The Third Door, by Emily Rodda

The Third Door, by Emily Rodda (Scholastic, 2013)  is the concluding volume of a Middle Grade fantasy series (the first two books being The Golden Door, and The Silver Door).   That being the case, it seem to me rather pointless to try to recap the whole plot--suffice to say, the plot of the series as a whole is basically plucky kids with magical powers taking on bad guys, who also have powers, and saving their world.   There are interesting twists to the world-building--for instance, the kids in question come from a township deliberately shut of from the rest of the world long ago, setting up a nice mystery, and the revel about the magic of the three titular doors was much more exciting than I had anticipated.   And these mysteries (along with other twists), keep the pages turning nicely.

Those who enjoyed the first two books will be more than satisfied by this installment!  The plot thickens in a satisfactory way, with new characters, dangers, and mysteries, and the central characters once again must rise to the challenge. 

It's a fine fantasy series good for nine or ten year olds--there's some violence, but it's not distressingly graphic, some romance in the air, but it's not the point.  The central hero is a good, decent person, and the girl who is his partner in adventure gets a chance in this third book to truly shine.  As an added bonus, fans of Emily Rodda's Deltora series will doubtless be tickled to find that this particular land is linked to that series. 

So if you have a young devourer of fantasy on hand, this is a nice briskly paced and imaginative series to offer.  That being said, it isn't one I'd recommend to grown-up readers of middle grade fantasy--the individual elements, while all good, and quite often gripping as all get out, never came together quite enough to make the story truly magical for me. 

Disclaimer: review copy received from the publish