Status
Available
Collection
Publication
Sydney, N.S.W. : Tor Fantasy/Pan Macmillan Australia, 2019.
Description
Epic fantasy legend, and author of #1 New York Times bestselling series The Wheel of Time�, Robert Jordan's never-before published novel, Warrior of the Altaii: Draw near and listen, or else time is at an end. The watering holes of the Plain are drying up, the fearsome fanghorn grow more numerous, and bad omens abound. Wulfgar, a leader of the Altaii people, must contend with twin queens, warlords, prophets and magic in hopes of protecting his people and securing their future. Elspeth, a visitor from another world, holds the answers, but first Wulfgar must learn to ask the right questions. But what if the knowledge that saves the Altaii will also destroy them? Prequel: New Spring #1 The Eye of the World #2 The Great Hunt #3 The Dragon Reborn #4 The Shadow Rising #5 The Fires of Heaven #6 Lord of Chaos #7 A Crown of Swords #8 The Path of Daggers #9 Winter's Heart #10 Crossroads of Twilight #11 Knife of Dreams By Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson #12 The Gathering Storm #13 Towers of Midnight #14 A Memory of Light By Robert Jordan and Teresa Patterson The World of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time By Robert Jordan, Harriet McDougal, Alan Romanczuk, and Maria Simons The Wheel of Time Companion By Robert Jordan and Amy Romanczuk Patterns of the Wheel: Coloring Art Based on Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member quondame
Only worth reading to tick off bits that were upcycled into WoT, this tale of a rather dull nomadic warrior who becomes the spearhead of change in spite of himself is full of familiar names from our history mismatched together and folded in with Jordan's rather weird fancies.
LibraryThing member Herenya
Jordan’s first novel was written in the late 70s and sold twice, but never actually published until now. It’s hard to judge what I would have thought of it if it had been the first book of his that I’d read.
The Wheel of Time is one of my favourite series -- I’ve spent a lot of time
But many of the worldbuilding elements are variations on things which are also in WOT: interactions between people from very different cultures, nomadic tribes living in a harsh landscape, ruling queens, a city that’s never been taken, magic that’s only done by women, travellers from a different world, detailed military strategies, matter-of-fact nudity for prisoners and magic rituals, corporal punishment, implied off-screen sexual assault… (That last one was unnecessary, ugh. At least WOT does a better job of acknowledging the horror and trauma of assault, and it’s also a much smaller percentage of the whole story.)
If I hadn’t read WOT, I would have still found the worldbuilding interesting but probably not make up for not really connecting with any of the characters. There are some tense sequences, but other scenes, like the battles, failed to captivate me because I wasn’t invested in anyone’s survival.
Wulfgar is an oddly emotionless protagonist. That sort of thing can be really effective if a character then changes, or else if it becomes apparent that their lack of emotion is just a mask. But that’s not the case here, and it meant I found Wulfgar a hard character to get to know.
Jordan’s women are interesting -- they have different personalities and motives and types of power. They have the potential to be nuanced characters but are just not given enough space. I think I would have liked this story a lot more if it had been from Elspeth’s perspective.
The Wheel of Time is one of my favourite series -- I’ve spent a lot of time
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rereading and analysing it -- and what I found most interesting about Warrior of the Altaii were the differences and similarities between it and WOT. In terms of the protagonist, prose and plot, it feels very different: its first-person narrator is a warrior and leader, already fully grown into his adult roles; the story revolves around why and how the nomadic Altaii try to take a city; and it’s all over by page 350.But many of the worldbuilding elements are variations on things which are also in WOT: interactions between people from very different cultures, nomadic tribes living in a harsh landscape, ruling queens, a city that’s never been taken, magic that’s only done by women, travellers from a different world, detailed military strategies, matter-of-fact nudity for prisoners and magic rituals, corporal punishment, implied off-screen sexual assault… (That last one was unnecessary, ugh. At least WOT does a better job of acknowledging the horror and trauma of assault, and it’s also a much smaller percentage of the whole story.)
If I hadn’t read WOT, I would have still found the worldbuilding interesting but probably not make up for not really connecting with any of the characters. There are some tense sequences, but other scenes, like the battles, failed to captivate me because I wasn’t invested in anyone’s survival.
Wulfgar is an oddly emotionless protagonist. That sort of thing can be really effective if a character then changes, or else if it becomes apparent that their lack of emotion is just a mask. But that’s not the case here, and it meant I found Wulfgar a hard character to get to know.
Jordan’s women are interesting -- they have different personalities and motives and types of power. They have the potential to be nuanced characters but are just not given enough space. I think I would have liked this story a lot more if it had been from Elspeth’s perspective.
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LibraryThing member UndeadWookiee
Warning - some spoilers ahead
It is so odd reading a new novel from an author that passed away 12 years ago now, even stranger yet that it was first written nearly 40 years ago now and just now getting published.
I can understand how authors sometimes have practice stories they write that never plan
The Altaii are a people that are nomadic warriors at heart. The live on the plains which resemble the Waste in WoT in many ways. It boarders the Backbone of the World similar to the spine of the world. It is a hard and unforgiving land with little water and food. The female leaders the Sisters of Wisdom are very similar to the Wise Ones in the WoT.
But times are changing and the plains are growing ever harsher and as a people they must change or risk the extinction of their people. And the to stem the tide they must learn new ways and face incredible odds.
It is by no means a sprawling epic like his Wheel of Time novels that came later but it was a beginning that created those initial seeds of inspiration. There are some other similarities that I didn't list here but encourage others to puzzle out themselves.
Overall I give it 4.5 stars
It is so odd reading a new novel from an author that passed away 12 years ago now, even stranger yet that it was first written nearly 40 years ago now and just now getting published.
I can understand how authors sometimes have practice stories they write that never plan
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to have released but Robert Jordan's widow seen to getting the book released. And in some ways it is easy to see the budding of ideas that eventually blossomed into the Wheel of Time some 11 years later.The Altaii are a people that are nomadic warriors at heart. The live on the plains which resemble the Waste in WoT in many ways. It boarders the Backbone of the World similar to the spine of the world. It is a hard and unforgiving land with little water and food. The female leaders the Sisters of Wisdom are very similar to the Wise Ones in the WoT.
But times are changing and the plains are growing ever harsher and as a people they must change or risk the extinction of their people. And the to stem the tide they must learn new ways and face incredible odds.
It is by no means a sprawling epic like his Wheel of Time novels that came later but it was a beginning that created those initial seeds of inspiration. There are some other similarities that I didn't list here but encourage others to puzzle out themselves.
Overall I give it 4.5 stars
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LibraryThing member brakketh
Lots of echoes (or I guess pre-echoes given the order they were written) of Wheel of Time.
LibraryThing member Andy_DiMartino
I enjoyed the story. A well-done first effort from a master. I did not think it was too much like the WOT although the main characters were somewhat Aiel-like.
LibraryThing member Karlstar
This was somewhat disappointing. While there are a few WoT concepts here, this is a much rougher work. Apparently different groups of creatures, including humans, have shown up on this world. From time to time, people arrive from 'our' time. The wild tribesmen who survive the extremely challenging
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Plains are challenged by city dwellers. There's betrayal and combat and clever tactics, but overall, this wasn't great. Show Less
LibraryThing member MarkLacy
I had hoped that this story would have had more magic in it -- not the kind wielded by sorcerers but the kind wielded by great storywriters. But alas, it didn't. I was careful not to set my hopes too high, but I was still disappointed. This was early Robert Jordan material, resurrected and shared
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with the world. It didn't come close to the quality of his Wheel of Time story, or his Conan novels. And I was surprised his editor didn't revise the character names in this story, which included everything from Viking names, to British names, to names reminiscent of the Middle East, with no rhyme or reason to them. Show Less
LibraryThing member David_Fosco
A story of the strength and courage of a nomadic people seeking to survive a change to their way of life. It paints a vivid picture of death and the glory of conquest.
LibraryThing member Mama56
Interesting, but definitely not my cup of tea. Narrator is very good.
Language
Original publication date
2019-10
Physical description
352 p.; 24 inches
ISBN
9781760786922