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teresSCSF: A good day, everyone, and welcome back to BattleAxe! Last time, Axis had a lot of things explained to him that we already knew and we learned just a little bit more. For the reader post:
Due to Chessy, I have realised that “the Seneschal” is a quite bad name for the Religious Brotherhood. She was tripped up by the singular, which is indeed an issue… but I mainly wonder who this “seneschal” is supposed to be. It might work if the Brother-Leader was instead called the Seneschal, because he has been appointed to supervise Achar in Artor’s stead. As it is… this does not work at all.
A Better Commando Name: 43
Gold-Star Worldbuilding: 82
Connected to this, Chessy rightly notes that Ogden can hardly know that “the Seneschal is opposed to everything Axis is”. As I realised myself, Yr has only stayed in Carlon, and the Brothers there are hardly representative of those in the whole of the country (not to mention that Ogden and Veremund went out of their way to avoid them). Further, Jayme has fostered him, though he might well have suspected who Axis’s father is, so this rather comes across like Ogden trying to manipulate Axis.
Morals for Thee But Not for Me: 110
She then leaves us another fic about Belial’s relation with Axis.
Let me go on with the next chapter, then!
Chapter Thirty-Six: The GhostTree Camp
Azhure and the others are more bearable than Axis, at the least. We are told that it is “two days” before Barsarbe deems Raum has progressed enough to let him leave the tent. That means that happens on the 4th of November. Grindle and his family are eager to hear of Raum’s adventures, but Barsarbe is adamant that he needs “sufficient rest” before he can explain it. …Could we know what Raum himself thinks of it? I think that might help decide this, after all. (I also think I will come back to this soon.)
GoldFeather is unsettled and keeps going back to her conversation with Axis, “analysing each expression that had crossed his face”, since there is just something about his face that she seems to remember. Then she finally realises it with a “sickening jolt”: Axis’s face looks like Priam’s in some ways. She immediately gets the stomach-turning thought that Borneheld might be the BattleAxe! My, who might GoldFeather be?
This Is What the Mystery: 27
She thinks he would be about the right age, and “Stars alone [know]” that he could have inherited “his devotion to Artor and his military prowess from Searlas” (because that is totally inheritable). Given this… I do not think it is much of a surprise that GoldFeather was once Rivkah, though I will still call her “GoldFeather”, since that is what she is called in her perspective. I doubt that Douglass meant to make it this obvious, though.
This Is What the Mystery: 28
So GoldFeather tells herself that it is unlikely a noble as “high as the Duke of Ichtar” would become BattleAxe, and she remembers Azhure saying the man was named Axis (which I suppose she did in the meantime?). She is quite relieved that it is not Borneheld, and that she did not “meet [him] again after so many years”, since there is “too much guilt associated with [him] for her to want to meet him again”. I will keep that in mind, then…
She further says that he did not resemble Searlas at all, but the encounter does nag at her. She thinks there is something about Axis’s face and eyes, before she stops herself. After all, she has made “a clean break with the past”, so she should not worry about it now. Axis is probably just a “distant cousin to the royal family of Achar”; after all, some of the past kings have spread their bastards far and wide. In this way, she convinces herself. I do like the way she does so, since it sounds quite plausible.
So, while Barsarbe keeps Raum in the tent, and only allows him to be talked to about “the most trivial queries about food or comfort”, GoldFeather spends her time walking in the forest, trying to forget about the BattleAxe by thinking about her “husband and daughter”, who are waiting in the Icescarp Alps for her return. As she spends quite some time helping the Avar out, that means she is separated from them for months, and each years she wonders if she “[is] drifting too far from them”. You can never drift too far from your husband, GoldFeather; trust me. Still, since the Skraelings are “intensifying their raids on the Avar”, she knows she still has work to do. The Avar need her help and that of the Icarii more than at any point in “the previous twenty years”, after all.
So… the Skraelings have been raiding the Avar? They do not like trees, so is Gorgrael pushing them to go to the Avarinheim already? Or do they only attack at the fringes, in which case they might be doing it on their own, possibly to prepare for an invasion? This is something we need to know a bit more about than we get here.
Well, over to Azhure we go, who spends most of the time “wandering about feeling absolutely useless”. It is still not certain whether she can remain and she spends most of her time with Fleat and Pease. Fleat “[takes] pity” on her, and explains what all the people who went along Smyrton have been doing. So, on the evening of November 4th (I presume), Fleat and Pease are grinding malfari for flour “between flat quern stones before the fire”. I see nothing about that in the glossary, so I have little idea what these stone are. That is one way to worldbuild, I suppose.
[So it turns out (thanks to Chessy) that a quern stone is a device to grind things with! I really should have known better than to just assume this was word Douglass made up without further thought. (Then again, this is a first read...)]
Fleat mostly repeats what Raum told us, though we do learn the Avar specifically revere the Mother as “the giver of life”, and that the Banes are capable of “us[ing] the rhythms of life that surround [them] to heal and help grow”. I suppose that is part of why Barsarbe is a healer? It would also be nice to see this happen on-screen… I am quite sure Faraday will use such power, but what would be the trouble in letting Barsarbe or Raum show it?
We get some more on the preparation of whatever they are making: Pease adds “dried berries, seasoning herbs and lard” to the flour. They are kneading the flour into “small round loaves” which Pease then puts in “the large waxy leaves of the odinfor bush” (no glossary entry either). Then she puts this in the coals of the fire to bake. The book has all of this as a single sentence.
PPP: 361
Further… lard comes from pigs, and a look tells me that the Avar do not have pigs, so where is this coming from?
Gold-Star Worldbuilding: 83
Also… I note that we see some more fantasy-like names here, and that makes me wonder where these words are coming from, since the Acharites, Avar, and Icarii are clearly speaking the same language. The Avar would have their own terms for the concepts of the Avarinheim, sure, but if they sound so radically different from the main language that is spoken, I cannot help but think that they must have a language of their own, despite what Douglass says.
Gold-Star Worldbuilding: 84
Well, Pease recaps that the GhostTree Clan now has Raum and Shra as Banes, and we learn that Shra has barely left Pease’s side in the meantime. My, she is allowed to have a natural reaction! Azhure asks if Barsarbe is also of their clan, apparently “still a little confused” by the relationships in the Clan. Fleat says that Barsarbe is of the “FlatRock Clan”, but followed them to the edge of the Avarinheim to wait for Raum’s return. She thanks the Mother that she died, as without her healing skills, “Raum would likely have died”.
Then we cut to Azhure helping Fleat and Pease “gut some fat-bellied trout caught from the Nordra”. I thought the Avar did not like to use violence? Or is killing for food not included in that? It would be nice to have some explicit statement on that, rather than us having to piece it together based on the Avar being “forest people”.
Gold-Star Worldbuilding: 85
Well, the older children spend much of their time helping Fleat and Pease with gathering food, and generally only find “time for play in the early evening”. As far as Azhure sees, the Avar do not “bother to plant or crop at all, preferring to live off only what the Avarinheim provide[s] for them”. Azhure then asks if all the Avar live in clans, which Fleat confirms. (We also get a small interlude about Azhure cutting herself with a “bone-filleting knife” and Fleat passing her an odinfor leaf as a bandage. Naturally, Azhure does not get any bad memories from this.) Fleat further explains that the Avar “must live” from what the Avarinheim gives them, and so they cannot survive in “large villages”. They spend most of the year as nomads. This current spot is too close to the edge for their liking, and they are only here because they were waiting on Raum.
That is not bad… though I cannot help but wonder at the lack of diversity this implies. I would think there are groups of Avar who do settle down because they have a different view of their relation with the Avarinheim. I suppose writing those would undermine the message Douglass tries to send with them.
Gold-Star Worldbuilding: 86
Pease says excitedly that they will soon be going to the “Yuletide Meet”. Azhure is of course unfamiliar with that, so GoldFeather, who now joins them, goes to explain. Each year, the Icarii and the Avar meet “for two important festivals”. Though the Avar are “close to the earth” and the Icarii “closer to the heavens”, they do share the “Yuletide and Beltide festivals” and each year they meet at the northern edge of the Avarinheim to celebrate them. Yuletide is the more important of them; it is held at “the winter solstice, only a few weeks away now”, and both Banes and Enchanters are needed to make sure the sun “rises from its death and is reborn”. Beltide is “more joyous”, and is held in “early spring” to celebrate the “reawakening of the earth after the death of winter”.
This may not be particularly inspired, but it is solid, and that does satisfy me. One problem I have is that we Yuletide is held on the 21st of December (as a later chapter will clearly indicate), and now it is the 4th of November. A month and a half is not “a few weeks”.
PPP: 362
I do also wonder to what extent GoldFeather believes what the festivals are supposed to do. She does have an Icarii name and she says she made a “clean break” with the past, so I could see it, but I am not quite sure to what extent she has abandoned her childhood beliefs.
Pease grins at the mention of Beltide, and says that “[m]any marriages are contracted” there, and she became Grindle’s wife then. During Beltide, “[o]ther unions and ambitions” are also consummated, she says, and it is the one night of the year when Icarii and Avar “indulge in temptations denied them the rest of the year” and it is a “night when dreams and desires become reality”. So it is a night of revelry and sex, to state clearly what Pease says and what we already knew from the prologue. I do wonder… why would the Icarii and Avar only “indulge in temptations” on Beltide? I suppose it might be because of the supposed danger of Icarii/Avar babies?
Thinking this over… that does make some sense. The Prophecy says that Gorgrael will be born from an Avar and an Icarii parent, after all, so that explains where the insistence that hybrid children will be “abominations” comes from. Still, there ought to be variation in these attitudes (not to mention that not using contraceptives still makes no sense).
Gold-Star Worldbuilding: 87
Pease then asks Azhure of what and who she dreams, which makes Azhure blush, while the others laugh. Given that she has just left Smyrton and barely knows anyone, I think the answer to that question would be “no one yet”.
Barsarbe then breaks in to say that Azhure will have “no opportunity for Beltide excesses” if she does not stay with the clan. She stands at the entrance of the tent and “look[s] coolly at Azhure”. At this, the Avar women stop laughing and look away, though GoldFeather gives Azhure a reassuring smile. Barsarbe asks Fleat to help her, since Raum “refuse[s] to lie abed any longer”, and insists on joining them for dinner. She thinks it is time to hear what he has to say. So, while Barsarbe gives in to Raum’s wishes, she does not seem to care especially much for him, and now she breaks up the fun and gives Azhure a cool look. Knowing what I know… I am reasonably sure Barsarbe will become a Scary Sue to Azhure (and possibly Faraday).
Petty Ain’t the Word for You: 52 (for her general characterisation)
So Fleat and Barsarbe get Raum, who is still ashen, out of the tent. His leg is “tightly bound and splinted”, and he finds it “awkward to swing” as he hobbles to the fire. Let me see…
-If he is still “ashen”, I cannot quite fault Barsarbe for wanting to have him rest longer. At the least, he is not so fully healed as he is supposed to be.
-I do like that his leg needs to heal quite a bit further… though I wonder why he has trouble “swinging” it; if he really did that, he would have trouble walking even without being injured.
PPP: 363
-I also see there is no mention of the cut on his neck; either Barsarbe put all her attention to that or Douglass forgot about it, too.
So Raum sits down by the fire. Though he is obviously still in pain, he manages to smile to the people gathering excitedly around him. Grindle comes in and asks if Raum is well. Raum says he is, thanks to the care of Barsarbe, Fleat and Pease, and we are told his appearance belies that, but he does have some humour. Grindle is relieved and sits down, saying “mildly” that he would never have let an Axe-Wielder catch him. I suppose you would have been able to evade Douglass’s interventions, then? I mean, he would have, since he is less central of a character, but it is hardly something Raum could have known, so this does come across poorly.
Azhure breaks in to say that Raum stayed behind to let her and Shra escape, “stung that Grindle should even jest about Raum’s inability to flee the BattleAxe”. It is presumptuous of Azhure to break in when she barely knows their relation; for all she knows, this is how they usually interact with each other. That said… it does seem in poor taste to me when Raum could not do anything about it and when he nearly died. Well, Grindle and Barsarbe get “annoyed that she [has] spoken”, and Azhure subsides, “regretting her interruption”. I thought that would happen.
Even the “three older children” (that is Helm, Skali, and Hogni) copy Grindle and “stare[] at her with a total lack of tolerance”. After all, if Azhure gets disapproval, it needs to be as much as possible.
Godmode Engaged: 9
GoldFeather gives her a sympathetic pat, since she knows what it feels to be an outsider “among a people who had no understanding of the culture that had shaped her”. Her first years among the Icarii were hard for her. I can certainly see that, all the more since only StarDrifter would have been familiar to her… at least she has now found some belonging. Well, Fleat gives Raum some “herbed tea the Avar brew[] and [drink] at every opportunity” (where was he during the scene we just had, actually?), which Raum drinks gratefully. After a bit of delaying, he begins his story.
He opens with some preamble about how he has much to say, and much is bad and the rest puzzling. It is as feared: the Prophecy is “awake and walking”, Gorgrael has been born, and even now he is preparing to “push his forces south and destroy all before him”. Everyone except for Azhure gasps. We are told all the Avar know about the Prophecy, and the talk at last “Beltide Meet” was mostly concerned with whether the Prophecy was active.
Barsarbe asks how Raum can be sure, so he explains that the Sentinels are abroad and he and Shra met two of them at the Mother. Everyone is even more shocked, so Raum describes his meeting with Jack and Yr, and how they told him that the Prophecy had awakened and that the StarMan “was even now beginning to stir to meet Gorgrael”. Barsarbe wants to know where he is, to which Raum says he does not know. The Sentinels were “reticent” about his identity; he did get the sense that he was not yet ready to face Gorgrael, so perhaps he still needs to break out of the lies that bind him.
I suppose that the Sentinels were so reticent because they knew Raum would not like it if he turned out to be the BattleAxe… but this is not helping anyone, either. Further, though I like this better than what we had the previous chapter, this is still a recap of things we already know and have seen. Yes, we do have people reacting to it, but we barely know them and that makes it hard to connect.
Grindle asks what else the Sentinels had to say. Raum says they talked about two of their companions travelling with the BattleAxe and of “many other things”. The important part, though, it not what they had to say, but who accompanied them. It turned out that they had Faraday, a young Plains Dweller, with them… to present to the Mother. Barsarbe calls it “[s]acrilege”. Raum motions for her to be silent and says that was how he reacted, too. The Sentinels invited him to put Faraday to the test, though, and he did.
Pease is unbelieving. Raum nods and says Faraday was “exceptionally strong” (more like she was actually prepared for it), and the Sentinels believe, and he does too now, that she is Tree Friend. After all, the forest sang for her, which has never happened before.
Oh, that will be sure to make an impact, especially when more Avar hear of it! That will have to wait for next time, though, since I am about halfway through this chapter now. Until then!
(no subject)
Wednesday, 5 February 2025 17:38 (UTC)'Quern' or 'quernstones' is just the type of handmill they're using. 'Flat' suggests that they're rubbing the top and bottom stones back-and-forth instead of round-and-round. So if you know what a quern is it's descriptive enough.
I'd ask if Douglass just went and copy-pasted the Huron diet, but they farmed. (And given that one of their crops came from South America, the entire East Coast must have farmed!)
*Looks at what I just wrote* They don't need to settle down to farm, and I'd expect the ones which did farm would outnumber the others. (You do need to farm to settle down though, since otherwise they'd run out of food.)
So, where's the commemoration of the dying of the Earth? Or is that too much of a harvest festival?
It's because celebrating Beltane (which Beltide is clearly based on) with sex was very, very common.
Hang on, Pease just asked about Azhure's erotic dreams. That's incredibly personal! She shouldn't ask about that!
The Sentinels are as bad as the Riders when it comes to information control.
(no subject)
Wednesday, 5 February 2025 18:44 (UTC)GoldFeather, may I suggest you take your daughter on one of these trips and 'suffer' a 'tragic accident'? You'll be better off for it.
Indeed she will... True, she and her daughter do get (relatively) happy endings, but they can hardly know that at the moment. Given the stuff going on with the Prophecy, trying to cross the northern tundra or the Widowmaker Sea might as well be better.
'Quern' or 'quernstones' is just the type of handmill they're using. 'Flat' suggests that they're rubbing the top and bottom stones back-and-forth instead of round-and-round. So if you know what a quern is it's descriptive enough.
That is if you know, which I did not at all! Thank you for teaching me and I will correct that immediately. And done!
Looks at what I just wrote They don't need to settle down to farm, and I'd expect the ones which did farm would outnumber the others. (You do need to farm to settle down though, since otherwise they'd run out of food.)
Exactly... At the least there should be a sizeable group that does, simply because cultures do have variation. I can certainly understand why some Avar would not want to farm (presumably in part to distinguish themselves from "Plains Dwellers"), but it is just so ridiculous that all the Avar are supposed to do so!
(And, of course, the Avar should be quite effective at farming, given their "growing skills". With a lot of Banes devoting themselves to that and some more sensible Bane-making practices, villages should be absolutely possible.)
So, where's the commemoration of the dying of the Earth? Or is that too much of a harvest festival?
I suppose that would be too Avari; they really do get little to do compared with the Icarii.
It's because celebrating Beltane (which Beltide is clearly based on) with sex was very, very common.
That is perfectly fine, of course, but it does bug me that Avar/Icarii sex is apparently not allowed, or at least strongly frowned upon outside of Beltide. If it is because of Gorgrael, which is the most reasonable explanation, I hardly see how a night of revelry is much good for that, even if it is followed with abortions. (Come to think of it, this could be circumvented quite easily if there were a social norm about not engaging in (possibly) reproductive sex during Beltide.)
Hang on, Pease just asked about Azhure's erotic dreams. That's incredibly personal! She shouldn't ask about that!
Yes, it really is quite invasive... and I will note that next part. It actually feels to me like Douglass put that in so Azhure could be put in an embarrassing situation, for the Drama.
The Sentinels are as bad as the Riders when it comes to information control.
Oh, there is no doubt about that. I cannot even say for sure that the Riders are worse in the end... since the Sentinels's refusal to think about anything but the Prophecy has worse consequences eventually.
(no subject)
Thursday, 6 February 2025 03:28 (UTC)Ah, but if it was banned completely Douglass wouldn't have a plot!
It actually feels to me like Douglass put that in so Azhure could be put in an embarrassing situation, for the Drama.
More like 'tee-hee, young maiden from repressive culture is flustered by sex~' if you ask me.
(no subject)
Thursday, 6 February 2025 05:46 (UTC)More like 'tee-hee, young maiden from repressive culture is flustered by sex~' if you ask me.
SCSF: That is of course what is mainly going on, though given the rest of the chapter, I do think there is some "putting Azhure in a bad spot" here.
(no subject)
Thursday, 6 February 2025 06:10 (UTC)(no subject)
Thursday, 6 February 2025 06:20 (UTC)SCSF: I think so, too. The next part will be quite bad about it.
(no subject)
Thursday, 6 February 2025 01:27 (UTC)For now...
I really hate how she treats her readers like idiots. Then again you'd have to be one to actually enjoy this crap.
"Guilt" which completely vanishes after this. She does not give two short shits about her eldest son and did not even bother trying to contact him at any point before or after this, even to let him know that she's alive and loves him. It's so cruel
Jesus Christ, he's got a broken ankle! He's not dying of cancer!
What "prowess"? We've already established that Axis is a useless incompetent. Also note that the eeeevil Duke died when Bornheld was fourteen, so I doubt he had much time to train him either, especially given that it's stated in the text that he basically ignored the poor kid.
It literally never comes up again. The Avar are attacked by the Skraelings exactly once and that's the end of it.
That would be because you are useless, even after you get all those stupid Sueperpowers out of nowhere.
All this detailed world-building for a race that ultimately doesn't even need to be in the story because they do NOTHING. You can so easily tell the author just got bored with them.
Because that's all anybody dreams about or desires. Sex. How incredibly juvenile!
Oh no she might avoid being repeatedly raped, how awful.
Correct. Basarbe has just signed her own death warrant by - GASP! - not loving and worshipping Azhure! The nerve!
aka Nonentities Numbers #1-#3, like most of the Avar characters. Only three Avar will ever actually "matter" and even then that's not saying much.
For no reason!
Ah, the old favourite, "You Are Not Yet Ready". When in fact he doesn't need any of the stupid power-ups he gets to kill Gorge. All he needs is a random magical artefact he didn't earn, and a big heaping pile of Sue Ex Machina. It's really no different from Eragon getting all those power-ups and accessories, only to Sue Ex Machina Galby to death anyway. The magic sword, the belt, the ring, the freaking dragon... none of it mattered a damn.
FUCKING TEA
This is one of those books where the author only knows how to create "mystery" and "suspense" by making all the characters dishonest assholes. I hate it.
Again, Douglass is treating her readers like morons.
(no subject)
Thursday, 6 February 2025 06:19 (UTC)"Guilt" which completely vanishes after this. She does not give two short shits about her eldest son and did not even bother trying to contact him at any point before or after this, even to let him know that she's alive and loves him. It's so cruel
SCSF: I can certainly understand that she did not contact him before now, but afterward... there is no good reason not to. Of course, the reason is probably "Borneheld is just so evil that no one wants to reconnect with him", which I still do not exactly believe.
Jesus Christ, he's got a broken ankle! He's not dying of cancer!
Given that he still looks "ashen", I do have the idea that he is more injured than he is supposed to be... though Barsarbe should maybe be doing more healing and less keeping him in the tent.
Also note that the eeeevil Duke died when Bornheld was fourteen, so I doubt he had much time to train him either, especially given that it's stated in the text that he basically ignored the poor kid.
Ah yes, that is in chapter eleven. The way Douglass phrases this does sound like Borneheld genetically inherited these things from Searlas (and given next book I would not be surprised if that was due to some curse on the Dukes of Ichtar).
It literally never comes up again. The Avar are attacked by the Skraelings exactly once and that's the end of it.
Ichtar and whatever else of Achar they can conquer is considerably more valuable and easy to invade than the Avarinheim, so that does make sense.
All this detailed world-building for a race that ultimately doesn't even need to be in the story because they do NOTHING. You can so easily tell the author just got bored with them.
I am already getting the feeling that she is only filling them out because we have not yet reached the Icarii.
Because that's all anybody dreams about or desires. Sex. How incredibly juvenile!
Quite.
Correct. Basarbe has just signed her own death warrant by - GASP! - not loving and worshipping Azhure! The nerve!
I think she actually signs it by not doing so to both Azhure and Faraday. Disrespecting two of the main characters is a grave sin, after all.
Ah, the old favourite, "You Are Not Yet Ready". When in fact he doesn't need any of the stupid power-ups he gets to kill Gorge. All he needs is a random magical artefact he didn't earn, and a big heaping pile of Sue Ex Machina. It's really no different from Eragon getting all those power-ups and accessories, only to Sue Ex Machina Galby to death anyway. The magic sword, the belt, the ring, the freaking dragon... none of it mattered a damn.
He could have defeated Galbatorix as soon as he learned about wordless magic, really. Here, I think Gorgrael might be "defeated" by having someone befriend him and help him realise just how much WolfStar has deceived him.
(no subject)
Thursday, 6 February 2025 07:00 (UTC)Yeah, it's complete bullshit. Bornheld even points out to her that her abandonment of him was why he turned "evil" or whatever but does THAT get any sympathy from her selfish arse? Of course not. No parent in this thing ever accepts that their bad parenting or even outright abuse could have caused their kid to behave badly.
Real parents feel GUILTY about it when their kid becomes a criminal or somesuch. It's all through the Netflix "Dahmer" series, for one thing. His parents find out what he did and go through hell trying to deny if it could have been their fault before eventually accepting that some blame at least does lie with them. And when he dies they both grieve for him.
Family in general is really poorly portrayed in this trilogy, and especially parenthood.
In which case it should have been made clear that he's suffering from an infection or severe blood loss or something like that.
Ah yes, the "criminal Dukes of Ichtar" who were just so Evil because one of them had a lake drained. The horror.
aka the perfect idealised race with all their incestuous free love bullshit, who are therefore more deserving of attention. Because Douglass cannot keep her disgusting fetishes to herself.
Because asexuals don't exist. As usual. We're all just in denial or haven't met the right person yet or something.
Better still, she's JEALOUS that Faraday "loves" Azhure. Psychotically so. The lesbian overtones are insane.
Like a lot of bad fantasy authors, Paolini included, Douglass just does not believe in the idea of redemption. Ironic given that this thing is called the Wayfarer Redemption, because nobody gets redeemed. They just fucking die! Because that's just easier to write and fits in with this lame black and white view of the world the author seems to have, which is incredibly childish, not to mention massively unhelpful. Just look at what the "us vs them, who are not deserving to be called human" mentality has done so many times in the real world. Or don't, because you will become very depressed.
(no subject)
Thursday, 6 February 2025 17:38 (UTC)(no subject)
Thursday, 6 February 2025 19:12 (UTC)SCSF: I indeed think she liked the idea of forgiveness better than actually writing it. (That is something she came around to with her later books, I have to say.)
(no subject)
Friday, 7 February 2025 00:02 (UTC)(no subject)
Friday, 7 February 2025 01:54 (UTC)(no subject)
Thursday, 6 February 2025 19:11 (UTC)Yeah, it's complete bullshit. Bornheld even points out to her that her abandonment of him was why he turned "evil" or whatever but does THAT get any sympathy from her selfish arse? Of course not. No parent in this thing ever accepts that their bad parenting or even outright abuse could have caused their kid to behave badly.
SCSF: ...He was a year old when she left. He would not even be able to remember that. Sure, I could see it if being exposed to Searlas made him "evil", however silly that may be, but this is just nonsense.
And of course, they would rather blame the child in question than take responsibility.
Family in general is really poorly portrayed in this trilogy, and especially parenthood.
Indeed... Come to think of it, parenthood is mostly in this series. I cannot exactly think of parents being around in later books, except for the SunSoars, which is clearly a horrible mess. For the rest, the parents are already dead if the children are older (with the exception of Druse from Threshold). If the children are young, we generally only see them when they are quite young (Ysgrave from Threshold), or they might as well be adults (Leagh's Child and StarDancer from The Infinity Gate).
In which case it should have been made clear that he's suffering from an infection or severe blood loss or something like that.
I would think he suffers from blood loss given the cut he got on his throat, but that has apparently disappeared in a plot hole, so I do not know either.
Ah yes, the "criminal Dukes of Ichtar" who were just so Evil because one of them had a lake drained. The horror.
It was quite evil of that duke, since draining that lake would have meant killing all the life in it (not to mention the negative impact on its enviroment), it trapped Zeherah in the Ichtar ring and it means that Sigholt loses its natural moat, which makes it less effective. Still, as cartoonishly evil as he may have been (because apparently spiting the magical bridge was preferable to making a new one), his descendants are not responsible for it and are not evil for it.
I could fault them for not unplugging the spring, but by the present time, it has been two thousand years, and few would know that it has once been a lake. I do like the idea of Borneheld having the Lake of Life filled and then having a moat dug around Sigholt, by the way.
aka the perfect idealised race with all their incestuous free love bullshit, who are therefore more deserving of attention. Because Douglass cannot keep her disgusting fetishes to herself.
I also cannot help but wonder if the Icarii being white plays a role...
Because asexuals don't exist. As usual. We're all just in denial or haven't met the right person yet or something.
Or, to be a tad more precise, there are no people for who sex is not their deepest dream or desire. Yes, that is complete and utter nonsense.
Like a lot of bad fantasy authors, Paolini included, Douglass just does not believe in the idea of redemption. Ironic given that this thing is called the Wayfarer Redemption, because nobody gets redeemed. They just fucking die! Because that's just easier to write and fits in with this lame black and white view of the world the author seems to have, which is incredibly childish, not to mention massively unhelpful. Just look at what the "us vs them, who are not deserving to be called human" mentality has done so many times in the real world. Or don't, because you will become very depressed.
(Calling this "The Wayfarer Redemption", like I believe is the title in America, is a really bad fit. The second trilogy is called that, and the titles reflect it ("Sinner", "Pilgrim", "Crusader") because it is about Drago's "redemption". You cannot just apply that to this book, publishers!)
Yes, that is really the way it feels. Whoever is "good" stays that, and whoever is "bad" stays that way, too. And you say, it is very unhelpful and... not how anything works.
(no subject)
Friday, 7 February 2025 00:27 (UTC)It's an example of the theme we have of children being treated like adults, really. They're always fully to blame for anything bad they do, and it's totally okay to expose them to sexual stuff. It's disgusting and awful.
Sorry, but this is REALLY reaching. He did it because the stupid fucking bridge literally wouldn't let him enter his home. Like what the hell else was he supposed to do? And he wouldn't have known about Zeherah to begin with.
But as you say, even if this was the evillist thing ever, his descendants had nothing to do with it.
Plus the so-called "heroes" in this thing do every evil thing in the book (literally) yet draining a lake and killing someone you honestly believe is pure evil is painted as crossing the line? Are you fucking kidding?
Given how racist this series is, it's absolutely a factor. She won't stop pissing on about it, either.
Which is bullshit because Drago didn't do anything. He isn't DragonStar. DragonStar was wiped out of existence as a baby. And even then, what DragonStar did was full of what you'd call mitigating circumstances. He should NEVER have been expected to shoulder all the blame like that.
(no subject)
Friday, 7 February 2025 07:39 (UTC)Sorry, but this is REALLY reaching. He did it because the stupid fucking bridge literally wouldn't let him enter his home. Like what the hell else was he supposed to do? And he wouldn't have known about Zeherah to begin with.
SCSF: Point taken, though I would like it if you assumed more good faith on my part, and had asked what I meant. And yes, of course he would not have known about Zeherah; I did not mean to say he actually knew about her, only that it happened because of him.
For what else he is supposed to do... well, maybe build another bridge? I think that, rather than draining the water the bridge spans, is standard when a bridge is broken. I also think that would be faster than waiting for the whole lake to drain. If I am wrong with this, please explain, because I am not seeing it myself.
Which is bullshit because Drago didn't do anything. He isn't DragonStar. DragonStar was wiped out of existence as a baby. And even then, what DragonStar did was full of what you'd call mitigating circumstances. He should NEVER have been expected to shoulder all the blame like that.
Fully agreed. There would be any amount of characters who do need such a "redemption", but Drago is not one of them at all.
(no subject)
Friday, 7 February 2025 08:38 (UTC)Sorry. I need to stop answering comments first thing in the morning when I'm in a bad mood.
As it happens, right near me they've recently built a new bridge over a major body of water. They dammed up the river first because people have to go down and install the footings and such in the water's bed.
Well, here's the thing. You don't actually have to physically cross the magic bridge to be denied entry by it. In book three Gorge comes to kidnap the Sue Baby, but even though he's on a flying mount he cannot reach Sigholt itself until DragonStar fools the bridge into letting him pass. So even if you build a new bridge, the original presumably still has the power to keep you out.
It might actually have been a reference to WolfStar, since he went through the magic gate thingy and is much more of a "wayfarer" than Drago ever was, but WolfStar doesn't get redeemed either so.. I got nothin'.
(no subject)
Friday, 7 February 2025 12:19 (UTC)Sorry. I need to stop answering comments first thing in the morning when I'm in a bad mood.
SCSF: Well, no problem. I could stand to take my own advice better, too...
As it happens, right near me they've recently built a new bridge over a major body of water. They dammed up the river first because people have to go down and install the footings and such in the water's bed.
That makes sense, of course!
Well, here's the thing. You don't actually have to physically cross the magic bridge to be denied entry by it. In book three Gorge comes to kidnap the Sue Baby, but even though he's on a flying mount he cannot reach Sigholt itself until DragonStar fools the bridge into letting him pass. So even if you build a new bridge, the original presumably still has the power to keep you out.
Ah, that does explain it, and it would be a large security hole not to let that happen.
This does have me thinking... the power of the Lake of Life presumably comes from the spaceship beneath it rather than from the specific water flowing into it, does it not? It has to, since the Nordra's water has no special properties and yet Grail Lake is still magical. Since that is the case, any large amount of water in the bed of the Lake of Life should allow the bridge to form again (and, since it is a lake bed, the water would collect there).
Hmmm, looking at the relevant chapter, it seems that the warm spring does matter, since Jack tells Belial and Magariz to wait for Sigholt to warm up, which seems more than a little like nonsense to me. Either way, it seems the bridge is dependent on that, which does silence most of my complaints. I do wonder why no one took issue with the duke's doings; this was during the time of Icarii rule, after all, and I imagine some would not have liked this.
That is not even to mention that I am very curious as to how the Lake of Life was "drained" by blocking the spring. Even if it has an outflow, the water would eventually drop below that of the outflow, and then it would slowly evaporate. If it were to be "drained", I think the best way might be to set up something on the edge of the lake to pump out the water and then dump it somewhere on the surrounding land.
I frankly think that building a command post for the Duke of Ichtar just outside of Sigholt would have been much easier, but that would make sense, I guess.
Edit: Looking further, I see that the water of the Lake of Life is apparently "steaming", so there would not be all that much life in there, and building a bridge would be challenging, to say the least. Such a moat does make for a wonderful defence...
It might actually have been a reference to WolfStar, since he went through the magic gate thingy and is much more of a "wayfarer" than Drago ever was, but WolfStar doesn't get redeemed either so.. I got nothin'.
Well, "Pilgrim" and "Crusader" do fit with what Drago(nStar) does in those books, so I am quite certain it was meant to be him.
(no subject)
Saturday, 8 February 2025 00:01 (UTC)Yeah, none of this makes any sense. You can't "drain a lake" just by blocking the inflow (and where has all that springwater been going? It's been blocked for what, centuries, so why didn't the water pressure build up and blow the blockage?). He should have had to fill in the lakebed as well, to stop it from refilling with rainwater.
Icarii even built this city! I don't know; the timeline here is a complete mess.
So yeah, confirmed - it's total bullshit.
(no subject)
Saturday, 8 February 2025 09:33 (UTC)Yeah, none of this makes any sense. You can't "drain a lake" just by blocking the inflow (and where has all that springwater been going? It's been blocked for what, centuries, so why didn't the water pressure build up and blow the blockage?). He should have had to fill in the lakebed as well, to stop it from refilling with rainwater.
SCSF: Indeed, a short look around learns me that there is no good way to "block" a spring, only to divert it. In this case, the spring was apparently blocked by pouring rocks into it, in which case the water should be seeping out of the top of the rocks and the Lake of Life should have refilled in the meantime! Even if the spring was plugged sufficiently, the water would just come out on an unpredictable spot...
The smart thing to do would have been to dig a canal from the outflow gully, block the path to the Lake of Life, and then divert the water to a tributary of the Nordra. And yes, the lakebed should have been filled in... maybe with a gradient leading to a canal that joins the other one.
And yes, if Icarii built this, there should have been some outcry over that. None of this makes sense. Well, at least we now have a solid understanding of what is wrong here to use later!
(no subject)
Thursday, 6 February 2025 17:13 (UTC)...what a shock. At this point, I would honestly be more surprised if these two assholes didn't try to manipulate someone. I'm pretty sure that manipulative is their default setting.
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Don't ask me why, but my brain keeps wanting to read 'Barsarbe' as 'Barbie'.
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Hmm. Is it still considered a red herring if the readers already know the truth? I can't tell if this is a legitimately decent misdirect, or if it's just stupid. Given how the rest of this book has gone so far, I'm leaning towards stupid, but I'm still holding onto that tiny kernel of hope.
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Oh. Never mind. That lasted all of, what, three sentences?
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Because Douglass is a hack writer whose greatest talent seems to be rehashing information and plot points we already knew.
Was that overly harsh? I apologize. She's still a hack writer, though.-
*side-eyes Jack's herd of freaky pigs* You don't think... No, surely not.
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Tell that to the poor bunny! I have a feeling it would beg to differ.
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That's pretty stupid. If it was just one person, sure, I could see them living without growing their own food, but for an entire group, that's just asking for trouble. What happens when they eat all the food that's close to their home? They're going to have to search farther out, and farther still, and hunting isn't guaranteed to succeed. What do they do in winter when the plants die down, and the animals all go into hiding? I get that they're nomadic, but they should still have some supplemental food.
Also, if they don't farm, how did they get the grain for the bread? That's not usually something you naturally find in a forest.
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Ehh, I would classify six weeks as 'a few'. Maybe no more than two months, but a month and a half is acceptable.
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Wow, who pissed in her cornflakes? What did Azhure ever do to you to warrant you being so bitchy?
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I imagine that the splint keeps him from bending his knee, so rather than having his leg under him to walk, he has to swing it out wide every time he takes a step. So I don't think the awkwardness comes from him having trouble taking a step, but rather how he has to move to swing a stiff leg.
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HERBED TEAT, OH MY GOD! XD
(no subject)
Thursday, 6 February 2025 18:35 (UTC)...what a shock. At this point, I would honestly be more surprised if these two assholes didn't try to manipulate someone. I'm pretty sure that manipulative is their default setting.
SCSF: It certainly is... After all, it is not like they could point out the witch hunts Jayme had him participate in. On a more general level, I would think the threat of Gorgrael is enough to make people support them without them having to rest to all of this manipulation.
Hmm. Is it still considered a red herring if the readers already know the truth? I can't tell if this is a legitimately decent misdirect, or if it's just stupid. Given how the rest of this book has gone so far, I'm leaning towards stupid, but I'm still holding onto that tiny kernel of hope.
Ordinarily, that would be a Dead Herring, but here the point is rather watching GoldFeather react... and I do think that Borneheld being the BattleAxe is somewhat legitimate. Of course, as she soon points out, as the Duke of Ichtar, he probably would not have wanted to come in the service of the Seneschal (and that would cause quite some commotion, I am sure!).
Oh. Never mind. That lasted all of, what, three sentences?
It has lasted... five sentences.
Because Douglass is a hack writer whose greatest talent seems to be rehashing information and plot points we already knew. Was that overly harsh? I apologize. She's still a hack writer, though.
Oh, at this point she is certainly, though I am sure we will see a different set of "talents" in the next book.
side-eyes Jack's herd of freaky pigs You don't think... No, surely not.
No, I do not think so either, especially considering what they actually turn out to be...
Tell that to the poor bunny! I have a feeling it would beg to differ.
I had not made that connection, but it will be quite relevant next part! (And yes, I still do not like that scene at all, not in the least because of certain later events...)
That's pretty stupid. If it was just one person, sure, I could see them living without growing their own food, but for an entire group, that's just asking for trouble. What happens when they eat all the food that's close to their home? They're going to have to search farther out, and farther still, and hunting isn't guaranteed to succeed. What do they do in winter when the plants die down, and the animals all go into hiding? I get that they're nomadic, but they should still have some supplemental food.
I suppose that the Avarinheim does not change that much during winter, since it has not been affected by Gorgrael's? Still, it is an unforgiving way of living, especially since they do not seem to hunt all that much. And indeed, if they did grow some further food, which they can do perfectly well, they might just get along better. (Come to think of it, the Avar supposedly "must live off what the Avarinheim gives them", but shaping it to their wishes is perfectly fine? That is not quite adding up for me.)
Also, if they don't farm, how did they get the grain for the bread? That's not usually something you naturally find in a forest.
They use malfari rather than grain!
Ehh, I would classify six weeks as 'a few'. Maybe no more than two months, but a month and a half is acceptable.
Hmmm, I would rather expect her to say "a month and a half", then. Aside from that, they apparently need to move north very soon to be in time for the Yuletide Meet, and that seems a bit improbably for a month and a half to me.
Wow, who pissed in her cornflakes? What did Azhure ever do to you to warrant you being so bitchy?
Nothing at all, and I am quite sure that is the point.
I imagine that the splint keeps him from bending his knee, so rather than having his leg under him to walk, he has to swing it out wide every time he takes a step. So I don't think the awkwardness comes from him having trouble taking a step, but rather how he has to move to swing a stiff leg.
Oh yes, that would work... though it escapes me why he would have a splint that far up for a wound to his ankle. Maybe walking a bit stiffly due to being unable to bend his ankle would not be dramatic enough?
HERBED TEAT, OH MY GOD! XD
(grins) I had missed that typo, I see. Corrected!
(no subject)
Friday, 7 February 2025 08:48 (UTC)ie that of pushing her hero past "insufferable jerk" to "pure evil". And in book three it just gets even better.
To absolutely no benefit or relevance to the plot either, might I add. And also it's right the fuck out of nowhere.
And the Banes are supposed to use magic to make things grow, no less - where the hell has that gone?
She's just mean so we can feel sowwy for poor wickle Azhure.
OH MY GOD HOW DID I MISS THAT?!
(no subject)
Friday, 7 February 2025 12:30 (UTC)ie that of pushing her hero past "insufferable jerk" to "pure evil". And in book three it just gets even better.
SCSF: Exactly! Along with the skill "make your story as outlandish and hard to follow as possible".
To absolutely no benefit or relevance to the plot either, might I add. And also it's right the fuck out of nowhere.
I really do not see what the point of it is beside giving Azhure some super-pets.
OH MY GOD HOW DID I MISS THAT?!
I missed it, too, and I even wrote it!
(no subject)
Saturday, 8 February 2025 00:08 (UTC)Far from creating a coherent setting and history you can so easily tell she was just making shit up as she went along.
There is no point to any of the ridiculous accessories and powers Azhure suddenly starts accumulating. It's literally just Sara Douglass playing dress-up with her new favourite doll and indulging in every bit of wish fulfilment she could come up with when Azhure isn't even a particularly important character and only ends up upstaging everyone else including the frigging Chosen One.
The Azhure thing, along with the bizarre out of nowhere crap like alien spaceships is the main reason why I find it so utterly laughable that anybody can even take this series the least bit seriously, let alone declare it a timeless classic.
(no subject)
Saturday, 8 February 2025 09:00 (UTC)SCSF: I quite agree. Thinking this over, I think my own problem with it is that things like the spaceships, Azhure's powers and Minstrelsea are so badly integrated with the main story. They feel like they are from a fairytale or maybe a light-hearted anime, and there is no stitching done, and so it makes no sense.
(no subject)
Saturday, 8 February 2025 09:48 (UTC)(no subject)
Friday, 7 February 2025 08:45 (UTC)It really sucks that they're never punished for it. The last time I wrote a manipulative character, the person he was trying to manipulate caught on and told him to fuck off before ultimately forcing him to tell everyone the truth. And later, he doesn't fully trust the guy not to try it again even though they're friends now. That never happens with these jerks.
"Don't hate me because I'm beautiful!"
No taksies backsies! A hack is exactly what she was. Did I mention there's a fucking AWARD named after her? The Sara Douglass Award For Best Fantasy Series. I was even up for it one year and have never been happier not to win something. I would have been so horribly embarrassed.
Just wait until you find out the Big Secret about those fucking things.
Jealousy. It's the only recognised sin in Mary Sueland.
(no subject)
Friday, 7 February 2025 09:58 (UTC)Of course not. Douglass probably thinks there's nothing wrong with what they're doing. When you have the author on your side, you could commit murder and they would still find a way to justify it. (Maybe not a good way, but...)
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In any other circumstances, I would say congratulations for the nomination, but...yeah. I think I would have been too embarrassed to show my face if I won anything like that, too. It's less of an award and more of a neon sign flashing over your head, forever associating you with a horrible series.
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I would ask if I should be scared, but I'm going to preemptively say yes, I should be absolutely terrified.
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What does she even have to be jealous of?
BarbieBarsarbe knows absolutely nothing about Azhure! That's like saying you're jealous of some random stranger walking past you in the grocery store.(no subject)
Friday, 7 February 2025 11:45 (UTC)Oh well, you see, it's necessary because there's just so much at stake that basic humanoid decency doesn't matter. Or something.
This is precisely why when you write you need to remove yourself from the equation. I've written from the POVs of psychopathic serial killers, rapists, wife-beaters and worse, filthy rich CEOs who think they worked their way to the top via sheer hard graft and didn't have any unfair advantages, and not once did I pause to patronisingly inform the reader that they are either Good or Bad. I just showed them for what they are and left the reader to draw their own conclusions as to how they should view them.
Given that the Sara Douglass Award is part of the Aurealis Awards which repeatedly awarded her crap the prize for Best Fantasy Novel while she was alive, it's depressingly obvious that the organisation's judgement is suspect at best. As such I really couldn't care less about their opinions on my books.
For what it's worth you won't be scared so much as just rolling your eyes so hard you can see your own frontal lobes.
The author knows in advance that Azhure is going to become the Most Amazing Person Ever, so Barbiesarb is being pre-emptively jealous, or at least irrationally mean as a prelude to said jealousy.
(no subject)
Friday, 7 February 2025 12:34 (UTC)Of course not. Douglass probably thinks there's nothing wrong with what they're doing. When you have the author on your side, you could commit murder and they would still find a way to justify it. (Maybe not a good way, but...)
SCSF: Oh, will that ever be the case...
(no subject)
Friday, 7 February 2025 12:35 (UTC)SCSF: The only Sara Douglass award I would want to be associated with is one for covering a series as horrible as this one.