-me e dei graças quando finalmente cheguei ao fim.

Com "O Espelho Quebrado" não foi a mesma coisa. Não gostei e é provavelmente a pior saga que já li na vida. Explicações e plot lines inseridas a martelo penumático, personagens a aparecer do nada só para que o personagem principal se safe mais uma vez. para depois voltar a acontecer outra coisa qualquer, com o seu quê de suspense, que volta a levar a história pelo caminho que estava antes, mas com uma adição qualquer: Dante ganha novos poderes, ou Bea afinal é super importante para a história, ou afinal há um irmão gémeo!

Essa do gémeo matou-me. A sério, como se já não houvesse sillyness suficiente no raio do livro, bora lá incluir um gémeo maléfico que se chama Gallowglass - daí o título «O Espelho Quebrado» (traduções, enfim...).

Diz na badana lateral do livro que o "Times" considerou este livro "Um extraordinário exemplo de escrita, com uma atmosfera envolvente". Como não especificaram que "Times" era - se o de Nova Iorque, Washington ou de Davenport, no Iwoa, eu vou arriscar e dizer Davenport. Ou Kenosha, Wisconsin. Alguma cidade do género.
Porque a verdade é que o "Times" mentiu; Brian Keaney escreve, não de modo exemplar e nem sequer em círculos, mas sim em elipses. Ou triângulos. Talvez quadrados. Ainda não percebi bem.
Agora, vendo bem, este livro é como aqueles filmes de sábado ou domingo, que vemos quando temos preguiça de nos vestirmos para sair e ficamos de pijama o dia todo, a comer que nem pequenos alarves. Não tem qualidade, a história é mal contada e os personagens perdem estrutura a cada minuto. Mas queremos saber o final. Apesar de já desconfiarmos não temos a certeza.

E é essa incerteza que vai, com toda a certeza, levar-me a ler o 3º volume, a desiludir-me mais uma vez com Brian Keaney e a não me importar assim tanto.

3.5 na verdade.
Há coisas que aconteceram no livro que foram um pouco descabidas ou óbvias e o autor tornou-as ainda mais óbvias ao referí-las de novo.