One interpretation of the series has always been that the Land is an externalization of the internal struggles of the visitors. In the first chronicles, for example, the threat of the Illearth Stone and Lord Foul to the Law and health of the land could be seen as a projection of Thomas Covenant's bo...

King Elessar 8 wrote:
Yes, but if you were actually in Lindens place, would you genuinely want to take the risk of summoning Nom?

It seems like less of a risk than what she actually did do...

Nom could be dead--although I think the Sandgorgons are as immortal as the desert--and he could refuse the summoning. Still, isn't it worth trying? I can't really imagine him squishing Linden: after rending the Raver, Nom is a profoundly different being. He works under Linden's supervision, and late...

...Nom. I tend to project myself into plot-driven novels, imagining what I would do or say if I were in the protagonists' place. That's largely an exercise in futility in the Covenant novels, since they're so character driven. "Well, I'd decide the Land was real and blast them with my ring!&quo...