Author’s Note:
I had to take a short break from Wheel of Time. It turns out that four whole Robert Jordan books back-to-back is a lot like stuffing yourself full at Thanksgiving dinner, or pigging out on Halloween candy after a night of trick-or-treating. A detox was in order, and I couldn’t think of a better interlude than to pick up the newly-released King Sorrow for a couple weeks. Not only was it a fantastic palette-cleanser, but it also made me realize how special Wheel of Time is. You see, I tried to write a little something about every chapter in King Sorrow, but it wasn’t the same. The chapters were often too short to warrant writing an entire post about them, or they simply didn’t provoke my inner voice to render sharp opinions. Eventually I started writing about entire sections of the book, but even that felt like mechanical, rote summarization. This isn’t to say I didn’t enjoy King Sorrow. I did. But it simply wasn’t begging for a commentator the way Wheel of Time is.
Berelain tries to seduce Perrin, and Perrin leverages this to drive Faile away from the dangers surrounding him. Faile picks a cat fight with Berelain, vowing to make Perrin hers.
When I first read this chapter, I thought for sure Berelain was not actually Berelain. Too brazen. Too forward. Too… not wrapped in multiple layers of plot mystique. Clearly, this was Lanfear in disguise, meddling with the Two Rivers boys again, right? Nope! Reliable sources have assured me she’s just a royal floozy who spreads her legs to get what she wants. Rand turned out to be too dangerous to seduce, and she dismissed Mat as too challenging. Next on her list: Perrin Aybara, you lucky dog!
Berelain tries to get Perrin to carry a message to Rand about her returning to Mayene, but he brashly refuses. Undaunted, Berelain tries to interest Perrin in returning to Mayene with her, saying she could use his blacksmithing skills to add ornamental ironwork to her bedchamber. Faile enters the room mid-seduction, and Berelain leaves, assuring Perrin she always gets what she wants.
Faile has also heard the rumor about the Whitecloaks invading the Two Rivers looking for Rand and Perrin. Even when Perrin says he will travel the Ways with Loial to get there as quickly as possible, Faile still insists on coming with. But Perrin is still trying to be gallant and keep her from the dangers that surround him, so he tells Faile he will go alone. Then he twists the knife and suggests he will go to Mayene to enjoy Berelain’s company after that.
Faile storms out of the room, hurt by Perrin’s words. She finds Berelain and starts a cat fight. Berelain is tougher than you would expect, and she handily flips Faile over a shoulder, stealing one of her knives. The two of them are about to engage in a knife fight when Rhuarc happens upon them and breaks it up. He scolds them for breaking the peace, sends Berelain off to her room (without dinner!), and confiscates Faile’s favorite knives.
At this point, I had to check to make sure I opened the right e-book. I could have sworn I was reading The Shadow Rising, a novel about an epic battle between the forces of good and evil, but this came off feeling like an episode of Full House meets Mean Girls.