Rating: 
Summary: Only one thing I can say...
Review: Do NOT finish this book unless you have the sequel waiting by your side! One of the most frustratingly suspenseful thing I've ever read. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Intriguing, but loses depth from having a Cartoon Bad Guy.
Review: I borrowed this book after visiting a friend in another town and became engrossed travelling back home: I was glad I'd had the foresight to borrow the sequel too! It is one of those fantasy novels where someone from modern times is transported back to another time and place. Mirrors were the medium that transported Terisa into this world, and remain central to the plot thereafter. She soon finds herself ensconced in a castle with the statutory "secret passages" which are a staple of so many fantasy novels. If this makes it sound unoriginal, it's not: I hadn't seen another book with the magic mirror as transportation theme.There is a great deal of intrigue with different factions vying to get information or make use of Terisa. This is nicely done, and people's motives are not always transparent at first. I thought the characterisation was good, on the whole, with Terisa a sympathetic character in spite of her timidity (less well-drawn, and she would have seemed merely wimpish). Makes a change from fantasy's "chicks in chainmail". However, the character Master Eremis was a pathetic caricature. Like someone else posted below, the amount of scenes where he nearly rapes Terisa only to be disturbed or distracted is a ridiculous, unconvincing dramatic device. Ho hum, he's said "Now you are mine" and put his hand down her cleavage yet again. (Yes, Eremis even had a catchphrase). It all seemed a bit prurient and voyeuristic. However I found the developing romance between Terisa and Gerarden sweet and nicely-drawn. This gets 4 stars because of the cartoon baddie: it would have been 5 otherwise. It's still one of the best fantasy novels I've read in ages, though.
Rating: 
Summary: My mirror is not the same to me now.
Review: This intriging fantasy is so near reality that you'l wish it was true. Donaldson uses a special way to combine a fantasy world with something from our real world to something you just have to believe in. You will feel the same passion (in lovemaking and i quests), the hurt (in battle and in heart) and the confusion (in general) like the caracters in the novel. Warning ! Do not read the book sitting near a mirror.
Rating:
Summary: Enthralling fantasy
Review: This book captivates the imagination. It is one of those books which consumes your weekend regardless of any other plans you may have made. It is full of intrigue, mystery, romance and action. Then it ends... I cannot find a sequel so I am stuck within its bounds.
Rating:
Summary: bawdy, exciting, great characters, fascinating!
Review: Ooh, I loved this book. What a break from the over-used epic fantasy novels that are polluting bookshops these days! Sure it's got magic, monsters, sword-play. But what an original concept of magic! And what monsters! Dragons? Goblins? None of those, thanks. How about a space-commando snatched from his war-torn world into a medieval/fantasy setting? Or that giant slug-thing that swallows guys whole? But really, the strongest element of this book--and it's sequel, which was just as great--is the characters. They're so well drawn you start to get into even the ones you don't like. They're interesting, complex, develop as the story does, and gosh darnit, you really start to feel for the heroes. I really felt pride on their behalf when they succeed, chagrined when they mess up, and so on. Let me also say this: half the characters seem to have sex on their minds about 90% of the time. But this book belongs nowhere near the torn-bodice/romance genre! It's fun stuff. Trust me! Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Satisfying tale of fantasy ,romance greed and power.
Review: This is an extraordinary novel of suprelative quality.The reader is captivated and seduced by the characters unique lifestyles,perils,and passions.There are few criticisms one can apply to this book it carefully takes the reader from one hopeful moment to the next.
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Summary: My FAVOURITE 2-volume series of all time!!!
Review: I have read Tolkien, Brooks, Eddings, etc. and enjoyed them. But this series had one unique element which I have never seen in any other fantasy novel. It had the development of a magic (mirrors) and its uses which the characters slowly discovered as the story progressed. This can usually only be found in a good Sci-Fi novel with the development of a technology. I simply could not believe (to my enjoyment) how far he took the concept of mirrors and their discovered abilities and uses for good and evil. It was not simply "find sword, discover how to use sword, kill evil with sword". I think the most amazing thing these books did was combine elements of all genres! An almost impossible task, but it turned out amazingly well! Fantasy, action, adventure, intrigue, romance, humour, suspense, horror, sci-fi, and more! In fact, make sure you have the second volume sitting right in front of you when you finish the first. Trust me. Also, if anyone reads this review who HAS read these books and enjoyed them as much as I have, I want you to email me the titles of any which could be similar in caliber and content. I simply cannot find any--and I have read many. Thanks!
Rating: 
Summary: Oh well.
Review: I was so excited when I began this book. There are so few good fantasy authors out there, and for a while I thought I`d actually found one....for a very short while. The first book was well-written, ingeniously characterized and suspenseful. The second one fell flat. Since the two are really one volume, one cannot be judged without the other. In the second, all the interesting possibilities opened up in 'Mirror of Her Dreams' are cast aside or tied into too-neat little knots; the characters become flat and mainly concerned with their sexual problems--which might interest some people, but frankly left me cold. Eremis went from being a complex, intelligent enemy to a pervert who lets his baser desires overrule his common sense two-thirds of the time. The plot becomes trite and stale, and King Joyse`s 'reasons' for apathy come across as a flimsy plot device--as if Donaldson planned on the apathy before he could think up a good reason for it. All the sons of the Domne failed to live up to my expectations, and certainly none of them displayed qualities which had earned them their reputation, the Domne himself least of all. The entire idea of mirrors and the other issues involved, such as identity, indivuality, and illusory perceptions of people, could have been fascinating had they not been dropped halfway through the series--for anyone who wants a superb evaluation of these issues, read Guy Gavriel Kay`s 'Tigana'. The plot became a mushy mess by the second book, as did the relationships. The amount of near-escapes and near-rapes were slightly ridiculous, and mirrors became just another mode of travelling. Geraden and Terisa make love the entire book till I wanted to throw it across the room from sheer annoyance at all the sappiness, and then in the end they have a hard time deciding whether or not to get married--after the hint of a permanent commitment was the only thing that had let me tolerate them in the first place. Sheez. In any case, to the reader impressed by 'Mirror of Her Dreams' and searching for the sequel, beware--this book was one big illusion, hiding the wreck on the other side.
Rating:
Summary: Set aside a couple of days to read this one.
Review: I just wanted to reach out and slap Terisa. That is how engrossing this story is. Donaldson is the master of dual universes. So, to effectively capture the readers attention in this genre, the story has to strong. "Mirror" definately has a strong storyline. As I previously indicated, I just wanted to slap that naive oaf Terisa. I wanted to take Geraden by the hand to keep him from tripping, shake the King back to reality and expose Eremus for what he really is. I felt like I was looking into a window of someone's life. I was virtually frustrated by this book, but the second book straightened out the priorities. And as you look back upon the first book, you realize these different frustrations are necessary to the storyline. Don't read "Mirror" without reading the second volume "A Man Rides Through." That is easily a 9. Together, "Mordant's Need" is a necessary read for epic fantasy readers to fill the gap between new releases in their favorite series.
Rating: 
Summary: Donaldson piles on the intrigue
Review: This first book of the two-part series is a departure from his earlier work. Instead of action based physical movement of the characters, he treats the reader to action based on mental movement, namely intrigue, plotting, and more intrigue. Once the reader understands that the plot will not move forward on the heroine's innate (and throughtout the book almost totally unknown) powers, the book is very enjoyable. I must register just one small complaint however. Donaldson's writing style constantly mixes a diologue's actual words with the speaker's additional thoughts. It can be interesting reading for a while, but gets tedious when carried on and on.
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