Welcome back to my re-read, recap, and reaction to Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series. This post will only have spoilers through the current chapter.
You can find my previous chapter recaps HERE.
Chapter 30: Beginnings
NOTE: The following chapter summary comes from wot.fandom.com
Point of view: Perrin Aybara
Perrin and a group from his camp are heading to Abila to meet with the Prophet of the Lord Dragon, Masema. Following advice from Elyas, Perrin is getting along better with Faile. The men guarding the bridge into town let Perrin’s party pass without comment. Balwer goes off to gather information while the rest head to the meeting. When Perrin enters the room with Masema, his scent is of madness. Perrin tells Masema that he has come with a message from the Lord Dragon, that Rand has summoned him to Cairhien. Perrin initially wants to take Masema via Traveling, but Masema convinces him to let them ride instead.
Point of view: Faile Bashere
Faile is hawking with Alliandre while Maighdin serves as her maid. Faile is glad that Perrin will shout back at her when she is upset. She doesn’t like feeling that Perrin thinks she is too weak. Three of her retainers come in to the camp saying that Masema is working with the Seanchan. Then they are surrounded by Aiel using bows to attack the soldiers. Faile yells for her retainers, as well as the other women on horses to ride like fire to tell Perrin about the Seanchan. Faile draws a knife but her horse is shot and an Aiel captures her after a tussle. She is stripped naked and sees that Bain and Chiad have also been captured. The captors say that Sevanna wants more gai’shain even though only Aiel should be considered gai’shain. Alliandre and Maighdin are then dragged over naked as well. It appears that Berelain is the only one to escape the attack.
Point of view: Egwene al’Vere
Egwene is riding and listening to Chesa grumble about the other two maids running away. She is thinking about the novices’ increased numbers; with the novice book being open for a month they have received a flood of women and girls who want to be Aes Sedai. The girls from the Two Rivers arrived a couple of days ago and are having a hard time showing respect to the Amyrlin. They now have almost a thousand novices, which is double what they had before.
Romanda and Lelaine open their mouths to talk to her, but Egwene puts them off by commanding a gateway to be made. Romanda sniffs but thirteen Aes Sedai linked together make a gateway near to Tar Valon. Men stream through and soon after Sheriam says “It is begun.”
Egwene rides through feeling like she can see the white walls of Tar Valon.
Chapter 31: After
Point of view: Narrator
Many rumors criss-cross the land, even in winter. Many are completely wrong while some that are close to the truth are the least believed.
REACTION:
I don’t really know why we needed a chapter break for Chapter 31. This feels like it could have been a POV change / epilogue paragraph at the end of Chapter 30. Jordan has done his book endings that way before. Maybe he didn’t want to end a book on a chapter called “Beginnings.” I guess the unnecessary chapter break doesn’t mater other than the awkwardness of my needing to combine them in the heading.
My first quick reaction to the end of this book is to maintain the opinion I expressed at the end of Chapter 29. This ending feels very much like Jordan was told by an editor or publisher that his manuscript was too long, so he chopped his story in half and made the first half into its own standalone book. Or maybe writing all of this was taking too long so Jordan made the executive decision to push this out as it was. We end here on the first real cliffhanger in the series and the in-book plots don’t feel complete or resolved in any way. That’s not necessarily a bad thing in a long series but given that this is very unusual for The Wheel of Time… I think real life considerations must have played into how the book was published.
Setting that aside:
Perrin finally meets with Masema. We as the Readers knew from Nyn’s earlier meeting with him back in book #5 that he was insane, but Perrin’s nose is the official confirmation of his insanity. The wolf nose is always correct. It’s fair to wonder how this insanity happened. He was grouchy and unpleasant when we leave him in The Dragon Reborn. When we see him again in The Fires of Heaven, he’s completely insane. He’s willing to camp with and take orders from Moiraine when she sends their group to Ghealdan. He was even there when the wolves showed up and fought with them against the Shadowspawn attack. Now he thinks all Aes Sedai are an abomination and he is suspicious of Perrin’s eyes. EITHER… he became unhinged on his own, OR one of the Forsaken unhinged him. I’d bet on the latter. The trouble is that I don’t think we’ve been given any hints about that yet. Usually Jordan gives us hints.
Should Perrin and his group have killed or kidnapped Masema? That seems to be the thing for which everyone with him has advocated. I understand his reluctance, particularly given Perrin’s and Masema’s prior history… but what does Perrin think he’s going to do with a madman? Perrin has ordered executions before. Masema’s actions certainly warrant that order. I mean… the channelers could have silently killed him and made the body vanish using the One Power and nobody outside would have even known.
We’ll see. Maybe Perrin’s refusal to kill Masema will be like Frodo’s pity for Gollum.
Sidenote re: Perrrin’s POV section. He apparently listened to Elyas and more or less resolved his multi-book marital issues with Faile. All he needed was someone to explain Saldaeans to him. It’s probably worth remembering that Perrin is in his very early 20s and has had zero male mentorship for the most part over the last few years. He’s also very unworldly. But of course the minute we finally solve an irritating-to-read relationship arc, another one emerges.
It was only a matter of time, because of the proximity and Perrin’s lack of belief in the Aiel rumors throughout the region, but the Shaido finally strike Perin’s group. Faile, Morgase (Maighdin), and Alliandre are all taken captive after being cut out of their clothes like animals being skinned first. The only one of the lady rulers who escapes is Berelaine. Well, we think she escaped. The plot kid of demands that she escaped. However, we don’t get confirmation. Does it make sense that the rulers of the Two Rivers, Ghealdan, and Mayene could all be out “hawking” and alone enough to be successfully set upon by a relatively small company of Aiel? I want to say no, but it’s not like they weren’t guarded. They also weren’t far from the army. They were just not guarded enough for an Aiel raid. The threats they knew about wouldn’t have sneaked up on them.
I can’t help but think of the following whenever I hear about anyone “hawking.”
The cool (as opposed to comedic) version of this type of thing exists, though. If you’ve never seen the Auburn War Eagle, I highly encourage watching this video. It’s one of the most awesome bird spectacles in American sports:
A team named the Tigers also having a War Eagle that flies around its stadium is probably the most American thing there is.
Back to the book review. The big reveal here – just before the capture – is that Masema and the Seanchan have been having secret meetings. Faile is desperate to get that information to Perrin. We have to assume or hope that Berelain succeeds in escaping. Then I guess we get to find out in the next book how Perrin will rescue his wife.
FNALLY…
Eggy makes her move on Tar Valon. She’s now got more novices under her watch by far than Elaida. Is it significant that she gathered in the Two Rivers girls *right* before they left for Tar Valon? Maybe. If so, maybe we’ll find out why. It’s very interesting, too, that she gathered in a grandma novice who is more powerful than Nynaeve. We should always be suspicious when we meet these type of people and Egwene doesn’t seem to give it any thought at all. Jordan doesn’t give the Readers a reason to worry, though.
The super-strong novice, Sharina, is described as being very old when she first learns to channel. One wonders whether that will have a big impact on extending her lifespan. Most channelers live for multiple centuries. But do you still get that lifespan extension if you don’t learn to channel until you are already very old? I guess we’ll find out. Or maybe we won’t.
Egwene has a massive army, led by one of the greatest generals alive. She has Traveling while Elaida does not. She has more channelers in her group than there are in the White Tower. Here’s the problem, though. Why is she not sending her army directly into the city and White Tower itself? She’s giving away a HUGE advantage by giving Elaida any kind of warning at all. I guess that’s a problem and an explanation for Book #9. I’m just issuing my concern now that this plan doesn’t make sense.
And that’s the end of the book. I’ll do a whole book review before starting up Winter’s Heart (Book #9). I appreciate everyone making the journey with me.