The second book in the Dark Tower series was written 13 years after the first book, and you can really feel the style change. I guess that a lot had happened to the author during that time, and he had a lot of hit novels that matured and defined his style. I preferred the loneliness of the first book, and the more meditative mood – this one adds some sidekicks and their own backstories.
There’s plenty of action thanks to this change, however, and it makes for an entertaining reading experience. Not as deep as before, but it really keeps you turning the pages.
One thing I disliked was one of the characters, a young black woman, is a schizophrenic and her alternate personality speaks in a pretty flagrant black dialect. The portions of the book written in that voice take a while to get through, and I’m not sure that the effort is worth it. I don’t have any particular qualms against it racially, but purely as its ponderosity (is that a word?) makes for a tiring time for this reader.
When I get another blank in my reading schedule I’ll continue the series. For now, the next book I am reading is National Dish by Anya Von Bremzen.
