[Dragaera] Dzur spoilers - 17 thoughts

[Jon Lincicum]

Davdi Silverrock wrote:
> On 8/13/06, Steve Simmons <scs at di.org> wrote:
>   
>> On Sat, Aug 12, 2006 at 01:00:04AM -0700, Davdi Silverrock wrote:
>>     
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>>> 17)  Vlad Norathar and Cawti
>>>
>>> It is perhaps appropriate that the story ends just as Vlad is about to
>>> meet someone whose very existence he did not suspect, and that it is
>>> this meeting that perhaps affects him the most, out of all of the
>>> confrontations that he's had.
>>>       
>> I found this frustrating and pointless. It furthers the story in no way,
>> and seems introduced only to give us a cliffhanger into the next book.
>>
>>     
>
> Oh, I don't think it's a cliffhanger.  In fact, I suspect that the
> book that follows this temporally (since there might be more flashback
> books) will start after Vlad has experienced the nervousness and
> confusion (and perhaps, joy) of meeting his son, and will involve him
> trying to figure out what he wants to do next, now that he has this
> new knowledge.
>   
I agree. This is not a cliffhanger--in fact, it's a payoff. It's paying 
off the revelation that came in the last sentence of /Orca/... So it's a 
literally ten years in the making. If the payoff is not as thorough as 
you might have hoped for... well, I can only say that the Fanboy in me 
agrees with you. But the literary critic in me (that dark, disturbing 
part of my soul) appreciates the tension that this incomplete resolution 
between Vlad and his son perpetuates.

As to Vlad's immediate plans, it certainly seems to be his intention to 
go back on the run again. But bear a couple of things in mind:

1. Vlad intended to go back on the run again immediately after /Issola/, 
also. Somehow, he got pulled into spending a whole book back in 
Adrilankha. Who's to say that the next book might not pick up ten 
minutes after /Dzur/ ends, and have him staying in Adrilankha even longer?

2. Vlad now has a greater appreciation for his friends. That's a big 
part of what /Dzur/ is about--learning that his friends can help him, 
and that maybe he should let them--even if it *does* put them in harm's way.

3. Even if Vlad does go on the run, the next book might not happen until 
years later, and have us looking back on his years in exile with nostalgia.

I think I like this last idea. Set the next book fairly far into Vlad's 
future, living comfortably in a castle on the outskirts of Adrilankha, 
serving as some sort of Imperial executive (Perhaps the head of the 
Special Tasks Group? ;-) ) having completely resolved his differences 
with the Jhereg... And only drop veiled hints here and there about how 
he managed it. Wouldn't that just drive you completely nuts?

Then it would take another book (or two) to jump back in time and 
explain how it all happened.

Majikjon