Through Glass, Episode Six

Through Glass #2

by Rebecca Ethington

The Through Glass Novella Series continues with the Sixth episode in this dark and twisted tale that has been called “Fantastically Dark and Hauntingly Twisted" by Dark Reads

They thought they were alone in the dark, in the house, they thought they were only being followed by one enemy, but now there are two - not including the children. But something is wrong with the children, something that Lex can’t place, and Travis wishes to run from. The question now is, who will be strong enough to pull the trigger.

Genres: Science Fiction, Dystopia, Paranormal, Aliens, Young Adult, Horror, Fantasy

66 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Rebecca Ethington has been telling stories since she was small. First, with writing crude scripts, and then on stage with years of theatrical performances. The Imdalind Series is her first stint into the world of literary writing. Rebecca is a mother to two, and wife to her best friend of 14 years. She was born and raised in the mountains of Salt Lake City, and hasn’t found the desire to leave yet. Her days are spent writing, running, and enjoying life with her amazing family.

Reviews

[Lillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVE this series! Through Glass: The Blue by Rebecca Ethington picks up right where it left off in volume 1. Having escaped her impending death and leaving an injured Bridget behind, Lex and Travis are now on their own in the darkness with nothing but the supplies on their backs and a destination that may not accept Lex. While the first book in this series is a bit slow moving, this one is the exact opposite. Packed full of action, I couldn’t set it down until I finished it.

The dynamic between Lex and Travis is interesting. For Lex she is Travis’s older sister, and in her heart she knows this, but seeing him physically and emotionally older than her is hard. I can’t even begin to imagine how this changes their relationship, but somehow it doesn’t. Travis is a bit protective of her, but I found that he still looks up to her, at least in my eyes he does. He respects her. And both of these characters love each other fiercely! For Lex who has been alone for 8 years, she is finally starting to feel like she isn’t anymore. She has family and in this book we see her heal a little bit from the trauma of being alone for so long.

For Travis though it isn’t just his sister he sees. He also sees her as a Tar. She is exhibiting signs of being near the change, and because of this he is a bit closed off. I can’t blame him for this. I can emphasize with him. He watched helpless as his little brother changed, the rest of his family dead, and now a sister back from the dead only to change soon. He is closed off emotionally, but at the same time as the reader you see his protectiveness and love he has for the sister he thought dead. It’s truly heart breaking!

The action of the plot is fast-paced! Lex and Travis start and end the book on the run. Abran sends his men, the Black Team, after them. But the members are more than meets the eye and truly Ethington creates a horrific scene! Few questions are answered, but Lex is starting to understand the world her brother grew up in. She’s starting to understand the danger she is placing him in.

Apparently, fighting monsters with a pipe was okay, but riding death traps through dark, rubble strewn streets was where I drew the line.

Ironically funny at times, especially when Lex’s teenage attitude comes out, and horrific the next, Through Glass is one of my favorite reads! There is a tremendous build up of suspense in this book, and I hope to see it peak during the next volume. In fact, after the biggest cliffhanger this author has ever left me with (at least in my opinion as I did throw my kindle and yell out WTH at its ending), I have a feeling the next volume will be explosive! And I for one can’t wait!!!!

If you enjoy horror, suspense, YA dystopians, and lots of action and have not read this series yet, you just do not know what you are missing. Go get this series!! You will not be disappointed!

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this way too fast. And what a cliffhanger! Now I get to stew over this for two weeks until I find out what happens next. Abran is one scary dude. I need more.

[Shayay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cool macabre vibe to the story with fun, weird, deadly creatures! I'm enjoying this series so far; things do move a little too slowly, but the story is still an entertaining one. Also, I really enjoy the post-apocalyptic type of world, and there's some fun action too. Lex is in for a lot more danger and surprises in this book! Lex and her brother, Travis, have escaped the tyrannical Azul leader, Abran, and they are trying to make their way to a neighboring settlement to get help. Abran is doing some super shady things with the Tar, and unfortunately, Bridget, is still stuck with Abran. Everyone is in danger! The story is taking some interesting turns! Excited for the next book!

[Roxanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Blue is book 2 in the Through Glass series. At the end of The Dark, we're left with Alexis and Travis on the run with Bridget left behind, and a snippet of what is happening to Cohen. The Blue, unfortunately, does not resolve either story line. Still scary at times and more happens and is discovered from what is basically a dual POV for Alexis and Bridget, but this is kind of just a middle and I'm hoping that The Rose will take us further and keep my attention more. This is still a good story and what has happened previously will keep me reading for the conclusion.

[KayLynn Zollinger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trigger Warning: violent death of children

Holy shit this series. It is creepy as hell. And I can't put it down. It's so good. The writing quality is great. Rebecca has a great way of describing things that gets into your head and sucks you in. You feel the pain and horror of Lex, Travis and Bridgette. And horror it is. I don't remember ever feeling so terrified while reading a book.

[Agata Jędrzejewska · Rating 5 out of 5]

Click thrum click thrum... in this world there is only this... click thrum..
If only those was only Tars. But the story is even deeper. Harder to fold your mind around it. Running from men, running from Tars and running from even something worse. We can’t run from ourself unluckily. And I.. I start to hear « click thrum » in deep of the night myself.

[Ashley Poteet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Getting there

I love the story, but it's killing me how slow it's moving! Then that ending! Ughh! I'm rooting for Alexis and hoping she can get a handle on here situation. Still don't know anything about Cohen. To be continued...

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as compelling as the first. I think this is part of the build up. We’re learning new things about the people who have disappeared when the world went dark. I like that each book in this series is a little over 100 pages so it’s doable to finish on a day off or slow weekend.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another page turner

I was hungry for more and I got it. Though this book does not have a taste of the next book in the series. A few typos but still an addictive read.

[Helen Dean · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this series.

This series really keeps you reading. I love the developing story and characters. I'm ready to start the next book.

[Dana Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

In love

I love this story. It has the creep factor that people love when they watch scary movies and the suspense.

[Lillian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just when I thought this series couldn't surprise me any more....


So Episode 6 picks up right where 5 left off, in Bridget's POV. She's just discovered the video files that prove Lex's and Travis's little brother was alive a lot longer than Travis believed. Not only did he turn into a Tar, he could stand in the light. This both terrified and intrigued Bridget. Cut scene back to Lex and Travis who are in a house with two hotters or children who've been in their house since the world went dark. Travis is with the little boy who is sick and Lex is gaining information from the little sister. What she finds out truly changes everything.

So I liked and disliked this installment for various reasons.

What I liked
I still love the characters of this series. I can't get enough of them. Seeing Lex's inner turmoil as she learns more and more about the world since it went dark and also as she realizes that she is fighting a losing battle in not becoming a Tar is heartbreaking and terrifying all at once. I empathized with her. Especially as she fought Travis in what she felt was the right thing to do. The two children living in this big house all alone gave me a horrible feeling the whole book and towards the end I suspected what was about to happen and my suspicions were accurate. I was literally screaming at my kindle "Run away!" through at least the last 30% of the book. I also love getting other characters' POVs and in this episode we get Bridget's twice. I'm indifferent toward this character. I like her, she obviously loves Travis, but can I trust her? I'm just not sure, and I hope I'm wrong.

What I disliked
I really feel like this episode was filler for the next episode. Yes there was a big revelation and the suspicions that Lex and Travis had in episode 5 were confirmed in this one, but it just felt....I don't know. Maybe I'm slightly unhappy because I wanted more, as I always do when I read a good series. In my own personal opinion, I felt there was a lot of redundancy this episode. (Again this is my own personal opinion and in no way reflects how I feel about the series in general or the author. I personally love this series and will see it through its entirety!)

Overall, despite what I disliked, I still love this series. This episode while I felt it had its shortcomings, I believe it has built up a tremendous amount of suspense (in addition to what is already there) and I hope to see that suspense explode in the next episode. In fact, after the biggest cliffhanger this author has ever left me with (at least in my opinion as I did throw my kindle and yell out WTH at its ending), I have a feeling the next episode will be explosive! And I for one can't wait!!!!

If you enjoy horror, suspense, YA dystopians, and lots of action and have not read this series yet, you just do not know what you are missing. Go get this series!! You will not be disappointed!

[Lillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I so love this series!!!! And I'm so glad the author decided to continue it. Episode 4 picks up right where we left Travis and Lex. They have just escaped Lex's impending death from Abran leaving Bridget behind. Now they are out in the darkness with only the supplies on their backs.

This episode we get to see the dynamic between brother and sister. For Lex she is Travis's older sister and in her heart she knows this but seeing him physically and emotionally older than her is hard. I can't even begin to imagine how this changes their relationship, but somehow it doesn't. Travis is a bit protective of her, but I found that he still looks up to her, at least in my eyes he does. He respects her. And both of these characters love each other and for Lex who has been alone for 8 years she finally is starting to feel like she isn't anymore. She has family and in this episode we see her heal a little bit from the trauma of being alone for so long.

I loved the scenes in this episode where they reminisce about their family before the Tar. It's such a heart wrenching experience yet it helps Lex to remember the family she's lost. Also learning more about how Travis has survived and what he has done to stop the Tar was awesome!

However not all is well. The Black Team is after them, think Navy Seals, Abran has sent them and they will kill Lex if they catch them. Then there's the painfully obvious fact that Lex is able to see in the dark where Travis can't and she is seeing shadows of things trying to get her. Gives me goosebumps just thinking about it.

Ugh!!!! And what is it with this author and cliffhangers?!?! She's killing me! I seriously can't wait to see where this story will go next. I'm completely engrossed in Lex's story and now Travis's too. Episode 5......

please, please, please hurry!

[Lesley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m wavering between a 2.5 and a 3.0, so I will be positive and go with 3. There were some grammatical errors, but they didn’t take away from the plot. It’s just that not much happened until the end of the novella. I read the first book as a whole (instead of in volumes), and this one just didn’t live up to the expectations that one raised.

Plot:
Volume Four picks up where the last one left off. Travis had just helped Lex escape from Abran and the Azul compound. They are off in search of Cohen, who Travis believes can be saved. However, in addition to having to worry about the Tar, they now have Abran’s hitmen to contend with.

Characters:
Alexis pretty much alternated between scared and angry. As readers, we are left wondering if her erratic behavior is caused by the fact that she is about to turn Tar.

Travis is actually more of a big brother in this one. He tries to maintain the human qualities in Lex while protecting her from the very thing she might turn into. We do get to see a really vulnerable side to him, and that was refreshing.

No Cohen in this one. Sigh.

Writing:
I mentioned in a previous review that Ethington is a very creative storyteller. We would be able to focus more on that creativity with better editing.

The Bottom Line:
The first book was totally action packed, with Lex constantly moving from one situation to another. In my review, I said that one minute there was hope; the next your heart falls out of your chest. That didn’t happen for me in Volume Four. I don’t know if it’s because there just wasn’t much story or if I just don’t like the whole idea of novellas, but regardless, something was still missing until the very end of the book, which presented a huge cliffhanger. While this isn’t my favorite Ethington book, the story is good enough that I will continue reading.

[Andrea · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is my first novella series that I've read and I actually think it's kind of a cool way to write a story. Each episode is about 60-ish pages and she releases a new episode about every 2-3 months (I equate it to a TV series). I bought the first three episodes all together and thought they were FANTASTIC. However, this one (I'm sorry, I hate to be negative, I love this author) was so disappointing to me. If you're only going to release 60 pages, and you want to keep people hooked, you've got to make those 60 pages count! NOTHING HAPPENED in this. It was 60 pages of Alexis describing her grief at losing Cohen (yes, she's grief stricken, who wouldn't be? Let's move on.) and her terror as she and her brother hide from the Tar (yep, that would be really scary, but can we please have a little storyline?). Then at the end, when something is about to happen... she ends it before it actually happens! Gah!! Seriously frustrating.

One more thing. I'm a little bored with the fact that Alexis is travelling with her brother, while Cohen (the love interest) is pretty much out of the picture and probably will be for the duration of the series. I don't know, a brother/sister team up?? It would be so much more interesting (IMO) if, instead of the brother, she was travelling with just some other guy. Then at least there can be some tension, some chemistry, SOMETHING. But with the brother... sorry, it's a little boring to me.

I'll give one more episode a try (I mean, they're only 60 pages, takes like an hour to read), but if it doesn't improve than I'll probably call it quits for the novella series.

[Lesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5, so I'll round up. While I’m still not digging the whole novella concept, Volume 5 was at least full of action and suspense.

Plot:
At the end of Volume Four, the Tar had Lex and Travis trapped in the basement closet of a house they snuck into. Volume Five picks up where the last one left off. Lex and Travis have to find a way to escape not just the closet, but the whole house, which is overrun with Tar. In their efforts, both of them begin to notice the Tar are displaying some new characteristics … characteristics that shed some light on Abran’s motives. Meanwhile, back at Azul, Bridget comes to some startling conclusions after hacking into Abran’s computer.

Characters:
As in Volume Four, Alexis pretty much alternated between scared and angry. During her angry outbursts, she seems almost uncontrollable and Tar-like.

Once again, Travis tries to maintain Lex’s humanity. At the same time, while he wants to be compassionate to Lex and others in her situation, we know that he will do what he has to in order to prevent any more transformations into Tar.

There’s not a lot of Bridget in this one, but when she does appear, we see how intelligent she is and how much she cares for Travis.

Still no Cohen.

Writing:
I’m hot off the last Imdalind book, so Ethington is a rock star to me right now. I just wish the books were better edited.

The Bottom Line:
After being so disappointed in Volume Four, I was really wary about Volume Five. Fortunately, this volume was not only more suspenseful than the last, but also very insightful in terms of what we have to look forward to in the upcoming volumes. I can’t wait to see how it all plays out.

[Lillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome, Awesome, AWESOME

This series ceases to amaze me! Episode five picks up right where episode four left off. Travis and Lex are trapped in the basement of a house they sought refuge in. There are Ulama or the Tar everywhere, they're surrounded. How will they escape?

So this installment is packed with tons of actions and quite a bit of bravery required from our heroine Lex. She realizes in this book that her suspicions about Travis's eyesight were true and he can't see. It will be up to her to be his eyes in this black world. Travis struggles in this installment seeing that his sister who is still his sister in mind is more Tar in body. And ultimately this leads to them arguing about when do you start to call someone a monster, before when they are still themselves or after they've changed.

Apparently, fighting monsters with a pipe was okay, but riding death traps through dark, rubble strewn streets was where I drew the line.

Ironically funny at moments, especially when the teenage spirit of Lex comes out, and horrifying the next. If you haven't already started this series, you do not know what you are missing! I can't wait to see where Mrs. Ethington will take us next. For now, though I think I will go hide from the dark....

[Lesley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was between a 3.0 and a 3.5 for me. It was more exposition and less action than I would have liked.

Plot:
In Volume Five, Lex and Travis ended up in a house with two children. While they are finding out more about the children’s past, Bridget is back at the compound finding out more and more about Lex and Travis’ brother and the experiments that Abran had been doing.

Characters:
In this one, we start to see some of Lex’s maternal instincts come out. On the other hand, Travis seems to return to being more cold and uncaring, except for where Bridget’s concerned. It’s easy to see how much the two of them care for each other, even when they’re not together.

Writing:
Again, I love Ethington, but there were several grammatical errors.

The Bottom Line:
I’ve said it before, but I hate the story being broken down into novellas. While a normal novel can has both periods of action and excitement followed by some downtime, if you’re splitting that into smaller sections, there are bound to be some that seem to drag. This was one of those for me, maybe because it didn’t go into too much more detail than the last one.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I downloaded and read volumes 5 and 6 together and I think for that reason I enjoyed it all a lot more than when I just read volume 4 by itself. I felt like the story made some good progression, things are happening again, and I'm interested to see how it will all play out. I'm not loving the writing style. It's all just so dramatic and so intense... ok, here's an example:

"...right then, I became afraid. I became afraid of the way that he stood before me, his behavior alerting something deep down inside of me to a fear that I didn't know I needed to have, a primal fear I had almost forgotten. That of paranoia, of true terror."

It sounds good, almost poetic, but... this paragraph makes no sense to me. And it's paragraph after paragraph of these very intense, dramatic sentences... but they don't really make any sense. I'm sorry if that's harsh but it gets a little exhausting after a while. I really am enjoying the actual story and characters. The premise is crazy good and the cliff hangers make it impossible not to continue. So that's why I will carry on with this unique novella series. I'm excited for the next volume.

[Tanya Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lex’s story continues as her and Travis are trying to escape the Tar but is trapped in a closet. Can Lex and Travis figure out how to get out of the house and into safety so they continue to look for Cohen and stop Abran from her diabolical plan?



I love this series! Each episode keeps getting better and better and I am at my wits end when I am left at the end cause I am not satisfied…I NEED MORE!! The cliffhanger at the end was a jaw dropper and I am anxiously looking forward to episode 6!!

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lex and Travis have just escaped Abran and the compound that houses Azul and what may well be monsters that haunt the dark world they are now thrust into. They must get to Blood Rose before Abran does something that will change the world forever. If only nothing stood in their way.


You don't learn too much in this book. Alexis and Travis are on the run from Abran's men. Not the best of the series but a good read.

[Tanya Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book picked up where #5 left off. Bridget has finally found out that Lex & Travis' brother is a Tar but is able to handle more. He is also not just any Tar, he can go out in the daylight. Travis & Lex are are in a house with two kids who have been there from the beginning but the little boy is sick.

There is so much going on in the installment and I really hope that there is an episode 7!!! (hint, hint)

[Carole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good Episode but too short

Good Episode but too short

This book is great. The story continues to pull me in. I can't wait to see what happens next.I wish that the author would just release one book instead of short episodes of only 60 pages.

[Paulina (The Little Book Pixie) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't like this one as much as the previous three but it was still an excellent novella.
It was amazing to see how Travis and Lex interacted with each other.
Once again my only complain is that it was too short.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This episode just totally left me with a whopping cliffhanger. Lex is with her brother hiding and there are monsters everywhere. Everywhere. Of more than one kind.

I recommend this series to everyone!

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just love the writing and descriptions of this series. Sucks me right in. We learn some new surprises about the Tar, and some big worries for the future. I had to read the end twice to finally get it, but hope the next way offers more insight into this new reveal. Can't wait for more!

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the last 3 in a row, so it was like a regular book(almost). After each book ends on a cliffhanger it's hard to get into the next one. I wish that the books were slightly longer, so I could attach to the characters better, before it ends. Otherwise I love the story

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the pace of this one. Nothing drags, lots going on, learning lots. I'm so glad she found a family member!!! But now what?? Is she going to turn into a freaky creature? Will she find Cohen just in time for him to turn. More, more!!

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Episode 5 is Great!

Most stories lose some of the excitement after the first book or so but Through Glass is not one of them. 5 is still creepy, dark and a love story with twists and turns, you know the Tar is the monster but others are too!