The Griffin or the Agate

So the other day the Fed-Ex guy hands me a brown envelope. This is and of itself is not unusual - a number of publishers have books sent to us via this method. What was remarkable, though, was what was emblazoned in bright letters on a sticker stuck on the envelope’s front:
     ROBERT JORDAN IS THE NEW TOLKIEN
     Or something to that effect. At first I dismissed it with a snicker, but the more I thought about it the more I had to reconsider my initial stance. Like his writings or abhor them, one can’t deny the positive effect Jordan has had on the genre. His books are New York Times Best Sellers, often rising to the number one spot. For an oft-neglected style of writing anytime fantasy can be pushed to the forefront has to be considered a good thing. But, cry the detractors, how can you compare him to the master? Tolkien’s creative wizardry served as the inspiration for countless tales to follow. Can we really say that Jordan will bring about the same?
    Probably not, but that’s hardly Jordan’s fault. He seems well-adept at keeping interest in his series alive by publishing often. Do I think his work is as high in quality as, say, George R.R. Martin’s Fire and Ice series? No, but on the other hand Jordan doesn’t make his readers wait two years between books. It wasn’t all that long ago that we reviewed Crossroads of Twilight, the tenth book in the Wheel of Time series. Now Jordan shifts direction and heads to the past in New Spring.
    Compared to the usual heft of his tomes, New Spring is a pamphlet. The story unfolds around the time of the birth of Rand al’Thor, the child of prophecy who will grow to become The Dragon Reborn. The problem is that after having the Foretelling vision of the child’s birth, the prophetess drops dead without naming him. Thus begins the race to find the child by the magically imbued sisters of the White Tower known as the Aes Sedai. Some seek the child only to kill him; others, like Moiraine Damodred, wish to save him. Moiraine sets out on a secret mission, little knowing her path would intersect with another who would have a profound effect on her life - Lan Mandragoran, king of a country that no longer exists. As Moiraine struggles to uncover a dark branch within her society that had only been rumors before she must also cope with the trials of the outside world and figure out how to co-exist with a man who seemingly has no use for her in any way, shape or form.
    There’s a tighter, sharper feel to New Spring than was evident in Crossroads of Twilight. Perhaps it comes from a sense of urgency, or maybe because in some ways Moiraine is a fresher character - if memory serves, she checks out in the second or third book of the series. In describing the first encounters of the headstrong Moiraine and the willful Lan Jordan gets away from the endless descriptions of Aes Sedai and throwaway banter that pad out the pages of some of the later books of the series. It’s also nice that a newcomer to the series could actually begin with this book and not be missing out on any vital information. It’s like the way The Hobbit was with Lord of the Rings texts - hey, there’s that Tolkien guy again!
    Fans, of course, will be thrilled although they might gripe at the abbreviated length - well, abbreviated for Jordan, anyway. The important thing is that Jordan’s better traits as a writer shine through in New Spring and make it a worthy read for both Wheel of Time hardcores and those new to the author as well.   §

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