Bookworm Speaks! - Thrall: Twilight of the Aspects
Bookworm Speaks!
World of Warcraft: Thrall: Twilight of the Aspects
by Christie Golden
****
Acquired: Barnes and Noble Booksellers
Series: World of Warcraft (Book 9)
Hardcover: 336 Pages
Publisher: Gallery Books (July 19, 2011)
Language: English
Subject: Science Fiction and Fantasy
****
The Story: When Azeroth was young, the noble titans appointed the five great dragonflights to safeguard the budding world. Each of the flights' leaders was imbued with a portion of the titans' vast cosmic powers. Together, these majestic Dragon Aspects committed themselves to thwarting any force that threatened the safety of the WORLD OF WARCRAFT.
Over ten thousand years ago, a betrayal by the maddened black Dragon Aspect, Deathwing, shattered the strength and unity of the dragonflights. His most recent assault on Azeroth—the Cataclysm—has left the world in turmoil. At the Maelstrom, the center of Azeroth's instability, former Horde warchief Thrall and other accomplished shaman struggle to keep the world from tearing apart in the wake of Deathwing's attack. Yet a battle also rages within Thrall regarding his new life in the shamanic Earthen Ring, hampering his normally unparalleled abilities.
Unable to focus on his duties, Thrall undertakes a seemingly menial task from an unexpected source: the mysterious green Dragon Aspect, Ysera. This humble endeavor soon becomes a journey spanning the lands of Azeroth and the timeways of history itself, bringing Thrall into contact with ancient dragonflights. Divided by conflict and mistrust, these dragons have become easy prey to a horrific new weapon unleashed by Deathwing's servants . . . a living nightmare engineered to exterminate Azeroth's winged guardians.
Of even greater concern is a bleak and terrifying possible future glimpsed by Ysera: the Hour of Twilight. Before this apocalyptic vision comes to pass, Thrall must purge his own doubts in order to discover his purpose in the world and aid Azeroth's dragonflights as they face the Twilight of the Aspects.
The Review: If Bookworm had to choose, then Bookworm would say that the orc Thrall is probably their favorite character in all of World of Warcraft.
It has been said that the best way to develop characters is to torture them. While ‘torture’ may be a bit too far, the text succeeds in putting Thrall through great hardship and adversity. Thrall, like the world of Azeroth has undergone great changes. He has stepped down from his position as Warchief of the Horde and has joined the Earthern Ring of shamans in order to heal the sundered world. This has not been an easy transition though. Thrall has been a statesman (or orc) longer than he has been a shaman and the other shamans of the Earthen are aware of this. Even though Thrall is not power-hungry like other characters, he has grown accustomed to power, as almost anyone would be. He was Thrall! Savior of the Orcs, Warchief of the Horde! When he talked, people listened. Now though, he is among the shaman, he is almost a rookie. The other’s have been Shaman’s a lot longer than he has and while they aren’t outright hostile, they are on the same side after all
For a long time now, there were persistent rumors that Thrall would end up in romantic relationship with the human character Jaina Proudmoore, with whom they shared a close friendship for many years and was partially responsible for maintaining piece between the Horde and the Alliance. Thusly the ‘shipping’ between Thrall and Jaina lasted quite a while and was vocal component of the fandom. One that Blizzard did much care for and thusly crafted a character in order to silence the shippers and set the record straight, hence: The Orc Shaman Aggralan.
The developers pretty much admitted that was their intent and shows in regards to the character. Aggra is not the most interesting character. Bookworm actually had to consult the World of Warcraft Wiki because they could not even remember her name! Perhaps future expansions, both in the games as well as the bookshelves will develop her character. If Aggra has any hope of being as memorable as her husband, it will be a necessity.
Bookworm was rather neutral in regards to the prospect of romance between Thrall and Jaina but Blizzard would have done well to settle it one way or another, without creating such a token and forgettable character. Thankfully, Aggra is not in this book for very long and spares the reader her blandness. Tremendous strides have been made in regards to representation of female characters over the dominant male characters but Aggra needs some serious writerly love.
Final Verdict: This Book is an interesting dive into one of Warcraft’s most iconic characters. Anything not related to Thrall tends to fall to the wayside and the book as a whole suffers for it. The Thrall chapters save this book but ultimately it feels like a half-hearted attempt at chronicling World of Warcraft
The Rating:
Three Shaman Crests out of Five
****
Icon Source: https://wow.gamepedia.com/File:Shaman_Crest.png
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