Reread of The Aspect-Emperor Series

Book 2: The White-Luck Warrior

by R. Scott Bakker

Intro

Here we are! Starting Book 2 of The Aspect-Emperor. I am trying to go back to past me and thinking what was I most looking forward to in this book. Achamian and Mimara’s storyline. I wanted to know how they were going to handle traveling through the Wilderness after all the losses the Skin-Eaters suffered in Cil-Aujas.

While Kelmomas messing things up in Momemn was interesting, and we have the whole White-Luck Warrior plotline that’s the title of the book, it was all the interesting things we were learning. About Seswatha. The promises of finding Ishuäl. Mimara and her strange powers. Cleric and learning more about the Nonmen.

The one I was least interested in was Sorweel. While he was our outsider POV and showing us the Great Ordeal, his storyline was interesting, but not exciting. There was the question if he had really fooled Kellhus or if Kellhus was playing along for his reasons. The Kelmomas/Esmenet storyline has this murderous child-Dûnyain causing problems and potentially putting her in danger, the Nannaferi/White-Luck Warrior had some weird stuff going on and intrigued by where it was going, but Sorweel… His storyline lacked that.

But this is really one long story and while Sorweel seemed to be just a reader POV, things are going to be changing in this book.

So, let’s delve into the books.

SPOILER WARNING: Please read the book before any of these posts. This is intended for those who have read ALL the books. I will discuss both the events of the chapter and even their ramification for future events up to and including the Unholy Consult.

As in all the previous books, we start with a quote from the real world.

The heavens, the sun, the whole of nature is a corpse. Nature is given over to the spiritual and indeed to spiritual subjectivity; thus the course of nature is everywhere broken in upon by miracles.

—HEGEL, LECTURES ON THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY III

My Thoughts

So I think we can see how this quote relates to the series. Nature is a corpse that is invaded by the subjectivity of the spirit which disrupts the corpse. And that is definitely what we have with the White-Luck Warrior. A man who is literally broken in upon by miracles. The young husband and father are stripped of his identity and then his youth and turned into an assassin who exists in all time. Past, present, and future is all the same for him.

We have the breaking of the Darkness that Comes Before because he is guided by Yatwer who sees all of time at once. There is no cause and effect that moves in a chain. She can break the links at any time and knows exactly what will happen.

Now, who is Hegel? His works are very influential on the canon of Philosophy. He died nearly 200 years ago. He wrote about “absolute idealism” that can overcome the dualism of things like “mind and nature” or “subject or object.”

Sound like what the Dûnyain want? The Zero that the Survivor pursues in the next book. To become a self-moving soul not trapped by the dualism of both being subject to nature and able to understand nature. To be beyond the Darkness that Comes Before.

To Hegel, Geist, spirit or mind in English, is the “manifestation of the logical concept.”

So, yes, this is an apt philosopher for Bakker to reference and one that has, no doubt, greatly influenced his formation of the Dûnyain and their goals.

With the framework of that natural world being violated by the supernatural world establish, we delve into The White-Luck Warrior.

Want to read more, Click here for Chapter One!

And you have to check out my fantasy novel, Above the Storm!

Now it’s been turned into an Audiobook!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When the Stormriders attack …

…Ary’s people have little chance.

Can he find a way to defeat them?

At 19, Ary has spent ten years mourning his father’s death. The aftermath of the attack still haunts him. Now, on the eve of the draft he faces his greatest fear, being sent to become a marine.

He knows the cost of war.

All he wants is to marry Charlene, who he has loved since they were kids. Building a farm and starting a family sounds perfect. There’s just one problem, his best friend Vel adores her, too. He’d give anything for peace.

But wanting the Stormriders to stop attacking…

…isn’t going to make it happen.

For love, for his people, and especially for the life he wants, Ary makes a decision that will change everything.

The adventure begins.

You’ll love this beautifully creative dark fantasy, because James Reid knows how to create characters and worlds you’ll grow to adore.

Get it now.

You can buy or burrow Above the Storm today!