This
review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained
therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to
copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions.
Crossposted at WordPress, Blogspot & Librarything by Bookstooge’s
Exalted Permission
Title: New Spring
Series: The Wheel of Time #0
Author: Robert Jordan
Rating: 5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Fantasy
Pages: 336
Words: 122.5K
Series: The Wheel of Time #0
Author: Robert Jordan
Rating: 5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Fantasy
Pages: 336
Words: 122.5K
|
Synopsis:
|
From Tarvalon.net &
authored by Kyria d'Oreyn
Lan's
point of view
The
Aiel War is over and Lan rides north to the Blight with Bukama. In
Canluum, Kandor, they meet Ryne, an old friend. He informs them that
Edeyn Arrel, Lan's carneira, intends to raise the banner of the
Golden Crane of Malkier. Together they ride to Chachin, noticing
someone following them. It turns out to be a woman, (Moiraine), who
claims the right of a woman alone, and gives them the name of Lady
Alys. Bukama pledges to escort her to Chachin. Lan doubts that this
woman is who she claims she is. He believes that Edeyn sent her.
Once
in Chachin, their ways part and the three men ride on to the
Aesdaishar Palace, where Lan is received by Brys, Prince-Consort to
Queen Ethenielle of Kandor. A few days later, Lady Alys appears again
and wants Lan to spy on Merean Redhill, an Aes Sedai staying at the
Palace. When he and Moiraine/Alys uncover a plot of Merean's that
involves killing Brys, his son Diryk and Edeyn's daughter, Iselle,
they rush to save the three innocent victims. Lan confronts and
defeats Ryne in a duel. The next day, he rides out of the city.
Moiraine rides up to him and asks him to be her Warder.
Moiraine's
point of view
In
their time as Accepted, Moiraine and Siuan are present when Gitara
Moroso speaks her Foretelling of the Dragon's rebirth. Later, Tamra
Ospenya, the Amyrlin Seat, decides to give out a bounty of one
hundred gold marks to every woman who bore a child in the camps
around Tar Valon during the last week of the Aiel War. This is
actually a plan to find out who the Dragon Reborn might be. At first,
Moiraine and Siuan ride out with the other Accepted to record names
for the bounty, but the following day they are instead told to
re-copy some of the less legible lists. This gives them the
opportunity to create their own list, of babies that meet the
description of the soon-to-be-Dragon. Moiraine is told by Tamra to
take a letter to Kerene Nagashi, asking her to appear before the
Amyrlin. Other sisters receive letters as well, which leads the young
women to think that Tamra wants to send out searchers for the
boychild. One after the other, those sisters leave Tar Valon, and one
morning Tamra is announced dead.
After
she and Siuan are raised to Aes Sedai, Moiraine leaves Tar Valon to
search for the boychild herself. In Canluum, she meets Merean and
Cadsuane. Siuan is also there, having left the Tower to tell Moiraine
that Tamra's searchers are all dead, possibly killed by the Black
Ajah. Moiraine avoids Cadsuane, and after leaving Canluum, she
follows three riders (Lan, Bukama and Ryne), who she believes may be
Darkfriends. She claims the right of a woman alone to have an excuse
to ride with them. On the way, she looks for the women from the list
of possible mothers of the Dragon Reborn, but none of them is who she
is searching for.
In
Chachin, she meets Siuan again. Siuan has located Ines Demain, the
next mother on their list, in the Aesdaishar Palace. When Moiraine
hears that Lan is also there, she immediately wants to go back to her
rooms to avoid running into him, but on her way there she meets
Merean again. No longer sure who she can and cannot trust, and who is
and is not Black Ajah, she decides to go to Lan and ask him and
Bukama to spy on Merean. Later, after Lan accuses Moiraine of
attempting to have him killed, not knowing that Merean was the one
behind the attempt, Moiraine becomes certain that Merean is a Black
sister. They run to confront her. Merean kills Brys and Diryk before
Moiraine kills her. Moiraine tries to save Iselle, but fails. The
following day, she rides out after Lan to ask him to become her
Warder.
|
My
Thoughts:
|
(This so-called Kyria d'Oreyn has written over 1000 articles
at TarValon.net and the above summary is the best he can do? Torval
would totally kick his sorry little summary butt! I'm only
complaining because I don't have to write any of it, hahahahaha!)
This was pretty close to a perfect book and I shall articulate why
that is fact (and if you disagree, Lightning from Above Strike your
degenerative head!).
* claps hands *
Now pay close attention, class.
First off, there are only two point of views here. One from Lan and
one from Moiraine. None of this silly 57 eleventy pov's like there
are in some of the books. While the cast of characters is just as
large as in some of the other WoT books, Jordan does an admirable job
of simply telling 2 tales and how they intersect. At under 400 pages,
this is tight and to the point. Jordan could have taken some lessons
from himself and this book. But since he's dead, my advice will never
be followed. Oh, the tragedies I endure as I serenely hand out
blessed wisdom left and right like water to parched souls.
Second. Moiraine isn't a bitch. Oh my goodness, I couldn't believe
how Jordan portrayed her anger and impatience without making her a
horrible, terrible, no-good person that I wanted to strangle (all
those DO apply to Nynaeve by the way). Moiraine isn't perfect, but I
simply didn't want to wrap my hands around her throat and throttle
her to death. She was actually FUN to read about, you know, like a
main character should be?
Third, the story has a definitive beginning and a definitive end.
While it was speculated when this was released that it would be a
trilogy (and I'm pretty sure Jordan himself lent credence to such
rumors), nothing ever came of it and Sanderson expressed zero
interest in doing such a project after finishing up the mammoth
ending trilogy. Which makes the fact that this can stand on it's own
feet a VERY good thing.
On a side note, when I re-read this
back in '11 I noted that it shouldn't be read before Book 8 (Path of
Daggers I believe). I'm torn whether that was the right place or if
where I read it this time (just after Book 5, the Fires of Heaven)
was better. Honestly, I saw no reason not to read it at this point.
Since I don't ever plan on re-re-re-reading this series, I guess that
particular issue will simply have to remain one of life's ineffable
mysteries ;-)
★★★★★
No comments:
Post a Comment