We are always more afraid than we wish to be, but we can always be braver than we expect.

Perhaps it was the length of time it took me to finish the book, or the onslaught of characters that were difficult to place in the story, but this book was a bit of a challenge. The peaks in the story were incredible, but the valleys were tough to work through and that is why I am giving this book three stars. There were just too many lulls for me to stay really engaged.

I feel that the story read like this: "RandomAiel#1 spoke with GoodAesSedai#1 and AnotherAielGuard#1 hand talked to Maiden#1 while escorting ACharacterYouActuallyKnow to CityFromAFormerBook#1".

The story was like an epic chess battle, except the posturing and Game of Houses performed with the pawns are given the bulk of the story and when the battle finally happens its completely enthralling but over before you know it.

I will continue on with the series, but it's a challenge since I know I'm getting in to the lower rated books.