Name of the Wind 49 - 51

Chapter 49

The term ends and it's time for admission exams again. Kote can't cheat this time, and Hemme is out to get him. His tuition is set at a few jots more than he has available. He goes off looking for a loan shark across the river in Imre.

A bit of discussion at the beginning about the woman he has been referring to. Keeps up the suspense by not naming the mystery woman. 

Chapter 50

Kote gives in to temptation to buy a used lute at a pawnbroker. He drives a hard bargain and is able to get it for an affordable price. But now he has no choice but to borrow from Devi. She reassures him that she will seal the vial so he can be sure she doesn't hasn't tampered with the vial, but he still has misgivings.

So Kote now has a lute, hopefully he can earn some money playing to pay off Devi. Would hate to see him get into a bad spot with her now that he has given up his blood sample.

We're approximately at the halfway point here. A couple of halftime observations:

•   I'm still not 100% in Kote's corner at this point. Despite the fact he's had some major tragedies and setbacks in his life, and has shown grit in overcoming them, I'm still not completely sympathetic to him. I think the main reason is that he comes off a little arrogant (on top of just being too good at everything and having every skill come too easily to him) and an almost complete lack of humor. Seriously, for a trained performer his worldview strikes me as a bit ... humorless, even before his major tragedy

Other than the Chadrian attack on the troupe, very little dramatic action has happened in the first half. Still hoping for the action to kick up a few notches in the second half.

On another note, why are all female character names two-syllable, two consonant, two vowels?  Dena, Devi, Mola, etc?

Chapter 51

Kote goes to a secluded quad to practice his lite and discovers a mysterious grate guarded by runes. He later gets the idea to set the names and functions of the runes to music, which allows him to remember them easily and pass the test for the next level of his training. He continues his training under the tutelage of Manet.

A confusing chapter in one spot there, not sure what it was that the gate did, but it seems like it teleported him? I'm sure it will come into play later.