On October 8, 2019, Wheel of Time and Robert Jordan fans will get to experience Warrior of the Altaii, a fascinating formative work by The Wheel of Time creator, offering an abundance of the epic themes that Jordan would continue to develop in The Wheel of Time itself.
Draw near and listen, or else time is at an end.
The watering holes of the Plain are drying up, the fearsome fanghorn grow more numerous, and bad omens abound. Wulfgar, a leader of the Altaii people, must contend with twin queens, warlords, prophets and magic in hopes of protecting his people and securing their future. Elspeth, a visitor from another world, holds the answers, but first Wulfgar must learn to ask the right questions.
But what if the knowledge that saves the Altaii will also destroy them?
Harriet McDougal, Robert Jordan’s editor and wife, explains a bit of the history behind Warrior of Altaii:
Warrior of the Altaii has been sold twice, but has never been published. Until now.
When I reread Warrior of the Altaii this winter, after this long intermission, I was amazed at the foreshadowing of The Wheel of Time. You will find many hints of what is to come. One of the most obvious is the name of the major mountain range – the Backbone of the World. In The Wheel of Time, it is the Spine of the World. I think you’ll have fun finding them as you read this brand new Robert Jordan – a fine wine that has reached its perfect maturity.
On October 8, draw near and listen.
Buy the Book
Warrior of the Altaii
More Robert Jordan on Tor.com
- Robert Jordan: The American Tolkien by Michael Livingston
- Amazon Orders a Series of The Wheel of Time TV Show, Expected in 2020
- The Wheel of Time Named One of America’s 100 Most Beloved Books
- Reading The Wheel of Time For the First Time with Sylas Barrett
- Rereading The Wheel of Time with Leigh Butler
Looks pretty generic. Though still infinitely better than the old Darrell K. Sweet covers.
Not enough Nicholas Cage, like Eye of the World had.
I miss those Darrell K. Sweet covers.
Laughing out loud at your comment, Fudgyvmp. Agreed, not enough Cage (I thought I was the only one that noticed that!!). I also miss those covers.
Yeah this is boring. If I was a new fan/unfamiliar, I would NOT be picking this up. Miss Darrell K. Sweet as well…
It does look a bit like a mass market thriller you’d see in an airport or grocery store, which… kind of appeals to me, given the Conan-adjacent register the prose seems to promise? I’d have preferred something more fully fantasy pulp, but this somehow feels appropriate to me. (Of course, it won’t actually be released initially as a mmp, though that would be cool.)
Awful. And highly disappointing Coming on the heals of so many good covers from TOR.
Honestly this looks like a passed-over, half-sketched cover for The Ruin of Kings. Unfortunately dull as it looks, the story will hopefully be better.
Rejected Ruin of Kings cover. Guess everyone will buy it anyway so no need to pay for an actual cover painting.
These minimalist covers are the new style. Besides, I think the market for this is existing/completionist RJ readers. It is not an attempt to reach new readers.
Cover is ok but not anything special. Looks like the Sherrlyn Kenyon Dark Hunter series which is boring, dark and you can’t distinguish one book from the next. I have bought books just because I loved the cover. This one I would only buy because of the author so you’d best make his name very prominent as my eyes would sail past this to other books.
This reminds me of the horrible posters and advertising that was done for the John Carter movie. Loved the books, author and movie, couldn’t see any connection to the annoying advertising . By the way red and black are not a good combo. If you do muscle testing they make your energy go weak, which is why they’re used by people who are into power and control . JFI.
I loved the old Sweet covers; kinda gave an inkling as to what the world looked like.
Who cares about the cover? Looking forward to the book!
I’m not all that impressed with this rather unimaginative cover. That won’t stop me from buying a story from one of my all-time favorite authors, of course. Looking forward to it!
Seriously. Who cares about covers. You don’t read covers. I’d rather use my own imagination than rely on some artist rendering.
Urgh. That’s dreadful. I miss the days of the fully painted covers on SF and F novels.
“I miss Darrell K. Sweet’s covers”? Since when is that a thing? Am I the only one who cringes whenever I look at Lord of Chaos, one of the best books in the series masquerading as a bodice-ripping Harlequin romance novel starring Rand al’Thor as Fabio and an Aes Sedai as his devoted slave? (Okay, maybe that last part isn’t that far off.)