Anomalies

[John Weatherwax]

Just finished the triolgy - great read and a page turner. There were, however, some anomalies. They didn't detract from the enjoyment, but nagged me.
1. I thought that the gold tablet that Sister Ariel fished out of Ezra's Wood would have some significant part to play. Apart from a note that she was going to study it, it dropped from sight. Why introduce something thats both interesting and unusual and not use it?
2. Feir went into the Wood to get Curoch, met something that was amused and came out with a backpack(?) containing instructions on how to make a fake Curoch. The Dark Hunter is a construct with one purpose and is not likely to be amused. Is Ezra the something amused? If so, maybe a little Deus Ex at the book ending would be in order - Wolf (Ezra) apprearing to Kylar in a dream to explain this and other odd things.
3. Elene lells Kylar to kill Khali with Curoch so that he could "kill the vir". And when he does kill her, the vir dies. However, Khali earlier says the vir are natural and she has no control over it.
4. The Dark Hunter leaves the Wood to get Curoch in the final battle. It kills all the Krul in the process. How did it leave the Wood when all the wards were designed to keep it in? Also, its function was to destroy magic - why were the talented ones not affected? And finally, did it return to the Wood? and why?
As I said, I enjoyed the books thoroughly, but just had a few questions.

John

[Brent Weeks]

1) I did use it. I used it to distract your attention. ;) If you could tell every time I introduce something that oh, this is going to be IMPORTANT, then it would be harder to surprise you, wouldn't it?
2) What you're asking for here isn't a deus ex machina, the device is actually called Irving the Explainer (from the Maltese Falcon). And I already do it. Ezra explains quite a bit. Too much and it gets boring and drags out the ending. Suffice it to say, you don't know everything about the Hunter yet. I meant it to remain mysterious.
3) So because something's natural, it can't be killed? Because I don't control something, that means someone else can't kill it? I don't see the problem.
4) Clearly, something affected the wards that keep it in. Durzo going in there with a black ka'kari that eats magic, perhaps? And magic draws it. It's most powerfully drawn to the most potent magic. Thus, it's going to care a lot more about Curoch than about some piddling mages. That said, it has a horde of potent magical items back in Ezra's Wood... so it doesn't want to be gone long, because while it's gone it can't be guarding its horde, can it? So, though it would love to kill all the krul and all the magic, it can't risk being gone too long. The only reason it went so far away from its home was because the prize was Curoch itself. So yes, it returned to the Wood.
I've got more to tell about the Hunter and how it all works... just not until I get back to Midcyru. ;)

[John Weatherwax]

Thanks for the reply. I would hope this isn't the last we will see of Kylar or of that world. Keep writing!

John

[DC]

One thing I've noticed is that there is at least two Ka'Kari still "in play." Durzo admits to giving a few to the wolf, and attempting to destroy the red and the blue, but the silver, green, and if I'm not mistaken, the white, are all still floating around Midcyru. Other than the Red, blue and brown, none of the others are fully accounted for (particularly the silver- durzo wouldn't chase after the globe of edges if he had already found and removed it)... is this going to come up later maybe?

[DC]

Also, you seem to have two different Japan- inspired cultures; the Ceurans and the Sethi, though the Ceurans seem to have a bit of "Irish Highland warrior" in them. Is there a relationship between the two?

[KillingOurAngel]

on 1 - the tablet was more to introduce ariel than the tablet
2- ezra left the directions, but the wolf was too busy fighting things on the other side of the wood, so feir didnt meet the hunter
3 - she had no CONTROL over it, but khali was still the reason that Vir was in exsistence
4 - Durzo went to go in and get Curoch, and covered it with the Ka'Kari so that the hunter wouldnt recognize it's scent;the Krul died because they are vir controled and the vir died;the talented ones were not affected because the vir was killed, not talent, finally,yes, curoch did return to the wood