2.5* This was a weird and confusing read. I enjoyed the straight up dystopian adventure. Actually enjoyed it quite a bit. But all the mysticism and philosophizing was utterly tedious and dull. This book excels at snatching failure out of the jaws of victory. The main character was not allowed to succeed in anything, even if for a moment it appeared like he reached his goal. I don't plan to read the other books and hopefully never try to re-read this one.