Welcome! After many months of chapter-by-chapter re-read and reaction blogging of Robert Jordan’s The Path of Daggers – the eighth book of The Wheel of Time series – I have made it to yet another end and another beginning in this circle-themed series. You can find my chapter recaps HERE.
Now I will endeavor to review the entire book as a completed project. There will be no spoilers beyond this book in my review. There will be spoilers for *this* book and all of volumes that preceded it, though.
“Who would sup with the mighty must climb the path of daggers.” -Anonymous notation found inked in the margin of a manuscript history (believed to date to the time of Arthur Hawkwing) of the last days of the Tovan Conclaves”
“On the heights all paths are paved with daggers.’ – Old Seanchan saying
The Plot
via tarvalon.net
The four rulers of the Borderlands form a pact for unknown purposes and take a huge army south. Verin uses what she knows of Compulsion on Aes Sedai prisoners to encourage them to swear fealty to Rand. Moridin demonstrates his insanity. Hanlon visits Mili Skane and sees Carridin killed. Mili also has Falion captured, and claims to have another Aes Sedai.
Nynaeve warns one of the Tower embassy about the Black Ajah and Moghedien, but is not taken seriously. The girls leave Ebou Dar with the other Aes Sedai, the Knitting Circle and twenty Windfinders, leaving Mat behind to look for Olver. After moving through the gateway, Aviendha sees Moridin, so she unweaves it. This is something the Aes Sedai, as well as Moridin himself, thought impossible. Elayne, Aviendha, and Nynaeve look for angreal amongst the things found with the Bowl. They are told of Martine Janata, the last Aes Sedai to study ter’angreal, who was burned out twenty five years previously, despite being careful.
The group arrives at the retreat run by the Kin, where the sight of Aes Sedai faces causes panic. Alise manages to calm everyone down. They continue searching through the things found with the Bowl while waiting to see if anyone is strong enough to join the circle. They find three angreal.
The girls, along with the most powerful members of the Kin and the Windfinders, use the Bowl, with the circle led by one of the Windfinders. The Bowl unexpectedly draws saidin. It also causes the Power to behave strangely. The Windfinders try to keep the Bowl and one of the angreal, but Alise puts a stop to it.
The use of the Bowl has exhausted them all, but they have to flee when the Seanchan attack. Elayne makes the gateway to Travel and tries to unweave it as Aviendha did, but fails; the gateway explodes, destroying everything around it. Aviendha and Elayne decide to adopt each other as first-sisters.
Finally in Andor, one of the Kin is revealed as a novice who ran away seventy years previously, and another admits to running away almost three hundred years before. Adeleas and Ispan are both murdered, apparently by someone they trust. Elayne takes the palace and sits in front of the Lion Throne. She meets Dyelin, who says she will support Elayne’s claim to the throne. Elayne amuses her by telling her of her plans for Rand.
Sevanna uses an Oath Rod on Galina to make her swear to obey her, Therava, and the rest of the Wise Ones. The Wise Ones tell Sevanna she is no longer in control of them.
In Ghealdan, Perrin sends Berelain to meet Alliandre. He rescues Morgase and her party, who are traveling under false names. Faile takes them into her service after Morgase learns of Perrin’s connection to the Dragon Reborn. Perrin again encounters Elyas, who advises him on living with a Saldaean.
Berelain returns with Alliandre, who swears fealty to Perrin and grants him all her lands and titles. He tells her she can rule for him as his faithful vassal. Perrin goes to meet Masema and instructs him to gather his people and go meet Rand. Masema is obviously mad. Faile is captured by the Shaido, but Berelain escapes.
Graendal is visited by Moghedien and a girl called Cyndane, who is stronger than Graendal in the Power. They tell her to go see Moridin. They turn off the lights, and, believing it a trap, she drops a web of Compulsion on them. She is forced to free them by Shaidar Haran.
In the Tower, the Aes Sedai deny the possibility that damane could exist. Alviarin continues to use the fiasco of Rand’s kidnapping to make Elaida give bad orders. She makes Elaida accept penance. Mesaana teaches Alviarin Traveling. The Ajahs are barely speaking to one another. Seaine and Pevara use the Oath Rod to force Aes Sedai they believe may have told a lie into obeying them. They discover rebel agents spreading rumors of Logain and the Red Ajah. They are interrupted by a group of Sitters, one from each Ajah. All but one of these swears on the Oath Rod that they are not a Darkfriend. The last, Talene Minly, refuses, thus exposing herself as Black Ajah.
Logain leads a group of Asha’man to capture one of the parties of Aes Sedai who were intending to destroy the Black Tower. He bonds Toveine in something that resembles a Warder bond. One of the other Asha’man states Taim will not be pleased. Logain says he thinks Taim would rather he was dead.
Egwene has a dream. She learns an army of Murandians and Andorans plan to stop rebel Aes Sedai moving through Andor. She arranges to meet them. Lelaine and Romanda both demand that they be given control over negotiations with the nobles. Siuan believes she sees a pattern in the Sitters ages – they are too young. Sheriam is beaten by someone using the Power. Egwene uses the meeting to make public announcements that the Hall cannot overrule, such that women of any age will be allowed to submit their names in the Novice Book and that the rebels’ army is to wait a month where they are. She talks to Talmanes, who says he can feel Mat needing him and he wants to stay. He is going to try and help King Roedran unify the country. Aran’gar kills two of Egwene’s maids. Egwene horrifies Siuan by revealing she wants to free Aes Sedai of the Three Oaths.
Egwene calls a meeting of the Hall and convinces them to declare war on Elaida, which gives her total control over anything involving the war. They wait a month, and then Travel to Tar Valon to begin the siege.
In Cairhien, Sorilea and Cadsuane agree to cooperate with regards to Rand. Sorilea teaches Cadsuane Traveling. Torval tells Rand of deserters and insanity amongst the Asha’man. Narishma is sent to fetch Callandor. Rand takes some Asha’man to fight the Seanchan. Rand is attacked by Illianers. Two of the noblewomen with him appear to be discussing whether or not to kill him.
Suroth has Liandrin as a slave and another Aes Sedai as damane. Rand captures damane and sul’dam. They proceed to a spot outside of Ebou Dar, where saidin is difficult to handle, and damane become ill. Bashere suggests retreat as they are heavily outnumbered by the Seanchan. Rand draws Callandor, but is unable to control it and Bashere is forced to stop him. Adley is killed. Rand and the Seanchan both withdraw.
Rand returns to Cairhien, where Dobraine is in charge. Merana and Rafela reveal the details of the Sea Folk bargain, which is not to Rand’s liking. He calms down when Merana reminds him everything was going in his favor until he left. Three Maidens give Rand a beating. Rand asks Cadsuane to be his advisor in Illian. She demands an apology for his rude behavior. She tells him Callandor is dangerous and should not be used. He gets upset when he learns that Elayne tore his banners down. Sorilea brings five of the prisoner Aes Sedai, Elza, Nesune, Sarene, Beldeine, and Erian, who swear fealty to Rand. Min sees visions around them, including one that they will serve him in their own way, Sorilea included.
He leaves the throne room just before it is destroyed. He sees Dashiva, Gedwyn, and Rochaid in the ruins. They attack him. He survives the attack and they leave. Morr goes mad and Rand is forced to poison him. Rand tells Min that they are leaving.
What I Liked
Elayne and the Escape from the Seanchan
Probably my favorite sequence in this book was early on, as we witness Elayne, Aviendha, Nynaeve, and the rest of their group fleeing from Ebou Dar after the arrival of the Seanchan. Jordan did a great job of setting up the notion of “unweaving” a few chapters earlier, with Aviendha, so it was rewarding to see that pay off soon thereafter when Elayne’s attempt at unweaving goes serendipitously wrong.
The explosion that resulted from the collapse of her Traveling weave was such that it absolutely annihilated everything from the surrounding countryside, on both sides of the Gateway. I enjoyed this scene so much because this was finally a great moment for Elayne. Well, the bad attempt at “unweaving” wasn’t great. However, her immense courage to see it through despite knowing this could easily either kill or still her was great. We rarely get good moments for Elayne in this series and I enjoyed that one.
Further, her understated reaction in the face of her survival was charming.
“Well,” she said aloud, “I did not do as well as you Aviendha, but I suppose it worked out for the best, considering. I will try to do better next time.”
[…]
“I suppose I should have started with something simpler,” Elayne said. “I have a habit of leaping in over my head.”
Birgitte was also a pleasure to read in this scene, being what the kids might call “an absolute unit.”
The other reason I really liked this scene though is that what happened here will confuse and deeply concern the Seanchan. They think the Aes Sedai (who are not willing or able to replicate what Elayne did here) possess an insanely powerful weapon.
Sorilea and Cadsuane Make a Vow
This scene was fantastic. The oldest, strongest willed Wise One has a meeting of the minds with the oldest, strongest willed Aes Sedai. They share a mutual concern for the state of Rand’s mental health. It’s hard to explain why this was so satisfying, but I’ll give it a go. In a series wherein nearly everyone trying to push, pull, or manipulate Rand from the outside, we finally see people displaying the uncommon wisdom of wanting him to be healthy on the inside. Cadsuane tells Sorilea that Rand is making the mistake of confusing hardness of heart for strength. She worries that if he does not remember how to laugh and cry that he won’t be in a safe condition – for himself or the world – to confront the Dark One. Sorilea’s goal is similar. She wants Rand’s heart to love the Aiel people, such that he will lead them properly and not view them as a tool that can be broken and discarded.
This conversation was filled with such great insight from Jordan. A person under stress, who has undergone trauma, might choose to deal with that trauma by hardening him or herself. But that hardening as a coping mechanism is not the same as healing. As a Reader, I’ve been an advocate for how Rand needs someone looking out for him, as a person, for several books now. Min finally arrived to take on that role. He needs more than her, though. This moment was a great sign.
Rand asks Cadsuane to be his Advisor
This scene builds on the one we see above. After Cadsuane finally wins the metaphorical staredown with Rand, and makes him come to her, she agrees to be his advisor, provided he meet the basic condition of holding his temper in check and treating her and her friends with civility. In turn, she promises to be completely in his corner.
Given Rand’s youth and recent trauma, the dynamic reminded me a lot of the relationship between Matt Damon’s Will Hunting and Robin Williams’ Sean in the film Good Will Hunting. We haven’t gotten a scene yet with Rand sobbing into her shoulder, while she consoles him that it’s not his fault… but that seems to be the goal.
The Hunt for the Black Ajah
This sequence of events was led primarily be characters who are mostly new to the readers. Elaida is being blackmailed by Alviarin, so she seeks out Seaine in secret to request she hunt for traitors. Elaida is hoping that the other woman hunts down traitors in the White Tower and that this hunt eventually leads to Alviarin. Seaine interprets this request to be a covert admission from Elaida that the Black Ajah is real and must be found. Seaine seeks out Pevara – the one Sister is she is absolutely certain is not Black. The two of them come up with a plan using the Oath Rod to isolate suspects and force the truth out of them. In this process, they first uncover the nest of spies sent by the Salidar Aes Sedai to undermine Elaida. Then they get caught by a group of Sitters while they are doing their hunt. This leads to the discovery that one of the Sitters in this group is Black Ajah.
I love this plot because it creates a lot of really compelling and tense social dynamics inside the White Tower. These women are on a hunt. They are almost certainly all going to be hunted in return (none of them know one of the Forsaken is also in the Tower.) We also do not get confirmation that Elaida even believed Alviarin is a Darkfriend when she reached out to Seaine – though we as the Reader know that she is. Elaida is not a hero, and is unlikely to be getting a redemption arc, however, these chapters tell us for the first time that the institution of the White Tower itself has a lot of good in it. We’d barely seen any of that before.
All of that felt like a set-up to spend a lot of time in the White Tower in the plot arcs ahead. I’m looking forward to it.
What I Did Not Like
Dashiva Tries to Kill Rand
This was probably the least exciting end-of-book fight in the entire series so far. The character who has been suspicious for a long time finally tries to kill Rand and it fails. He gets away. Rand suffers no real injuries. In fact, this ending was so underwhelming that I decided (whether it’s true or not) that the plot got to large, causing Jordan to essentially cut his book in half. The end of The Path of Daggers felt a lot like something that belonged in the middle of a Wheel of Time book. My guess then is that Book 9 will feel like the missing second half of this book. We’ll see if that proves true.
Mat Took the Book Off
There isn’t much to say about this. When last we saw Mat, a building fell on him in Ebou Dar. The Path of Daggers does not update us on his condition. Mat is probably my favorite character, so his absence was irritating.
Rand’s War with the Seanchan was Underwhelming
This book devoted several chapters to Rand pushing back a Seanchan advance into Illian. He succeeds. The problem is that the whole thing felt kind of pointless. Rand’s forces almost certainly did not achieve a lasting victory. The Seanchan did not reveal any unique military abilities such that they feel like a legitimate long term threat. Their primary danger just seems to be sheer numbers.
Final Thoughts
The Path of Daggers is probably my least favorite book in the series so far. The problem is not that I did not enjoy what I read. The problem is that the book felt as though it ended abruptly and unceremoniously. My suspicion is that I will eventually believe that this book and Winter’s Heart (Book #9) would be better understood as one whole book, published in two parts. Despite feeling truncated, though, the book succeeds very well in casting Rand’s mental health situation in an ominous and foreboding light. Despite Rand’s continued successes, ultimate victory feels farther away than ever. The meeting between Sorilea and Cadsuane lays it out starkly. If Rand does not change course, he and the world might lose, even if he wins. This pronouncement is made all the more effective in the way Rand is presented as mentally erratic and suspicious in his battle with the Seanchan and in his cold and remorseless killing of Morr, with poison, when the man became obviously insane. In any case, I am looking forward to seeing where things go in the next book.
Have you read The Path of Daggers? If so, what did you think?