Rating: 
Summary: Not as good as the Bone Doll's Twin, but almost
Review: This continues the story of Tobin and Ki in a quasi 1100 AD-ish world with some spooky magic thrown in. It also delves into the pains and pleasures of adolescence, especially when a teen is turning out more like the other gender than his own. A theme of gender bending and soft homosexuality runs through Flewellings other books also -- the problem is, Tobin's transformation to a young woman seems extraordinarily facile. Not just Tobin/Tamir's acceptance of it, which is given good voice on the pages of the book, but everyone else in the kingdom just sort of rolls with it. Oh, so you're a girl now? No problem...hmmm. Imagine if Hillary Clinton suddenly became Howard. What would CNBC say? Or Prince Charles sloughed off his skin and became Charlotte. Even the BBC might think it was odder than the usual cross dressing royal moment.Still, a very fun read and a respectable 2nd book in a paperback only series. I'll definitely pick up the third. And, among sword&sorcery series, this is #3, after GeoRRMartin's Fire and Ice, and Robin Hobb's Apprentice and Fool series.
Rating: 
Summary: hidden warrior seemed to skim the surface
Review: This second book seemed more like a memoir that skimmed the events and places Tobin encountered. It didn't really deepen the characters of Ki or Tobin and often seemed forced. HW wasn't as creepy or moving as TBDT but HW did advance the story and I'm looking forward to the third book.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing
Review: Though this book, I feel, did not outshine the Bone Doll's Twin, it was still a very worth while read.
There were moments of extreme darkness and apprehension, and then there were hilarious scenes of almost painful irony, in which Tobin, the girl turned boy, is mocked for having no beard, and is even dragged into a brothel. They made me fall over laughing. It takes a very skillful writer to insert these very different scenes into one book.
Also, I was very pleased at how she handled Tobin's dilemna of being a girl in a boy's body, and discovering her true sexuality. She has to deal with teasing, embarrassing accusations, and very awkward situations that can be heart wrenching or chuckle-inducing. P.S. I am shocked and appalled by some of the people reviewing this book. One person who hasn't even read the first installment is reviewing this volume, and he/she hasn't even read the entire thing. This book is meant to be read after the first one, and though it does not say so anywhere, that is the fault of the publisher, and should not be blamed on the author. Therefore, it can't possibly be given a fair review if only this installment had been read. Many renowned literary works would make absolutely no sense if you just started in the middle. It's stupid.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Sequal
Review: Words don't describe how much I loved this book. This book is a little heavier a read than the first one, as it deals more with transitioning the main character to her new role. It still, however is extremely well written and enjoyable. It has some laggy parts, more in part for me because there were some characters that Flewelling thought needed to be explored and I just didn't care about. Flewelling has also gotten a little better at writing battle scenes but it still remains to not be her forte. Overall this is one of my favorite books. I couldn't wait to see how the plot played out and I can't wait for the third.
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