I love this series. The second book perhaps doesn't quite live up to the magnificence of the first one, but what could? Still excellent. Number Ten Ox and Master Li are entangled in another quest in ancient China. I won't attempt to describe the plot as even Master Li takes a while to work out what is going on. But it is funny and moving and exciting, a great fantasy story. ( )

In Story of the Stone, Number Ten Ox is now Master Li's apprentice as they delve into the mystery of the Laughing Prince. This time, their client is a prince who descended from the aforementioned Laughing Prince, who wants to distance himself from the horrors committed by his ancestor, but faces a supernatural cult dedicated to him that is terrorizing the peasantry. This story continues the ridiculous overtones of the previous book, this time featuring a Dante-esque tour through the many levels of hell with Master Li impersonating an officious mandarin with authority even over demons. While this was a good follow-up to The Bridge of Birds, on the whole I found it a little less entertaining, and I'm still not sure what to think of the Scooby-Doo ending. ( )

Oh dear.

I read Bridge of Birds in college on the recommendation of a friend. I immediately fell in love with it. The book was hysterically funny, tightly plotted, and was gloriously whimsy. So when I heard that Hughart had written a sequel (two, in fact), I expected the second book to be just as good as the first.

It's... not.

I reread Bridge of Birds last week, and it's just as good as I remembered. A major part of that excellence is how damn well the whole thing is put together. That's why it feels more like a fairytale than a fantasy--the preciseness of the story elements, how each plot beat mirrors each other, the classic sets of threes, culminating in the big reveal that you never saw coming but makes absolute total sense, and upon reread is actually very expected.

The Story of the Stone is just a mess. There's none of the careful plot precision of the first book, none of the fairytale qualities that elevated Bridge of Birds from enjoyable fantasy to something memorable. The plot runs literally all over the place, and the ending is so unexpected it feels rude. There's no way anyone could have seen the ending coming because that ending makes no sense.

Some of the old elements are back. The main characters of Master Li and Number Ten Ox have returned, as has the humor and occasional reliance on Divine intervention (the Chinese pantheon variety). But there's more to a great novel than it's basic parts, and The Story of the Stone utterly fails to become something more.

I'm very disappointed. I've read a lot of crap recently, frankly, and a decent chunk of that crap were books that I really thought I was going to like. This hasn't been a great year for reading new fiction. ( )

If you are looking to get away from the ubiquitous European style of fantasy story, I highly recommend Hughart's books. This series is set in a rather fantastical ancient China, full of crazy characters, alcohol, demons, gods, and amazing stories. This second book is similar to the first, with a complicated mystery and a lot of running around. I love how imaginative the scenarios are, bordering on absurd but hilarious. And touching. Enjoy! ( )

Highly imaginative fantasy set in old China, with terrific characters and a lot of research that doesn't bog the story down. It's great to read a fantasy that isn't a Tolkein retread. This book isn't all that easy to find, but is worth some hunting. ( )