I finished reading The Dragon Reborn yesterday, book 3 of The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan. Going by the estimated word count of the first three books of Wot, I’ve read about 821,000 words so far, and this is the first time I’ve actually felt some resolution in the story.
Oh, the story is far from being complete; it’s not that kind of resolution. But there are two reasons that this book jump-starts development:
- Major characters stopped acting like children and started acting like heroes.
- Several important plotlines were resolved.
First off, Perrin finally found his falcon. And he seemed happy about it. I liked the way Jordan had all parties slowly making their way to Tear, all for different reasons. There were also very few scenes from an opponent’s point of view. Overall, it was a well crafted book.
Nynaeve, Egwene and Elayne
Let’s start with Nynaeve, Egwene and Elayne. All three are finally raised to Accepted (Nynaeve was raised in the last book, but didn’t really do anything special). This is when their plotlined really start to take shape. Being Accepted, they don’t have to grovel about and kiss everyone else’s butt. In addition, the Amyrlin gives them the task of hunting down thirteen members the Black Ajah led by Liandrin. This hunt leads them to Tear, and during their journey they actually act like real Aes Sedai rather than a couple of farmgirls and a spoiled princess. These three have been set up as important characters in the series, and now then finally they have come to terms with their future of being Aes Sedai, something especially Nynaeve was uncertain about, and they are using the Power with skill beyond a bunch of newbies. But most importantly, they see themselves capable of taking down Liandrin and the other Black Ajah. So no major plotlines are resolved with these three characters, but at least they are coming into their own.
Mat
Not even halfway through The Eye of the World, Mat was afflicted with a sickness when he took the dagger from Aridohl. Since then he’s been paranoid, whining, lazy or too sick to help out anyone. The few times we saw him in Emonds’s Field he seemed like a little kid with nothing better than mischief to do. But Mat is cleaned, finally, from the disease a few chapters into the book. About time – all his negativity and whining was starting to get annoying. It’s at this point that Jordan does an excellent job of turning the tables. From the minute Mat wakes up after his healing, he’s a different person than he has been in over two books. His negativity takes a humorous tone, and he’s actually got some motivation now. It’s quite a different Mat than we’ve seen before. Mat’s clensing from the dagger is one of the major resolutions Jordan completes in this book. As one of my favorite characters, and I felt like the real Mat finally showed up once that was completed. His scenes were flat enjoyable to read because he’s got a different outlook. I mentioned in an earlier post that I expected his character to change after the trip through a special doorway (no spoiler here), but after reading The Dragon Reborn my memory proved to be wrong.
Rand
Rand had only a few pages of first-person action in this book. In Rand’s mind, the only way he could be rid of his doubts that he is the Dragon Reborn (hence the title) was if he could take Callandor from the Stone of Tear. That idea was put into motion in the first pages of The Great Hunt when Siuan Sanche explicitly told him, and Rand’s obsession with proving that true or not was sell developed by the first few pages of this novel. By bookending with Rand and leaving him out of the middle of the book (minus a few words of Rand’s half-mad rambling and visions), Jordan let our own imaginations take over. It was incredibly effective. Rand’s unseen drive, his speed of travel staying ahead of Moraine and group, and the snippets that we caught of him all added to the image of a crazed Rand.
Callandor
The Dragon Reborn has been announced to the world. Like Mat’s rebirth, this is where the entire series really begins. All the characters are on their respective paths they will follow through the rest of the series. And Rand is the Dragon Reborn, proven to himself and all others by taking Callandor and the Stone of Tear.
Now we can begin preparing for the Last Battle.
Upcoming: The Shadow Rising
Popularity: 45% [?]
