I see dead people

[SinisterDeath]

Though Rj has already stated he doesn't plan on tieing up all the loose ends. Only the main one.. aka final battle.

[Guest cwestervelt]

Not saying he is going to be tying up all loose ends. We already know he isn't. That doesn't change the fact that it would be a very abrupt end if Tarmon Gai'don occurred and then the book was over. He has also stated the desire to end the series with a fealing of life continuing afterward Tarmon Gai'don. Nothing like a significant epilogue to do that.

[RobertAlexWillis]

Assuming that you can believe anything Semirhage told them. Which is extremely doubtful. She's just mixing enough truth into what she says to make the lies more believable. It would also be in character for her to attempt to use her position as a captive to destabilize and undermine the confidence of those around Rand.

 

Wish I could find the quote of RJ's. To paraphrase, who would trust the word of a forsaken?

 

While I agree that Semirhage is certainly untrustworthy, she is also smart enough to know that if she can do undermine Rand using the truth, it is that much more effective. Her smugness in that scene rang of "I don't even need to lie to you, the truth is bad enough". But, we'll see, won't we?

[cloglord]

I think that my post comparing the last part of this upcoming last book, and the end of Jackson's RotK was misunderstood.

 

I was merely saying that I was dissapointed in the lingering ending to the movie. I would be similarly disapointed in a third of the last book telling me insignifigant things like how Illian recovers from the LB, and whether Mayene finally gets out from under the thumb of Tear.

 

My dissapointment would be similar, not the book to the movie.

[RobertAlexWillis]

In Nicola's Foretelling (the only one we have which seems to be post Tarmon Gai'don) we get a glimpse of a fairly immediate post-Tarmon Gai'don crisis.

 

She said:

 

"The lion sword, the dedicated spear, she who sees beyond. Three on the boat, and he who is dead yet lives. The great battle done, but the world not done with battle. The land divided by the return, and the guardians balance the servants. The future teeters on the edge of a blade"

 

(LoC, chapter 14)

 

The line, "The great battle done, but the world not done with battle." gives us the post-Last Battle context. And it is a very likely scenario that if the Light is victorious, there will be an immediate crisis on the battlefield. After all ... the Seanchan can't just "go home". They claim lands that are still disputed ("The land divided by the return") and with Rand thought dead (because he is going to die) his treaty with the Seanchan might not hold (unless he comes back ... "Three on the boat, and he who is dead yet lives.")

 

Also, there will be the need for a permanent accomodation between the Asha'man and the Aes Sedai ("the guardians balance the servants"). All of these things are apparently going to come to a head fairly quickly, when everyone's forces are still in the field ("The future teeters on the edge of a blade"). So, even with Tarmon Gai'don done, there will be plenty of real storyline "mopping up" to do, involving things much more signifigant (from a dramatic sense) than Illian's post war reconstruction or the fate of a small city state.

 

500-700 pages of set up and the opening moves, 300-400 pages of Tarmon Gai'don, 400-500 pages of wrap up epilogue. So, 1200-1600 pages. That would work for me, and I think it would stay interesting. I would be very dissapointed if it ends with "The Dark One is gone, yay, we'll all live in peace now!"