Skip to content
  • Home
  • Review Policy
  • Linktree
  • Contact
  • Menu Item
  • Menu Item
  • Menu Item
  • Menu Item
  • Menu Item

Westveil Publishing

Jenna Rideout | Illustrator, Book Reviewer, Author

  • Home
  • About
    • Meet Jenna
    • Review Policy
    • Linktree
    • Spam Concerns
  • Blog
    • Book Reviews
    • Author Interviews & Guest Posts
    • Book Promos
    • Book Talk, Tags & YouTube
  • Contact
  • Toggle search form
  • 5 Star Review: Max and the Citadel of Light by John Peragine Book Reviews
  • The Starless Crown by James Rollins – 5 Star Book Review Book Reviews
  • This Woven Kingdom by Tahereh Mafi – 4 Star Review Book Reviews
  • The Perils of Paris by Ana T. Drew – 4 Star Review Book Reviews
  • Last Chance Books – 4 Star Book Review Book Reviews
  • Book Review: A Fall of Light by LJ Greene Book Reviews
  • Fan Fiction by Brent Spiner – 5 Star Book Review Book Reviews
  • Antithesis – 5 Star Book Review Book Reviews

Mirrors and Mysteries by Christina Bauer – 4 Star Review

Posted on April 1, 2022 By Jenna Rideout No Comments on Mirrors and Mysteries by Christina Bauer – 4 Star Review

Grayson Eyre has left her old life behind.

Welcome to one of the April 1st stops on the blog tour for Mirrors and Mysteries by Christina Bauer with XPresso Book Tours (schedule linked.) Be sure to follow the rest of the tour for spotlights, reviews, author guest posts, and a giveaway! More on that at the end of this post.

This is the second book in an arc within a larger series. Read my review of the previous book here!

Please note that this post contains affiliate links, which means there is no additional cost to you if you shop using my links, but I will earn a small percentage in commission. A program-specific disclaimer is at the bottom of this post.

About the Book

Mirrors and Mysteries
Fairy Tales of the Magicorum Book Nine
by Christina Bauer

Published 24 March 2022
Monster House Books

Genre: YA Fantasy, Retelling

Rapunzel meets Jane Eyre in the epic conclusion of this fairy tale romance!

Grayson Eyre has left her old life behind. She’s no longer stuck serving Lady R, a sadistic Rapunzel from the Lowood clan of elves. Instead, Grayson now teaches at the Thornfield home for shifter orphans. Even better, her boss is none other than the sexy alpha, Dex. It’s all good until a mysterious witch, Jocasta, appears in a nearby tower, demanding that Dex and Grayson discover the true nature of all Rapunzels. If not, Lady R will return to claim Grayson… and Thornfield will be wiped out by the evil Prism Master. Can Dex and Grayson discover the truth in time? And what will it mean for their growing attraction?

Secrets are revealed and feelings explored in this epic conclusion to the story of Dex and Grayson!

Amazon US | Amazon CA | Amazon UK | B&N | Kobo | Google | Apple

Excerpt

Dex

“Owoooooo!”

High-pitched howls echo in through my bedroom door, along with the click-clack of tiny paws racing across the outer hallway. I wake up and smile.

The shifter pups are racing through my palace again. Fifth time this week.

I’d love to join in right away. Still, as pack alpha I must set a good example. I slide out of bed and into my formal kit as leader of Wulfhelm. That means a black leather jerkin, along with matching pants and boots. A short cape hangs over my shoulders. I have long black hair, pale skin, and a lean body that’s roped with muscle. Once I’m ready, I open my door and step into the corridor beyond.

Wulfhelm territory includes a castle-city and acres of woodland. My little corner is called Thornfield. It’s a medieval-style building that mixes dark wood, stained-glass windows, and ancient tapestries.

“Owoooo!”

The pups are only few hallways away now. A minute later, twenty of them tear around the corner, coming to a skidding stop by my opened door. The smallest pup is named Ulliver. Like me, he’s one of the few shifters who can speak while still in wolf form.

“Will you run with us?” Ulliver positions his little wolf self so he stands directly under the opened doorway across from my own. Not sure if this is because he’s six, but Ulliver mimics everything I do. It’s beyond endearing.

I put on my most mature face. Once the pups see I’m tempted, they’ll never let up.

“Shouldn’t you be in lessons?” I ask.

“It’s the girl’s turn,” explains Ulliver. “We have to wait.”

Wulfhelm is a unique pack. We’re all orphans and runaways, either from Faerie or Earth. For thousands of years, we’ve had female teachers for the girl shifters, but our population keeps declining. As a result, the boy’s teachers have been doing double duty lately.

“Don’t you want to run with us?” asks Ulliver. All around him, the pups yip and jump with excitement. “Please, Alpha?”

I pretend to consider this request. In truth, part of me made my decision the moment I heard the high-pitched howls.  I nod slowly. “I’ll give you a head start.”

“Yay!”

My Review

My Rating: 4 Stars
Consider liking my review on Goodreads

I was granted complimentary eARC access to Mirrors and Mysteries by Christina Bauer as part of my participation in a blog tour for this title with XPresso Book Tours. Thank you to all involved in affording me this opportunity! My thoughts are my own and my review is honest.

I’ve been a big fan of Bauer’s writing for a couple of years now, and when I reviewed Towers and Tithes last year I fell in love with this story arc in particular. I absolutely could not wait to keep reading! I was under the impression that this arc would be a duology within the Magicorum series, not sure why, but I’m delighted to find that there’s another piece of the puzzle coming. Give me more!

Greyson is free, but all is not well. Dex is blind and there are still plenty of fires to put out. This book follows Greyson and Dex as they hop through magic mirrors trying to figure out who’s behind the big, sinister operation that’s working to keep them apart (among other goals,) and why. They need to know the truth behind Rapunzels, and that good old human classic Greyson loves so much, Jane Eyre, seems to have something to do with it.

As with all of the books in their series, this was a quick and easy read that really doesn’t have any dull moments. With that said, much like the previous book in the storyline, this feels much more mature than I’m used to Christina Bauer books feeling. We do get appearances by characters like Ella, a classic bubbly, impulsive teenaged Bauer girl, but Greyson and Dex feel older. Most characters in these books go up against the world at one point or another, but it has changed these characters at some point. If you’re here for bubbly Ella or characters like the ones you’ll find in Angelbound or Pixieland Diaries, this arc that started with Towers and Tithes isn’t for you. If you’re a fan of slightly older, more gritty and honest styles of fairytale retelling fantasy (like those written by Mercedes Lackey,) these books are your ideal next read!

About the Author

Christina Bauer thinks that fantasy books are like bacon: they just make life better. All of which is why she writes romance novels that feature demons, dragons, wizards, witches, elves, elementals, and a bunch of random stuff that she brainstorms while riding the Boston T. Oh, and she includes lots of humor and kick-ass chicks, too.

Christina graduated from Syracuse University’s Newhouse School with BA’s in English along with Television, Radio, and Film Production. She lives in Newton, MA with her husband, son, and semi-insane golden retriever, Ruby.

Be the first to know about new releases from Christina by signing up for her newsletter: http://tinyurl.com/CBupdates

Stalk Christina On Social Media – She Loves It!

Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | LinkedIn | Amazon

Giveaway Alert!

Tour-wide giveaway (INT)
A copy of Mirrors and Mysteries and more!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Email
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Twitter
  • Tumblr
  • Pinterest
  • WhatsApp
  • Mastodon

Like this:

Like Loading...

Related

Book Reviews, Featured Tags:4 star review, christina bauer, fairy tales of the magicorum, fairytale, fairytale retelling, fantasy, four star review, Mirrors and Mysteries, monster house books, Retelling, xpresso book tours, ya, ya fantasy, young adult

Post navigation

Previous Post: Chase and Daniels Series by L.S. Johnson [Tour Spotlight]
Next Post: Devil’s Temptation by Trish Heinrich [Blitz with Excerpt]

Related Posts

  • Jati’s Wager by Jonathan Nevair – 5 Star Book Review Book Reviews
  • From the Deep by Kateri Stanley – 4 Star Book Review Book Reviews
  • Alex McKenna & The Geranium Deaths – 4 Star Book Review Book Reviews
  • Max and the Isle of Sanctus – 5 Star Book Review Book Reviews
  • The Part About the Dragon Was (Mostly) True – 5 Star Audiobook Review Book Reviews
  • One of the Good Ones – 4 Star Book Review Book Reviews

Comments (0) on “Mirrors and Mysteries by Christina Bauer – 4 Star Review”

  1. Giselle says:
    April 1, 2022 at 12:41 PM

    Thanks for being on the tour! Great review!

    Loading...
    Reply
  2. Giselle says:
    April 1, 2022 at 12:42 PM

    Thanks for being on the tour!!!

    Loading...
    Reply
  3. Giselle says:
    April 1, 2022 at 12:42 PM

    Oops sorry for the double comment it gave me an error the first time lol!

    Loading...
    Reply
  4. I'm All Booked Up says:
    April 1, 2022 at 4:20 PM

    Thanks for sharing! The excerpt was interesting.

    Loading...
    Reply

Leave a ReplyCancel reply

We migrated web hosts and we're still working on restoring images. Thank you for your patience!

Badges

Professional Reader
Reviews Published
80%
50 Book Reviews
NetGalley Beta Tester
Frequently Auto-Approved
Intellifluence Trusted Blogger
  • Author Interviews & Guest Posts
  • Blog
  • Book Promos
  • Book Reviews
  • Book Talk, Tags & YouTube
  • Featured
  • June 2025
  • May 2025
  • April 2025
  • March 2025
  • February 2025
  • January 2025
  • December 2024
  • November 2024
  • October 2024
  • September 2024
  • August 2024
  • July 2024
  • June 2024
  • May 2024
  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • February 2024
  • January 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • October 2023
  • September 2023
  • August 2023
  • July 2023
  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org
  • Book Giveaway: Shooting Stars Above by Patricia Leavy Book Promos
  • Darkness Awaits [Book Tour with Excerpt] Book Promos
  • Wraith [Book Blitz] Book Promos
  • The Calling [Book Tour with Excerpt] Book Promos
  • A Climate of Revenge by Tom Riley [Blitz with Excerpt] Book Promos
  • Love All by Liza Malloy Book Promos
  • The Fallen King: The Father’s Gift [Book Tour Promo] Book Promos
  • Author Guest Post with Michael Ross: Quiet the Waves Author Interviews & Guest Posts

Original content © 2021-2024 Westveil Publishing | Submitted content rights remain with the rights holders.

%d