After several delays,World of Warcraftwas finally able to release theSylvanasnovel, written by Christie Golden. Despite concerns over a few of the excerptsWorld of Warcraftreleased about some plot points, fans are enjoying the story for the most part.
Sylvanasis a 400-page tie-in novel whose release coincided with the “Judgment”epilogue chapter of theShadowlandsstory, which featured the fate of Sylvanas as decreed by Tyrande Whisperwind. Marketed as “the epic, definitive story” of Sylvanas Windrunner, the novel seeks to answer questions and tie up loose ends of the Banshee Queen’s story.
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So far, fans have enjoyed much of what Golden wrote pertaining toSylvanas’ history inWorld of Warcraft. The novel was able to go in-depth with the Windrunner family and introduced her father, Verath. Golden also explored Sylvanas’ relationship with her sisters and younger brother Lirath, who act as major influences through her life and undeath, as well as those with the Nathanos, the Forsaken, and the Dark Rangers.
However, there are stillproblems withWorld of Warcraft: Sylvanas. Unfortunately, the framework of the novel is to explain her reasoning for allying with the Jailer–the unpopular antagonist ofShadowlands. Because of this, several sections of the book contain less-popular passages which seem incongruent with other media. One example is where one of the Jailer’s servants gets Sylvanas to empathize with his cause by showing her the injustice of the Shadowlands, and another has Anduin Wrynn try to compare his own hardships with hers, both of which left poor tastes in the mouths of readers.
Nevertheless, it seemsSylvanaswill go down as a good book despite its imperfections.As a veteran writer forWarcraft, Golden excels at building atmosphere and breathing life into small character moments, which is evident, especially in the scenes of Sylvanas’ history.World of Warcraftwas also able to have Patty Mattson, the incredibly talented voice actress for Sylvanas, narrate the audiobook, which fans have cited as one of the best parts of their experience withSylvanas.
That said, it is a shameSylvanasarrives on the coattails of an expansion with as mixed reviews asShadowlands. Sylvanas has been an extremely popular character since she appeared inWarcraft 3, but much of her characterization was irrevocably damaged by her recent actions–most notably the Burning of Teldrassil inBattle for Azeroth. Though many fans may wonder how much betterSylvanaswould have been if these events had never happened, at least they will be able to look forward to thefuture ofWorld of Warcraftnow thatShadowlandsis well and truly finished.
