Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Closer (Tunnels)
Fiction Series
For ages 12 and up
Scholastic, 2011 ISBN: 978-0545201155
Dr. Burrows is finally a happy man. After months of looking for clues, hardship, and travel, he has finally arrived in the place where he hopes to find the answers he seeks. Dr. Burrows, his son Will, and Will’s friend Elliott are in a land that lies at the center of the Earth. Here there is a sun that shines all day long. Animal species that humans wiped out on the surface of the Earth long ago flourish in the forests, and the presence of three ancient stone pyramids indicate that an ancient civilization of humans once lived here.
Unfortunately, Dr. Burrows, Will, and Elliott are not the only ones who have arrived in this extraordinary land. The two Rebeccas and their Limiter soldiers have also managed to arrive there. The girls are eager to have their revenge on Will and his father, and they are determined to get their hands on the virus vial (and its antidote) that Will stole from them. The Rebeccas and their kind, the Styx, plan on using the virus to undermine human “Topsoil” civilization so that they can leave their underground world once and for all.
Meanwhile, in London, Will’s friend, Chester, and Elliott’s father, Drake, are also trying to find a way to stop the Styx before it is too late. They know all too well what is at stake, and they know too that they are constant danger.
Under the ground, in the Colony, Will’s mother, Mrs. Burrows, is recovering from the torture that she suffered at the hands of the Styx authorities. Though her eyesight is now very poor, her other sense are heightened and she is determined to escape.
Readers who have been following the adventures of Will, Chester, and their allies will be thrilled with this fourth and final book in the series. This is a novel that will delight readers with its unexpected plot twists, its fascinating characters, and its chilling denouement.
