Eshonai's final flashback chapter is some some of Sanderson's best and earned moments. I wasn't crazy about the the flashbacks, but that payoff was absolutely incredible. I've read that scene several times and i still get choked up.
Posted Jan 7, 2021, 2:05 AM UTC
FAREWELL, ESHONAI, FAREWELL, RADIANT.
Really powerful moment capping off his fulfillment of her gemheart's deepest desires. Made all the more poignant by what he shared with Dalinar on showing mercy.
I never accepted she was dead until I read that, kept expecting a body switch or some Moraine Damodred shenanigans, Eshonai was too great a character for an "off screen" death but now we have closure. RIP
Wheel of Time SPOILERS!
Ever since quarantine started last March I haven't been listening to my audiobooks. I had a feeling Moraine wasn't truly dead but she's been gone for like 3 books.
I didn't need tears in my coffee this morning 😭
Instantly choked up reading your quote this morning...
Seriously one of the most beautiful things I’ve read. When I got there I legit thought he was gonna have her have survived somehow but what he did was so much better. She finally got to explore the world :’)
Yes. The whole time we see him as stone cold and defense. Like a storm. The we find out he really did have a soft spot. He did a blessing to the dying. Such a nice moment to leave the book
I love that part because earlier Dalinar had just called him out for never doing anything for others or something along that line. Then we see this scene where the Stormfather didn’t have to grand her this but he did so and it was wonderful!
I like to view it as us seeing a scene that the Stormfather is showing Dalinar to contradict his statement that he is without mercy. It adds more to the scene imo that this is also him showing Dalinar something he's somewhat careful about revealing: that he does have compassion and can show mercy when it is right.
That’s it: mercy and compassion! I was trying to remember exactly what Dalinar was saying he was without. “When it is right” definitely sounds like a radiant thing
I cried so hard during that chapter. Superb writing.
It was one of my favorite chapters too loved seeing how it ended for her
Up until the end, I was pretty annoyed at the flash backs. Not much new info (other than some super nuanced foreshadowing I guess). Felt like it belonged in book 2 or 3, back when I was super curious about the listeners and they were more mysterious.
I was really glad to have that payoff, though. On my second read through I enjoyed the flash backs more because I had better expectations.
Still, overall, to me, this felt like a lot of effort for a moderate pay off. Compared to the typical Sanderson payoff.. I am not sure these scenes were worth it. There were some moments in which main plots were getting JUICY and momentum was halted for a flash back..
Totally agree with this. If I was getting tired and thought about putting the book down for the night I'd usually keep going unless I reached one of those flashback chapters and would just give up. It's nice to expand the lore behind the listeners but I didn't care all that much for it when it kept interrupting the current plot so much. It feels like when you're watching a TV show and then the adverts come on.
I can understand why they were in this book though. We're following Venli now and the flashbacks are key to her story. It's the same with Dalinar in OB, Shallan in WoR and Kaladin in TWoK.
While I think the book is great, if I were to do another read through then there would be parts that I wouldn't care about reading again. I'll probably wait until book 5 is about to come out.
Totally. I think if Venli had more redeeming qualities or reasons to like her I'd have been more interested. I just don't find her to be a very interesting character, so I didn't care about her background.
Dalinar.. was the opposite. SUPER interested.
That might sound a bit sexist but my wife feels the same way so /shrug.
I don't think it's sexist, because I was super interested in the Eshonai flashbacks but couldn't stand the Venli flashbacks. Venli was a pretty despicable and cowardly character in her flashbacks, all our other flashback PoVs haven't been cowardly (Dalinar was pretty terrible, but it was an explanation for his redemption arc). Eshonai was great, inquisitive and fun to follow, even if they were a little slow compared to some of the other plotlines.
I thought I was done crying then I read that chapter and was sobbing again. Eshonai was one of my favorite characters and I loved learning more about her. It was such a perfect bittersweet ending for her. So many tears.
Unpopular opinion - I generally like flashbacks, and I liked Eshonai a lot. But we've been through so much without her and I've finally come to terms with her death. I didn't need the final scene, it felt tagged on and completely unrelated to the rest of the book. Then again, I could be wrong, and a second reading might change my mind. As it stands though, I'm just confused by all the love for thay flashbacks.
It felt like fan service. IMO not worth the terrible flashback chapters. They should have been cut from the book entirely.
Wait really? The payoff was way too late for how long it took to get there. Not worth it at all.
[deleted]
the flashbacks were good for providing an insight into how the humans/pashendi first met, but it didnt feel like we really learnt much about their culture that we didnt already know
Which Brandon admitted too.
Though I kinda wonder, if he knew it was kind of an issue, what he could have done to fix it..and why he decided to just keep mostly with his original plan.
Where did he admit this? Curious to see what he said about it, I wasn't really fond of the arc apart from that payoff at the end.
Though I kinda wonder, if he knew it was kind of an issue, what he could have done to fix it.
One of the things he's doing to fix it is reduce how much we're seeing from future main POV characters. He's still showing some things about Szeth, Lift, Renarin, Ash, Taln, and Jasnah obviously, but not as much as he did for Venli and Eshonai.
As an example, I know some people were upset that Jasnah is up to the fourth ideal but it was shown off screen. This is likely being kept off screen purposefully and will be revealed as a flashback in her book. Likewise, I don't think we've seen Renarin's ideals either. While we have seen Szeth's, he has enough backstory that will likely be relevant from his time training in Shinovar and while being Truthless that showing his Ideals is less of an issue.
I thought the flashbacks were helpful, as they showed how much Venli was manipulated. It also offered som insight into Venmo’s possible sociopathic tendencies which she is trying to overcome.
Man, I can't believe you are getting this much hate for your opinion. It is crazy. The flashbacks were awful, and the last chapter was fan service.
I loved that storm father honored her oaths. She was one of my favorite characters and I hated to see what being a Regal did to her. I was really glad she fought back in her final moments and that even storm father respected her.
That the stormfather recognized her deepest desire, recognized her worthiness, and forgave her her part in bringing back the desolations adds so much meaning to it too. Highlights how extremely deserving she was and provides layers to the stormfather. So beautifully done.
From interlude I-5 from WoR
I believe Stormfather was apologising in a way for not protecting her initially.
I wonder if the only one who could have protected her was Timbre who didn't know how to do it yet. I wonder if, in a way, Eshonai's final act was helping Timbre get to a point where she could protect Venli.
Happy cake day!