Away and Away and Away

Hi, all --

I will be away for a short while. I will return with more updates when able. Thank you.

-The WoT ReReader

Chapters 47 - End: Declarations

Seriously. Awesome.

I mean, you'll know what I'm talking about when you read it, but I cannot even begin to explain how long the suspense has been building for this book's ending. Make sure to pay particular attention to Chapter 47: The Grave is No Bar to My Call (if you've read anything in The Great Hunt, you'll know what it's about), and the last chapter (not to be confused with the epilogue). And it's not even over! There's another book to come!

In summary: Read the whole of The Great Hunt. It will undoubtedly blow you away.

Last update: My lovely wife has done me a huge favor, and located a new-to-me copy of The Dragon Reborn while we were on vacation -- let the Dragon once again ride on the winds of time!

Chapters 38 - 46: Two Intersecting Paths

Now, not only is Robert Jordan capable of splitting his characters across the world's geography, but he can also separate them in time. The big jump from Chapter 37: What Might Be, without going into to much detail, serves to provide a way of generating more space for the characters to twist in the wind (well, maybe not twist, but certainly get into their own trouble and out of again, sort of). Most of these chapters are about the girls, and they are certainly growing up in their own way, in contrast to the way the boys have been maturing over the past two novels.

A redemption on the path to the Dragon occurs in Chapter 46: To Come Out of the Shadow, and is perhaps the first enemy to convert to the side of good in the series -- only to be lost again. Up for a cool fight scene? Try Chapter 45: Blademaster, and it will not disappoint.

Another update: I have lost faith in recovering The Dragon Reborn. I will endeavor to find another used copy.

Chapters 31 - 37: Chasing On and Off the Map

A shorter selection this time, since I wanted to spend some time on one of my favorite scenes in The Great Hunt, possibly in all the books. Chapter 37: What Might Be is without a doubt one of the coolest things Robert Jordan has done. It is one thing to have something told to you, even shown, such as the idea of the cycle of Ages and the prologue to The Eye of the World. It is entirely something else to be shown the battle within the lives of the main characters, over and over again, against the same colossal foe. Chapter 37 goes a long way in convincing me, as a reader, that these characters are who and what we need to prevail in the Final Battle, even if we only get Rand's perspective on all those possibilities.


If you love Loial as much as I do, you'll love how adorable he is in Chapter 36: Among the Elders. He is, in many ways, much more innocent than any of the boys, even at the beginning of The Eye of the World. And he just brings a smile to your face, every time he does anything!

Another Update: I'm growing more anxious by the day. No signs of the lost book. I am growing more weary of the search. Undoubtedly, if I were to purchase a new copy, it will appear, as if by happenstance. But I know better. Damned devious book -- I will own you! (bonus points if you read that like Sting, in the original Dune).

Chapters 20 - 30: Found and Lost

Seriously? Jordan certainly can keep up the pressure. And he does love his near-misses and chance encounters, especially when it's too late or just in time. What was once a hunt concluded must become a hunt resumed, but now the hunters are all together again. I do love the way the characters have a way of wandering out of frame, only to meet at the most unexpected time and place again. Almost as if there's some great Pattern at work.

New characters are one thing, but an entirely new culture? Meet an entirely new society in Chapter 29: Seanchan (I have to say, pronunciation has always been a bit rough for me -- it used to be sea-an-chan, instead of shawn-chan, the official pronunciation -- and I still sometimes prefer my own take, instead of RJ's way of saying it). Chapter 26: Discord for a little more prophecy, with just a hint of foreboding thrown in.

Update: I'm thinking it's lost. The Dragon Reborn, that is. A few more futile searches, and I'll have to resort to a new copy, as loathe as I am to purchase something I already own.

Chapters 10 - 19: A Hunt and Its Conclusion

So, things are heating up! No surprise, but the party of main characters that split once (at the beginning of The Great Hunt) is split further, and reunited again in a small number of chapters. Not to put too fine a head on it, but this pattern of diverging story lines will be something of a central story mechanism, to say the least. This time, however, the party split once at the beginning of the novel, and then again at Chapter 13: From Stone to Stone, with the second separation mended in just a few chapters. During this time, a new character arrives, insinuating into the confidences of some.

The Age of Legends is long past, but that doesn't stop people from meddling with things that should be left alone -- see Chapter 16: In the Mirror of Darkness, if you're intrigued with fumbling experimentation that could end badly. Also, Chapter 18: To the White Tower for an awesome grudge match.

...Still no sign of my copy of The Dragon Reborn. I'm on the trail, though.

Chapters 1 - 9: Unexpected Visitors

So, as the story returns to familiar faces, we encounter some new characters -- I won't name names or anything, so as not to spoil the surprise, but nine chapters of happenings brings some of the old in with the new. Moiraine has more machinations (no surprise there), the boys have more complaints (again, no surprise), and things start happening that no one could have foreseen (...I guess that's a surprise for them, but what did you think the next ~700 pages were about?).

For those of you who find Moiraine as fascinating as a cat, perhaps you should pay attention to Chapters 4 and 5: Summoned and The Shadow in Sheinar. Chapter 7: Blood Calls Blood has some serious foreboding happening, so don't skip that!

I still haven't found my copy of The Dragon Reborn. I will endeavor to locate it with more verve and vigor.