The Wheel of Time Reread: Book 3 - The Dragon Reborn
*SPOILERS AHEAD FOR THIS AND OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES*
Find the full list of posts in my full re-read of the series HERE
That's Book Three done, and from this point on, I'm going to have to say *mild spoilers* for both this book, the previous ones in the series, and potentially even future books.
We've reached the point where it's getting unavoidable to talk about each book without mentioning the wider plot and character arcs. So if you've not yet read The Wheel of Time, or plan to watch the Amazon Prime show without knowing anything in advance, I recommend doing so before reading any more of these posts.
Happily, this is be the last book in my collection with the original, terrible, cover art.
The skill of foreshadowing
Now, let's talk about foreshadowing for a moment. With the introduction of Tel'aran'rhiod and the Wolf Dream, Jordan is now beginning to show us what a master he was of this technique.
What I love about this is how it opens the series up to re-reading. The first time you read this book, you get given glimpses of the future to tease upcoming plot points. But when you've already read the series once, you can really appreciate how well Jordan had planned the story. Elements we're not going to see for several books are already hinted or at play. It's masterful.
The only series I know of to come close to The Wheel of Time when it comes to foreshadowing is the television show Babylon 5. If you know of any others, let me know, as I'd love to have more examples.
Developing The Forsaken
When it comes to worldbuilding, we now have established our new antagonists: The Forsaken.
Two of them had already turned up in The Eye of the World. But in that case, they were little more than a Boss Battle, and quickly dispatched by our heroes. By the end of The Dragon Reborn, we know they are all free, and the two we have seen were among the weakest. Before, they were a threat. Now, we know they are in play.
And they are doing something far more terrifying than simply attacking the protagonists outright. It seems they have been in play far longer than we knew and have been establishing themselves and making plans. They are setting themselves as rulers, insinuating themselves into positions of power.
By the end of The Dragon Reborn we know where three of them are and that two of them are dead. That leaves eight unaccounted for. And so now the series has a credible, real-world threat, both known and unknown. Until now, we've had the Trollocs. Terrifying on their own, but essentially mindless monsters. The Forsaken, on the other hand, are active, intelligent forces working against the protagonists. Each one different, yet equally dangerous.
Good characters don’t have to be likeable
One thing I want to talk about is how annoying some of the characters are. And I mean that in the best possible way.
Take Nynaeve. I hate Nynaeve as a person, but I love her character. She's arrogant, stuck up, bullies people into getting her way, and refuses to admit anyone else can ever be right. Her entire arch through the first few books of the series is based around seeking spiteful revenge against Morraine for, essentially, knowing more than her.
She's not the only one, just the main example. I also feel Matt needs a good sulk to stop him sulking all the time. And Elaine is just an entitled, spoilt brat who's lucky she's talented enough to get away with it.
And that's fine. It's important to be able to dislike a character or to, especially in a series where there are so many of them. It's why no particular section in the books feel boring.
Oh, and while I'm talking about characters I don’t like, let me take a moment to mention two I love. This is the book that introduces us to my favourite couple in the series, Faile and Perrin. But I'll talk more about them in my post for the next book in the series.
Reading a series in a single go verse reading it as it’s published
If I have a criticism for The Dragon Reborn, it's that there's a little too much exposition in the first third of the book. It suffers from the fact it was an early book in an epic fantasy series and needed to refresh the reader on the world and the story. Maybe this was necessary when readers were less familiar with the series, but when you re-read them in quick succession, it's jarring when the characters keep explaining everything to us. I don't remember this being a problem I noticed in previous read-throughs, so hopefully, it won't be something that carries on.
And so on to The Shadow Rising. Rand has declared himself the Dragon Reborn, fulfilling the prophecies that make it impossible for the world to deny who he truly is. We are through the initial "trilogy", and it's time for our main party to split and the Forsaken to start tearing the world up under their feet.