Kevin's Watch

Stephen R Donaldson will publish The Last Dark in October. This book will be the capstone and objective of an ambitious story that began over forty years ago.

It is a story that has touched so many people so very deeply. No mere escapist entertainment, Donaldson's words have changed us, have helped us, and even have saved us. Thomas Covenant doesn't just speak to something inside of us, he shows where we need to go, and tells us how to get there.

Yes, The Power That Preserves was the end. And then White Gold Weilder was the end. But these endings were really only pauses; now Donaldson promises us the end of ends. It is an ending that Donaldson has kept to himself for three decades, an ending that will "unify the entire saga into one vast whole", an ending that promises "a more enduring solution". An ending that required twenty years of preparation.

What does it mean to you, this end of ends, as you see The Last Dark approaching?

[ No predictions, please. No Last Chronicles spoilers, please. ]

I dunno...I feel that I'm less invested in these than in the previous series.

I never saw TPTP as an end, because the 2nd Chrons were already out, but the end of WGW is something I'll never forget.

The 3rd Chrons haven't felt as connected to my experience of the Land as the first two, so I feel ambivalent.

--A

I personally am excited to see how this all plays out. With everything that goes on in my life I have so little time to read that it takes events such as this to drag me back into one of my real loves...the escapism of high fantasy. And while I am not even sure I will be able to get the "grand re-read" done, anything that gets me excited about reading is an awesome thing indeed.

I am looking forward to maybe making the EFest this time around (assuming everyone stays healthy over here), and maybe finally meeting a total hero of mine who I respect greatly. More than any other author, SRD speaks to my imagination and to my ability to drown in a story and lose the awareness of the page turning. I hunt for that feeling, that ability to read while forgetting that I am reading, in all books that I choose to read, and his top the list.

A signature event in the twilight of my reading life, if you will.

I feel a great deal of anxiety and dread about "the end." I have more than 30 years of deep affection invested in the first 2 Chronicles. I'm sure I'll feel elated, but also very saddened by what's in store in TLD.

I'm not sure...I haven't really moved into the second and third chronicles as a "person" in the way that I have for the first. I think I do need to have that reread of the second and first part of the third in order to get at the last bit effectively, if I so desire.

For a simple guess: the "last dark" will refer to the mysteries and questions we will inevitably be left with no matter how the series is resolved.

I would have to say that my expectations for this book are rather high, in terms of what I hope Donaldson will accomplish with his story. So I have a lot of trepidation on that score. I still trust the author. But I am doing a lot of trusting now.

Covenant's story means a lot to me. And so the ending of his story means a lot to me.

I want to learn what Covenant learns, and what Linden learns.

I want Donaldson to teach me these things in a profound and amazing way.

I want triumph. I suppose it would be a bittersweet kind. Nevertheless.

When the Last Dark arrives, the 10+ year wait for the answer to "Does Donaldson Deliver" will finally have arrived. I've been patient. I'm prepared for either eventuality. Either way, there will be one less significant event to look forward to in my life. I suppose I will have to cast about for something else to anticipate so happily -- I do so enjoy happy anticipation.

I'm just looking forward to the ride.

rdhopeca, you'll be surprised how much reading time frees up for you, once your kids are older.

I started Reading the Chronicles in the 90's. But when I read TPTP it definitely seemed like an ending. I was actually surprised when I found out that there was a 2nd chronicles.

The opposite wa true for me with the second chronicles. WGW did NOT seem, like a final ending. When I finished the 2nd Chrons, I was equally as surprised that there WASN'T a third already in the works.

I respect Donaldson as an author so much...if he says it's going to be an ending this time...I'm Sure it will BE an ENDING!!

I'll be interested to see what Donaldson does next.

Both TPTP and WGW seemed like perfect endings to me. Until I found this site in 2003, and learned The Last Chronicles was underway, I couldn't imagine the story continuing with Linden alone.

From the moment I read the last line of WGW, I knew there had to be more. That was too huge a revelation to drop in the final paragraph for that to be the end of the story. While SRD has honed his skill at cliffhangers through the Mordant duology, the Gap sequence, and the Last Chrons, the end of WGW was his first big cliffhanger.

wayfriend wrote:When the Last Dark arrives, the 10+ year wait for the answer to "Does Donaldson Deliver" will finally have arrived. I've been patient. I'm prepared for either eventuality. Either way, there will be one less significant event to look forward to in my life. I suppose I will have to cast about for something else to anticipate so happily -- I do so enjoy happy anticipation.

There will be more from SRD. Surely, a conclusion to the story of Brew and Ginny. Who knows what else? However, the next big thing to happily anticipate, Wayfriend, will be Elohimfest 2014. Having some insight into your reasons (although I disagree), I will not question your choice to not attend in 2011....but your absence was disappointing.

Do Not Fail To Attend This Time!

Savor Dam wrote:From the moment I read the last line of WGW, I knew there had to be more. That was too huge a revelation to drop in the final paragraph for that to be the end of the story. While SRD has honed his skill at cliffhangers through the Mordant duology, the Gap sequence, and the Last Chrons, the end of WGW was his first big cliffhanger.

!

How was the line about "her wedding ring" a cliffhanger?

likely means i will have to read the third set in the series, no?

Savor Dam wrote:Do Not Fail To Attend This Time!

Well, I admit I am way more interesting in RL. But, yes, that is something very good to look forward to. Not the least of which is that there will be no more questions to which SRD can say, "That would be a spoiler". And then there'll be the cooking ... And: aw shucks, thanks.

"Wayfriend" on the Watch
Is "Way more interesting"
When met in Real Life

Just coincidence?
Subtle identity hint?
(I'll bring Dos Equis!)

what will it mean to me?

that remains to be seen.
as most of you probably know, donaldson's endings have
never satisfied me much and i still have a problem with the
"reality" or "non-reality" of the land.
i will be interested to see whether donaldson actually resolves
this for me or whether i'll be left to resolve it on my own.

i'm reminded of one of my favorite poems, wallace stevenson's
the idea of order in key west and my experience with it.
i read and read and re-read that piece and always felt i was on
the verge of understanding it but never could quite grasp what
stevenson was trying to say until someone else actually told me.
it may be that i will have the same experience with donaldson
and this entire series.

The End. No more waiting. No more Covenant to look forward too. But I shall have less time to not wait than the rest of you. Probably.

For me, it may mean my last new visit to the Land, but I certainly hope it is not the last thing written by SRD. I'd love to see another 'Man Who' book, or even something completely new. Heck, I'd even like to see him back in the Gradual Interview when he's had a chance to relax, bask in the glory of his fan's adoration and get his batteries re-charging for his next project! I know I WON'T be sad however! (even though I shed tears at the end of the Lord of the Rings, movies and books both, I'm NEVER sad, or well you know, it's a GOOD sort of sad...)

I feel the same as Avatar, actually. I felt it was over at WGW, and it blew me away. When I saw ROTE in a bookstore, I just didn't understand, and it took me a while to fully comprehend that there was another series starting up.
Maybe I'm not as depressed as I used to be, but they haven't really done a lot toward moving me. And I don't have time (and I don't make time) to read anymore. I'd say ever since AATE has been out, I've not even read half of it, but I've not read any other books since starting it. I absolutely cannot concentrate on reading when the kids are awake, even on something so normally easy to read as magazine articles, which is why I am so behind on my magazines. But my usual reading time which was before bed, the wife doesn't really want the lamp on, and I almost always fall asleep within the first page.
My bedtime routine right now consists of watching Netflix on the Gameboy 3DS, which has its own light. At least that I can concentrate on, and watch the stuff the wife has no interest in.
But the first two left me rather cold, for the most part. And while the action has ramped up in the parts I've read, I just can't seem to read and stay interested anymore. I will force myself through to the end though.

I'm also feeling much of what Avatar and Caggy reported. I had a very hard time picking up the thread of this last series, and feel four books might be a little too much. That said, I think I feel this way about any final thing, so it's not SRD's fault in particular. Any time I know I'm watching the last season of a show, I tend to emotionally distance myself from it a bit.

Honestly, though, like Cag, I'm just a different person. At times in this final series when everyone's sitting around talking about how worthless they are and how they don't want anyone else to ever make a sacrifice, I literally roll my eyes. After two previous series of realizing that they can only get by with a little help from their friends, they still seem to be stuck in the same mindset.

Most of all, I just feel the lack of beloved characters. Thinking of Morham and Foamfollower still moves me - they felt so real to me. Sunder and Hollian and the Giants in the second chronicles the same. I just don't feel that way about any of the secondary characters in the final series, and that bums me out a bit.

I'd definitely say that the books have shaped the way I think, really given me some bedrock principles on how to face tough times and difficult decisions that are really meaningful, but I don't feel (at this point) that I am learning anything new from the final books.

I have really enjoyed some of the big events in these last two. I'm not done with the final book yet, but I'm hoping it keeps giving me good moments. That will be enough.