An Age long past, an Age still to come.

Book; 12: The Gathering Storm

Chapter; 36: The Death of Tuon

Character Groups;

Bandar Eban: Rand, Min, Nynaeve, Cadsuane, Alivia, Logain, lots of Aiel. 

The Aiel Waste: Aviendha.

Trustair: Mat, Thom, Julin, Thera, Noal, Olver, Egeanin, Setaille, Aludra, Verin.

Somewhere in Ghealdan: Perrin, Faile, Elyas, Morgase, Berelain, Alliandre, Two Rivers Army.   

Caemlyn: Elayne, Birgitte.

Outside Tar Valon: Siuan,  Rebel Aes Sedai, Rebel Aes Sedai Army.

Inside Tar Valon: Egwene, Leane, too many Aes Sedai to count.

The Gathering Storm marks the end, and beginning, of an era for the Wheel of Time. In November of 2007, James Oliver Rigney Jr. AKA Robert Jordan, succumbed to a long illness, leaving his masterpiece unfinished. However, it was his wish that his wife (and editor), Harriet McDougal find someone to complete his work. Enter Brandon Sanderson.

For those who don't know (and considering some peculiarities in publication dates, you might not) Brandon Sanderson is the Utah-based author of the phenomenal Mistborn series. Mistborn is characterised by a much darker, pessimistic tone than is usually found in Wheel of Time (the tag line of the first book, The Final Empire, is 'What if the Dark Lord won?') and Harriet reportedly felt that this would suit the grand finale to a tee.

Just a quick aside here. If you haven't already, read the Mistborn series. Its dark and bleak and clever, it has one of the most original magic systems I've seen in a long time and it comes in easy-to-digest trilogy form! OK, so there is a second trilogy now, but however many books there end up being we are not talking about, say, a fourteen book epic here.

Where was I? Oh right. Due to the nature of Jordan's illness (some rare form of blood cancer, I think. The description is actually quite hard to understand and not really relevant here) he had plenty of time to plan out the end of Rand's, Mat's and Perrin's stories with lots of other stuff dotted all over the place. When I say lots, Sanderson apparently got handed the biographies of around 1500 characters and enough details of places, times and events to fill a couple of filling cabinets. He has two secretaries to help him keep track of it all. 

Strangely, it seems that right to the end, Jordan was only planning for one more book to be called 'A Memory of Light'. After studying the material, Sanderson and McDougal determined that such a book would have to be about 750,000 words long and so they decided to split it into three, in something-close-to Sanderson's words (coz I can't find the quote), "to keep it within the range of current binding technology".

So now we have book 12: The Gathering Storm, book 13: The Towers of Midnight and the yet-to-be-released book 14: A Memory of Light. All based on Jordan's notes where he didn't actually write it himself. 

The problem with three books is that you now need three finales where previously there was only one. This has led to Sanderson accelerating certain characters plot lines ahead of others so that something shiny can happen. Don't get me wrong, the ending to TGS may be one of the best moments of the series so far and I am greatly looking forward to reading it again, but there are little bugs to bear. A developing plot line over the last few books has been the 'colors' [sic. Americans!]. Every time one of the big three (Rand, Mat of Perrin) thinks of one of the other two they see a swirl of colours that form a vision of that person at that moment in time. They have all got quite used to this now and rarely pay much attention. However, Rand's visions in the past few chapters have been of Mat and Perrin doing things that have not happened yet. By my guesstimation from my knowledge of the next book, Rand could be as much as two weeks ahead of the other two. In the first half of ToM, there is a fairly major character that seems to be in two places at once. This could be seen as a clever form of foreshadowing but I think it is just an unfortunate side-effect of the split. A necessary evil. 

Another necessary evil, I suppose. The publication date for A Memory of Light is now the 8th of January 2013. Just too late for my birthday. Poop. 

Amyrlin Shamyrlin

Book; 11: Knife of Dreams

Chapter; 36: Under an Oak

Character Groups;

Somewhere, who knows where: Rand, Min, Nynaeve, Lan, Cadsuane, Verin, Alivia, Logain.

Altaran/Andoran border: Mat, Thom, Julin, Thera, Noal, Olver, Tuon, Selucia, Egeanin, Setaille, Aludra, 3 Aes Sedai, 3 sul'dam.

Malden: Perrin, Faile, Elyas, Morgase, Berelain, Alliandre, 'The Prophet', Two Rivers Army.   

Caemlyn: Elayne, Birgitte, Aviendha.

 

Outside Tar Valon: Siuan,  Rebel Aes Sedai, Rebel Aes Sedai Army.

 

Inside Tar Valon: Egwene, Leane.

 

Just in case anyone cares, !!SPOILER WARNING!! This post is going to discuss some major plot points and I don't want to be responsible for spoiling anyone's fun.

 

 

 

Are they gone? Good. 

 

So I would like to talk about a character that I think has had one of the most impressive arcs in the series, Egwene Al'Vere. Egwene has always been far from my favourite character but I cannot deny that she has turned from a silly, whiny little girl to a powerful and commanding woman and I'll be damned if I can see the join.

 

Egwene Al'Vere was one of the original four hobbitses that left the Two Rivers all the way back in book 1. Back then her purpose was basically to be a sounding board for Moiraine so that the we on this side of the fourth wall could learn about the Power, channeling, men going mad, all that stuff. She was also all but engaged to Rand at the time and so provided the love interest that these stories always seem to need. 

 

She wasn't too important until she went to Tar Valon and almost immediately fell afoul of an evil scheme that left her a captive of the Seanchan. She was rescued by Min, Nynaeve and Elayne but developed a phobia of captivity that made her do some very silly things on the slightest provocation. Things like causing an earthquake under a bunch of soldiers feet or threatening anyone who looked at her funny with a lightning bolt. This got very annoying. 

Pretty soon though Egwene, Nynaeve and Elayne were embroiled in another, less evil, scheme that had them haring off to Tear where they were captured, again. After being rescued, by Mat this time, Egwene decided against returning to Tar Valon instead heading off to the Aiel Waste with Rand, Mat, Moiraine and Lan to learn about Dreams (with a capital D) from the Wise Ones. 

 

This is where the changes start to happen. The Wise Ones of the Aiel, as well as being masters of the dream world, are incredibly formidable women. They rule the Aiel in all but name with the shear force of their will as the fact that many of them are channelers is not generally broadcast. Egwene learned fast. While she was still impatient and slightly self-absorbed, she starts manipulating people with nothing more than the tone of her voice and a look. This has a particularly noticeable effect on Nynaeve who until than has simply stomped on anyone who opposed her. Egwene quickly becomes one of the increasing number of people who can call Nynaeve down and regularly does.

 

While Egwene is in the Waste, events take a turn for the worse in Tar Valon. Rebellion has broken out in the White Tower and a new Amyrlin has been elected. The rebels have fled and with a little persuasion from the former Amyrlin, Siuan, form a Tower in Exile. Who do they choose as their rebel Amyrlin? Why Egwene Al'Vere of course. 

Remember that none of the Aes Sedai had seen Egwene since her silly I'll-put-a-lightning-bolt-through-you phase and so they assume that she will be a weak and easily controlled figurehead that they can all hide behind if the rebellion fails. It takes a while but they eventually realise that they have in fact raised a highly skilled player of the Great Game (read, politics) and now they have to live with it.

Egwene has come a long way and my opinion of her is never higher that during the chapter 'Honey in the Tea' in Knife of Dreams. Egwene has been captured (bad habit) by the Aes Sedai in the White Tower. Instead of executing her they decide that she can't have been responsible for her actions and have sent her back to be a novice. She has no friends, she is guarded day and night and forced to drink a herbal concoction that stops her from channeling with any strength. All she has is her mind and her voice and she uses them to slowly pull the Tower down from the inside. I love this. I am one of those people that always thinks of something clever to say about five minutes after it would have been relevant and so nothing makes me happier than a good put-down. It's pure wish fulfilment, and what else is fantasy about?

Far From the Madding Crowd

Book; 9: Winter's Heart

Chapter; 34: The Hummingbird's Secret

Character Groups;

Far Madding: Rand, Min, Nynaeve, Lan, Cadsuane, Verin, Alvia.

Ebou Dar: Mat, Thom, Julin, Thera, Noal, Olver, Tuon, Selucia, Egeanin, Setaille, Aludra, 3 Aes Sedai, 3 sul'dam.

Ghealdan: Perrin, Elyas, Berelain, 'The Prophet', Two Rivers Army.

Ghealdan too: Faile, Alliandre, Morgase, Shaido Aiel.

Caemlyn: Elayne, Birgitte, Aviendha.                        

The soothing balm of book 9 has washed away the stresses of the mid-series slump (although for obvious reasons, Mat's entourage is getting a little hard to keep track of) and I feel the urge to be positive again.

In Winter’s Heart, Mat schemes, Perrin hunts and Rand, finally, mans up and gets his murder-rampage on.

Ok, so maybe rampage is a bit strong as he is actually being very calm about the whole thing, and yes, he only manages to personally kill one of the four men on his death list but it’s the thought that counts.

The important point is that these events take place in the city of Far Madding, a small independent city state that is all that remains of the country of Maredo. Far Madding’s survival is in no small part due to the presence of the Guardian, a huge ter’angreal that blocks channellers from using the source. The men that Rand wants to kill are Asha’man, men who can channel and have attended the school that Rand set up. At the end of book 8 they had a damn good go at killing Rand, destroying half a royal palace in the process. The fun part is that since none of them can throw fireballs or blow each others heads up while in Far Madding we get to see some good, old fashioned swordplay.

Rand al’Thor is a blademaster. He picked up the sword in the months after he left the Two Rivers under Lan’s tutelage and is known to be one of the quickest studies ever. This is not entirely surprising as he is the reincarnation of the chap who invented sword-fighting in the first place. However, apart from a bit of sparring in book 8 which was interrupted by everyone’s favourite death-fog,  since he became more proficient at channelling he hasn’t really bothered. Why draw your sword when ripping someone out of time is so much easier? Unlike most of the Asha’man though, who think that swords are a bit beneath them, Rand has at least stayed in practice.

Sword fighting in Randland is, like everything else, a verbose affair. Every movement in the ‘dance’ has a long flowery name that I guess is supposed to allow readers to visualise the action. I have the good fortune to have some experience with Japanese sword forms (and a library of martial arts and anime DVDs) and so I can kind of figure out what is meant to be happening. It can get a bit silly at times, especially if there are two blademasters duelling and you get sentences like “Boar Rushes Down A Hillside meets River Undercuts The Bank, Hummingbird Kisses the Honeyrose meets Crane Takes Flight, Great Big Pointy Sword meets Feeble Knee Ligaments”. Not only are there Far Too Many Capital Letters in there but you can sometimes miss something because your brain has just started to filter out the surplus.

Still, I like this return to form by Rand. With Elayne filling in the intrigue and politics quota and the Seanchan doing the big armies thing, the three musketeers can get out of the mud and get back to what they are best at, dancing for my amusement. Dance monkeys! Dance!

If anybody can, Seanchan.

Book; 9: Winter's Heart

Chapter; 1: Leaving the Prophet

Character Groups;

Ebou Dar         Caemlyn        ???                Ghealdan 1                   Ghealdan 2             Tar Valon 

Mat                  Elayne          Rand             Perrin                            Faile                       Egwene

Thom               Nynaeve       Min               Elyas                            Alliandre                Rebel Aes Sedai

Julin                 Aviendha                          Berelain                        Morgase                  Egwene'sArmy    

Olver                Birgitte                            'The Prophet'  

The Seanchan                                           Two Rivers army       

 

As the relevant cast list slowly and inexorably builds to some kind of critical mass, I would like to take a moment to discuss just one group. Yes, as promised, it is time for the Seanchan. That's SHAWN-chan by the way, like Jackie's Irish little brother.

 

The Seanchan first showed up way back in book 2 where they received a darn good spanking from the scooby gang and fled across the sea to regroup. They returned in spectacular fashion at the end of book 7 by dropping a building on Mat. Even after a second, less decisive defeat in book 8 (which I finished in less than a week by the way) they now control Tarabon, Amadicia, Altara and most of Almoth Plain and Arad Doman. They are a force to be reckoned with, the only force on the planet that has so far been able to teach Rand a touch of humility. And they kinda get on my nerves.

The story goes that 1000 years ago, the High king of all Randland, Artur Hawkwing, sent his son Luthair with a great big army to conquer the lands across the Aryth Ocean. This took him, and his descendants, eight HUNDRED years. Frankly I would not be giving that boy his pocket money. Anyway, having done what Daddy said, they built an armada and turned their thoughts to going home, expecting to find the glorious Empire waiting for them with open arms. To their surprise, a lot seems to have changed over the last millennium. Declaring that everybody in Randland is an oathbreaker and a traitor, the only reasonable course of action was of course to invade.

Tarabon and Arad Doman put up little resistance as they were busy having civil wars and definitely seem to have improved under Seanchan rule. Other countries have been less willing but the coupling of a highly trained army and a ruthless bureaucracy has so far won out.

Obviously the new overlords have new laws for their subjects to remember. Whilst bowing to any Seanchan in the street and baldness being illegal are odd, they are a minor inconvenience compared to what they do if you can channel.

The power of the Seanchan throne is built on the Power of the damane, women who can channel, on leashes. The leash, known as an a'dam, controls a channelling woman making her no more than a complicated tool or a well trained animal. Which is exactly how the Seanchan see them. The controllers are known as sul'dam and are amongst the most respected and honoured people on the whole Seanchan Empire. 

But there is a dirty secret behind all this power. Although the damane are treated like animals and the sul'dam like heroes, they can, in fact, both channel. Damane are women like Egwene, Elayne and Nynaeve who can channel whether someone teaches them or not, while the sul'dam are like Elayne's mother Morgase, they will never channel unless someone draws it out of them. If this became common knowledge it would destroy the Empire from the inside out, especially since the Empress herself (may she live forever) is know to be sul'dam. But no one seems to be able to come up with a way of spilling the beans. The few Seanchan who have discovered the truth have done everything in their power to cover it up and the war machine simply keeps chugging on, refusing to listen to reason.

 

But at least they get stuff done. An approach that has finally rubbed off on some of the other characters. With his megalomania given a kicking by the Seanchan boot, Rand has turned away from politics and is concentrating on more interesting things. And the plot moves on! 

The Bore

Book; 5: The Fires of Heaven 

Chapter; THE END 

Character Groups;

Caemlyn            Salidar           

Rand                  Nynaeve

Mat                    Elayne

Egwene             Thom

Moiraine            Julin

Lan                    Siuan

Aviendha           Leane

                          Birgitte   

Well, after two weeks of furious reading, I am now only 6 days behind schedule instead of a fortnight. Yay me!

The Fires of Heaven heralds a change of style for the WOT books. The first four have all run thus; Dark One tries to affect the world, Scooby gang sets forth to thwart the forces of evil (albeit by many different routes), Rand meets and defeats one or two of the Forsaken (the Dark One's ancient and powerful generals of which there are thirteen), there is much rejoicing. However, this formula got a little squiffy at the end of book 4 when instead of defeating the Forsaken-du-jour, Asmodean, Rand, along with another Forsaken, Lanfear, bound him into service. As such, Asmo has been hanging around all book, teaching Rand how to use the Power before his ignorance kills him. 

Also, in Fires of Heaven, events speed up dramatically. Books 1 through 4 have taken roughly a year and a half of the ill-defined Randland calendar (seriously, not even the characters know what the exact date is) but if my Foretelling serves me well, Books 5 through 9 take up only a few months. And just as well, because it's going to be a sweltering few months.

A quick review. Our story started on Winternight, a spring festival supposedly held after the snows have melted and the first green shoots are in the fields. Except that winter won't leave and the ground is still frozen. Cue heroic journey to the north, two Forsaken dead and spring returns. Through an accident with a magic pillar, the main core of the gang actually skipped over the following autumn and after taking out Forsaken number three they hid in the mountains for the winter. End of Year one, end of book 2. They spend the following spring chasing Rand across the continent and the summer in the southern coastal city of Tear, complaining about the heat. Then they go to the Aiel Waste and complain about the heat there too. Obviously the Dark One was listening because now they are back in Randland, it should be autumn, but summer has decided that winter owes it some time in lieu.

And here, at last, I come to my point. While the change of pace is very welcome, and even I wouldn't want to read a series of fourteen brick-shaped books that amounted to little more than a series of mini-boss fights, the middle volumes lack the focus and direction of the others. Basically, the Big Bad for the next three books is global warming and it's just not very exciting.

Anyway, I made my bed and I shall sleep in it, safe in the knowledge that at least book 6 has Perrin in it, who has been sadly lacking for the last 890 pages and hope that Mat finally gets a little less whiny and actually does something.  

Propher-see Propher-2

Book; 3: The Dragon Reborn

Chapter; 55: What is written in Prophecy

Character Groups;

Tear
Everyone, everyone currently important anyway.

Hallo world. Technical difficulties have forced to remain in analogue mode for the past week. Still, never mind eh? Where were we? 

Right, these Prophecies then.


First, there is the Karaethon cycle, more commonly known as the Prophecies of the Dragon. These are the prophecies of Randland, told by precogniescent Aes Sedai in the years after the Breaking of the World (as the madness of the male channelers became known). These are the ones best known to our heroes and the ones that Rand is actively trying to fulfil. They include a cheery little rhyme about herons and dragons, lots of talk about blood and rocks and of course, the sword in the stone bit that I discussed last time.  


The Seanchan have their own version of the Karaethon Cycle with a number of omissions and additions that just makes it all the more annoying that they really don't get on with the locals. If everyone just sat down around a table and talked it over, everyone would have a much clearer idea of what was going on.


Next there are the Shadow Prophecies. The only part of these that we have heard seemed to refer to the events on Toman Head at the end of book 2 and have apparently been completed. Presumably, there are more to these prophecies but whether we will ever see any more of them, who can say? (I'm not being coy, I genuinely can't remember. They probably aren't very good then.)


One that we have only heard tiny snippets of so far is the Rhuidean Prophecy. Technically, we do not even know its name yet but I'm going to use it anyway, so sue me (please don't). Rhuidean is the only 'city' in the Aiel waste (another thing we don't technically know yet) and the Aiel have crossed the mountain range known as the Spine of the World for the first time in 20 years in search of their prophecied one, He Who Comes With The Dawn. "One born of the Blood but not raised but the Blood. Raised by an ancient Blood not ours". That's Rand by the way, He of the Many Capital Letters.


The mysterious Sea-folk have the Jendai Prophecy. All we know of them so far is that they are traders and prodigious sailors. Lately they have been ditching trade however, and searching for someone called the Coramoor. Guess who that might be.


Then there are the new prophecies. Veritable Cassandras are popping up left right and centre. Min, of course, sees all kinds of cryptic things around anyone around her, the latest being a hawk and a falcon sitting on Perrin's shoulders, the hawk holding a leash. Perrin himself, in gaining more control over his wolfbrother powers is having intense dreams that eerily mirror events in the waking world. Egwene has now been revealed as a Dreamer we can expect plenty from her. Dreaming (with a capital D, obviously) seems to be second only to Foretelling in the prophecy manufacturing business and of course dreams are satisfyingly vague and keep the theory mills running. 


So there we go, the future 101. It isn't called the Age of Prophecy for nothing you know!

Prophe-see, Propher-do

Book; 3: The Dragon Reborn

Chapter; 39: Threads in the Pattern

Character Groups;

Murandy    R. Manetherendrelle   R. Erinin    R. Erinin too  

Rand          Perrin                          Egwene      Mat  

                   Loial                           Elayne        Thom

                   Moiraine                     Nynaeve  

                   Lan

                   Faile

So, last time I made mention of the complexities of Seanchan society (pronounced SHAWN-chan, frustratingly) but I‘m not going to elaborate on that one until they rear their shaved heads again in a few book’s time.

Today, I want to talk about prophecy. And first I think I need to bend my first rule and fill in a little background.

Three and a half thousand years ago, the world was a peaceful and prosperous place. Channelers used their power (men using saidin and women using saidar) to perform great works and create an incredible quality of life for every level of society. Technologies were cheap and non-polluting, medicines were quick and effective and life expectancy, particularly for the channelers, was measured in centuries. Then, a researcher thought she had found the impossible, a brand new source of power, seemingly from outside the universe, which could be used by men and women equally without the divide between saidin and saidar. Of course it went horribly wrong and the Dark One was let loose on the world causing the collapse of society.

In the ensuing world war, one man rose to lead the forces of Light against the twisted mutant constructs of the Shadow. This man was Lews Therin Telamon, AKA the Dragon. The war culminated in the Dragon leading 100 of his most loyal men, all channelers, to seal the Dark One back outside the universe and save the world. They succeeded, sort of. On the plus side, along with the Dark One, they also trapped thirteen of his strongest followers in the seal. On the negative side, all 100 of the Dragon’s men went completely and violently mad, soon followed by every man who could channel in the whole world. Since then, any man who can touch saidin eventually succumbs to insanity and will destroy anything and everyone around him before he dies. Understandably, such men are feared and hated and an entire branch of the Aes Sedai spends their time seeking them out and ‘gentling’ them before they can do too much harm.

 To rub salt in the wound, in the years after the madness it was prophesied that the Dragon would be born again to both save and destroy the world again. The Dragon Reborn is Rand al’Thor and he is not overjoyed at the prospect.

There are lots of Dragon prophecies, and he has different names in different lands so no one has the full set. One of the best known ones in Randland is that the Stone of Tear (a fortress widely believed to be impenetrable) will never fall until the sword, Callandor, is in the Dragon’s hand. Just to complicate things, Callandor is kept inside the stone. (Yes, yes, I know, the chosen one is revealed by pulling the sword from the stone, it’s even a magic sword.) Anyway, in order to prove to himself that he really is the Dragon, Rand has gone AWOL and is heading for Tear with Perrin, Loial, Lan and a fuming Moiraine hot on his heels.

Hmm... I think I will turn this into a twofer. More prophecies next time folks!

Moon River

Book; 2, The Great Hunt


Chapter; 30, Daes Dae'mar


Character Groups:
Cairhien                     Kinslayers Dagger     Tifan's Well       Tar Valon
Rand                           Mat                           Moiraine            Egwene
Loial                           Perrin                        Lan                   Nynaeve
Hurin                          Ingtar                                                  Min
Selene (sometimes)    Verin                                                   Elayne
                                  Various soilders


See what I mean about the characters? Bear in mind that I am only including characters in the list that are important to the overall plot arc, since chapter 16 that number has gone from 10 to 14, not counting the soldiers, and I have actually left out a few because they aren't that important just yet. I have decided to include locations for each group, just to stop me getting lost! To keep to rule 2, I will not be describing new characters any more unless I have something interesting to say about them.


For example, Verin. Verin (or Verin Sedai to give her her full title) is another channeler. She belongs to the ancient, female only, order of channelers called Aes Sedai, which I believe I have mentioned before but not explained. Aes Sedai are subject to three oaths. 1) To speak no word that is not true, 2) to make no weapon for one man to kill another and 3) not to use the One Power as a weapon except in last defence of you life, that of your Warder...yadda yadda, the list goes on. The point is that Aes Sedai are bound to these oaths in such a way that makes them as much a part of a woman as her own skin, once sworn they are unbreakable. 

Or are they? A few chapters ago, Verin uttered a harmless little sentence that, it seems, broke the first rule. This is one of the great mysteries in the series. 'Did Verin Lie?' has been discussed on forums and blogs as long as there have been forums and blogs and the answer was a long time coming. This is in fact the 'longest delay' between event and explanation that I mentioned in a previous post. When I finally read the resolution, I curled up in a ball and giggled manically, earning some very strange looks from my sister.


Now for Selene. When I first read tGH in...oh... 2001, I found Selene absolutely fascinating. she pops up seemingly out of nowhere spouting cryptic phrases and giving off an air of knowing so much more than everybody else. A lot of water has passed under the bridge since then and on this read through I just found her a bit annoying. This could be because now I know what she is up to, (much as I would like to, I can't erase my knowledge of the future books and start again) but I think it is just that in ten years my tastes have changed.


I was wracking my brain trying to find a succinct way of explaining this and it came to me quite suddenly. Selene is River Song (I'll assume that you have seen the most recent series of Doctor Who). She turns up out of the blue being all enigmatic and twirls out hero around her middle finger. She refuses to tell us anything while hinting at everything and when the big reveal comes, its a bit of a let down (if not a bit nonsensical). At least Selene vanishes as easily as she appears whereas River seems to have become a fixture.