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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Guardian Of The Ominous Tombs & Dark Labyrinth, 24 Feb 2005
The tale of the "Tombs of Atuan," is the second book in the Earthsea Cycle and begins a few years after Ged's adventures combating the "shadow" force. In Atuan, part of the Kargish lands, a little girl, Tenar, was chosen at birth to assume the role of One Priestess of the Tombs of Atuan, where the ancient Nameless Ones are said to dwell. The nine tombs had stood there, since the time of the first man, since Earthsea was created. "They were the tombs of those who ruled before the world of men came to be, the ones not named, and she who served them had no name." When Tenar was five years-old, she was taken from her parents and formerly given to the Nameless Ones, her life until death was dedicated to them - the old gods. She was to become the High Priestess, reborn, of an ancient religion. And now she has no other name but Arha, the Eaten One. Her days are all the same, spent learning the endless rites and lore important to her position. Arha is separated from other neophytes, who have been sent to serve various gods, and soon grows bored and restless. Beneath her dwelling place, under the Throne and the Tombs, lies a vast labyrinth where hidden treasures are stored. She had been introduced to the hidden passageways when she reached her teens and now spends her days, alone, exploring this dark underground maze. It is here that one day she comes upon an intruder. Since it is forbidden for anyone else to walk under the Tombs, or to show light there, she is at first incredulous to see the area illuminated for the first time, and to note the presence of a stranger who stands where even other priestesses are forbidden. It is Ged who is there to recover a most priceless treasure - and to offer the young woman a wider destiny if she wishes it. The author emphasizes that Arha must make a decision whether or not to free herself from a dying cult - from the weight and darkness of the Nameless Ones. She must decide whether she is willing to work to recover her identity and her name. Ms. Le Guin again underscores the power of names that she introduced in "A Wizard of Earthsea," along with the themes of light and shadow, good and evil. She is a truly exceptional writer, whose lyrical and poetic narrative and extraordinary descriptive passages bring her characters and landscapes vividly to life.
JANA
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gorgeous sequel to a Wizard of Earthsea, 1 Feb 2003
Sequels are tricky things. The world that Le Guin created in a Wizard of Earthsea was so detailed and so perfect that you might reasonably expect the sequel to be 'more voyages of Ged around the archipelago'.
It isn't.
Instead Le Guin takes us to a totally different culture, a different worldview, a different language, a different place, and different main character.
This is the story of Tenar (or Arha) the priestess of the Nameless Ones, cruel spirits in a far flung but sacred spot of the Kargad Empire, known to us from the Kargad raid which begins 'A Wizard of Earthsea'.
There can be few sequels this good. Like its predecessor, this story is absolutely perfect - to the point at which when we first meet the wizard Ged, we see him with distrust through Tenar's eyes, even though we know him as our old friend Sparrowhawk.
This is a totally different kind of story, a totally different take on plot and person, pursuing a different line of philosophical and psychological enquiry.If you enjoyed 'A Wizard of Earthsea' -, hey, even if you didn't, even if you've only just got into reading long books, - get hold of this, read it, love it, treasure it. You'll never look back.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Earthsea Always Satisfy's., 30 Nov 2008
Book one The Wizard of Earthsea was required reading for a children's literature course I did back in 1999. I enjoyed it so much I read all the books and collections of short stories set in that world. Yet even though this novel finishes by revolving again around Ged, it is really about Tenar/Arha, a young girl believed to be the reborn High Priest of the unnamed ones. (Nameless ones.) Her name is taken from her at 6 years of age, a year after she was taken from her family and home. She is given the name/title "Arha" - "the one without a name."
She grows, learns and becomes high priestess under the tutelage of Kossil, priestess to the God-Kings and Thar of the God Brothers.
Then one day she sees Ged in the under tomb, and he has magic light. She traps him in the labyrinth. She then chains him and visits with him. Kossil finds out about this and plans to kill them both. Tenar, fearing this, visits Ged in the treasury where she has hidden him.
He renames her Tenar and together they escape and return the Ring of Erreth-Akbe to the inner islands that they may have peace. For the 9th rune that had been lost when the ring was broken when the rune was cut in half. Now with both pieces Ged could recover the rune and restore peace.
The book ends with them in the city of Havnor.
Note: Pay close attention to the names of boats in the series. In this one Ged guides a boat called Lookfar.
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