This was a lot of fun, Nemesis! You did a very fine job of hosting your half-book. Now that we're returning to a whole book, I will heroically resume the host role for our next discussion!

@ACriticalDragon

9 ай бұрын

Whatever would we do without you? 🤣 How noble and heroic you are. I look forward to the next discussion, fiend... I mean, friend.

I’ve been reading (and rereading) this series since it came out, so some of my comments might be driven more by rereads than a first pass through (though they will only be about this book). Good to see new readers coming to this series. One thing that I thought was particularly powerful about the “failed” healing scene was that it highlighted the contrast between the ways of the Fellowship, Paravians and Balance, that of consent, versus the Koriani, that of force. Arithon did want to run away to the sea. His burning of the ships in Ships of Merior were to buy some time, which is what made it all the more heartbreaking to him when he returned to Merior and found them burned. He knew he could no longer escape to deep sea, as he did not have the ships to provision him. So he chose a place to make a stand where he could hopefully divert the oncoming war but if not was at least a place that would not result in another massacre of his allies. I’m surprised that you didn’t discuss the key part with Lysaer after the battle. Where he looks at the fear and yet respect that the surviving war band gives Asandir, and decides that he needs to raise himself as something larger than a prince, even god-adjacent, in order to inspire men to want to continue to sacrifice themselves to his war.

Thank you so much for hosting! I just now noticed how you changed Philip's name. 😂 I had a wonderful time chatting about this book with you two, and I'm looking forward to the next one!

@ACriticalDragon

9 ай бұрын

Change his name? I don't know what you are talking about? 😇😇😇😇😇 It was a pleasure discussing this book with you, Johanna. Thanks for the excellent points and observations you made.

Wonderful discussion and can't wait for more. These books just keep getting better as they go on. I especially loved Wurts' use of clever adjectives to give the reader hints of what was going on beyond just the action happening in the moment. Like you said early in the discussion, sometimes you have to go back and re-read what just happen to take on the full appreciation of what information she just gave us.

@ACriticalDragon

9 ай бұрын

Thank you. I am glad that you enjoyed it. I have a number of discussions about Wurts' series that you feature in waiting for me to watch. I am terrible at watching other videos, but I promise to get to them eventually.

Awesome conversation! Great to hear perspectives from all 3 of you. Warhost is up there with one of my top books of all time, and like you guys I was gushing over the sheer creativity from Janny's mind and her words (and all the capital M Moments!). As I'm sure you can guess, there's so many more Moments on the way, can't wait to see you guys read through the Third Arc!

Such a fantastic conversation! I can't wait to see the next one!

@ACriticalDragon

8 ай бұрын

I am glad that you enjoyed it. Thanks for watching.

Ooh! Great talk! I'm motivated more than ever to start in on Fugitive Prince in anticipation of y'all's next chat!

@ACriticalDragon

9 ай бұрын

I really enjoyed Fugitive Prince. I am trying not to get too far ahead, but it is proving difficult to wait. 🤣🤣

This is the perfect way to wake up and start the work week. Im so happy your breaking this series down and im loving these discussions. This series is so unique and unlike anything I've ever read before. Thank you guys these always make my day.

@ACriticalDragon

9 ай бұрын

I am really pleased that you are enjoying the discussions. Thanks for watching.

Yes. Trauma. Not just regret or grief over a specific loss. Wurts deftly explores trauma here.

Great discussion as always!

@ACriticalDragon

9 ай бұрын

I'm glad that you think so. I am really enjoying reading the books, and these chats add to that for me. So it is great that other people get something from it too.

This book broke me in so many scenes. It is probably my most favourite of the series because we go so deep into the feels of it all. Thank you for the wonderful discussion, you all pointe out some things that I'll have to look for on my next read-through. :)

@ACriticalDragon

9 ай бұрын

I am very happy that you enjoyed the discussion. I am completely taken with this series. It was great to get Johanna's and Philip's perspectives because they both highlighted aspects of the stories in ways that added to my understanding and enjoyment.

Loved hearing your thoughts on the Lysaer scene in Ath's brotherhood temple. Up until that point i couldn't bring myself to truly dislike lysaer bcus i viewed his scumminess as the Mistwraith's doing. But he was given a clear out right then and there but was too much of an arrogant, self-righteous knucklehead to take it. Made my blood boil 😤

@ACriticalDragon

2 ай бұрын

It is one of my favorite scenes in the books so far. A combination of otherworldly fantasy, mysticism, symbolism, and character development. Lysaer is still a victim of an external malevolent entity that is twisting his thoughts and gift of justice, but he is also so wonderfully hateable

Just finished this book and can easily say this is the book where a lot of questions start to get raised. We start getting lore for the fellowship not originally being from paravia and with the aim to be bringing back the paravians and learning humans came to paravia later and that humans banished by the fellowship were responsible for causing the mistwraith... why would the fellowship look out for the good of humanity? I feel Ath and Darkhanon have got to make an appearance with religion seeming to take precedence in the second arc of the story. Also struggling with picturing the magic system in my mind especially with the prologue. In my head the Wards work like spells in the doctor strange movies?? for how well the magic is written I don't want to do a disservice to janny and picture it all wrong.

@ACriticalDragon

9 ай бұрын

I think we all imagine the magic differently, because while it is brilliantly described Wurts has left room for personal interpretation. So if you can create a wondrous image in your mind's eye, that is all that is required.

I love your assessment about Lysaer. He can't countenance any other situation beyond Arithon being Evil at all, because if he does... then what did he do all these things for? There's no grand cause to bring down evil and save the world. Just a spiteful vendetta without reason and thus he's not a Grand Savior... he's just a murderer.

@ACriticalDragon

9 ай бұрын

The tragedy of Lysaer, and his descent into more extreme positions, is really compelling. We are witnessing the birth of a tyrant, and seeing how his psychology becomes more and more twisted.

@chibipoe

9 ай бұрын

@@ACriticalDragonAbsolutely! And I believe you've read ahead, so you've seen how his position in Ships of Merior on a certain issue evolves in Fugitive Prince?

@ACriticalDragon

9 ай бұрын

@@chibipoe I have indeed read ahead. I couldn't stop myself.

@chibipoe

9 ай бұрын

@@ACriticalDragon Welcome to my every re-read. Once I start, can't stop. :D So so good.

Oh nice, didn't know you guys were continuing this series, since I missed the discussion of book 2 What happened to Jimmy? Did he give on the series or is too busy to join these discussions?

@ACriticalDragon

9 ай бұрын

The book 2 discussion is on Johanna's channel. There should be a link in the video description.

I came away with a far more grim view of Arithon than you guys did. At one point Dakar straight up asks him why he doesn't just get on his boat and leave Vastmark before Lysaer arrives. Arithon replies with a weak answer about preventing Lysaer's army from trampling all over Shand. Arithon is only in Vastmark because he chose it as the site of his battlefield and he hired the shepherds out of some patronising plan to elevate their poor culture. My impression at the end of Warhost was that the curse is infecting Arithon as much much Lysaer however Arithon is more subtle in how it's effecting his behaviour.

@ACriticalDragon

9 ай бұрын

Interesting. I viewed Arithon as resigned to the conflict because he realized that Lysaer would never give up, and so he fought against the desire for conflict but realized it was inevitable at this juncture. His scrying to try to find the least worst solution, similar to Curse of the Mistwraith, and making a cold, clinical decision to orchestrate the devastating ambush. So I don't view him as without issues, but his strategic planning errs on the side of mitigating loss of life on both sides as far as possible, but will ultimately come down on protecting those people that would suffer needlessly if Lysaer is unopposed. He also realized that if Lysaer was completely unopposed he would run unchecked through the lands and that would be devastating to the clans and nonaligned communities.

@ACriticalDragon

9 ай бұрын

But yes, I agree that the curse is affecting Arithon, but due to his training and gifts it is not as all encompassing as it is in Lysaer. His compassion rules out the illusion that self rationalization and justification that Lysaer creates, so Arithon doesn't have that comfort. He still sees the truth of his actions.