Yesterday I finished Stone of Tears by Terry Goodkind, the second book in his huge Sword of Truth series.

I had read the first book in the series years ago based on a friend's recommendation but didn't like it very much. I decided to pick up this one after reading more about Goodkind and seeing the TV series Legend of the Seeker, based on the books. Sadly, this book only impressed me slightly more than the first one. The plot and characters are OK, if a little derivative. In particular, comparisons between this series and Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series seem obvious. The main problem I have with this book is it's length. It feels extremely bloated and long-winded. Particularly in the beginning of the book, chapters go on and on while seeming to advance neither the plot nor the character development, re-hashing the same discussions and material over and over.