Reckless
by Cornelia Funke
09/14/10


For years, Jacob Reckless has been secretly disappearing to the world behind the mirror, the world for which his father abandoned his family. Jacob’s secret seems safe, until one day his younger brother Will follows him, with disastrous consequence. Faced with a curse that is quickly turning Will to stone, the brothers are thrust into a race against time to find a cure before Will is lost forever. Inspired by the Brothers Grimm, master storyteller Cornelia Funke introduces a lush, enchanting world, filled with danger, mystery, and magic, with fairy tales and legends re-imagined as never before.




Excerpt


The mirror. He still remembered very well the day his father had mounted it on the wall. It hung between the shelves like a shimmering eye, a glassy abyss that cast back a warped reflection of everything John Reckless had left behind: his desk, the old pistols, his books—and his elder son.


The glass was so uneven one could barely recognize one’s own reflection, and it was darker than other mirrors, but the rose tendrils winding across the silver frame looked so real they seemed ready to wilt at any moment.


Jacob closed his eyes.


He turned his back to the mirror. He felt behind the frame for some kind of lock or latch.


And every time, his reflection was looking him straight in the eye.


It took a while before Jacob understood.


THE MIRROR WILL OPEN ONLY FOR HE WHO CANNOT SEE HIMSELF