Customer Reviews: Read 362 more reviews...
 One of the best editions of an amazing book. August 4, 2008
This book is amazing. The story is wonder and it draws you in. It takes you to a whole other world and allows you to live in it as an observer of amazing and epic events.
This is edition is one of the best editions. The maps in the back are excellent and it's quality is superior to a lot of other books that I have seen. It has a glossed cover and the ink is dark. Even at the price of $12 this book is WELL worth the money.
The Story of the Tricksy Little Hobbitses Continues... March 10, 2008
With this book, the second installment in "The Lord of the Rings" (a single extremely long novel, not a trilogy), things start to fall into place. The Fellowship of the Ring was great, but it felt like it was basically build-up for bigger things to come. Well, by the time "The Two Towers" starts, the ball is rolling, and fast.
I was weary about the decision to split the book into two halves, one half dealing with Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, Merry, and Pippin, and the other half dealing with Frodo, Sam, and Gollum, because I thought it might have been a wiser decision to mix it up a bit; have one chapter deal with Aragorn and company, the next with Frodo and company, and so on. However, the way it is set up is probably for the better. Each half read very well, advancing this classic story in big ways.
Again, as I mentioned in my review for "Fellowship," Tolkien's work isn't for the impatient reader. His beefy sentences demand that you comb through them, soaking in the language and appreciating the intensely thought-out sub-creation of Tolkien's Middle-earth. Thing is, that kind of writing isn't for everyone. I've read pompous reviewers insulting those who don't appreciate Tolkien's style, but the "get on with the story, Tolkien" complaints are not without merit. I thoroughly enjoyed "The Two Towers" and consider the overall arc of The Lord of the Rings to be a classic and timeless story, but the style of writing can, at times, grate against one's patience.
So I'll end my review for this book by including something I said in my review for "Fellowship," which very much applies here: "Pour a cup of tea. Heck, sit it on a tea cozy. Turn off your phone, and absorb the writing. Visualize the mountains, rivers, all of the scenery. Feel what is happening, don't just read it. True, there is a lot of back story that could have been taken out, but it wasn't. So deal, and read it--most of it, if not all, is interesting."
PS: The character arc of Gollum (and his dialogue!) alone is worth reading this book. We loves it, my precious!
10/10 Classic.
 Keeps the plot going March 2, 2008
I didn't enjoy this as much as the first part of the trilogy, but it was still pretty good. Strangely divided, though. The events of this book take place simultaneously in two locations, and rather than skipping back and forth, Tolkien for some reason tells all of what happens in one place, then jumps to the other parallel story, occasionally giving chronological markers -- while such and such was happening in the great battle to the north, yada yada. Still, a good, and obviously crucial part of a great overall story.
The Quest continues... September 3, 2007
'The Two Towers', by JRR Tolkien, tells of the continued adventures of the Fellowship after its breaking. It traces Frodo and Sam's journey as they strive to come closer to Mordor, yet in the hard, barren lands, one must have a guide, mustn't they my precioussss?
Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas trail after the Orcs who have taken Pippin and Merry captive, seeking to over take them and free the prisoners. Many leagues they travel over the fields of Rohan, finding signs that are hopeful, as well as those that fill them with dread and doubt. Yet unknown to them, Ugluk, leader of the Orc troop, has troubles in his ranks, for not only does he have fellow servants of Saruman the White with him, there are also emisaries of Sauron. What will Aragorn and his companions find if and when they overtake the Orc host, and what of the strange forest of Fangorn, feared by so many in these untrusting days. What secrets does its tangled boughs hold, and what of this mysterious white clad stanger that shows up once they are in the forest?
RD Williams, author of 'The Lost Gate'
Not Free SF Reader September 3, 2007
Greed, betrayal, infighting, and indecision have led the Fellowship of
the Ring to break up. Gandalf has fallen, and Boromir is dead. The rest
of the party is split in two, as Frodo sneaks off with Sam, to go to
Mordor, and Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli pursue the Orcs that have
abducted the other two hobbits.
A lot of breaking stuff, fighting and sneaking to be found here.
It ends in a cliffhanger.
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