This book just needed one thing...

[Glaive]

...to counter-balance all of Linden's self-doubt and the dark secrets of most of the rest of the ensemble.


Giants.

This is the first book without a single giant, possibly Donaldson's greatest creation in terms of an entire race. In the previous books, no matter how low the self-asteem and despair of Covenent became, it was relieved by an optimistic and pro-active giant.*

Stone and Sea, I miss them.


*(OK, they didn't REALLY appear in 'The Illearth War'; Keelsetter lasted all of three or four pages...and Kinslaughterer, well, was a Raver...but this shows my point as I find Illearth to be the darkest of the first Chronicles.)

[Creator]

Me too!!

The just HAVE to be in the next one!!!

[CovenantJr]

I really didn't notice the lack of Giants. I'm not a big fan of theirs Seriously, I like the Giants, but I find ur-viles/Waynhim, Ravers, Demondim etc more interesting. I must be the only person on the Watch who suffered a bit of a Giant overload in the second Chronicles.

Spoiler

There were times when I wanted the Search to go away

[Glaive]

I really didn't notice the lack of Giants. I'm not a big fan of theirs Seriously, I like the Giants, but I find ur-viles/Waynhim, Ravers, Demondim etc more interesting. I must be the only person on the Watch who suffered a bit of a Giant overload in the second Chronicles.

Yes, I too find ur-viles/Waynhim, Ravers, Demondim etc more interesting. But they are alien beings; their ultimate purposes or alligences are unknown...I need someone other than Linden to connect to; Liand is too naive (or IS he?), the Haruchai and Ramen are following their own agendas...Esmer and Enele are too full of madness, power and contradictions..the Ranyhyn are horses...

I just wanted a positive force that I feel would counter-act Linden's self-doubt.

A giant would accomplish this.



...and for the record I think Donaldson's most brilliant creation was Vain...a 'charactor' who for the most part does little, says nothing, yet is absolutely essential to an entire Chronicle.

[JD]

Linden was told the Giants rarely ever came to the Land anymore, and it was doubtful they would ever come back in her lifetime, but I have a sneaky feeling that SRD is gonna bring then=m back. Not sure in which book and how they'll be used.

[Believer]

If you think about the original breakdown of the 2nd chronicles, where the first book would have ended where TC goes through the soothtell, there would have been no giants at the end of the first book of the 2nd chrons either. Maybe we'll run into them in the middle of the second book.

[dlbpharmd]

Excellent point, Believer. I certainly hope to see more giants soon.

[[Syl]]

I'm not a huge (ha) fan of Giants, either, though I am a huge fan of Foamfollower and, to a lesser extent, Pitchwife. I'd trade just about anything for another Foamfollower.

[CovenantJr]

Agreed.

[Revan]

I think they are going to come to the Land by the truck load, because the Elohim warning the people to "beware the Halfhand" is going to do the same for them.