So I’ve just finished The Dragonbone Chair, and have moved on to Stone of Farewell in my Great Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn ReRead. You can read my first post on the subject here.
Basically, I’m rereading the series in preparation for the release of The Heart of What Was Lost, an interim novel set between To Green Angel Tower and the forthcoming sequel trilogy, The Last King of Osten Ard. Instead of blogging the whole reread and bogging you down with plot recounts and such (not that that doesn’t have its place), I’m sharing my thoughts on Twitter under the hashtag #mstreread. Here are my latest tweets.
I’ve just started “The White Arrow,” Ch. 16 of The Dragonbone Chair. Simon is comforting himself, reading Morgenes’ manuscript. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) October 31, 2016
There’s something intensely satisfying about metafiction—a book within a book. Particularly when it’s done well. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) October 31, 2016
Morgenes’ Life of Prester John feels almost like another character in the story; it lives & breathes w/ the characters. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) October 31, 2016
Also interesting: I’m far more likely to forgive quoted metafiction if its in the body of the story. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) October 31, 2016
A fictional character reading a fictional book and sharing it w/ the reader is far more interesting than even the best (1/2) #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) October 31, 2016
chapter-header epigraphs. (2/2) #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) October 31, 2016
Happy Stoning Night…I mean, Halloween. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) October 31, 2016
Ahh, Binabik. A more memorable character from fantasy, I cannot think of. One of the all-time greats of the genre. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 1, 2016
“Make philosophy your evening guest, but do not let her stay the night.” #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 1, 2016
The fact that Simon meets two of his greatest friends & companions in the same scene is incredible—and strange enough to be true. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 1, 2016
The success Simon has can be largely attributed to surrounding himself with good friends, many of whom are wiser than he. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 1, 2016
@jcormier I think there's an implication that Dr. Morgenes had put a lot of pieces in place to set Simon up for what he would have to become
— Mike Bonsiero (@Bonzi777) November 1, 2016
@Bonzi777 Yes! I agree. Morgenes set the stage for the defense of all of Osten Ard, really, and certainly prepared for Simon’s future.
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 2, 2016
Which is not to say that Simon himself doesn’t bring anything to the table. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 1, 2016
Simon brings a deeply human boldness that completes the wisdom, courage, and cunning of Binabik and Jiriki. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 1, 2016
“But, listen to you!” Simon said, holding Binabik’s eye. “You’re full of hatred, too.”
“Ah.” The troll lifted a finger (1/2) #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 5, 2016
before his now-expressionless face. “But I am not claiming to believe in your—forgive the saying—upside-down God of Mercy.” (2/2) #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 5, 2016
An interesting lesson from Binabik on trying to apply your own morality onto others. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 5, 2016
Noticing lots of little details I've missed before: the foreshadowing of Simon's dream in "The Shadow of the Wheel," in TDC, e.g. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 6, 2016
The significance of the nail and the "beautiful shining spire" jump out, in light of the series' conclusion. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 6, 2016
The bukken are one of the most memorable creatures in fantasy. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 7, 2016
And then this happened…
Five stages of grief. #ElectionNight
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 9, 2016
Read through the meeting with Geloë last night. Loving Ingen Jegger and the Valada all over again. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 10, 2016
The Dragonbone Chair, and MST in general, is a great example of how multiple POVs can be used sparingly. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 14, 2016
Simon is undeniably the main character, but Williams peppers the story w/ just enough other POV characters to build plot & world. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 14, 2016
One must be deft with character to pull this off, and Williams is; the the other POVs add flavor without weighing it down. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 14, 2016
“They…fleered at travelers who thought they could walk with impunity into winter’s new kingdom.” Fleered. Now there’s a word. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 15, 2016
Word of the day: fleer, meaning to laugh impudently. Care of @tadwilliams. #mstreread pic.twitter.com/YgBgAeLaWc
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 15, 2016
The betrayal of Leobardis at Naglimund in TDC is exactly the kind of cutthroat drama that likely inspired George R. R. Martin. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 27, 2016
SECONDED. #mstreread https://t.co/qyQQuDzxxK
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) November 29, 2016
Just turned the last page of the wonderful adventure that is The Dragonbone Chair. *Every* bit as enthralling as the first time. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) December 2, 2016
What a climax: the dragon Igjarjuk, heaving from beneath the ice, the Norn sacking Naglimund. Utterly, dazzlingly epic. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) December 2, 2016
Dragons are overused in fantasy, for me. They’re cheapened with riders and likened to surly old men, jealous of their privacy. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) December 2, 2016
But that’s not what dragons are: they are rare beyond imagining, mythic demigods of a primordial age. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) December 2, 2016
Dragons are amoral, alien, beyond the ken of man. They are not friends, or mentors, or enemies. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) December 2, 2016
.@tadwilliams understands dragons. Dragons are the awesome majesty of our certain death, the hawk’s shadow cast over the mouse. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) December 2, 2016
Which is why it’s so mind-shatteringly incredible when Simon smites the ice worm: the mouse, cornered, turns and fights. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) December 2, 2016
And in Simon we see courage as it really is: quiet, desperate, and alone, terror forged into a blade by determination. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) December 2, 2016
Starting on #TheStoneofFarewell. I have to admit to glee at seeing the unpleasant Hengfisk get his due. #mstreread
— Jim Cormier (@jcormier) December 3, 2016
More to come!
