The reappearance of Ren

So Ren Daiyan finally reappears in the second chapter of River of Stars' second part. And Kay drops us right into the middle of his story.

Ren's a full-fledged bandit at this point, but retains his education and is still in touch with his father. Ren's also looking to right the world's wrongs, but in the more immediate present he and fellow bandit Ziji have gone to Chunyu to gather information. Kay doesn't explain Ren's trip beyond that. But such simple motivation is fine, since Kay continues to sketch wonderful characters as he guides his readers through this part of Kitai. Not to mention the chase scene that seems imminent.

From what I've read of him, one thing has become clear to me about Kay (and maybe fantasy writers more generally). Plenty of dialogue means plenty of motion. The reason why I feel that a chase is imminent as Ren and Ziji get help from two children is because this part of the chapter is almost entirely dialogue, whereas the rest of it is description. Alternating between these two does a lot for a book's pacing, it seems.

It might seem like I'm just stating the obvious here, but what the patterns of dialogue and description mean and how they affect pacing are small, but important things to learn. As a writer, pacing is essential for keeping your readers interested, and as a reader, more can be taken from a book if you learn how to read its signals. If you're reading a first rate author, most of the time those signals will prove true and your anticipations will be rewarded, and a few rare times, they'll not be and your sense of wonder will be fully engaged. I have yet to see if Kay can be considered first rate on this count, but it seems likely.

Nonetheless, Kay's holding Ren's story back until part two makes it seem that River of Stars' parts should instead be separate books. However welcome it is, the shift between characters is still jarring.