2006-03-01
Stone of Tears
Author: Terry Goodkind
(Note: I finished this book late on 2/21. Work has been busy.)
Stunning. Breathtaking. Enthralling. I'm sure I could come up with more words for Stone of Tears, but they'd be similar. And I guess I could add "long", but in an entirely good way. In fact, when finishing page 979 the ending seems a little rushed, as if this story won't be completed until at least Sword of Truth-3.
Stone of Tears begins just a few hours after Wizard's First Rule ends, and once again, by page 4 some of the main characters are in mortal danger. I read the first book in the series before I started this blog, which is unfortunate, because I'd love to describe it. That book was completely flawless. Compared to its predecessor, SoT-2 is flawed, but I'm not ruling out that it might be the second best novel I've ever read.
Comparatively, the pace is a bit slower. SoT-1 established the winter solstice deadline early on which kept the action moving. SoT-2 deals with a supposedly more important, but less urgent, threat to the entire world. It doesn't work as well. When the threat was Darken Rahl, Goodkind could show us just what kind of a monster he was and make us fear the idea of him gaining absolute power over creation. The threat of the Keeper is more abstract, and I felt like I had to take everyone's word that it was a big deal.
And I mentioned the rushed and incomplete ending. Then an angel swoops in to save the main characters. No, literally, the book ends with a spirit coming out of nowhere to make certain surviving characters feel better (and avoid suicide) even though they haven't really resolved their biggest problems! Goodkind can hit the ground running with SoT-3 after leaving everything the way he did here. If that's the way it's intended to be, that's fine.
Don't let my critique turn you off. I don't know how to describe how good most of the story is. When I finished this behemoth I thought to myself, "if this flawed novel still rates as 'stunning', is SoT-1 my new favorite novel?" I was leaving for a trip the next morning anyway, so I thought I'd bring along a slimmer paperback that time. I decided to revisit my current favorite novel ...
Coming up next: Heinlein's The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress
(Note: I finished this book late on 2/21. Work has been busy.)
Stunning. Breathtaking. Enthralling. I'm sure I could come up with more words for Stone of Tears, but they'd be similar. And I guess I could add "long", but in an entirely good way. In fact, when finishing page 979 the ending seems a little rushed, as if this story won't be completed until at least Sword of Truth-3.
Stone of Tears begins just a few hours after Wizard's First Rule ends, and once again, by page 4 some of the main characters are in mortal danger. I read the first book in the series before I started this blog, which is unfortunate, because I'd love to describe it. That book was completely flawless. Compared to its predecessor, SoT-2 is flawed, but I'm not ruling out that it might be the second best novel I've ever read.
Comparatively, the pace is a bit slower. SoT-1 established the winter solstice deadline early on which kept the action moving. SoT-2 deals with a supposedly more important, but less urgent, threat to the entire world. It doesn't work as well. When the threat was Darken Rahl, Goodkind could show us just what kind of a monster he was and make us fear the idea of him gaining absolute power over creation. The threat of the Keeper is more abstract, and I felt like I had to take everyone's word that it was a big deal.
And I mentioned the rushed and incomplete ending. Then an angel swoops in to save the main characters. No, literally, the book ends with a spirit coming out of nowhere to make certain surviving characters feel better (and avoid suicide) even though they haven't really resolved their biggest problems! Goodkind can hit the ground running with SoT-3 after leaving everything the way he did here. If that's the way it's intended to be, that's fine.
Don't let my critique turn you off. I don't know how to describe how good most of the story is. When I finished this behemoth I thought to myself, "if this flawed novel still rates as 'stunning', is SoT-1 my new favorite novel?" I was leaving for a trip the next morning anyway, so I thought I'd bring along a slimmer paperback that time. I decided to revisit my current favorite novel ...
Coming up next: Heinlein's The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress
