The Shadow Rising (By the Cover): Into the Wastes

I swear to god, these covers just get less accurate every time!

I’m only half certain about what’s happening here. We’ve got four characters front and center; Rand in red (I think), Mat in green (I think), Egwene (I think), and… is that Lan in the back? That would make the most sense. Unless it’s one of the aiel. Which can’t be, since they tend to avoid horses unless they have to.

Also, ignore that Egwene looks exactly like Selene from the cover of the Great Hunt. Just… don’t think about it. Also, did Rand put on a few pounds? Or is Rand the one on the left; his hair certainly seems more like Rand’s.

I can’t tell who the hell is supposed to be who on this damn thing.

The setting is clear. This is the Aiel Waste, where Rand, Mat, Egwene, and many other characters spend most of the book. And it seems pretty well depicted in the artwork! It looks suitably hot and unsuited for the poor horse Lan(?) is leading.

As for what the characters are doing… I’m not sure. Clearly, they’re making camp for the night. But what’s the deal with the caravan? Is the scene supposed to depict one of the nights the party spends in the Waste with the caravanners on their way to Cold Rocks Hold? If so, then where the hell is everyone else? They were traveling with a huge party, not just these four!

Credit where it’s due: I love the detail of the sunset. I feel it really plays well with the title of the book, The Shadow Rising. As the sun sets, the shadow is quite literally rising. It’s a fun little extra detail that I really enjoyed.

This is an odd cover. It does a poor job of representing anything of what happens in the book itself. But it’s so goofy that it’s hard not to smile at it. Plus, the artwork itself is as well-drawn as usual, and it does have some fun little details. Still, it’s on the lower end of Wheel of Time covers for me.

Okay, I’m done with covers now. Let’s talk about the actual book next week.