Memory of Light to be split into three books.

[T-6005]

I just finished the new book, and I'm actually quite impressed with Brandon Sanderson. If you're reading this Per, know that there are no spoilers below except for one tiny one that is mentioned in advance. It's pretty much safe.

It's not that his writing is particularly great or that he mimics Robert Jordan exactly or anything like that. It's just that at the beginning of this thread we were talking about whether the extension from one book into three was deliberate and meant to stretch out the series artificially.

After reading this book and getting a feel for how Sanderson was going to handle the Wheel of Time, I actually believe that the length isn't exaggerated - Sanderson works diligently to bring important plot points into a satisfying resolution and actually manages to take the sprawling, complex almost-mess Jordan left and bring the story back to a point where you see it as manageable. At the same time he does his best to answer niggling questions that have plagued fans since pretty much the second book, and personally I really appreciate it.

Even in such a long book he couldn't give enough time to each character to suit me - and, as usual, Rand gets far too much attention - but I like the way he's changed the narrative. Instead of long, multiple-chapter sequences focusing on a single character he keeps the action moving, never allowing the action to get too bogged down on a single character.

Hardly a spoiler at all, but I'll warn your just in case since I was talking about Demandred earlier - POSSIBLE TINY INSIGNIFICANT SPOILER - At the beginning of the book in the prologue my favorite Forsaken, Demandred, finally gets his due in a small way. Graendal is at a meeting with Moridin, Mesaana and Demandred after the events at the end of Knife of Dreams (namely us finding out who Anath really is) and Graendal is totally pissed at not knowing who Demandred is masquerading as. She actually says that she would trade all of her information on Semirhage, Moridin, Mogedien and Mesaana for even a hint of where he was. She also says that if it weren't for Lews Therin, Demandred very likely would have been the Dragon himself. This is the spoiler part, by the way - when Moridin asks him if he'll be ready, Demandred says "My rule is secure, we gather for war. We will be ready." So I'm trying to figure out who he is. I'm assuming he must be under the people who work for Rand, since he was supposed to "Keep an eye on him" in earlier books. With Robert Jordan flat out denying that Mazrim Taim is Demandred - which would have been my number one guess - we're left with either his existence as a male channeler who is near in power to Rand or one who can't channel. Since Logain is the only one who is near in power that we know of, he seems the most likely suspect, and he does have Min's viewing of glory and power to come, perhaps above all men, but it seems unlikely that he could really have worked so hard for Rand if he was really Demandred. Not to mention that Logain was the one to actually capture Semirhage at the end of Knife of dreams.

Continuing on from that - I just needed another paragraph.

Failing him being Logain, Demandred can't be an Asha'man. When he says his rule is secure, it leads me to assume that he must be one either one of the Stewards for the Dragon Reborn in Carhien, Tear or Illian (though two of those previously had a Forsaken in power, Be'lal in Tear and Sammael in Illian). Which leaves Demandred actually being the Steward in Carhien, Dobraine Taborwin. Although I hardly think Dobraine would have allowed himself to almost die - he was stabbed pretty badly and needed Healing. Same goes for Darlin - he fought Mat at one point without using the Power during the Aiel attack on the Stone, so it seems likely he isn't Demandred. I think it's unlikely he could be a Borderland ruler, as well, since they've all run down south to see Rand and their rules are all far from secure at this point.

So here's my guess - Demandred is King Roedran of Murandy. We don't hear much of him until he hires Talmanes and the Band, and apparently uses that well enough to semi-unify Murandy. Also, Talmanes mentions in Knife of Dreams that King Roedran has two copies of the general's book that Mat is always quoting (Fog and Steel by Comadrin I think.).