Author: Mary Patterson Thornburg

ISBN:  1-5259-0064-X

The following review was contributed by: Emily Shaffer:   Click Here To Read Emily's Reviews

Alyssha Dodson’s life will change forever on her twelfth birthday.  After a strange dream in which her missing cat returns to tell her to be brave because “the door is opening,” Alyssha wakes up to find two strangers attacking her father in the other room.  Left with no choice but to run, Alyssha escapes to Voodoo Bridge, a frightening place that her older brother Billy once showed her, right before he went missing four years earlier.  There’s a door under the bridge, and despite the horrible feeling it causes for anyone who comes too close, Billy had told her to go through it if she was ever in danger.  Now, armed only with a strange red necklace Billy had given her and pursued by the two strangers, Alyssha heads through the door…and out into another world.

The continent of Dorya is reminiscent of our own world before the dawn of industrialization.  Unable to return to her own world and believing her missing brother to be somewhere in Dorya, Alyssha sets out on a quest to find him.  Trouble finds her first, however, in the form of the threatening Lord Raf Var Ne, who seems to knows who she is, where she came from, and what she has that he wants.  In need of quick escape, Alyssha is forced to accept the help of Raf’s rebellious but charming stepson, Kardl.  Pursued by Raf and his police, Alyssha and Kardl set off across the wilderness of Dorya to find Billy and the revolutionary army Kardl is determined to join in order to overthrow his stepfather and the ruling class.

Underland is a young adult fantasy adventure, but it’s also a coming-of-age tale with multi-layered characters and adult themes.  Mary Patterson Thornburg has created a world that feels real and detailed, but she smartly concentrates on her very human characters rather than the intricacies of this other universe to tell her story. While searching for her brother, Alyssha faces the repercussions of racial tension and the complexities of her and Kardl’s mixed-race heritage.  She also learns about cruelty and trust, and experiences the subtle beginnings of first love.  Underland is written for audiences ten and older, but readers of all ages will enjoy this story, with its likable spunky characters and its world in turmoil.  The promised sequels are eagerly anticipated.