Queen of Sorcery

I'm continuing to read through the series for the first time, and I'm pleased to report that this second book is significantly better than the first. The story becomes more exciting and somewhat less predictable, and there are traces of originality. I suppose it deserves at least 3.5 stars, but I still hesitate to give it 4.

The boy hero is beginning to remind me slightly of Harry Potter, another confused and rather angry adolescent. Garion predated Potter by about 15 years, but I happen to have encountered Potter first.

The trouble with a teenage hero is that he tends to go through some tiresomely awkward behaviour, lacking both the charm of a child and the general competence of an adult. This is something I could do without, but I'm willing to tolerate it if the book is good in other respects.