Thom is too old.

[Brynefan 2]

They call it tabac. Just like the Seanchan kaf, it gets on my nerves. If tea gets to keep its name instead of being named teeh, or something just as bad, why can't the other two?

[Kaitlin 22]

Tea is superior!

[Ekho 52]

Maybe RJ just ran out of ideas for drink names

[Lizzy 0]

And then there's that tea that temporarily paralizes you and prevents you from using saidar. Reading that part was torture!

[Marie 73]

That girl in Cairhien in The Great Hunt was just wrong. She had a future before he came into her life. Then she just died. Old rock stars are evil.

 

Dena deserved it!!!

[Olivia 26]

Dena deserved it!!!

 

How did she deserve it? I kinda doubt that Thom warned her about his past and said "oh by the way, ppl may come and try to kill me. Just thought you should know before we get serious." He seemed to be trying to forget about his history with Daes dae'mar.

 

On the other hand, like most WoT males, he may have tried to drive her away and say he was too dangerous. So unless he truly warned her about the dangers of being near him but she stayed anyways, she didn't deserve to have her throat slit.

[Kaitlin 22]

So unless he truly warned her about the dangers of being near him but she stayed anyways, she didn't deserve to have her throat slit.

 

No, she didn't, but also Thom didn't know they were going to come and attack her. It doesn't matter how good you are. Sometimes stuff happens you just don't expect. Even though he was involved in tricky stuff, their original plan (or Dena's ) was to train her as an entertainer. Maybe he fell for her because she happened to resemble someone *ahems* but he did actually seem to care about her after some time. RJ didn't really write him as an assy type of character... well, not like Rand. *meep!*

[Marie 73]

How did she deserve it? I kinda doubt that Thom warned her about his past and said "oh by the way, ppl may come and try to kill me. Just thought you should know before we get serious." He seemed to be trying to forget about his history with Daes dae'mar.

 

The capitol of Cairhien was probably a bad place to move then.

 

Sure, from a rational point of view Dena shouldn't have been killed. But when have I ever been rational about Dena

(A reminder to those who have forgotten/don't know about Crazy Marie)? I also made a Sim of her and had said Sim die in a fire - I did bring her back to life, but that's besides the point!

 

Besides, for years I thought Dena was stabbed in the stomach. It took a reread to realize she got her throat slit, which is a far more graphic death than I had somehow invented in my head. Doesn't change that I'm happy she is gone!

[Ekho 52]

I agree with marie, if someone wants to forget about daes dae'mar, Carhien is probably the worst place you can stay. Although I never found Dena important enough to be glad she was dead, I will say I never missed her

[Brynefan 2]

I thought that it was a terrible waste of talent to have her dead. A waste of sensible girls too. Now there are not many left.

 

Sorry, Dena haters, but I felt sad when she died.

[Kaitlin 22]

Well, I did too. *nod* I didn't particularly like her, but it was a shame.

 

Thom's a ego driven masochist like most drunks, I mean rock stars, and that's why he ended up in Cairhien. He thought he really wanted to forget about the boys and Aes Sedai (that he may have been finding attractive), but ended up somewhere he'd be reminded of them. He went to Tar Valon to get sauced and remember too, and was convinced to go to Caemlyn because it would be worse.

 

I seem like I understand all this Thom business.. but I'm just bs'ing.

[jan 14]

Well, I'll be honest. I recall Dena's name and recall that I liked her, but I have no idea how and where she fits into the story... it's kinda hard to care any more.

 

[side note to RJ: FINISH BOOK 12!!!]

[Lizzy 0]

 

Except, I can't remember if I liked her...

[Olivia 26]

She was in book 2. After we thought the Myrdraal in book 1 killed Thom, he showed up performing in some inn in Cairhien when Rand went there chasing Fain and the Horn. He was having an affair with Dena, a twenty-something girl he was training to become a gleeman(woman?), even though he thought she had enough talent to become a fancy Court-Bard. She's also good at dice, I think I remember her cheating Loial out of some money in a sneaky dice game that Loial didn't understand. Anyways, Rand comes, asks Thom to help with the Horn, Thom says no blah blah. Anyways, some thugs come and slit Dena's throat while they wait for Thom to get back. Thom kills them and then goes and kills Galldrian Riatin, the King of Cairhien at the time, (which starts a war of succession that went on until Rand came, saw, and conquered Cairhien.)

 

She wasn't an important character by herself, she was just an accessory to Thom's character, and served to galvanize Thom into doing some bad stuff and becoming part of the main plot again (and driving him into the drinking and masochism binge that Kaitlin already mentioned) Hope that helps ppl remember her character a little!

[Brynefan 2]

Is there a name for a human plot device?