A Memory of Light - Chapters 38-43

In this section, in the most critical scene of the book, Rand can’t win by himself

Rand sees Lan fall, reinforcing the fact of his apparent death. Through Egwene’s voice, he is reminded that the responsibility was not his, it belonged to Lan himself. Rand could easily have imagined Egwene’s voice in his head, but her recent death adds some doubt as to its nature. Rand changes the purpose of his list of names, from one of victims, to one of heroes, who died for causes they believed to be noble. Relieved of guilt, he finds his strength returned.

Just as Rand is no longer pridefully taking responsibility for the actions of others, the author flips back to the battlefield as the Sharan princess shrieks that Bao the Wyld is dead. The six line interjection reveals little, its main purpose is in the symbolism of Rand’s pride being removed, since Demandred embodied pride. 

Refusing to give in, ever, Rand begins to see the Dark One for what he really is. The Dark One’s attacks lost meaning. If they could not make him yield, if they could not make him relent, then what were they? The author breaks Rand’s confrontation into very short sections, shuffling them between other perspectives which ever so slowly reveal what is happening. Rapid flashes between characters works well to slow down the action at this critical juncture, and may not have worked so well with the traditional Robert Jordan long section in a single point of view. Could the traditional Robert Jordan long section approach even have been used for the Last Battle? Or would he have opted for breaks as shown here, mimicking the breakdown of the Pattern itself?

With Demandred dead, Mat raises a cheer for Malkier, which the soldiers eagerly take up. The Sharans are stunned by the news, and the heroes have a resurgence of hope.

Rand’s voice switches to all caps, an indication that he is now on even footing with the Dark One. Adding in a few explanatory details to tie up loose ends, he states that even though the story has centered on him, it is really about all of his friends and acquaintances, about everyone. It is about their common desire to fight on no matter the circumstances, to stand when they should be broken. The Dark One taunts Rand with Lan’s death. Rand holds the whole world in his hands as his conflict magnifies its focus on Merrilor.

Mat strains to gain an upper hand, and hears the Dark One in his head. The Dark One’s titles for the heroes attempt to diminish them, and continue to show the overriding pessimism in his every thought and action. Arganda mirrors that pessimism with his perpetual negative outlook. Mat has never had a better chance to win this, he just needs an opening to give him some momentum.

Rand tells the Dark One he is wrong…

Olver raises the Horn to his lips…

Mat hears Rand’s voice now too. Everyone can hear it. Three critical and emotionally resounding elements combine: Rand shouts “That man still fights!”, Lan rises with Demandred’s severed head, and  the Horn Of Valere resounds across the battlefield. It is a potent combination and is likely the core scene that everything else was built to support during the writing of the book.

For a brief moment, Elayne remains in peril, until Birgitte returns to save her. Her perfectly timed arrival is heralded by an arrow to Mellar’s chest followed by another to the head. She announces the arrival of the Heroes, and it feels awesome.

Mat takes advantage of any superstitious or cowardly hesitation on the part of the Shadow to lead a charge. The contrast between humanity’s desire to fight even unto death and the Trollocs’ instinctive desire to avoid death helps explain away much of the battle’s details. Any parts which get skipped over can be explained by a stereotyping statement which the reader is all too eager to embrace, as they are riding high on a wave of relief and excitement. Mat meets Hawkwing, swears at him, laments women like Nynaeve, and leers at a female Hero, all in keeping with his character even as the inner workings of Horn sounding are explained.

Noal comes back for Olver, providing a warm response to all the loss and death. He had lost so many people, but one of them… one… had come back for him. This links directly back to the idea that when both Manetheren and Malkier fell, no one had come to their aid. Olver’s salvation shows that this time, help came, and that made all the difference.

Elayne joins the fight against the Darkfriends, and following a brief attempt to keep her out of the larger battle, she and Birgitte go to battle, together. Birgitte is overjoyed her memories have returned.

Aviendha meets Elyas as the Wild Hunt streams into the valley. Before she can gather channelers to repel the Darkhounds, she senses Graendal and summons Cadsuane and Amys. Outnumbered and outmatched by Graendal’s circle, it is Aviendha’s original ability to stalk silently that protects her until her allies arrive.

Elayne joins the fight waving a sword to little effect other than the inspiration it offers her soldiers. By putting herself in danger and taking up the battle directly, as one of them, her soldiers feel they have no choice but to return to the fray.

Demandred’s death is the card upon which Mat is ready to bet everything. He still faces ten to one odds in numbers, but the enemy is in disarray. Mat faces a desperate fight to push the Sharans off the heights into the Trollocs below, and just as he most needs them, the Seanchan join the fight, flying through Gateways in the air to assault the Shadow below and marching in rhythm onto the Heights. Having Mat imagine and predict the Seanchan movements once gain saves the author from having to explain or show it in any detail.  A mysterious detail is presented, leaving the reader to wonder what other trick Mat has in store.

Grady follows Mat’s orders without understanding them. His Gateway to Hinderstap allows the same people, cursed by a bubble of evil, to make use of that very curse to surprise their foes. With the Dreadlords down, Grady bursts the dam, releasing the river Mora.

Androl wants to hunt the Dreadlords instead of pursuing Logain’s quest for sa’angreal. He and Pevara concoct a plan.

Moghedien impersonates Demandred to rally the Sharans, having apparently practiced impersonating each of the other Forsaken, which explains several peculiar orders from Forsaken throughout the series. Moghedien now has full access to the True Power, and uses her advantage by ordering the death of the meekest and weakest on the field of battle.  A gateway opens and Dragons fire on her.

Talmanes enjoys firing dragons to kill the Trollocs from a hidden location.

At Shayol Ghul, the storm is out of control, unleashing lightning on friend and foe alike. The fabric of reality is breaking down as a grand bubble of evil envelops the valley. Aviendha notices Trollocs fighting each other and an odd mist which heralds Padan Fain. The clouds above form the ancient symbol of the Aes Sedai, and other impossible signs portend Rand’s conquest of his foe. As she creeps towards Graendal, she is attacked and kills her foe Rhuarc, seeming to contradict her earlier belief that any of her former allies would rather die than be used by the Shadow.

Dreadlords bicker amongst themselves and are tricked into following Androl’s imitation of Rand into a stedding. Mishraile expresses the only overt sexism that I can recall in the series, scoffing at the notion that a woman could be placed above him when the entire world is rife with examples of women leading men.

The Ogier will attempt a few decades of stedding-derived therapy to rehabilitate their new captives. Returning to the battlefield,  Androl and his friends find Trollocs slaughtering refugees and wounded.

Aviendha recovers from the shock of killing her former clan chief. Aviendha is wounded as she leaps into the air and plunges her spear into Graendal’s side, disappearing along with her as she Travels.

Logain feels threatened and seeks a sa’angreal to keep him powerful, and feels intense paranoia that others are trying to tear him down. Androl tells him of the Trollocs slaughtering the weak. Logain must choose between gaining strength or protecting the weak.

Mat watches the Trolloc horde get split by the river, then decimated by Seanchan and resurgent armies, as he battles alongside the Heroes of the Horn. For about a page, the text feels like an omniscient narrator describing the entire field of battle, no matter where Mat was standing at the moment. Because the focus is exclusively on military matters and takes place in a Mat perspective, it is a little easier to accept. Had it been written from any other perspective than Mat’s or Rand’s, it would stand out even more as a large deviation from the accepted form of third person limited narrator.

Mat asks Artur Hawkwing to speak with Tuon on his behalf while he goes to Rand’s aid. Perfectly placed punchline at the end of the section.

Rand speaks in all caps, like the Dark One, and reveals that nobility will always beat him, that death is no threat, and that he has never inspired love in any one. The Dark One sputters in response. Rand hurls himself into the blackness to bring Shai’tan’s death.

Aviendha can barely fend off Graendal. Isolated from her allies, she is able to open a Gateway before Graendal takes control of the situation, cutting off Aviendha’s possible attempt to kill herself before being enthralled by Compulsion. Graendal isn’t in great shape, but Aviendha can’t even keep hold of her belt knife.

Writing Lessons:

Design your story around the most important scenes.

A Memory of Light - Chapter 37 - Part 4

In this section, Lan fights the Last Battle.

Leane is about to order the retreat of the remaining Aes Sedai, until Egwene shows up, devastating the enemy with her sa’angreal. Even at this late stage of the story, two new Aes Sedai is named. As Keeper of the Chronicles for ten of the last twelve years, Leane has better reason than anyone to know every Aes Sedai’s name and face. Had she not named these two, it would have been out of place, and it would be equally out of place if readers only saw Aes Sedai they had already met.

Talmanes is leading the repair of the dragons. The return of the dragons offers some hope so it is well juxtaposed with Egwene’s return to the field of battle.

Faile chases Aravine and the Horn, riding barebacked on Bela, the mare who has carried many of the heroes throughout their adventures. Stalwart Bela has always been dependable, like her owner Tam. Bela represents the way Rand was raised, his foundation and moral compass that will always carry him through and help him bear his burdens, which is why she has never faltered. Faile appeals to Bela to give her all in the chase: Faile scrambled to Bela’s side, cutting free the saddle – and all of its burdens – with a few swipes of the knife. And then, “Run, Bela,” Faile said. “If you’ve kept any strength back, now is the time to use it. Please. Run, girl. Run.” Bela’s imminent death signals the end of the last vestiges of Rand’s childhood.  

Faile learns that Vanin and Harnan had just been hoping to steal back some tabac, not the Horn. They clear her a path, and she kills Aravine with a dagger in the back. Realizing there is no way she can escape her pursuers, she gives the Horn to Olver while she leads them away. She is certain they will kill her. The feeling of desperation is heavy, with Faile’s imminent death and this essential task passed into the hands of the meekest of heroes.  “I’m sorry to place this upon you, little one. There is no one else. You did well earlier; you can do this. Take the Horn to Mat or all is lost.”

Logain keeps the Seals and goes hunting for Demandred, his sa’angreal, and something to fill the void within him. Logain is one of the only remaining characters who has not yet completely joined one side or the other. While he opposes the Shadow, he feels no affinity for the Light.

Egwene leads her assault and encounters Mazrim Taim, the M’Hael.

Raen and Ila triage the dead and wounded. Raen wonders what alternative there is to fighting the Shadow, since Trollocs would never stop chasing them no matter where they ran. He decides he will not think quite so poorly of those who follow a different path. Though he did not ask anyone to sacrifice their life for his, he recognizes that they have made the sacrifice nonetheless.  Ila considers Raen’s words. When she sees but fails to recognize the Darkfriends who have infiltrated the civilians helping with the wounded, she begins to see the world in greys, not the stark black and white she has seen all these past years. Her strict adherence to a viewpoint which had only two polar opposites drove her grandson away. This rejection of strict moral boundaries is very similar to what Rand will soon come to understand.

Olver has been abandoned. He is chased into a crevice. Simple use of verbs and adjectives strongly convey how hopeless his situation is while retaining his childlike view of the world.

Alone. He’d been left alone again.

Olver whimpered.

No safety.

There were hundreds of them back there, chasing him.

The tantalizing hope of escape ends as Bela is shot dead by arrows. In a little cleft, Olver hides, with Trolloc claws tearing at his clothing. Take the Horn to Mat or all is lost. Can the reader have any doubt that the Horn will never reach Mat, and that all is indeed lost?

Logain attacks Demandred, but is quickly overpowered. He relies on his training to escape, and not only the power. He wonders how they will ever beat Demandred. He is the third to face the Forsaken, and third to fail. Perhaps they will lose unless Rand comes to their aid. The only thing which cuts through Logain’s frustration is the realization that his Aes Sedai Gabrelle actually was concerned for him.

Egwene overpowers Taim, but he escapes using the True Power. She ponders the nature of balefire. This is a second attempt to prepare the reader for Egwene’s surprise weave.

Hurin’s nose describes more violence than has ever been wrought. He manages to keep fighting, but the worst is yet to come. His own faith in Rand is the only certainty any of the characters feel.

Berelain has had to order that only those who can be saved may be tended, rationing the care of the wounded. She further must cajole the gai’shain into helping collect and tend the wounded. Berelain discovers Annoura has burned herself out as a sacrifice of atonement to bring Galad back to Mayene. This final kindness to restore a friendship before the end was one that brought tears to my eyes. For other readers it may have been this scene, or another, since they all build on waves of hopelessness, courage and redemption. Where they finally break through depends on the characters you identify with. The author makes excellent use of the most minor characters such as Ila, Annoura, Hurin, and others to prime the readers for what may be in store for their favourites.

Galad passes out before he can tell Berelain about the medallion.

Rand watches as friends and allies die. His ability to see the battle unfold in detail even while in an otherworldly dimension is an efficient way to compress many emotional moments into a small amount of text. Minor characters are dying, quickly. Now that they are out of the way, the author can move on to the main characters. The Dark One weaves…

Taim receives a loan of the sa’angreal Sarkanen. Egwene is commanded to be destroyed by balefire. Taim forces himself to think of himself as M’Hael. When Fortuona renamed Mat as Knotai, he made no similar effort despite acknowledging Karede’s insistence he go by that new name; he still thinks of himself as Mat. M’Hael’s forced effort to adopt the identity thrust upon him by another is contrary to how each of the Heroes has resisted changing their identity when it was dictated by others.

Elayne is attacked by mercenaries. Mellar’s control of her is displayed as Elayne is even denied the chance to spit in his face properly. He then kills Birgitte in a bloody and awful manner. The suddenness of her death is jarring, lacking any heroism, and emphasizes Elayne’s lack of options. Mellar even gets to brag about how good it felt. A substitute blonde corpse convinces her army that she is dead, so none know she is missing. Her children will be cut out of her and delivered to Shayol Ghul. This looks bad.

Rand receives the Dark One’s final offer to annihilate the world, eliminating pain suffering and existence itself. He can stop Elayne’s forced caesarean, end the violent deaths, and end the betrayals and the burdens. The Dark One offers suicide. Rand rejects the offer. He does not seek an end, he seeks a solution.

Min unmasks Moghedien using her ability to see Viewings. It is one of the only times when a character’s abilities trump their personality in overcoming an obstacle. In past examples, there has almost always been an overt decision or affirmation made by the character before the abilities or happenstance come into play. Nonetheless, it is rewarding to have a non-channeler such as Min best one of the Forsaken. The Seanchan will soon join the fray.

Egwene delivers destruction unto her enemies. Despite bonding Leilwin, she is distraught, and fueled by rage. In most circumstances this ends badly for an Aes Sedai, and her suicidal frontal assault would normally end poorly, if not for the entirety of the White Tower’s channelers providing defense while she recklessly advances.

The use of balefire in large quantities is shown to have the expected effects, but in such a chaotic battle, there is no use in dissecting the chain of events that has been rewritten. This provides some cover to the author, who is free to dictate what has happened and what hasn’t, with no further explanation. Egwene discovers a new weave, as she has done in the past, yet the explanation feels contrived and I wonder if less explanation may have been more convincing than this blaze of illogic: Two sides to every coin. Two halves to the Power. Hot and cold, light and dark, woman and man. If a weave exists, so must its opposite.

The counter-weave to balefire and Egwene’s death have deeper meaning. M’Hael sought to undo Egwene, erasing her from existence. Egwene represents Rand’s childhood. She needed to die so that he could truly pass from childhood to adulthood. The manner of her death by balefire would represent that Rand had forever lost his childhood ideals and the love of the community that raised him. With Egwene’s final assertion, embodied in the new weave, she instead protects that childhood, stopping its erasure, preserving it for Rand to draw upon in times of need.  

Rand gets very angry at Egwene’s death. THE DEAD ARE MINE. I WILL KILL THEM ALL, ADVERSARY. Rand feels her loss like part of him has been cut away. He remembers all his failures.

Leane discovers Egwene is gone, and a crystal column stands in her place, that will likely stand forever. The balefire damage has been repaired. Word of the Amyrlin’s demise begins to travel.

Berelain hears a whisper from her beloved Galad “…Hope…”, and she rushes out to return Mat’s medallion. Once again, I am impressed how even the least powerful characters have essential roles to play, and could easily have carried a story on their own.

Mat learns Egwene has eliminated almost all the enemy channelers, leaving a battle between armies. And Demandred.  He has no brilliant strategy to give Lan, asking him to check on reserves from Mayene. He calls on his luck, and receives word Elayne is dead, which is fitting as she represents both the present and the gleaming promise of civilization itself. Andor and the Queen have always been foremost among humanity’s champions. Mat delivers orders to Tuon and Talmanes, his last reserves. Mat can’t win, but he fights on anyway, “Because I’ll be a Darkfriend before I’ll let this battle go without trying everything, 

Arganda.” As Mat makes his final preparations, Lan has gone on to fight Demandred alone.

Trollocs tear at Olver. He stands in for all humanity, enemies mercilessly clawing, the ground caving in on him, trapped with no hope of escape.

Loial must witness the fall of the last King of the Malkieri. Predicting his death with a reliable character works convincingly. All other opponents before have lost, why should Lan fare any better? Loial is trustworthy, which means Lan will die.

Tam sees Lan, a dim spark of Light in the Shadow: Tam almost lost Lan’s figure atop the midnight stallion, despite the bonfires burning on the Heights. Their light seemed feeble. He paves the way for Lan with a hail of fiery arrows. Lan’s spark alone can’t do it, but with a second to join with Lan’s? Rand’s father figures unite for a last desperate strike.

Lan intends to destroy Demandred, implausible as it seems. First he must get close, and even knowing the impossibility of it, he tries, and finds that Tam has come to his aid. Even as he nears his objective, he shows care for his horse by leaving its saddle, though it seems likely Mandarb would not stand idly by, and could end up just as dead. Lan offers no opening, shows no hesitation. There is no glory, no pride, no contest of equals. He is the man who will kill Demandred. Who then is Demandred? He is the man whose pride could not abide being less than first, who chose to gamble on being first for the Shadow’s cause, who traded ideals for a chance at prominence. Demandred is pride, and too much pride has been one of Rand’s weaknesses.

Min sees signs of the end, or so it seems. Once again she is a reliable character whose viewings are never wrong, and this confidence in her statements transfers easily to her opinions, which have also proven mostly correct. She represents the future, and she watches the lights flicker, the last embers of a fire that would soon be extinguished. She feels Rand tremble.

Rand thinks he has failed. In his pride he believes that all of these deaths were his fault, their lives were his responsibility. And then he remembers to let go. Rand has a role to play in people’s lives, but he does not bear final responsibility for everything that befalls them. He is there to give them a chance to choose who they will be, and how they will stand, or fall.

Lan calls himself just a man, which is why he succeeds when the prince of Andor, the Dragon’s Brother, and the leader of the Black Tower all failed. While the medallion and swordsmanship allow him to stand on almost equal terms with Demandred, it is his dedication to what he stands for and understanding of who he is and the battle that he fights that allows him to anticipate his enemy’s moves, whether with sword or the One Power. Mirroring what he taught Rand near the beginning of the series, Lan impales himself on Demandred’s sword, immobilizing it, then drives his own blade into Demandred’s throat. He never cared about winning as Demandred did, so full of pride. A tie is all he needed. He came to do what needed to be done, and he slays false pride. He quotes “Death is light as a feather”, sends his love to Nynaeve and dies.

The Last Battle is apparently over, and surprisingly, it was not Rand’s, but Lan’s.

Writing Lessons:

 The identity and reputation of the character delivering the message matter as much as the message itself.

A Memory of Light - Chapters 10-13

In this section, two ta’veren take to the field.

With allies waiting for reinforcements, the failure to lure Trollocs out of Caemlyn hurts the heroes badly, though not personally. Androl too is failing to find a means of escape, adding to the building pressure, which culminates with Lan’s retreat from Tarwin’s Gap when faced with Dreadlords.

At last, the Trollocs take the bait and pursue the Andoran army, falling into a trap of gunpowder and shrapnel. Elayne thinks the invention of these cannons will change warfare forever, with their destructive power acting as a deterrent no sane person would risk facing. The comparison with the nuclear era is easy to spot. Early gains by Elayne and Bashere are whittled away as the Trollocs adapt to the tactics. Birgitte’s personal struggle to keep some part of her memories and her confusion serve as a nice metaphor for the skirmishes and stalemate that is emerging.

Rand tries to intervene to help the Borderlanders, but is rebuffed by well-organized Dreadlords trying to cut him off from the source. Incapable of helping any of the forces any longer, he must accept Moiraine’s urging for him to march on Shayol Ghul.

In his dreams, Rand encounters Lanfear, and a long-awaited opportunity for Mierin to turn back to the Light is rejected. So close. So close to the Light, like a feral cat in the night, stalking back and forth before the fire-lit barn! He found himself angry, angrier than before. Always, she did this! Flirting with what was right, but always choosing her own path. Yet despite her rejection of love and Light, and her dejection at discovering how little she means to Rand, readers may still entertain the idea that she can be saved, that she wants to be saved after Rand reveals himself fully to her. This perception is key to her upcoming interactions with Perrin.

Perrin feels a tugging which he knows is Rand. He decides to act as Rand’s guardian, facing dangers which he cannot, such as at the Black Tower, and countering the agents he suspects are arraying themselves against Rand. It is disappointing that even at this late juncture, Perrin doesn’t describe the dreamspike to Rand, and perhaps benefit from Lews Therin’s insight and memories, or even tell Rand about Slayer, if only to assure him that Perrin will finish him. Perrin and longtime friend Gaul enter Tel’aran’rhiod in the flesh, which readers will have trouble convincing themselves isn’t an act of evil, for the only person who says different is Perrin himself, whose rationale is simply that it is not evil, just incredibly stupid.

Bornhald’s revelation that Padan Fain killed Perrin’s family is the first reminder that he is still up in the Blight, waiting for Rand, another danger which Perrin may be better placed to face than Rand.

Inventiveness allows the heroes to make progress in Kandor, whether by the use of Gateways for observation of the battlefield or by plans to include Aes Sedai as part of the military forces, which soon gives humanity its first uncontested and complete victory.

A feature of these last three Wheel of Time books by Brandon Sanderson has been the inclusion of a number of fan-friendly initiatives, from auctioning off naming rights of minor characters, to featuring the guardians of the largest Wheel of Time fan sites as innkeepers, to acknowledging fan theories in text. While there is a certain glee at receiving acknowledgement, such Easter Eggs can prove disruptive, taking a reader who is in the know out of the story. The same is likely true for any scene which has been heavily advertised to fans ahead of publication. Involving fans on an emotional level both rewards their long dedication and keeps them attached, so some kind of balance must be struck despite the potential disruption to the story. In theory, a minority of the millions of readers will be in the know, so by keeping these references subtle, the desired balance is reached.

Mat returns to Ebou Dar, which he realizes is his home more than any place else. Among his many fond memories, are those of Tylin.  After a year of analyzing the story and finding deep meaning in even simple descriptive paragraphs, I find the sexual context surrounding his affection for Tylin offers surprising ways to interpret the rest of this paragraph:

Tylin. Bloody ashes, but that had been a fun game. She had had the better of him time and again. Light send him plenty of women who could do that, though not in rapid succession, and always when he knew how to find the back door. Tuon was one. Come to think of it, he would probably never need another. She was enough of a handful for any man. Mat smiled, patting Pips on the neck. The horse blew down Mat’s neck in return.

Readers may never know whether these words belong to one author or the other, or a combination of both, making it harder to judge whether their use is intentional. Since the relationship with Tylin sets the context for the rest of the paragraph, I think the imagery is intentional, not accidental, and very much in line with Mat’s unconventional behaviour. However, as an author it can be inconvenient to find out you’ve unintentionally implied something you never intended, and it seems the context of such oversights is often sexual.

Writing Lessons:

Check your text for unintentional meanings.

A Memory of Light - Chapters 7-9

In this section, the long war begins.

The ink is hardly dry on the Dragon’s Peace before planning for the conflict begins. Splitting the conflict onto three immediate fronts in Andor, Shienar and Kandor allows the author to showcase more characters playing roles and to balance momentum, so that even if one battle front goes well for the heroes, other dire situations maintain tension. If there is a downside, it is that with so many plotlines to juggle, some may get only short attention, if they show up at all, and if they play off each other, the complexity of the plotting increases. This intricacy, and the time needed for the author to handle it, is one of the reasons that The Wheel of Time came to feel bogged down. Much of what the author needs to establish now is the setting and placement of characters in each locale.

One of the four great captains is assigned to each of the battle fronts. Merrilor is maintained as Elayne’s central command location, a seemingly trivial decision that will dictate the setting of the Last Battle. A countdown for two locations will run out if a victory is not achieved in Andor quickly. Loial sticks his head in the story long enough to announce the Ogier will fight alongside the humans. The Horn of Valere is entrusted to Faile, who originally left home hunting for it. Lan sets the tone for the coming battle: no sadness, no mourning, only pride that when the time of their testing came, and victory all but impossible, the soldiers were ready, and did their duty, even unto death. Most importantly, the men of many nations fight together, as they never have since the Age of Legends.

The events beginning the conflict have an air of finality. Elayne torches her home city, and reveals the father of her children, admitting there can be no safety for them since she herself is a target. Evin is turned to the Shadow with little fuss, and it seems inevitable that Androl will receive no outside help. Bulen and other Borderlanders give their lives for small, but meaningful causes in their battle. Their sacrifices buy time, but Agelmar tells Lan that even so, they will eventually retreat and give up the land their comrades paid for in blood. Each painful decision is made in the name of duty, necessary evils meant to improve their marginal chances against the Trollocs. Lan grudgingly realizes he will abandon his lost home of Malkier yet again, because duty to his fellow men compels this grim course of action.

Through the preparations, the author maintains each character’s personality, highlighting the unique way in which they think instead of committing solely to plot-based descriptions. Elayne held out for the most advantage when the Dragon’s Peace was signed, and now Egwene can’t help but lament that all of the choices arrayed before her undermine her authority, regarding Elayne’s place at the head of the armies: Refusing her would set a bad precedent. As would obeying her.

Egwene also keeps up her intense hatred of the Seanchan, despite that humanity needs the two forces to be allies. Egwene embraces the use of the name Leilwin for the hated Seanchan woman Egeanin, happy to remind her that she is less than nothing in Egwene’s eyes.

Despite the overwhelming military aspects of the story, small introspective moments point to the possibility that some non-violent means may give the key to victory. Lan prefers to use Aes Sedai as useful tools rather than weapons, and Rand considers grand philosophical questions as he evaluates his chances for success. Was the flame alive? It ate, it moved on its own. You could smother it, so in a way it breathed. What was it to be alive? Could an idea live? A world without the Dark One. A world without evil. There have been clues in earlier books as well, notably Verin’s assertion that the Last Battle would not be fought in the way that Rand imagined. Little reminders such as this one will keep the reader from being distraught if the greatest battle of all time isn’t resolved through battle.

Elayne and Rand share a last night together, exchanging gifts and revealing their deepest feelings and secrets. Elayne represents Rand’s present, while Aviendha and Min were his past and future. Elayne embodies Andor, especially now that Caemlyn is burned. Andor itself represents a set of morals and ideals that Rand was raised with, given to him by Tam. Through these ideals, Elayne represents what is best in Rand, the core of his being, his shining heart, like the gleaming city on the hill, the oldest and most respected of the Nations to rise after Hawkwing’s empire shattered. Elayne is all that is good, and when Rand tells her who he is now, her reaction is acceptance and love, unlike anyone else’s.  

Writing Lessons:

Keep your characters in character, no matter what exciting events are taking place.

A Memory of Light - Chapters 5-6

In this section, Long-anticipated and hoped-for happy things happen.

With the Last Battle slated to bring mankind to the brink of extinction, the author knows that some upbeat moments are needed to balance out these dire events, or the reader may grow weary. There are several reminders that this is the last quiet time the heroes expect to have, such as Rand’s shower with Aviendha. In the morning, she asks him for a future favour and he agrees to hear it when the time comes.

Rand reveals more of his peaceful weaves as he erects a pavilion with the Power while grass flourishes beneath his feet. Despite that he can wield great destructive power, in these scenes Rand shows off the value of utilitarian weaves which impress as much or more than any aggressive weave might. As much as the assembled people might wish for weaves that can save them, Rand inspires more hope simply by making grass grow.

News from Caemlyn is handled perfunctorily. Egwene and Elayne cannot afford to let it affect their decision-making, yet the summary discussion of the city’s demise gives a feeling that the author needs to simply drive the plot forward, explain the strategy quickly, and not belabour the point. This feeling will arise often throughout the book, but given the length of the conflict, it may be just as well to have events recited rather than seen, even if it goes against one of the cardinal rules of show, don’t tell.

The Sea Folk make what might as well be their final appearance, without even one of them named. The Sea Folk played an important role in earlier books, if irritating to many readers, being one of the first groups which the heroes had to accept rather than overcome or bring under their wings. This proved to be a key theme of the series, that of acceptance of others, despite vast gulfs between the cultures that separate them. The Seanchan would later drive that point home even more forcefully, remaining a final obstacle to the Dragon’s Peace when the meeting at Merrilor concludes.

Entire chapters of past books were dedicated to preparations for meetings such as this one, so things feel rushed when six pages after showing up on the field, the meeting begins. Illian and Tear are used as proxies for all the rest, yet the threat of Nations coming to blows feels minimal. Egwene correctly sees that no one will move until the true conflict between Amyrlin and Dragon is resolved.

Rand himself had suspicions of Demandred masquerading as Roedran, given his late decision to show up, and wonders where he is hiding, a blunt reminder that the secretive Forsaken may play a major role in the Last Battle.

Rand makes his three demands, setting off frantic discussions amongst the world’s leaders. Despite his attempts to eradicate war, flaws are shown which undermine his objectives and make his treaty untenable. The old friendship between Rand and Egwene ought to stave off a stalemate, yet even their trust of each other has been damaged. “I’ve known the White Tower’s guidance, Egwene. In a box, beaten each day.”

Consensus is as far away as it has ever been, Rand’s plan seems destined to fail, Egwene has resorted to hurling insults at him as when they were young, the Dragon’s peace offends the pride of every nation, and Rand can’t even get his closest allies to agree.

Into this, pulling Rand back from the edge of the precipice, comes Moiraine.

She has a knack, as she says, for showing up at the right place just in time. Years of traveling the world in search of Rand have allowed her to forge lasting bonds with Borderlander rulers. Her cousin is betrothed to Darlin, and she is aunt to the leader of the Children of the Light. She brought the current Amyrlin Egwene to Tar Valon, bonded the uncrowned king of Malkier, and was in line to a throne herself. Moiraine is as well connected as anyone in this story could be, and she alone can bring order where this group dissents.

Quoting the Prophecies of the Dragon, the Karaethon cycle, Moiraine directs gentle barbs at each of the attendees, reminding them what will happen, not what must happen. She presents the prophecies as a done deal, beyond negotiation or appeal, they are simply fact.

Once she has quelled the group, and they are willing to listen again, she steps to the sidelines as others begin serious discussion of flaws and possible solutions. Rand must get the Seanchan to sign, or it is all void. Possibility of disputes is solved when Aviendha insists on including the Aiel, who are assigned the role of protectors of the peace.

Rand’s other conditions are then addressed. He easily agrees to let someone else command the forces of the Light, so long as there is agreement. When Egwene’s name is put forth, talk returns to breaking the seals, and Moiraine easily sways Rand’s position, so long as she signs. With her major complaint addressed, Egwene concedes, leading a flurry of other nations to do the same.

Of all those who should follow the Amyrlin’s lead, longtime friend and lower-ranking Aes Sedai Elayne should be amongst the first, yet she holds out until the very end, petulant as ever. Though it annoys her many detractors, Elayne behaves as one trained by Merrilin and Morgase, exacting the greatest price for her aid, perhaps making subtle use of her rumoured love with Rand to position herself above all other rulers.

The emotional high note comes as a result of them all setting aside their differences to work together. Unified, Rand sets them a first task, one they eagerly accept. Lan’s army fights alone, in a war that cannot be won, an extension of his own personal war. They haven’t been seen since marching into Tarwin’s Gap at the end of the last book. Having attached themselves to Lan, they now face the same fate he always foresaw for himself. Within the hour, they will be overrun and killed, and Lan leads a final charge, hoping to deny the Trolloc hordes until his last breath. Unlike the fall of Malkier, when nations and Aes Sedai failed to come to Malkier’s aid for selfish or political reasons, this time those reasons have been set aside in favour of a more important need, to stand together. Lan’s charge gave the world another chance to do things right, and they do so in force. Even Lan can’t help himself: He didn’t just smile, he laughed… “Malkier lives on this day!”

I had previously identified that Nynaeve plays the role of Rand’s conscience, which begs the question of what Moiraine’s role is. Moiraine represents Rand’s sense of duty. It is a duty to protect his fellow townsfolk that leads him to set off into the world, following Moiraine. It is Moiraine who continually tried to push Rand towards what he must do, just as she does to the participants at this meeting, though much more gently.  Rand rejects Moiraine and his duty when he sets off into the Aiel Waste. Moiraine is being dutiful when she destroys Lanfear, doing what Rand cannot bring himself to do. And now at last, it is no coincidence that her reappearance immediately leads to fulfillment of the duty to Lan, her former warder, providing uplifting closure to the woeful tale of Malkier.

Writing Lessons:

For an event to be uplifting, it must have personal meaning to the characters and readers.

Towers of Midnight - Chapters 46-50

In this section, a glimpse of the future is given.

Faile participates in negotiations with Perrin and Elayne over the fate of the Two Rivers. Elayne cannot enforce her writ, so she avoids being a tyrant or a fool and creates bonds to tie the fledgling nation of the Two Rivers to Andor. Elayne soon does the same with the Cairhienin, binding their fates together with an exchange of lands and nobles.

Fortuona questions Elaida, and the Seanchan gain Traveling. Ominously, she decides to use this tool to subjugate the remaining Aes Sedai in an attempt to get Rand to serve her as prophesied.

Mat explains his quest to Perrin.

Aviendha goes through the glass columns in Rhuidean, in another fan-favourite scene. I’ll contrast this scene with the similar scene in Chapters 24-25 of The Shadow Rising, when Rand originally went through the glass columns to learn the history of the Aiel.

The glass columns scene in The Shadow Rising sets expectations for Aviendha’s visit. It isn’t possible to surprise readers with the mystery of Rhuidean, or the Tree of Life, or the visions because they are already all well known. The fog has lifted from Rhuidean, and there are no more mysteries. The author wisely decides to skip over what is known and expected, instead leaving Aviendha questioning “is that all there is?” Rhuidean is mundane now, just like the decisions which led the Aiel to pick up spears and fight.

Restoring a bit of mystery, Aviendha wonders about whether the columns have more capabilities that only what use they have been put to in Rhuidean. The mundane is made extraordinary again, and the weighty purpose of the columns is hinted at, but kept shrouded.

Aviendha’s first vision builds on prior knowledge of how she experiences the lives of the people seen in the columns.  Unlike with Rand’s earlier visit, there is no crafting of links between Malidra and Aviendha, no emphasis on how these two are really one. This first vision contains several links to the present and the familiar, referring to the Waste, Aiel, and a railroad which brings the steamwagons to mind. The mystery is about why Aiel are living like scavengers and why is Aviendha seeing life through the eyes of a random Aiel girl? The revelation is not only the details in the vision, but the fact that this vision exists at all. A need is established immediately, but it is mundane, a quest for food, instead of the character oriented need of Mandein in Rand’s visions. There is no firm historical link between Aviendha and Malidra yet, largely because Malidra has no character or identity, she is simply a scavenger looking for food.

As with Rand’s visions, each subsequent vision establishes more detail, eventually revealing that the visions are linked along Aviendha’s, and Rand’s future bloodline, containing links to each other, and to the current day. Whereas Rand’s visions began as known to be his personal and cultural history, of which he was then learning the details, Aviendha’s reverse this by showing the details and then establishing that this is her personal and cultural legacy.

Rand’s visions used parental relationships to convey the passing down of cultural responsibility from one generation to the next, giving great weight to the losses suffered by each of the lives he lived, and great importance to the sacrifices. Aviendha’s visions are bereft of such attachment to identity of the next generation, as shown with the casual indifference to the loss of children. In each of Aviendha’s visions, the women try to maintain the culture of the Aiel, at the cost of the people, overlooking that sacrifices are made for family, not only for the sake of sacrificing itself.

The lives of the women take on personal importance to Aviendha. Each of their failures is hers, and Rand’s. While so much of the history of this world has built towards the day when Rand faced the Dark One, until recently there was little attention to what happens after the Last Battle. Rand is not the end point of the cross-generational burden, he is a link in a chain which extends as far into the future as into the past.

Once again, the reverse chronological order the visions are presented in is effective in drawing the reader in, and the revelation puts the emphasis back on Rand and Aviendha to correct mistakes.

How can Aviendha find a new identity for the Aiel and overcome the Seanchan menace, or even craft an alliance with them that outlasts the Last Battle? One possibility is the Aiel clan chiefs and Wise Ones singing the lost Tinker Song, since they all learned it in the glass columns. The song is an act of creation, and can overcome the blight afflicting the crops of the world. Such a life offers an honourable and productive alternative to clan warfare. The Aiel once sealed a promise with a sapling of the Tree of Life, and they could do so again with the Seanchan, even offering them Avendesora itself. What good could come of Seanchan nobles walking through the glass columns, seeing the mistakes and errors of their ancestors? With this insight, the Seanchan and Aiel should be able to avoid some of the decisions Aviendha saw in the glass columns.

Writing Lessons:

Withholding context while establishing links to other parts of the story creates effective mystery.

Towers of Midnight - Chapters 44-46

In this section, characters reunite!

With the Last Battle impending, and no other identity to resume, Morgase finally allows herself to love Tallanvor and gets married. Didn’t take much.

Mat has a badger for Perrin. There is no build-up toward this reunion, as is appropriate for Mat where everything must be unanticipated. The author cleverly uses the word children just before revealing Mat’s presence, which is as good as saying someone immature is behind the acorn tossing.

Elayne discusses the politics of Cairhien with Dyelin, fresh back from a scouting expedition. It’s confusing that on the one hand I don’t want to go through yet another political plotline with gaggles of nobles angling for the throne, yet I also find it disconcerting how Elayne dictates the simplicity with which she’ll take the throne, moving Mat’s band where it needs to go, and using her new cannons.

Galad enters and reveals Morgase. Mother and daughter happily reunite. Any awkwardness in the dialogue is excused by drawing attention to it through Birgitte’s comment: “It’s good to see you two acting like mother and child, or at least woman and woman, rather than staring at each other like two posts.” Attention is drawn to the next conflict, resolving Perrin’s rebellion in the Two Rivers.

Aviendha contemplates Rhuidean, the future of the Aiel, and both her and her people’s relationship with Rand. The offhand way in which she reflects on Nakomi’s words before reaching the exact same conclusions on her own reinforces that Nakomi was no one special, just a scene added to make Aviendha’s reflections on these matters seem more believable to readers.

Since the end of Knife of Dreams, there has been no sight of Mazrim Taim or the Black Tower. Even Logain made only a short appearance. The point of view showing readers the current state of affairs belongs to Androl, the weakest of the Dedicated, remarkable only for his talent with Gateways. Immediately, it is assumed Androl will play the role of kingmaker, predictably demonstrating that men can make a difference in many ways, even when they appear weak. Despite being a regular and standard plot device to evoke sympathy, it rarely fails, because the character is usually wise on some way. Androl is perceptive, and recognizes the value of waiting for the right time before taking action. Cementing sympathy is often done by showing the character being bullied, which in this case also illustrates that the head bully is so highly ranked, all the bullying is delegated to his acolytes. Any one who joins Taim’s faction gets promoted above those he left, while those who won’t join, languish.

None of Taim’s acolytes have Aes Sedai bonded, which is unsurprising when you consider that men and women working with the One Power together is even more fulfilling than using either half on its own. Bonding is deep and profound sharing, and has been suggested as a key element of how Rand can defeat the Dark One, while strife between the sexes has always been a goal of the Dark One.

Androl’s visions of shadows creeping toward him remind readers that the male channelers who began their training before the cleansing of saidin are still afflicted with madness. This is representative of all who have trained at the Black Tower under Taim, and lingering madness and distrust can still undermine the fragile alliances being built. Building an alliance with Taim’s men looks next to impossible, even if Taim were to be removed.

Writing Lessons:

Draw attention to a weakness in the story to make it appear intentional.

Towers of Midnight - Chapters 23-25

In this section, the Heroes make a stand.

Elayne takes on the Black Ajah in the cells. Disguised as a Forsaken, her trickery fails and only her combined preparation and some good luck save her from disaster. She finally learns that her overconfidence in Min’s Viewings does not mean that bad things won’t happen to her. She learns of a plot to invade Caemlyn, but so far as readers know, all the known ways for Shadowspawn to enter the city are guarded. The Black seemed convinced the invasion would succeed, and revealed that a particular date for it has been set. Knowing of no other special day coming up, readers may guess that the invasion will be timed to distract Rand.

Any other nation could have been invaded, but Andor has been the center of the civilized world since the beginning of the series. It doesn’t have a queen, it has The Queen. It is the oldest nation, and the one held in highest regard. Its white walls and national colours match Rand’s long-standing red and gold motif. And ever since Elayne vied for the crown, it has symbolized the Light itself, and now she also represents the Light in some instances. The same is true of Egwene as Amyrlin Seat, and several other characters who have achieved some rank.

Egwene reminds Gawyn yet again that he needs to trust her judgment. Gawyn says no one can meet her standards. The situation forces both of them to weigh the importance of their love versus their station in life. Searching for answers to the dilemma, Gawyn returns to Andor.

Lan gets some supplies and even more followers.

A typical description in The Wheel of Time tells the reader as much about the situation as the setting. In this paragraph, the stream, trees, and needles add nothing to the plot or actions, but they add a lot to the context and the feelings imparted upon the reader.

The aged Nazar looked up from his saddlebags, leather hadori holding down his powdery white hair. A small stream gurgled near their camp in the middle of a forest of highland pines. Those pines shouldn’t have borne half so many brown needles.

The hadori representing duty holds down the hair which represents Nazar’s old age and possible infirmities. The sentence as a whole tells readers that duty not only motivates the old baker Nazar to overcome personal obstacles, but is strong enough to hold down any misgivings or frailty.  The gurgling stream sounds enthusiastic, even though it is miniscule compared to the forest of impressive trees, which represent Lan’s other followers. The brown needles they bear tell readers these men not as ready for war as they should be for Malkieri. While these are identifiably trees (or soldiers), they lack proper health, and are not as fit as they should be.

Elayne is the latest character reminding readers that the Last Battle is coming soon. Even blunt hints add to the mounting interest in this event.

Mat talks to Elayne about the Gholam, and then the scene cuts away to another character. This brief introduction of a topic is designed to wrench the reader’s interest where the author dictates. The author then teases the reader by immediately dropping the subject. This is the shortest such instance, but Mat’s earlier introspection about the gholam acted in the same fashion, forcing the reader to wonder how Mat will prevail. The author is playing this like a mystery, waiting until the last possible moment to reveal Mat’s strategy.

Facing a siege, Ituralde decides to stay in Maradon and buy time for Rand to arrive with reinforcements. The mystery in this case is whether Rand will arrive in time. The author is coy with this as well, showing Rand dallying elsewhere while men die in the Borderlands.

Perrin learns his character, not some unwritten rules of Tel’aran’rhiod, is the cause of Hopper’s worry about him being there too strongly. Perrin’s single-mindedness is a danger to himself in a realm where force of will and imagination can shape reality. Beyond the obvious hazard of leaping before he looks, there are hints that battle in Tel’aran’rhiod is about thinking at a higher level than your opponent. Slayer effectively does this to Perrin, changing the rules to move from physical combat to making Perrin combat his environment.

Perrin’s training is the first detailed use of strategy in Tel’aran’rhiod, despite the fact that many important battle shave taken place there. I am once again left with the strong perception that the author wanted to show readers the importance of Tel’aran’rhiod to the story and its themes early on, then distracted attention from it by simply not showing it over several books. Now that the Last Battle is imminent, it is time to not only bring it back, but to explain the ground rules authoritatively so that readers can follow the battles in A Memory of Light.

Rand returns to Bandar Eban, and reveals that through a ta’veren twist, the only bad food in all the stores was in the bags that had been opened when he was in a foul mood. Now that he has found balance, he confidently predicts the rest of the food is edible. As in Tel’aran’rhiod, thought and mood affect the reality of the situation.

Writing Lessons:

Use your descriptions to also tell readers about something else in the story.

Towers of Midnight - Chapters 10-14

In this section, the past catches up to the heroes.

Perrin learns the taint has been cleansed from saidin. He could have learned this at any time over the last few weeks, but he learns it now, because it reflects his current situation. Cleansing the taint is a metaphor for wiping the slate clean, casting off past sins. It is relevant because Perrin’s sin of killing other men is coming back to haunt him.

Neald is making circles with Wise Ones, and he is the first to explain that he can use saidar to strengthen his weaves of saidin. He feels more complete, as he feels saidar, and can increase the Power and size of his weaves. The sensations are reflected back to the women, who have disparate feelings about what they sense.

Perrin opts to keep Grady away from the Black Tower for rational and practical reasons, but it reminds readers that the Black Tower hasn’t been seen in a long time, since Pevara arrived and an ominous revelation had just taken place.

Galad decides to fight Perrin now so he won’t have to face him at the Last Battle, mirroring Rand’s decision to break the seals.

Elayne’s council expresses vastly different advice regarding her political prisoners. Birgitte is all practicality and hardness, while Dyelin thinks this is the moment when releasing the captives will earn Elayne the most credit. Birgitte is emotion, Dyelin is reason. Elayne decides this is an opportune time to claim Cairhien.

Mat’s letter to Elayne, with its spelling mistakes, is funny. It once again feels out of place with what has come before due to modern touches like the postscripts, but succeeds because it defies expectations. Mat never writes, foiling one expectation and providing a surprise. Postscripts don’t belong in this world, so Mat uses three of them. Mat is a trickster and it is always correct to write him defying expectations. Thom is laffing so hard at me that I want to be done.

Min gives only readers the only insight into Rand’s head since he descended from Dragonmount. Rand’s earlier behaviour with Egwene and Almen Bunt revealed a changed man, but it is Min’s insight that gives part of the reason.

Alanna vanished, leaving no clue where she is going. The likeliest explanation involves no abduction, simply a decision to leave and accomplish something. Rand could have contacted her and set her a task, weaving a Gateway that she could use without others detecting it. The change in Rand’s behaviour is the only impetus she likely received to make her do anything at all.

Cadsuane declares that Alanna, and by extension everyone, is a tool. This is an odd statement for her to make publicly, but is nonetheless consistent with her focus on Rand. Rand asks her to find someone who is missing in the Caralain Grass, someone who has been abducted by well-meaning allies in the White Tower. Assuming she succeeds, Cadsuane can then act as a bridge, or mediator between Rand and Egwene.  

Rand has insight into the Last Battle, how it will be fought, what he needs, and what must be done. He is decisive, apologetic, self-assured.  He knows secrets and has new abilities, such as his ability to pick Darkfriends out of a line-up. Somehow he picked up the fact that Mattin Stepaneos is being held in the White Tower, though that could have been learned through a ta’veren effect when he was in Tar Valon. Rand makes amends with the Aiel, Cadsuane, Nynaeve, Tam, everyone he let down previously. If he realized on Dragonmount that every one wants a second chance, he is getting every second chance possible.

“I’m not a weapon. I never have been,” he says. Cadsuane says that “Of all people, you cannot afford to let the pressure of life drive you.” Rand has understood some of what Cadsuane had to teach, but it is unclear whether this is the entirety of it, since the Asha’man haven’t yet learned their part.

Finally, Rand is forgiven by his father, and reclaims his role as a son. At the same time, Tam’s acceptance allows Rand to be a man, an equal, to his father. Nynaeve said that he needed to grow up, but feared the man he became. That judgment has been reversed.

Egwene meets with the Wise Ones, seeking their help with Rand. The two sides are polarizing quickly, setting up the final confrontation long awaited, when the heroes must confront, then accept those who differ from them in fundamental ways.

Egwene sees a strange reflection in Tel’aran’rhiod, a window that doesn’t exist in the real world. Verin’s words are repeated, and her newfound credibility combined with the fact that this is being repeated for the reader’s benefit strikingly points to its importance:  There is a third constant besides the Creator and the Dark One. There is a world that lies within each of these others, inside all of them at the same time. Or perhaps surrounding them Writers in the Age of Legends called it Tel’aran’rhiod.

Egwene tricks Nynaeve by appealing for advice from her past as a Wisdom, then reversing their roles in the next example she presents. It’s startlingly effective and convincing as a technique to make an inflexible character bend. Nynaeve could hold out for months otherwise.

Writing Lessons:

Repetition infers importance. Use repetition to lead or mislead readers.

Knife of Dreams - Summary

A friend said, after skimming this blog, that I appeared to be shredding the author’s work, and wondered if I disliked the books. I can see how anyone looking at the fan sites might take our intense discussion of the minute details as harsh criticism, but we’re only willing to dedicate that much effort in discussing them because we enjoyed the books so thoroughly, and want to extract every last nuance we can. Particularly with a work that is layered like The Wheel of Time, where every passage has meaning, and every plot is inspired by several myths and legends, these discussions can take on many facets, combing over the same ground and finding new jewels to admire.

Knife of Dreams was the last book Robert Jordan wrote in its entirety before his untimely death. His writing had a flavour and depth unlike anything else I’ve found. Which is why I’m spending so much time analyzing it.

After the slow pace of Crossroads of Twilight, Knife of Dreams promises very early on to deliver resolution and action. The author accomplished this by establishing several countdowns early on, intending to dispel any doubts that this book would repeat the letdown of the previous book, which was at least partially due to the wait for its publication.

Beginning here, several plotlines directly mention the Last Battle is imminent, creating tension as readers recognize the heroes are not ready, forcing them to make unexpected concessions. Conflicts involving tens of thousands of Trollocs are handled easily, providing a reference that can be used in future books. A hundred thousand men in a battle is no longer a big deal, not when a dozen channelers can face it down without taking a scratch. Echoes of this are seen in Perrin’s rescue, where tens of thousands are involved once again, yet the victory is so overwhelming that the specific individuals he sought to rescue are unharmed by his assault of the city. Hundreds of Elayne’s best soldiers are disintegrated by just one Aes Sedai with a rod that shoots balefire, proving that warfare has escalated to a level where only the number of channelers matter, armies are inconsequential when facing them.  The unsurprising surprise revelation that the Black Tower is recruiting men to fight for the Dark One instead of the heroes is enough to put true worry in the reader’s heart. Hundreds of evil channelers could unleash even more destruction and death than in any of the conflicts presented in this book. One thing Robert Jordan has succeeded admirably at is to slowly build up towards the final conflict, edging the scale of battles slightly upward with each battle, and each book. The slow build is a distinctive feature of his writing, the reason why some fans think it’s too descriptive, and others keep finding layers of meaning.

The theme of Knife of Dreams leads into the Last Battle very nicely. The Knife of Dreams refers to the razor-thin margin between victory and defeat. In all of the conflicts in the book, small events turned the course of battle, or could have derailed the heroes’ plans. Just as the scale of the conflicts sets the low end of the standard for upcoming conflicts, the margin of victory established will always be close, and will be narrowest in the Last Battle.

Another theme running through the book is a question about how well the characters know each other. Mat and Tuon’s courtship shows them starting off uncertain about each other but growing confident in their understanding of each other. Rand is hopeful he can reach alliance with the strangers from Seanchan, whom he hardly knows at all. Traitors are exposed in Caemlyn without much ado, just a cynical acknowledgement that people lie. And cheat. The sections dealing with Faile and her romance with Rolan clearly state that she has remained faithful to Perrin, yet the descriptive text is a metaphor for her guilt over her situation, and her attempts to conceal secrets that are to widely known. I was sufficiently shocked at this contradiction, I had to go back to Winter’s Heart to reread when Perrin wakes in Berelain’s tent, and found the text could be interpreted as Perrin asking Berelain what alibi she has crafted. Whether either Perrin or Berelain cheated is not the point so much as them questioning whether the other did. In both cases, the text reads as though Perrin and Faile are unreliable narrators, refusing to acknowledge what happened even to themselves. In a preview of what Rand will later go through, the young couple instantly forgive each other anything that happened while they were apart, accepting that despite their love for each other, neither of them is without flaws. Concealing events that are the opposite of what the characters lived through while showing their point of view is an incredible accomplishment.

If you think you know Perrin and Faile well enough to say they never cheated on each other, ask yourself if you knew Robert Jordan’s writing well enough to say he wouldn’t have written such a thing, or conceal it if they did cheat.

Writing Lessons:

Make use of unreliable narrators to defy expectations and conceal key information.

Knife of Dreams - Chapters 35-37 and Epilogue

In this section, Elayne gains a throne and Mat gains a wife

Dyelin throws her support behind Elayne, publishing her proclamation so it cannot be rescinded. Dyelin claims she never had any interest in the throne, and that it should stay in the Trakand family unless there is good reason for it not to. More importantly, she finds Elayne is an excellent ruler, has believed she would be a great ruler since before she went to the White Tower, and praises her in a manner reminiscent of Elayne’s mother Morgase. As the symbolic mother, Dyelin’s praise elevates Elayne to full womanhood, as well as to ruler of Andor.

The remaining High Seats are skeptical and question Elayne, but she explains herself and turns the question back on them. What would they have done differently? Nothing, as it turns out, and they quickly recognize her worth as ruler and throw their support behind her. Ellorien holds out, but promises to come when Andor marches to the Last Battle.

Elsewhere, Karede enters Mat’s camp in pursuit of Tuon, believing that her abductor is Thom Merrilin. Karede’s perceptions of Mat’s followers give a brief and accurate summary of where they stand in their relationships with each other and with regard to the Seanchan. Mat rides up with Tuon, settles a dispute between his Aes Sedai and the damane Mylen, and proves he can’t be touched with the One Power. Karede has a brief spell of confusion as Thom is revealed to follow Lord Mat, who rides up with Tuon and her maid. Karede may not know who Mat is, but now Tuon does, when he finally returns her to the protection of her bodyguard. Mat doesn’t know or trust Karede with her, until she reveals how she followed his career even after he was posted elsewhere. She trusts him, so Mat does as well.

Tuon tells Mat that love is possible, but she is marrying to serve the Empire. She thinks he is lying about his misadventures beyond the redstone doorways, but tells him of her damane’s prophecy, foretelling who she would marry. Mat takes some of her soldiers, while his own men give her a proper send-off. Riding into possible danger, she removes the veil, affirming her identity, and is ready to die as who she is. For his part, Mat has a new identity he has not yet accepted, a nobleman, the Prince of the Ravens.

I have a long-standing theory that Mat is Gaidal Cain, despite the obvious flaws. Tuon’s political view of her marriage added to Mat’s constantly wandering eye makes it plausible, even now, but for Mat’s admission that he may actually be in love with Tuon.

Suroth’s point of view could have been a chapter of its own, or this could have been a chapter from Tuon’s point of view. The amount of time elapsed and the brevity of the section make it appropriate for the epilogue instead. In a show of justice being served, while Tuon claims her new identity, Suroth is stripped of hers.

At the Black Tower, Pevara, and five other Red Ajah meet Mazrim Taim, his first appearance on-page since The Path of Daggers, and claim the right to bond Warders, which he grants. Having Tarna initiate the idea of bonding Asha’man provides a means to get her out of the White Tower and isolate Elaida. A middleman like the Keeper of the Chronicles would have to take Elaida’s side.

Taim’s closing words are a jab at those of us who stuck with the theory that Taim is Demandred. Using a phrase associated with Demandred, even if it was communicated to other Forsaken, will ensure that Demandred comes to mind when someone else utters it. The phrase ‘Lord of Chaos’ is also associated with trickery and deceit, so it is unclear if the author meant to invoke Demandred, or revoke the association. That tag has more than one association.

Writing lessons:

Use a tag associated with one character to bring them to mind when it is applied in another context.