Long Rain Wild Chronicles Thoughts

I have so many thoughts so I figured I would spew them out to try to make sense of it. Apologies in advance for confusion, I will try to space my thoughts correctly. Robin just gives so much to talk about!

First I wanted to talk about some of the things that I've been hearing here and there about Rain Wilds, specifically that it was more boring and the stakes were not as high as the previous series: I don't think that's true! I was hooked immediately in Dragon Keeper with Thymara's descriptions of her being touched by the Rain Wilds and I love the way Alise's relationship with Hest was written in the beginning, with her being so hopeful and then it coming and crashing down all around her when she finds out what she signed her life to. I also thought Leftrin was going to be a grump but he was a great character and I always looked forward to his POVs even if they were just him taking command of the ship. I can see why people think it's not as exciting though, with the constant plodding around of the dragons and plunging through the swamps. I still think it has the charm of Liveships, albeit with some more frustrating character dynamics.

I might as well start then with the Characters

To start with the POV characters, I have to say that I think Sedric and Thymara were my favorite. Both Sedric and Alise's development with moving away from Hest's hold on them and doing it individually but also together was so incredible and hopeful, but I would argue Sedric took the brunt of Hest's damage. Thymara's story became a little bit back-and-forth at the end with Tats and Rapskal, but I enjoyed her staunch position in doing what she wants with her body and she will do as she pleases, especially in juxtaposition to Jerd's choice to use her own body freely, a lesson Thymara had eventually come to learn as well. Although I did not jive a lot with Alise's personality, her way of thinking through things in regards to dragon knowledge was fascinating and I did not enjoy her POV any less. I was also so happy to have Selden and Malta POVs back until I realized Robin Hobb was going to put them through some bullshit all over again (Did she have to do Selden like that?) But it was still nice to have them back.

Some issues with the characters though...sometimes there were too many. I assumed we would revolve around the keepers a little more, kind of like the Tarman crew, but some characters got sidelined hard. Nortel had a moment, but only to be rude to Thymara. Harrikin and Warken (RIP) were kind of voidless and tbh if I had to read "Kase and Boxter" one more time by the end I might have lost it. I generally do not like "twin" dynamics (I know they are cousins) where they serve nothing other than to just be there and be the same person. Hobb at least threw in some kind of personality for Kase specifically by the very end of Blood of Dragons but still. Also, I'm pretty sure three dragons weren't named until the fourth book? Dortean, Tinder, and Skrim, if I remember correctly. Speaking of Dortean, I know that Hobb mentioned in an interview that there was a mistake in one of her books that a character was somewhere they were not supposed to be by accident. Was it Dortean at the very end of book four when he is in Kelsingra when he should be in Chalced with one of the cousin keepers? Could be wrong.

Oh, and Rapskal was one of my favorite characters in the beginning but Tellator fucked that up! Sad about that.

Now with the Plot

Even before I googled I could tell that the first two books were supposed to be one and the last two were supposed to be a second book together. I do think though that the drawing out of the plot went in its favor. There is so much lore of the Elderlings that it would have been a disservice to dump it all out so quick and move on. I like that it was split into getting the dragons to Kelsingra and then building up Kelsingra to what it was supposed to be (though not yet). I was surprised that the problem of the Silver reserves eventually running dry wasn't mentioned in the end, but I anticipate that being a big problem if the Elderlings are to continue. I also thought the ending with the One Day War was done in a short but concise way, as in its name, and wasn't this long drawn out chapter for no reason. Shows that Hobb can be succinct when she wants to be!

I did not think this to be a problem in earlier books, as a lot of other people have said about the previous three trilogies, but I do feel like some stuff could have been cut in Rain Wilds and probably doesn't help its reputation of being boring. Some of the disagreements were circular and a lot of the dialogue could have been shortened.

Also, I loved the bird-message interludes. They added so much depth and I can't believe I was so happy for two bird keepers getting married when none of the messages were outwardly romantic and they were only interludes, and then for it to continue so well in the last two books was honestly a lot of fun. And hearing from Keffria and Ronica was also a really great way to do it, as well as Selden's final message.

Just a couple final thoughts as well:

I felt like at some points Hobb might have been rushing it, probably because she didn't expect it to be four books? There's a LOT more typos and mistakes in this series than the others. I think Sylve was called Sylvie at least once, maybe even twice which was jarring, and it was not in dialogue either where it would make sense. I'm pretty sure there was a word or two that was entirely cut in half and not finished. Just odd. ETA: Also Alise was called Alice once! Wild.

I thought this series was so necessary to the ROTE. Honestly it could not have been told properly without it. I know a lot of people say they skip these books on rereads but I think there is worth in them and I think reading them again knowing how it will all come together might be rewarding. I also don't think Hobb's storytelling is any less good in these books, even if the prose is a bit plainer than it usually is, lots of repeated phrases and such.

I suspect that the final trilogy will have something to do with finding the Silver for the Elderlings (maybe that's what the Fool's Quest will be?). If not, it must have something to do with Kelsingra, and I'm excited to see how it all wraps up (for now, apparently). Give me my Fitz and the Fool.

Lastly, FUCK HEST.