The Last Chronicles - worth it?

[Ananda]

fun picture! Those giants seem much more fun to hang out with than the ones in the books!

[michaelm]

They certainly seem to be hanging out...

[Frostheart Grueburn]

Some flapping and bouncing may also occur, in particular if stray birds and hares err indoors.

fun picture! Those giants seem much more fun to hang out with than the ones in the books!

Did we read the same tomes? I am perfectly confident I portrayed the sparring scene from Fatal Revenant accurately here.

[SoulBiter]

Better late than never!!!

I read the First Chrons as a teenager and it was a hard read for me...but after pushing through, I found I enjoyed it. I re-read it a few years later and in the re-read, I fell in love with the Land and the Characters. I read those books over and over again during the next several years.

Then came the Second Chrons, and WOW... because I loved the land so much, the story was so compelling with the idea of "How do you hurt someone who lost everything? Give them back something broken.". I remember being thrilled when they found Naasic.

Yes!"Covenant replied.
"Halfhand?"
"Yes!"
"How are you named?" the man quavered.
Covenant struggled to drive each word through the storm. "Ur-Lord Thomas Covenant, Unbeliever and white gold wielder!"
"Illender?" gasped the man as if the rain were suffocating him. "Prover of Life?"
"Yes!"
The old man retreated another step. The torchlight gave his visage a dismayed look.

And then appalled to find they forgot what made the Land special

They had forgotten Hurtloam, they had forgotten Earthpower.

"I've been away for a long time. Do you have any hurtloam?"

Hurtloam? Linden's expression asked.

"Hurtloam?" queried Nassic. "What is hurtloam?"

What is - ? Distress lurched across Covenant's features. What - ? Shouts flared in him like screams. Hurtloam! Earthpower! Life! "Hurtloam," he rasped savagely. "The mud that heals." His grasp shook Nassic's frail bones.

"Forgive me, Ur-Lord. Be not angry. I - "

"It was here! In this valley!" Lena had healed him with it.

Nassic found a moment of dignity. "I know nothing of hurtloam. I am an old man, and have never heard the name spoken."

"Damnation!" Covenant spat. "Next you're going to tell me you've never heard of Earthpower!"

The old man sagged. "Earthpower?" he breathed. "Earthpower?"

When reading the Last Chronicles, I never had that same emotional attachment to the characters or the Land that I felt in the first two sets. By the time the end of the Last Chronicles was there, I was ready for it to be over. There were moments during the read that I was immersed and interested, but all in all, it felt rushed and it felt too busy and in many ways it was too easy.

[peter]

Thats an interesting final 7 words Sorus - could you elaborate a little on that.

nb. My sentiments re the books seem to be almost wholy in accord with yours.

[slickthomas]

should I just read them because they are TC books, or should I approach them with trepidation?

I did both. I was always nervous about the long gap (no pun intended) in between the series.

On one hand, I think the LCs were the most disappointing and frustrating read of my life. Largely, because what we have seen SRD has been capable of (not just TC) and this wasn't it.

On the other hand, there are 3 or 4 sections that are brilliant and are great.

I would never recommend it to a non-TC fan, but I don't see how a TC could not read it even though it isn't that great.

[peter]

In an odd way I think peoples reaction to the last Chrons is reflective of how they read the first: for those who naturally saw the allegories and deeper meanings of the earlier books, the final Chrons was manna from heaven, taking as it did the more introspective route (that others dismissed as mere 'naval gazing'). For those who simply loved Donaldson's expertise in the Craft of Storytelling, the final Chrons were a harder ask - but one that was nevertheless worthwhile.

[Zarathustra]

Donaldson's storytelling craft is always an interest to me, but that's not the main thing I liked about the Chronicles (that honor would go to the Gap, which was a better crafted story but not nearly as deep, philosophical, allegorical, existential, etc.). For me, the appeal of the Chronicles was that it felt important, vital, real. It was Covenant himself, his plight, how a leper in a fantasy land could be a symbol/metaphor for all of us, our struggle as mortal beings in a world that is both beautiful and inevitably dying.

I don't think you can pigeonhole people in order to explain the variance in reactions to the LC. I'm not sure why some here keep trying. We've exhaustively explained our problems with the book, and it's not that we don't naturally get the metaphors/allegory!

However, I would agree that most of our objections fall into the "craft of storytelling" category, but not because that's where our focus lies, but because that's where the LC's flaws are apparent!

[peter]

That in itself is an interesting comment Z. One quick ask and then I'll leave it: you say "that is where it's flaws are apparent". Do you not think then, that Donaldson wrote the books he wanted to in the Last Chrons?