A Knife of Dreams

by Erion

Back to The Real World.

Erion2005-06-21 17:09:24
Well, I find this amusing. Unsurprising to any Martin fan ever to have delt with his lovely publishing dates, it has been pushed back. And, to the overwhelming guffaws of the people in the IT department here, an announcement has been made by TOR and Robert "Dangling Plot Threads" Jordan.

A Knife of Dreams is set to be released on October 11th, 2005, nearly a full month before Martin's. Sad. This is the 11th book (finally). There's at least 3-4 more, if my reckoning is right.






Fair warning to all of you whom have not read the series, please be wary. Spoilers etcetera can, may, and most likely will be released in the following posting(s).









QUOTE
The Wheel of Time turns, and Robert Jordan gives us the eleventh volume of his extraordinary masterwork of fantasy.
The dead are walking, men die impossible deaths, and it seems as though reality itself has become unstable: All are signs of the imminence of Tarmon Gai’don, the Last Battle, when Rand al’Thor, the Dragon Reborn, must confront the Dark One as humanity’s only hope. But Rand dares not fight until he possesses all the surviving seals on the Dark One’s prison and has dealt with the Seanchan, who threaten to overrun all nations this side of the Aryth Ocean and increasingly seem too entrenched to be fought off. But his attempt to make a truce with the Seanchan is shadowed by treachery that may cost him everything. Whatever the price, though, he must have that truce. And he faces other dangers. There are those among the Forsaken who will go to any length to see him dead--and the Black Ajah is at his side....
Unbeknownst to Rand, Perrin has made his own truce with the Seanchan. It is a deal made with the Dark One, in his eyes, but he will do whatever is needed to rescue his wife, Faile, and destroy the Shaido who captured her. Among the Shaido, Faile works to free herself while hiding a secret that might give her her freedom or cause her destruction. And at a town called Malden, the Two Rivers longbow will be matched against Shaido spears.
Fleeing Ebou Dar through Seanchan-controlled Altara with the kidnapped Daughter of the Nine Moons, Mat attempts to court the woman to whom he is half-married, knowing that she will complete that ceremony eventually. But Tuon coolly leads him on a merry chase as he learns that even a gift can have deep significance among the Seanchan Blood and what he thinks he knows of women is not enough to save him. For reasons of her own, which she will not reveal until a time of her choosing, she has pledged not to escape, but Mat still sweats whenever there are Seanchan soldiers near. Then he learns that Tuon herself is in deadly danger from those very soldiers. To get her to safety, he must do what he hates worse than work....
In Caemlyn, Elayne fights to gain the Lion Throne while trying to avert what seems a certain civil war should she win the crown....
In the White Tower, Egwene struggles to undermine the sisters loyal to Elaida from within....
The winds of time have become a storm, and things that everyone believes are fixed in place forever are changing before their eyes. Even the White Tower itself is no longer a place of safety. Now Rand, Perrin and Mat, Egwene and Elayne, Nynaeve and Lan, and even Loial, must ride those storm winds, or the Dark One will triumph."


So, in line with the Feast of Crows thread. This book tops out at 1,000 pages, roughly or evenly, it doesn't say. Comments? Theories?
Unknown2005-06-22 03:58:59
I read the first book, and wasn't terribly impressed (like I've been with A Song of Ice and Fire). Rand just didn't seem like a -hero- to me at all (and it's what he was made to be). There was no moment where he had to make a decision to fulfill his quest, it was just all forced on him - go do this, then this, then this, and ended with a deus ex machina just slightly less contrived than A Sword of Shannara.
Revan2005-06-22 04:15:25
Rand doesn't become a hero until later in the series. It's a really intricate development. And even where it stands now, Rand isn't the typical "hero", per say.
Daganev2005-06-22 04:16:25
Rand doesn't actually become a hero at all untill maybe book 5 if that. He was never my favorite charachter. Its the supporting cast that rocks my boat.


Damn ninja.gif s
Tsuki2005-06-22 04:41:04
I've been disgusted with RJ's lack of ability to make progress combined with the length of time between new books for years now, which was killing the enjoyment I did have in the series. Couldn't even make myself read past the prologue of the last book. When/if-ever he finally finishes, maybe then I'll be more inclined to re-read and finish reading myself. Right now, I've got too many other things to do and read to dangle waiting for WoT. glare.gif

Edit: But hey! My irritation with WoT was good, because that led to my leaving my other RPing places and WoTmud and come here happy.gif I won't complain with that!
Nokraenom2005-06-22 07:55:06
QUOTE(Tsuki @ Jun 21 2005, 10:41 PM)
Edit: But hey! My irritation with WoT was good, because that led to my leaving my other RPing places and WoTmud and come here  happy.gif  I won't complain with that!
142716



Crazy, I used to play there too.
Unknown2005-06-22 08:06:56
Rand isn't really a hero at all. If you get right down to it, he is a bastard and that is what makes it interesting.

I agree though, the supporting characters are the ones I read it for. Perrin and Nynaeve (or however you spell it) mostly.
Revan2005-06-22 08:56:27
I dislike Perrin. He's too... obsessive. Mat, now THERE'S a character worth admiring.
Unknown2005-06-22 08:59:17
Perrin became annoying in the last few books and Mat has become more interesting. Meh. I still think Mat is too one dimensional though, he is just your standard unwilling hero.
Erion2005-06-22 15:40:05
By far, my favourite characters are:

Everyone's favourite transgender, Matt, Faile, Eggy, Nynaeve, and anything Seanchan. ANYTHING. X.X
Sylphas2005-06-22 22:51:06
I love the series, but I'm not quite sure why. Especially when I can read a thousand page book, finish it, and say, "So... nothing actually happened in those 1k pages?".
Xenthos2005-06-22 22:52:28
QUOTE(Sylphas @ Jun 22 2005, 06:51 PM)
I love the series, but I'm not quite sure why.  Especially when I can read a thousand page book, finish it, and say, "So...  nothing actually happened in those 1k pages?".
143186


That sounds exactly like me.

Maybe he put enchantments on the pages that cause you to fall in love with the series... or in the writing itself. Hmm...
Maedhros2005-06-22 23:21:52
I love the series. Except Crossroads of Twilight. God, that book was a billion pages of nothing, but we get awarded with a new plot cliffhanger at the very end of the book. Yay?
Fain2005-06-22 23:28:55
Robert Jordan? Who is that?
Raezon2005-06-23 01:19:56
All I have to say is agiels and red leather...
Xenthos2005-06-23 01:22:15
That series started out great as well, Raezon, but it's been falling apart recently. :/
Nokraenom2005-06-23 02:04:54
QUOTE(Raezon @ Jun 22 2005, 07:19 PM)
All I have to say is agiels and red leather...
143281



All I have to say is: Faith of the Fallen. I didn't realize that Terry Goodkind was so closely related to Senator McCarthy.
Shamarah2005-06-23 14:09:20
Could someone tell me what happened in Crossroads of Twilight, if anything? I read all the other books but I didn't read it because I heard it sucked, so I just want to know so that I can understand A Knife of Dreams if I decide to read it.
Maedhros2005-06-23 16:20:32
Uhh...Mat courts the Daughter of the Nine Moons (was her name Tuon? I forget). They travel around. Woot. = half the book

Perrin hunts for his wife. Stop by random village, random village has ghosts in it (wtf? Not explained at all). = other half of book

At the very end, Rand decides to try to make a truce with the Seanchan. Only time Rand shows up in the book, and only for about 4 pages. And he does nothing except leave another cliffhanger.

That's Crossroads of Twilight in a nutshell. DON'T READ IT.
Shamarah2005-06-23 16:51:53
Sounds stupid. I'll avoid.