Review: Strong development--original material at last
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 12, 2014
This book delivers on my hope that, once done with the cliche plot of book one, the story would grow into something original, with real substance. The magic system is expanded nicely. The plot has true surprises. And the series is set up to continue in a cool way I didn't see coming.Why it's 4 stars and not 5: A few times the author gives away the answers to serious questions in overt (and boring) exposition. I would have loved to see the reveal happen in the action. Also, the character development many times was other characters saying things like, "He knew from how they had spoken of him previously that he was a man who loved power." I wish we would have simply heard how they talked about him rather than just get a bland summary.But, importantly, the ending handles all these elements well. The reveal is done carefully. The characters show up well. And it's a clever ending. I'm looking forward to book 3.