I absolutely enjoyed Hamal, his innocence and his focus on healing; I loved how he, twice, calmed someone who was freaking out by mentioning cows. e.g. "What kind of man dreams about cows?" and that disrupts the person's agitation as they respond "I like cows". Hamal has a great knack for focusing on the here and now, and for appreciating whatever comes his way. he has a bit of Nasruddin in him and the story referred to ancient sages. There are some similarities to cultures we are familiar with-- power and greed, the poor and the rich-- but the innate gifts each person has are uniquely thought out. The specifics of the way the gifts work are introduced to us so gradually, fitting into the story, so we never feel we've been given a data dump.
There is a lot of action, as Hamal gets involved in a palace plot, and I'm never quite sure who is to be trusted. For example, the healer Richart is spoken of quite negatively or fearfully, and Hamal mentions that while Richart did a lot of cutting of animals as part of teaching Hamal how to use his healing gift. Yet Hamal has a good sense of who can be trusted and he trusted Richart.
There was a big reveal in the last chapter which made me wonder how the author will be able to continue this as a series. I would definitely like to read more of Hamal's thoughts and interactions, but I'll no longer have the same sense of surprise. ( )