Strikingly different from A Wizard of Earthsea, yet still enjoyable. I wasn't totally sure about what to expect with this book but I was delightfully surprised. While I felt the book suffered a bit from a rushed climax (I did end up reading most of it in an afternoon), Le Guin does a masterful job of storytelling, world building, and character developing. I almost wished I could read an encyclopedia of Earthsea and all its various and intriguing people but I'm happy to read the next book in the series in the meantime.
