After I finished to Light a Candle, I had to blitz to finish Dreamfall by Joan D. Vinge. I was so engrossed by it I didn't have a problem. I wisely picked up Psion as well, the prequel to Catspaw and Dreamfall. It at least gave me a better idea of the actual events to Cat's past than what I first discovered when I read Catspaw (which I very much recommend to anyone that lover cyberpunk fantasy or simply hardluck stories).
Very short book, and I have to agree with an amazon.com review of Psion that says "The biggest problem is the overall shallowness, or even triteness, of everthing: theme, plot, and character development." It was meant to be a short story, and it was a lot of ground to cover in so few pages, so I can forgive it even if the author of the review could not. I recommened it in order to more fully flesh out Cat's story.
Catspaw in a nutshell, blows Psion out of the water as it is a full fledged novel. Not for kiddies either as we have adult situations (who am I kidding, this series is for teen+ for language and sensuality) and quite a bit of graphic violence/drug use. I have loved this paperback to death so much I refuse to review it.
Dreamfall makes what in my mind was impossible, reality. That Joan made a sequel to Catspaw that trumped the plot and Cat character to take the house prize. I fully expect to Cat remain cynical and juvenile as ever. I was happily dissapointed to see him grow and expand to fill his character shoes without cliche. I praise Joan for coming up with this original and endearing character for us to suffer with and hope for. Not only that, but to tackle interstellar politics and racism is not the safest material to dance with either. The topics are handled with grace and are included in the story to suspend disbelief and add to the world of the future we look upon. There is no overpowering statement or activism overlaid with the bare bones of story.
As soon as I'm able, I'll add this to my library. A+!
I have Alta waiting for me, and I've just started First Rider's Call.
Almost done with the Essential Uncanny X-Men. I'll complain about my findings in that regard later.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
The Essential X-Men vol 1
I've heard complaints of the fact this is the cheap version of the comics since its on common paper and not colored but I didn't really see it as a serious problem to enjoying the comics. What did bother me is that the essential line runs directly up into the giant sized x-men books that introduce the new team of X-Men that is seventy some odd issues forward in time (granted 30+ of which is reprints).
The only way to get the issues inbetween said reprints and the end of the vol 1 EUX is to pick up the mostly out-of-print Marvel Masterworks series. Did I meantion they only have about ten issues per volume and cost from 20-50 dollars apiece? Vol 5 is out of print/being released in mid-july and can only be found on ebay/preorders. Volume 3 of masterworks begins to pick up where EUX picks off. However, volume 5 stops at #53, leaving out three issues before the start of the Uncanny X-Men (issues 94 +). Which are coincedentally printed in the essential line for at least 3 volumes. Weird publication scheduling, Marvel.
All the formalities aside- I'm glad I started from the beginning, I easily got over the cheese factor that someone of my generation can fall in love with something from the mid-sixties (some of the expressions are nothing less than quaint). Seeing the genesis of the X-Men gives much appreciation for the work that Lee and Kirby put into these ideas. Each comic has a new plot and story arc, and doesn't fall on the villian of the issue syndrome that many comic readers are familiar with.
Highly recommened for all ages! Buy or borrow ASAP!
The only way to get the issues inbetween said reprints and the end of the vol 1 EUX is to pick up the mostly out-of-print Marvel Masterworks series. Did I meantion they only have about ten issues per volume and cost from 20-50 dollars apiece? Vol 5 is out of print/being released in mid-july and can only be found on ebay/preorders. Volume 3 of masterworks begins to pick up where EUX picks off. However, volume 5 stops at #53, leaving out three issues before the start of the Uncanny X-Men (issues 94 +). Which are coincedentally printed in the essential line for at least 3 volumes. Weird publication scheduling, Marvel.
All the formalities aside- I'm glad I started from the beginning, I easily got over the cheese factor that someone of my generation can fall in love with something from the mid-sixties (some of the expressions are nothing less than quaint). Seeing the genesis of the X-Men gives much appreciation for the work that Lee and Kirby put into these ideas. Each comic has a new plot and story arc, and doesn't fall on the villian of the issue syndrome that many comic readers are familiar with.
Highly recommened for all ages! Buy or borrow ASAP!
Wandering Thoughts, Treasure of Books
We went to go get Crown of Swords last night, and I was bummed that the Target didn't have the new Foo Fighters album. I was shocked and delighted-it was probably nine years ago when my mother introduced me to an author, along the bent of Tolkien but different. I got to read one book and couldn't get anymore since it was a small library and not as resourced as it is now. I saw the name, and the title and I got this huge thrill. Ever since I read Riddle-Master, it reminded me of those days and I had been trying for so long to track down the books even though I only barely remembered plot and the vaguest titles.
Dennis L. McKiernan and his Iron Tower trilogy. I got to read Dark Tide, and my bumbling attempts at research turned up RA Salvatore's Crimson Shadow Book - Sword of Bedwyr. I feel mostly happy for tying up a loose end of my childhood that has haunted me for so long. Too stubborn for my own good I Suppose.
I think I only have one other book to track down that was as vague as this one- a children's book heavily illustrated in an ornate style and grotesque as if Tim Burton had rewritten the Little Mermaid. It was facinating, people under the sea, a man taken to the sea king's court for his daughter. Facinating all the details of sea hags, decapitated heads talking, the sort of horrible art that a child can fear and pour over from interest alone. I mistakenly thought it was the Sea King's Daughter- but it wasn't the right story or illustrator.
I was that horrible child that when looking for things in the library when I was small, would describe things by their covoer art. Frustrating. Like the time I was trying to find a particular book again on Grecian Gods and Goddesses, Mythology. Doesn't help Amazon doensn't have pictures for all of its listings. Thank God for BooksAMillion. The MacMillan Book of Greek Gods and Heroes
Which reminds me of this lovely set of Grecian Mythology monsters that the library back home got shortly before I left full of stories, variations, and history.. need to find those. Had art and artifacts. On the Furies and Charybdis and such. ah! found them! Bernard Evslin's Monsters of Mythology. Great stuff for middle schoolers. Good reference too for quick reports when you're stuck with Homer.
Wandering-
Oh I remember this book. I wish Egyptology wouldn't get dulled up by lots of discussion of all the dirt they had to dig up and more about the tombs and their relics.. *sighs* Beauty and the Beast was a favorite... which the TV series needs to be on DVD!! *hint hint* Oh, I had no idea Winter Rose was by McKillip too! I read that long long ago, now I feel odd that I didn't/couln't bring that up to my husband when I didn't know who she was. lol.
I need to get back to my reviews now before I'm hopelessly off track!
Dennis L. McKiernan and his Iron Tower trilogy. I got to read Dark Tide, and my bumbling attempts at research turned up RA Salvatore's Crimson Shadow Book - Sword of Bedwyr. I feel mostly happy for tying up a loose end of my childhood that has haunted me for so long. Too stubborn for my own good I Suppose.
I think I only have one other book to track down that was as vague as this one- a children's book heavily illustrated in an ornate style and grotesque as if Tim Burton had rewritten the Little Mermaid. It was facinating, people under the sea, a man taken to the sea king's court for his daughter. Facinating all the details of sea hags, decapitated heads talking, the sort of horrible art that a child can fear and pour over from interest alone. I mistakenly thought it was the Sea King's Daughter- but it wasn't the right story or illustrator.
I was that horrible child that when looking for things in the library when I was small, would describe things by their covoer art. Frustrating. Like the time I was trying to find a particular book again on Grecian Gods and Goddesses, Mythology. Doesn't help Amazon doensn't have pictures for all of its listings. Thank God for BooksAMillion. The MacMillan Book of Greek Gods and Heroes
Which reminds me of this lovely set of Grecian Mythology monsters that the library back home got shortly before I left full of stories, variations, and history.. need to find those. Had art and artifacts. On the Furies and Charybdis and such. ah! found them! Bernard Evslin's Monsters of Mythology. Great stuff for middle schoolers. Good reference too for quick reports when you're stuck with Homer.
Wandering-
Oh I remember this book. I wish Egyptology wouldn't get dulled up by lots of discussion of all the dirt they had to dig up and more about the tombs and their relics.. *sighs* Beauty and the Beast was a favorite... which the TV series needs to be on DVD!! *hint hint* Oh, I had no idea Winter Rose was by McKillip too! I read that long long ago, now I feel odd that I didn't/couln't bring that up to my husband when I didn't know who she was. lol.
I need to get back to my reviews now before I'm hopelessly off track!
Alta, First Rider's Call, the Quest Begins
I've done it again.
Booklist for this post:
The Quest Begins by Wendy & Richard Pini
Alta by Mercedes Lackey
First Rider's Call by Kristin Britain
First Rider's Call took me until last Thursday- the nineth to get around to finishing. It's rather large continuation of Green Rider, which I am quite fond of. I love a good stand-alone story, and the only thing that gets my goat is when its painfully obvious you are reading a sequel that is leading into another sequel. I lay more blame on Alta in this category than FRC.
FRC was hard to slip into because of the confusing transistions- journal enteries as seperate pages in between chapters. I've never been fond of this kind of foreshadowing and personally think it's a useless crutch to weave into an already enormous story. Luckily, it doesn't give away too terribly much, and it is more of a pet peeve than a legitimate complaint.
I like FRC because it added a lot of history to the world, making it a lot more solid and facinating. I did feel frustrated with the obtuse and heavy emphasis on how Karrigan perceives her personal relationships- for a couple of chapters it seemed that she was backsliding in her character development.
Overall, this is a unique story, and the reader is definitely getting their money's worth in the length and bredth of the pages offerings. For those who picked up Green Rider in paperback the first time, you can probably stand to wait for First Rider to come out in paperback as well. Definitely a good summer read.
Alta..was a good continuation of Joust, but like I stated earlier it ended much too soon and had already dropped hints that there was still more to tell in this too short hardback that continues abruptly into the newest release of Sanctuary. However, Vetch/Kiron shows great character development from the wet-earred dragon boy into a leader of his own dragon wing. He steps up to the challenge of leading boys his own age to set an example for Jousters in Alta- and keeping his newfound friends safe. Alta is not the haven that Kiron dreamed it would be, if not just as corrupt as Tia. I'm not sure if this is a trilogy- but if so, this is definitely the Empire Strikes Back of the books.
I enjoy the Jousters series very much, it is quite different than McCaffrey's Dragonriders and has its own alien flavor.
But I have two major gripes.
First, the heavy emphasis on the 'taking' of magic without the permisson of the weilder. It draws too heavily from Mercedes's Obsidian Trilogy with the humans/elves/etc versus the demons. A tri-magic system that is based on debt of use of the powers granted, either by deed, energy, rite, or life. The demons, of course representing the harsh and unpermissable taking of powers without price to themselves. Only, in Alta, instead of Demons, it is Magi. Poor marks for borrowing against one of her/or James's ideas from a seperate series.
Second, I HATE real world elements being introduced into a fantasy storyline. I'm not saying it can't be done, but it detracts from the storytelling. Patriotism. There is a section near the end of the book to the effect of- anyone who was deemed unpatriotic was regarded with suspicion by the citizens. The offending fellow would then redouble efforts to be 'patriotic' to avoid persecution. Is it too much to hope for an author to not comment on their personal stance on real-wrold events while in a fantasy context? I would understand if this were allegory or satire. But it's Fantasy.
Elfquest. I adore Elfquest. Simply put anyway. The origin of Elfquest was in comic books and then progressed into compliations of graphic novels. Somewhere in the late 90's, the Pinis adapted their beloved story into prose. I can find no fault, and I enjoy the prose versions as well as the comics for the insight that is given into the characters that is sometimes sacrifices for time and space that can be limited in an artistic sense. At least in a media like comics. It doensn't skip a beat or extremely go beyond the storyline that was esstablished over twenty five years ago. So if you already have the graphic novels, there is no real need to go out and grab the prose novels. But it is defnitely for the fans or to someone who likes fantasy but isn't 'into' comics.
Booklist for this post:
The Quest Begins by Wendy & Richard Pini
Alta by Mercedes Lackey
First Rider's Call by Kristin Britain
First Rider's Call took me until last Thursday- the nineth to get around to finishing. It's rather large continuation of Green Rider, which I am quite fond of. I love a good stand-alone story, and the only thing that gets my goat is when its painfully obvious you are reading a sequel that is leading into another sequel. I lay more blame on Alta in this category than FRC.
FRC was hard to slip into because of the confusing transistions- journal enteries as seperate pages in between chapters. I've never been fond of this kind of foreshadowing and personally think it's a useless crutch to weave into an already enormous story. Luckily, it doesn't give away too terribly much, and it is more of a pet peeve than a legitimate complaint.
I like FRC because it added a lot of history to the world, making it a lot more solid and facinating. I did feel frustrated with the obtuse and heavy emphasis on how Karrigan perceives her personal relationships- for a couple of chapters it seemed that she was backsliding in her character development.
Overall, this is a unique story, and the reader is definitely getting their money's worth in the length and bredth of the pages offerings. For those who picked up Green Rider in paperback the first time, you can probably stand to wait for First Rider to come out in paperback as well. Definitely a good summer read.
Alta..was a good continuation of Joust, but like I stated earlier it ended much too soon and had already dropped hints that there was still more to tell in this too short hardback that continues abruptly into the newest release of Sanctuary. However, Vetch/Kiron shows great character development from the wet-earred dragon boy into a leader of his own dragon wing. He steps up to the challenge of leading boys his own age to set an example for Jousters in Alta- and keeping his newfound friends safe. Alta is not the haven that Kiron dreamed it would be, if not just as corrupt as Tia. I'm not sure if this is a trilogy- but if so, this is definitely the Empire Strikes Back of the books.
I enjoy the Jousters series very much, it is quite different than McCaffrey's Dragonriders and has its own alien flavor.
But I have two major gripes.
First, the heavy emphasis on the 'taking' of magic without the permisson of the weilder. It draws too heavily from Mercedes's Obsidian Trilogy with the humans/elves/etc versus the demons. A tri-magic system that is based on debt of use of the powers granted, either by deed, energy, rite, or life. The demons, of course representing the harsh and unpermissable taking of powers without price to themselves. Only, in Alta, instead of Demons, it is Magi. Poor marks for borrowing against one of her/or James's ideas from a seperate series.
Second, I HATE real world elements being introduced into a fantasy storyline. I'm not saying it can't be done, but it detracts from the storytelling. Patriotism. There is a section near the end of the book to the effect of- anyone who was deemed unpatriotic was regarded with suspicion by the citizens. The offending fellow would then redouble efforts to be 'patriotic' to avoid persecution. Is it too much to hope for an author to not comment on their personal stance on real-wrold events while in a fantasy context? I would understand if this were allegory or satire. But it's Fantasy.
Elfquest. I adore Elfquest. Simply put anyway. The origin of Elfquest was in comic books and then progressed into compliations of graphic novels. Somewhere in the late 90's, the Pinis adapted their beloved story into prose. I can find no fault, and I enjoy the prose versions as well as the comics for the insight that is given into the characters that is sometimes sacrifices for time and space that can be limited in an artistic sense. At least in a media like comics. It doensn't skip a beat or extremely go beyond the storyline that was esstablished over twenty five years ago. So if you already have the graphic novels, there is no real need to go out and grab the prose novels. But it is defnitely for the fans or to someone who likes fantasy but isn't 'into' comics.
Elfquest: Bedtime Stories
Finished: Elfquest Bedtime Stories-
Short and Sweet: Relates to my treatment I'll give the book and the sentiment I feel about it. Fits in between the Journey to Sorrow's End and Quest Begins Storylines. Various remakes of traditional fairy tales to the Elquest world. Cute, and little kids should love it. I'm glad I picked it up at the library and didn't pick it up all the years I was thinking of it though. The art was done by other artists than Wendi... which means it doesn't have the particular glow and care that she gives the characters. It was more along the lines of asking someone who has been drawing anime for the past four years to please do a filler for Family Circle.
Short and Sweet: Relates to my treatment I'll give the book and the sentiment I feel about it. Fits in between the Journey to Sorrow's End and Quest Begins Storylines. Various remakes of traditional fairy tales to the Elquest world. Cute, and little kids should love it. I'm glad I picked it up at the library and didn't pick it up all the years I was thinking of it though. The art was done by other artists than Wendi... which means it doesn't have the particular glow and care that she gives the characters. It was more along the lines of asking someone who has been drawing anime for the past four years to please do a filler for Family Circle.
Book of Greek Gods
The Simon & Schuster book of Greek Gods and Heroes by Alice Low
Ages 8-12
I had contributed to the Houston County library's copy of this book being as careworn at present than can be believed. There was a particular classmate of mine that I would fight over the temporary possesion of said book. When its all said and done, this book is abbreviated in the more classical aspects of things like Bullfinch's Mythologies but well suited to the age range.
The watercolor illustrations are imaginative and add to the fantastic myths in the telling. In many ways concepts are aided with the art- such as with the Lotus eaters and the gorgon.
Some of my sources were lacking in freshman high school and I was able to find more fact in this book in a few circumstances. Some children might be sensitive to the violence that mythology often has (non-marital sex, revenge killing, maiming, etc.) but the book presents it in as pastel yet frank truth as mythology can be told.
Ages 8-12
I had contributed to the Houston County library's copy of this book being as careworn at present than can be believed. There was a particular classmate of mine that I would fight over the temporary possesion of said book. When its all said and done, this book is abbreviated in the more classical aspects of things like Bullfinch's Mythologies but well suited to the age range.
The watercolor illustrations are imaginative and add to the fantastic myths in the telling. In many ways concepts are aided with the art- such as with the Lotus eaters and the gorgon.
Some of my sources were lacking in freshman high school and I was able to find more fact in this book in a few circumstances. Some children might be sensitive to the violence that mythology often has (non-marital sex, revenge killing, maiming, etc.) but the book presents it in as pastel yet frank truth as mythology can be told.
The Shadow Rising
I finally finished the Shadow Rising today. Sorry it took so long. Since this is book four, be warned that this short review will contain some elements and outright spoiling. Sorry, but this far into the series, it is unavoidable. You should be reading where you left off instead of reading a review ahead.
This book should be the one more appropriately the Dragon Reborn. Rand has journeyed to his mostly unknown Aiel birthfolk with Moiraine, Lan, Mat, Egwene, Rhuarc, and Aviendha, etc from Tear. He has truly stopped questioning the forces pulling him into a destiny that he neither dreamed or desired from his home in the Two Rivers and is determindly seeking out the prophecies detailing his weave in the Pattern. This means confronting all the strange customs of the Aiel.
Egwene is determined to learn of dreamwalking from the Aiel Wise Ones to better catch more Black Ajah. Mat simply cannot break away from Rand no matter how much he gripes and follows him even into the depths of the Aiel sacred place, Rhuidean. He comes out half-alive after a second brush with a ter'angreal of a red twisted doorway, and deeper in touch with an evident past life. Moiraine also adventures into Rhuidean, as does Aviendha- but we know nothing of their experiences, except that it is traditional for Wise Ones to make the trip.
Perrin, Faile, Gaul, Chiad, Bain, and Loial have broken away from the ta'varen binding them to Rand to journey through the Ways to the Two Rivers at reports of the Whitecloaks besetting the town. They arrived to keep the Whitecloaks from burning down Edmond's Field they thought, instead finding the Aybara family razed and burned- by Trollocs. The rest of the Two Rivers is beset by a dark horde of Trollocs and Myrdryaal as well as Whitecloaks, and it appears that Edmond's Field is relying on the famed heroism of their own Perrin to guide them through the forces seeking to destroy them utterly. Faile is as stubborn as ever, equally as determined to set Perrin straight and protect him- as much from her strangling him as the Whitecloaks eager to hang him. They meet up with the Aes Sedai Verin and Alanna, who were hunting more girls in the area who could channel, sine the Manethern area was so thick with the ability and old bloods.
Elayne, Nynaeve, Thom, and the thief-catcher Juilin Sandar have purchased passage on a ship to Tanchico in hot pursuit of the Black Ajah that stole ter'angreal from the White Tower. They befriend the crew of the Wavedancer and its channeling Windfinder, Jorin. Apparently the Aiel are not the onlt ones with impressive prphecies of the Dragon, the Sea Folk call him Coramoor and waive all fees to the band to take them at all speed. They make the voyage in record time with assisting Jorin to call winds to push themselves along. Local rioting and government upheaval looks to make their task of intercepting the ter'angreal difficult. They run into Bayle Domon, who aides them in their search.
Min is back in the White Tower of Tar Valon, having borne her message to the Amyrlin Seat, is cooling her heels semi-against her wishes. The Amyrlin's excuse, to keep her close in the uncertain times and observe her semi-prophetic visions. It does nothing to prevent the breaking of the Tower, save that Min saves Siuan and Luane picking up Logain on the way. Tar Valon is in chaos and the Blue Ajah almost assuredly wiped out. The world is unaware.
I do agree with my husband in this, Jordan has a way with domineering women roles. I feel that Egwene and Faile are examples of this to the extreme. Where have all the brainless and loafing fluffheads gone? Apparently still here in the real world. I feel they do far exceed their boundaries many times, but luckily they have the men that they try to bend to their will that ignore them. There is some justice to this I suppose.
The book covers all grounds fairly, and no one character is shorted. This is a very key book and describes absolutely fabulous conflicts and new areas. I will have to go back over a couple of chapters simply to absorb all the details of some of the Aiel towns. I had to hold in a laugh at Jordan describing corn and tomatoes with awkward mispelling and word jumbles. Such as Maize being Zaime and tomato as oomato. Or something like that. I refuse to comb through the book more than to get names and places spelled right. There is definitely a lot more enjoyment in the book now that Rand, Perrin, and Mat are more set to move the world as best they can rather than digging their heels in.
In short, we jump from everyone in the Stone of Tear, to going to the Waste, Tanchico, Tar Valon, Two Rivers, and the waters and roads in between. Its a huge book and easy to get lost. If you don't remember what happened for everyone to end up in Tear to begin with, do yourself a favor and reread Reborn. A great read, I'm off into Fires of Heaven now.
This book should be the one more appropriately the Dragon Reborn. Rand has journeyed to his mostly unknown Aiel birthfolk with Moiraine, Lan, Mat, Egwene, Rhuarc, and Aviendha, etc from Tear. He has truly stopped questioning the forces pulling him into a destiny that he neither dreamed or desired from his home in the Two Rivers and is determindly seeking out the prophecies detailing his weave in the Pattern. This means confronting all the strange customs of the Aiel.
Egwene is determined to learn of dreamwalking from the Aiel Wise Ones to better catch more Black Ajah. Mat simply cannot break away from Rand no matter how much he gripes and follows him even into the depths of the Aiel sacred place, Rhuidean. He comes out half-alive after a second brush with a ter'angreal of a red twisted doorway, and deeper in touch with an evident past life. Moiraine also adventures into Rhuidean, as does Aviendha- but we know nothing of their experiences, except that it is traditional for Wise Ones to make the trip.
Perrin, Faile, Gaul, Chiad, Bain, and Loial have broken away from the ta'varen binding them to Rand to journey through the Ways to the Two Rivers at reports of the Whitecloaks besetting the town. They arrived to keep the Whitecloaks from burning down Edmond's Field they thought, instead finding the Aybara family razed and burned- by Trollocs. The rest of the Two Rivers is beset by a dark horde of Trollocs and Myrdryaal as well as Whitecloaks, and it appears that Edmond's Field is relying on the famed heroism of their own Perrin to guide them through the forces seeking to destroy them utterly. Faile is as stubborn as ever, equally as determined to set Perrin straight and protect him- as much from her strangling him as the Whitecloaks eager to hang him. They meet up with the Aes Sedai Verin and Alanna, who were hunting more girls in the area who could channel, sine the Manethern area was so thick with the ability and old bloods.
Elayne, Nynaeve, Thom, and the thief-catcher Juilin Sandar have purchased passage on a ship to Tanchico in hot pursuit of the Black Ajah that stole ter'angreal from the White Tower. They befriend the crew of the Wavedancer and its channeling Windfinder, Jorin. Apparently the Aiel are not the onlt ones with impressive prphecies of the Dragon, the Sea Folk call him Coramoor and waive all fees to the band to take them at all speed. They make the voyage in record time with assisting Jorin to call winds to push themselves along. Local rioting and government upheaval looks to make their task of intercepting the ter'angreal difficult. They run into Bayle Domon, who aides them in their search.
Min is back in the White Tower of Tar Valon, having borne her message to the Amyrlin Seat, is cooling her heels semi-against her wishes. The Amyrlin's excuse, to keep her close in the uncertain times and observe her semi-prophetic visions. It does nothing to prevent the breaking of the Tower, save that Min saves Siuan and Luane picking up Logain on the way. Tar Valon is in chaos and the Blue Ajah almost assuredly wiped out. The world is unaware.
I do agree with my husband in this, Jordan has a way with domineering women roles. I feel that Egwene and Faile are examples of this to the extreme. Where have all the brainless and loafing fluffheads gone? Apparently still here in the real world. I feel they do far exceed their boundaries many times, but luckily they have the men that they try to bend to their will that ignore them. There is some justice to this I suppose.
The book covers all grounds fairly, and no one character is shorted. This is a very key book and describes absolutely fabulous conflicts and new areas. I will have to go back over a couple of chapters simply to absorb all the details of some of the Aiel towns. I had to hold in a laugh at Jordan describing corn and tomatoes with awkward mispelling and word jumbles. Such as Maize being Zaime and tomato as oomato. Or something like that. I refuse to comb through the book more than to get names and places spelled right. There is definitely a lot more enjoyment in the book now that Rand, Perrin, and Mat are more set to move the world as best they can rather than digging their heels in.
In short, we jump from everyone in the Stone of Tear, to going to the Waste, Tanchico, Tar Valon, Two Rivers, and the waters and roads in between. Its a huge book and easy to get lost. If you don't remember what happened for everyone to end up in Tear to begin with, do yourself a favor and reread Reborn. A great read, I'm off into Fires of Heaven now.
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