The conclusion to the epic fantasy Eldarn Sequence (after 2009’s Lessek’s Key
) fails to realize the promise of its predecessors. Mark Jenkins, Steven Taylor and Hannah Sorenson have found ways to travel between our world and the parallel universe of Eldarn. Now Mark is fighting to free his mind and body from possession by a nameless evil force, and Steven races across land and sea in pursuit of stolen super-powerful artifacts. Hannah finds herself in the company of precocious child-sorceress Milla, whose powers may hold the key to the salvation of both worlds. The unwieldy cast of indistinguishable minor characters, nebulous antagonist and abundance of clichés provide little payoff to 1,500 pages of anticipation. (Mar.)
