Krishna
This continues the story of Frodo and Sam on the one hand and Merry and Pippin on the other.
By now you know what to expect from Tolkien, based on the first volume, and sit down for a comfortable ride. It is probably because of the expectations set, but I found that this was more gripping than the first and Gollum gets to star in a much enlarged role in this than in the first book.
And the movie is out already and does a wonderful job of bringing the story, especially Gollum and his internal conflicts to life.
It is still an adventure told in the classic sense and again fortuitous events come to the aid of all good men, but it makes
enjoyable reading. The ‘ending’ of the book is particularly good, and needless to say, there are a few surprises as well, if you pretend that you know neither the story nor have seen the movie!
By the way, the movie reserves the book ending for the third part,and does not describe the Shelob drama.
Let us award this book a 7/10
— Krishna