It’s the second book in the trilogy and we definitely feel the darkness closing in. Not just on the obvious tag-along-pages of Frodo, Sam and Gollum but also with our friends fighting Saruman on various occasions in various intensity.
We’ve left book one with a broken fellowship and are being brought along with Aragorn and co. in the first half of the book, and with Frodo’s small group in the second half.
We get many examples of bravery, courage, friendship and wisdom but in my opinion there’s no-one quite as brave as Sam.
He’s the youngest of the four Hobbits and also isn’t related to the other three (Frodo, Mery and Pippin are indeed related to one another). He’s Frodo’s gardener and holds him in high regard but he’s not gaining anything from his involvement - he’s basically traveling on an unpaid job. Throughout their journey, though, their friendship deepens and Sam keeps looking out for his master, keeps walking and never stops to amaze the reader with his fierce loyalty and his utter willpower.
One thing I’ve enjoyed very much in this book was the depth many of the characters are written with (in contrast to the films). Frodo is such a cool characters in the book while I’m mostly bored with him during the films. Also, Faramir’s story and background is explored and explained much more which helps the reader grasping his character better.
And then there’s Saruman who’s so much more imposing and threatening in the books. I loved how we get to see his way with words that makes him such an excellent enemy to look out for. I mean, he’s a wizard, so his powerful talk is not THAT surprising but I guess it’s just a part of him that’s not shown in the films.
As to why it’s not a 5-star-read: There were quite a few tedious scenes - most of Treebeards appearances and also the battle of Helms Deep unfortunately. Similarly to the action packed scenes in book 1 this was just too bland for me - especially in comparison to the film.
Ultimately, I loved reading about how our heroes tried to stand against the evil powers with all their flaws and skills/strengths. It shows what can be achieved when people face their fears, work together, and put aside differences and rather let their shortcomings be complemented by strengths of others.
