The Tombs of Atuan (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 2)

Arbieroo reviewed The Tombs of Atuan by Ursula K. Le Guin (Earthsea Cycle, #2)

Review of 'The tombs of Atuan' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

I've read the first three Earthsea books a heap of times, starting when I was at my academic peak (i.e. in primary school). Through-out my childhood readings I preferred the two that sandwiched this one. Looking back it is easy for me to see why: it wasn't about Ged and it didn't have enough sailing about to far flung places (i.e. exploration) in it. In contrast, I have observed that a number of female Goodreaders who are also LeGuin fans, rate this higher than the other two. I can take a guess as to why that might be; there are no female characters in the other two. There are some women, even some who play pivotal roles, in both, but they are not fully formed characters, let alone protagonists. Most of these women are unpleasant or down-right evil. A Wizard of Earthsea and The Farthest Shore are entirely male-dominated. The …

Tindra reviewed The Tombs of Atuan by Ursula K. Le Guin (Earthsea Cycle, #2)

Tombs of Atuan

3 stars

As with Book 1, this suffers from audiobook narration that is not terribly engaging by today's standards.

That said, it takes a really long time to figure out how in the heck this is part of Ged's story. And, understanding some time has passed since we saw him last, he doesn't at all feel like the same person. It would have almost felt more satisfying to me as something that happens in Earthsea, sure, but wasn't part of Ged's tale, because it feels so disconnected.