Thoughts about Book 29, The Storms of Chai (SPOILER FILLED)

[Rune Owl]

I just finished reading all of the Lone Wolf books available on Project Aon, up through Book 29, The Storms of Chai.

I didn’t realize until afterward that there was an eighteen-year gap between Joe Dever writing Book 28 in 1998 and Book 29 in 2016. I almost didn’t realize there was an eighteen-year gap in the storyline either, because I sort of skimmed through that first part that racaps everything that ever happened in Magnamund. This is a little bit like watching Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull without realizing there has been a gap since The Last Crusade.

I have some thoughts I want to write down before I move on to Books 30 and 31. I don’t know if it will be interesting to anyone else. It will be full of spoilers.

I am aware that Rusty Radiator started another thread like this in 2018.  Go check that out if you want even more content about Book 29.

[Rune Owl]

Even though I didn't realize there was an eighteen-year gap between Books 28 and 29, I noticed the difference in the writing.

Here is an example from Section 1.

In the early predawn light, the area is alive with activity. The hum of the skyship engines makes the gravel surface of the parade ground vibrate beneath your feet as you approach the magnificent vessels. Lord Rimoah beckons you over to the boarding stairs of the Comet.

I feel like that imagery is more evocative than what I remember from the previous books.

Here is some interaction between the player character and Quang in Section 10.

In the failing light, he spots a place that looks promising. It is a cave-like opening in the side of a wooded knoll. He calls you to come forward in the line and determine if it is safe to enter. You focus your Sixth Sense and at once you know that there is nothing hazardous lurking beyond the opening.

‘All clear,’ you tell him.

A couple of things strike me about this.  I like the casual way that the Kai Grandmaster interacts with his companions and I like the routine use of his Kai skills.  The player character and The Watchers feel like friendly members of a team.  It lacks the usual breathless, gushing language about how awesome everyone is.

The phrase "all clear" also seems remarkably casual and modern compared to the previous books.

And of course, there was Chao's death.

The terrible realisation that Chao has passed away hits Bai and Deng like a sledgehammer. Their faces crumble and they begin to shiver and sob uncontrollably. Tears run freely down their cheeks as sorrow overwhelms them. Lieutenant Quang is also deeply affected by Chao’s death. He has fought many battles and lost more than his fair share of friends and comrades, but Chao was a brave and decent man, a loving husband and a good father whom he had come to respect and admire. He did not deserve to die like this.

We have seen important characters die before, but this is the first time we've seen this kind of impact on other characters.  It's the first time we've seen real emotional stakes.

[Rune Owl]

So much happened in the world between 1998 and 2016. In 1998 we were just getting used to web browsers. In 2016, we were well into the streaming era. That was the year Netflix released Stranger Things.

[Rune Owl]

Magnamund owes a lot to J.R.R Tolkien, both directly and indirectly through Dungeons & Dragons. In 1998, I think everyone's conception of The Lord of the Rings was still this.

Or maybe this.

The Peter Jackson movies came out in 2001-2003.  Now we have a whole generation who has grown up picturing Elijah Wood as Frodo Baggins.

[Rune Owl]

By 2016, didn't we all know that Chai was a blend of tea, milk, and spices from India? 

 

Was I the only person thinking about that the whole time?

[Rune Owl]

Book 28, Section 237:

Captain Chan delights in showing you some of the exotic bladed weapons for which his homeland is famous. You are especially impressed by the Kirusami—the halberd-like polearms that are issued only to the Imperial Guardsmen like Chan. Its craftsmanship and balance are superb. (If you wish to keep one of these weapons, record it on your Weapons List as a Chai Spear. In combat it will add 1 to your COMBAT SKILL.)

So I was just walking around with a Kirusami like it was no big deal.  Then in Book 29, Section 248:

Anseng tells you that his ornate bladed polearm is called a kirusami. It resembles a short spear with a curved blade fixed at one end. The blade is beautifully engraved and razor sharp. This distinctive weapon says much about Anseng’s distinguished military career. Only the Chai Imperial Guard are permitted to own and use such weapons, and only the bravest of their cadre are allowed to keep them when they retire from service.

And again in Section 330.

Upon reaching the town’s west gate, you are waved down by two town guardsmen with glowing lanterns. They recognise the kirusami that Anseng is armed with and respectfully they salute him. They are aware that only the Imperial Guard are permitted to own and use such weapons, and only the most distinguished former-members of the Guard are allowed to retain their coveted polearm when they retire from service.

So there is a little bit of discontinuity around the kirusami from Book 28, but given that eighteen years have passed it seems reasonable that my Kai Grand Master left his at home in the display case.  I am wearing "the simple clothing of a Chai countryman," so that seems fair enough.

[andyc]

Book 29# was such a big step up in all ways from the rather lacklustre previous two books. The big delay actually did the series a favour, in that the last four books could be written after a much longer time in gestation, as well as with an adult audience in mind.
Assuming book 32 will be as good/better than the fabulous book 31, I may have to put these last four books as my favourite Lone Wolf sub-series (beating even Kai and MagnaKai). It'll be pretty damn close whatever happens.