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The Fires of Heaven (1997-2000 initial reads; 2010 re-read) Larry Send a noteboard - 28/04/2010 08:47:14 AM
As I near the halfway point of the Wheel of Time series, I find myself struggling more and more to pay close attention to all the details. The earlier novels were easier in that the number of subplots were very few and generally no more than a few chapters separated any bunching of each subplot. The narrative was relatively straight-forward and although the prose never was anything to write home about, enough interest was generated in the characters to make the first few novels at least bearable to read and on quite a few occasions, enjoyable.

However, by the fourth volume, The Shadow Rising, my interest began to waver. I noted in my previous commentary that I believed Jordan tried to cover too much, to explain more than what was vitally essential to the main plot of the series, that of the Dragon Reborn being readied for the upcoming Last Battle. Here in The Fires of Heaven, my complaints about the previous volume probably can be multiplied by at least a factor of ten. Although I recall enjoying this volume almost the same as the previous one when I first read it in 1997, a decade away from reading it has reminded me that time might have the ability to remove bad memories and to enhance the few positive ones that remained. The Fires of Heaven was at times a terrible mess of a novel to wade through.

After opening with a lengthy prologue (if memory serves, each volume from here on out, the prologues end up being close in length to several short novels that were popular before the 1980s) and covering the aftermath of the Aes Sedai split (a subplot that I mentioned before perhaps could have best been combined into one shot in this volume), the scene shifts east to Rand and his motley Aiel crew lounging about in the now-open ancient city of Rhuidean. Lots and lots of scene setting going on here. Some developments between Rand and the spear maidens protecting him. Some more between Rand and the now-revealed third of his prophesied three honies, Aviendha. Lots and lots of sniffing about what men don't understand about women, carried out in much the same way as had been the case before in the previous four volumes. Ad nauseam levels of it. Enough to make me wonder if the author had decided trying to discuss gender differences and ways of viewing the world was much more important than forwarding the overall plot of the novel. This is not to say that occasional examples of this, presented in various angles and guises, could not work. Rather, Jordan's lamentable tendency to repeat the same line of approach over and over again becomes rather tiresome.

And yet the scenes surrounding Rand and those with him at the start of the novel are actually the high points of this novel. There is a rival, the Shaido Couladin, who serves to drive this subplot forward as he invades the Westlands ahead of Rand. Lots of slaughter, sometimes shown in detail. The fog of war is shown to good effect here, but there were times that even with the use of Mat as "the man on the streets" things felt a bit more distant than I think Jordan intended. But this is nitpicking, as outside the repetitive gender clashes, Rand's (and for the most part, Mat's) scenes were the best developed and had a better ratio of plot tension, character development, and some sense of resolution to a few of the obstacles that each had been facing recently.

The scenes with the female characters, however, were mostly a horror to read. Regardless of locale or imagined culture/society, it seems every female group in this novel has to resort to demeaning physical punishment in order to teach discipline. From swatting with nettles to having a slut's hair shorn to copious scenes of female nudity for no other purpose than for there to be some sort of female bonding, these scenes felt more like slightly watered-down versions of things that might have appeared in a Gor novel than anything approaching a realistic portrayal of how a female-led hierarchical society might be like. Although after a while I was able to ignore it, things really weren't all that thrilling to read, nor did I feel that much in the way of meaningful character development was occurring, unless teaching a young woman how to endure physical pain as a way of toughening her up is a great way to develop character.

This book also features the infamous circus scenes, where I believe hundreds of pages are spent following Elayne and Nynaeve as they join a menagerie to escape from one of the female Forsaken baddies. The bickering, which had been acted out in books 2-4, pretty much repeats itself in form and pattern throughout here. It read as little more than a plot contrivance in order to make sure that the two trainees can have a place to stay until all the rebel Aes Sedai can meet in an abandoned village called Salidar.

Not that too much was really developed once they reached there. A major structural problem that occurs when so much time is developed to expanding a half-dozen or so subplots is that either some are left out altogether in order to speed up their timelines (Perrin's absence being a sign of this) or others (like the Tower split) have to have their arcs divided in a haphazard fashion across several novels, often with little real advancement or perceived narrative tension. This does not make for an exciting read for those readers who can easily keep track of all of this, but would rather that less attention be spent on repeating the same damn truisms and more time devoted to keeping a strong focus on the advancing scenes and plots to where they will (eventually) flow into the overarching plot. It is precisely in this novel (and to a lesser extent, the previous one) where I believe Jordan made some horrible plot decisions that weakened the flow of this series to the point where the next few volumes have very little plot advancement outside of an odd scene here and there in those books (and one where not even that occurs).

While I can understand where some of the fans are going to enjoy the first major battle scenes of the series or how others might enjoy the comedy of manners moments that take place among some of the characters, the novel felt more like a Frankenstein's monster in how ill-integrated these disparate narrative elements were intertwined. Although some might be pardoned for thinking otherwise, I highly doubt that the WoT series' main focus is on a few somewhat amusing scenes. Nor do I think the political machinations, handled with about as much adroitness as a staggering drunk can dance the tango, are what this series purportedly is about. Sure, there are a few more plot prophecies thrown about to give some grist to the speculative mills of those readers who are more interested in playing "guess what plot development will occur next" than they are in how well structured and written these novels are. After a while, all sense of a coherent rhythm to the scenes vanishes, leaving just odd enjoyable scenes here and there, as islands surrounded by an ocean of tepid plot and character development. I read on, but the enjoyment is fading fast.

Illusions fall like the husk of a fruit, one after another, and the fruit is experience. - Narrator, Sylvie

Je suis méchant.
Original post, with possible comments here as well
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Re-reading WoT Ten Years Later - 16/04/2010 06:07:40 AM 2852 Views
The Eye of the World (1997-2000, 2010 reads) - 16/04/2010 06:08:54 AM 1319 Views
Ah, jumping on Roberts' bandwagon... - 16/04/2010 09:17:08 AM 1062 Views
- 16/04/2010 03:32:41 PM 984 Views
Re: The Eye of the World (1997-2000, 2010 reads) - 16/04/2010 06:29:53 PM 1048 Views
I think you misrepresent me - 16/04/2010 11:15:34 PM 941 Views
Re: I think you misrepresent me - 17/04/2010 02:56:53 PM 964 Views
Re: I think you misrepresent me - 17/04/2010 09:45:25 PM 913 Views
Re: I think you misrepresent me - 17/04/2010 10:59:20 PM 1067 Views
MA in History? Is there a more useless degree? - 16/04/2010 09:56:36 PM 904 Views
PhD or MA in Classics - 16/04/2010 10:15:51 PM 854 Views
Yes, whatever degree you have/are studying for - 16/04/2010 11:12:55 PM 897 Views
MBA. Sorry - 17/04/2010 04:38:03 AM 919 Views
There's lots of jokes about MBAs, unfortunately - 17/04/2010 09:46:28 PM 915 Views
Interestingly, I disliked EotW because of its 'youth appeal' - 17/04/2010 12:33:55 AM 1021 Views
Funny how takes can change, huh? - 17/04/2010 12:55:05 AM 1015 Views
Funny, I started my own first-ever reread not long ago. - 17/04/2010 02:16:35 AM 989 Views
Must be something in the water, no? - 17/04/2010 02:28:23 AM 1011 Views
Gah! - 18/04/2010 12:30:17 PM 895 Views
I thought you meant it! - 18/04/2010 05:29:55 PM 1007 Views
Pfft! - 18/04/2010 08:11:36 PM 906 Views
I'm glad I didn't start with EotW - 19/04/2010 04:16:03 PM 873 Views
Seems Tor is now tweeting about this commentary - 19/04/2010 06:31:39 PM 1082 Views
Re: Re-reading WoT Ten Years Later - 16/04/2010 06:26:51 PM 1009 Views
It'll be interesting to see if I hit a "wall" - 16/04/2010 11:13:55 PM 919 Views
Aww... - 16/04/2010 07:58:27 PM 1009 Views
That's next month or June - 16/04/2010 11:12:02 PM 871 Views
Be sure to send me a noteboard then . - 17/04/2010 03:45:46 AM 894 Views
Oh, I'd post it at this site as well, perhaps - 17/04/2010 03:51:19 AM 847 Views
Yeah, but I only lurk in the OF when I'm interested in getting new books... - 17/04/2010 04:00:14 AM 859 Views
Ah - 17/04/2010 09:47:37 PM 864 Views
Malazan 9 is out? - 17/04/2010 09:58:23 PM 735 Views
Been out for several months - 17/04/2010 10:24:15 PM 835 Views
Can anybody please explain to me - 17/04/2010 08:45:18 PM 1053 Views
It's hard to explain - 17/04/2010 09:42:16 PM 1100 Views
was thinking the same thing *NM* - 18/04/2010 03:59:36 PM 596 Views
Re: Can anybody please explain to me - 19/04/2010 04:17:39 PM 748 Views
The more posts from this larry guy I read, the more I think......... - 18/04/2010 08:56:34 AM 1035 Views
Interesting metatextual analysis there - 18/04/2010 09:47:43 AM 1059 Views
Nice, but in the future... - 18/04/2010 04:04:07 PM 937 Views
I know... - 18/04/2010 08:11:18 PM 892 Views
If you don't like WoT....Don't read it - 19/04/2010 12:36:06 AM 850 Views
Aren't you being a bit presumptuous there? - 19/04/2010 12:53:00 AM 1273 Views
... - 19/04/2010 12:59:33 AM 1034 Views
Re: ... - 21/04/2010 03:41:08 AM 998 Views
Re: The more posts from this larry guy I read, the more I think......... - 18/04/2010 10:26:12 AM 1041 Views
I am disappoint - 19/04/2010 01:17:20 AM 1026 Views
- 19/04/2010 01:24:29 AM 897 Views
Who the hell are you? What the hell are you doing here? - 19/04/2010 06:48:56 PM 1028 Views
Oh crap, a troll! - 02/05/2010 08:53:36 PM 869 Views
The Great Hunt (1997-2000, 2010 reads) - 19/04/2010 09:22:40 AM 1014 Views
I guess I'm just weird. - 19/04/2010 06:44:59 PM 1104 Views
If anything, I suspect my reaction is the minority one - 19/04/2010 09:20:25 PM 1043 Views
It's interesting you thought this about The Great Hunt. - 19/04/2010 07:06:57 PM 846 Views
Yeah, I almost gave up this series after The Eye of the World too. *NM* - 19/04/2010 08:38:25 PM 534 Views
My actual introduction to the series was A Crown of Swords - 19/04/2010 09:26:19 PM 972 Views
By the way... - 19/04/2010 09:44:59 PM 775 Views
Ah, that. - 19/04/2010 09:53:02 PM 860 Views
My experience has been different: - 19/04/2010 09:04:27 PM 965 Views
That may indeed be the case - 19/04/2010 09:27:36 PM 1152 Views
The Dragon Reborn (1997-2000 reads; 2010 re-read) - 22/04/2010 08:49:23 AM 1115 Views
The Shadow Rising (1997-2000 initial reads; 2010 re-read) - 25/04/2010 06:41:08 AM 964 Views
The Fires of Heaven (1997-2000 initial reads; 2010 re-read) - 28/04/2010 08:47:14 AM 923 Views
Lord of Chaos (1997-2000 initial reads; 2010 re-read) - 30/04/2010 01:33:37 PM 1140 Views
A Crown of Swords (1997-2000 initial reads; 2010 re-read) - 02/05/2010 03:30:39 PM 987 Views
The Path of Daggers (1998-2000 reads; 2010 re-read) - 04/05/2010 03:20:12 PM 820 Views
Winter's Heart (2000 initial read; 2010 re-read) - 07/05/2010 01:35:13 PM 813 Views
Re: Winter's Heart (2000 initial read; 2010 re-read) - 08/05/2010 09:43:31 AM 925 Views
But I must - 08/05/2010 09:59:42 AM 743 Views
Re: But I must - 08/05/2010 02:57:03 PM 840 Views
I just think of bath porn - 08/05/2010 03:12:29 PM 1018 Views
Crossroads of Twilight (2006 initial read; 2010 re-read) - 10/05/2010 02:00:06 PM 919 Views
Knife of Dreams (2009 initial read; 2010 re-read) - 13/05/2010 03:27:53 PM 1065 Views
New Spring (1997 read (novella); 2010 read (novel)) - 14/05/2010 07:39:40 AM 995 Views

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