62 pages • 2 hours read
Sarah J. MaasTower of Dawn (Throne of Glass, #6)
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2023A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Part 1, Chapters 1-8Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Part 1: “The God-City”
Part 1, Chapter 1 Summary
Content Warning: This section includes discussions of trauma, violence, and suicide.
After three weeks at sea, Chaol Westfall and Nesryn Faliq arrive on the Southern Continent. Recently left paralyzed from the waist down from a brutal magical attack, the former Adarlan Captain of the Guard struggles to acclimate to the physical restrictions on his life. They travel to the Khagan’s palace in Antica, where they hope to receive aid in the war against the Valg in the Northern Continent of Erilea, where their friends currently fight. Chaol also hopes to receive care from the magical healers of the famous educational institution, the Torre Cesme, whom he hopes will restore his ability to walk.
As they approach the palace, they notice the white cloth hanging from buildings, a sign of mourning for a royal relative who must have recently passed. Chaol sifts through the information Nesryn has given about the homeland her family hailed from. In the Khaganate, enslavement is outlawed, and all servants are paid. The Khagan decides the inheritance of the throne and can choose any of his children regardless of birth order; this choice can be changed, but it must always be detailed within a sealed will to be opened upon the Khagan’s death.
Part 1, Chapter 2 Summary
Because Nesryn’s father is from Antica, the city feels like home to her. Nesryn and Chaol meet Khagan Urus and his children: Arghun, the eldest son, is the politician amongst his siblings and known as the Prince of Spies; Sartaq, the second-born, is commander of the rukhin—archers who ride large birds called ruks; Hasar, the third-born and eldest daughter, controls the Khaganate’s armadas; Kashin, the fourth-born, controls the land armies; and Duva, the second youngest, is six months pregnant and has recently married a prince from a neighboring territory. They learn the youngest daughter, Tumelun, died suddenly three weeks ago.
Chaol and Nesryn receive hospitality, but Urus is in no rush to consider offering them aid in the Northern Continent’s war while still in the mourning period for his daughter. Urus permits Chaol to be healed at the Torre Cesme. He also reveals that Arghun’s spies have received information about Rifthold in the Northern Continent; Rifthold was forcefully taken by Perrington, and his witches and Dorian have fled the city. While this news is unnerving for both Chaol and Nesryn, Nesryn desperately fears for the family she left behind in the city.
Part 1, Chapter 3 Summary
Nesryn and Chaol are shown to their chambers, where Nesryn retreats to her private room. Kashin visits to invite them to dinner. He hints that he believes Perrington’s spies have infiltrated the palace and enlists Chaol’s help in pinpointing the danger. While it’s widely believed Tumelun struggled with mood changes and thus died by suicide by jumping from her balcony, Kashin does not believe this to be true. He believes his sister was murdered.
Part 1, Chapter 4 Summary
Two years after escaping life as an underpaid and victimized barmaid in Innish, Erilea, Yrene Towers has become an accomplished magic healer at the Torre Cesme under the tutelage of Hafiza, the Healer on High. Yrene owes her success to the mysterious female stranger from Innish who taught her self-defense against the cruelty of men and gifted her enough funds for her journey to the Southern Continent alongside a handwritten note that states, “The world needs more healers” (52). After all this time, Yrene still carries the note, which provides her comfort and confidence.
Now confident in her healing abilities, Yrene plans to return to Adarlan to help in the war. However, she has made friends among the Khagan’s children—especially Kashin and Hasar—who do not wish for her to leave. Hafiza also harbors hope that Yrene will become her successor. Hafiza assigns Yrene one last assignment: the healing of Chaol’s injuries. Upon learning of Chaol’s identity as the former Captain of the Guard and new Hand of the King of Adarlan, she is reminded of her mother’s murder.
Yrene’s hatred for Adarlan’s atrocities against innocents taints her ability to view her newest patient with the necessary compassion and objectivity. When she first refuses to heal him, Hafiza reminds her of the vows they make as healers. Hafiza expresses disappointment in Yrene and cautions her against making such a heartless decision. She believes Yrene can find personal healing of the heart and soul in healing Chaol.
Part 1, Chapter 5 Summary
After dinner with the Khagan family, Nesryn and Chaol return to their suite, awaiting Yrene’s arrival. Yrene is detached and rude when assessing Chaol’s injuries. Chaol recognizes her accent and discovers she’s from Fenharrow. When Yrene asks how the injury was obtained, Nesryn and Chaol skirt around the truth to protect their mission from potential spying eyes and ears. Chaol tells Yrene his injury is from a magical blow during battle. Unlike Nesryn, Yrene does not bother to help Chaol maneuver himself into different positions so she might inspect him. Afterward, Yrene states she must first speak to Hafiza before deciding on treatment options. While Nesryn believes the lie, Chaol knows Yrene is deciding on whether she’ll help him at all.
Part 1, Chapter 6 Summary
Yrene speaks with Hafiza about Chaol’s situation; she believes she can heal his injury, as she’s successfully dealt with a nearly identical injury in the past. Yrene decides she will treat him despite her unfavorable feelings toward Adarlan.
Nesryn decides to visit her aunt and uncle in the city. Sartaq offers to escort her to the palace gates. Along the way, he tells her about his past with the ruks. He reveals that his ruk, Kadara, hatched when he was 15 and has been his loyal companion ever since.
Part 1, Chapter 7 Summary
In Nesryn’s absence, Chaol visits Arghun and questions him about any information his spies have gained about Rifthold. Arghun refuses to divulge anything because there “are far too many eyes watching” (84). When Nesryn does not return for dinner as promised, Chaol begins to worry. Yrene attends the dinner, and Chaol notes Kashin’s romantic interest in Yrene, which is not returned by the young woman. Nesryn returns in the late hours of the night, much to Chaol’s frustration. She is giddy at meeting with her aunt and uncle, who have news that her family has escaped Rifthold.
Part 1, Chapter 8 Summary
Yrene returns to Chaol’s suite for a healing session. She recommends that Nesryn find somewhere else to be during the grueling hours. When Nesryn asks about how Chaol will be moved during the sessions, Yrene expresses confidence that he can do so himself. While he feels irritation at Nesryn’s question, Yrene’s response evokes gratitude in Chaol. Once Nesryn leaves, Yrene warns Chaol they should not speak about anything they don’t wish others to know because “the walls have ears and mouths” (97). As Yrene begins inspecting him, Chaol tells her that Dorian Havilliard is not like his father. Chaol plans to fix the wrongs in Adarlan, especially personal choices he regrets, but he feels he cannot do so while in a wheelchair. Yrene disagrees, believing it can certainly be done either in or out of a wheelchair.
Probing the wound with her magic reveals a cold darkness residing there—an “oily, unworldly wrongness” (103). Yrene demands to know what happened to him, for she cannot properly treat him without knowing the circumstances by which he obtained his wounds. In hushed whispers, Chaol tells Yrene about the Wyrdgates, Wyrdstone collars, and the Valg and Erawan. However, he reveals that the Valg side with Duke Perrington, he keeps the knowledge of the Wyrdkeys, the former Valg possession of the King of Adarlan and Prince Dorian, and Perrington’s true identity to himself.
Part 1, Chapters 1-8 Analysis
These opening chapters provide the first glimpses of what is yet another large cast of characters—a feat Maas has become known for within her various series. While the Khagan and his children and Hafiza and her healers are important secondary and tertiary characters throughout the novel, these opening chapters establish the narrative’s primary point-of-view characters: Chaol Westfall, Yrene Towers, and Nesryn Faliq.
Each point of view serves a unique purpose that drives the story forward. Chaol’s point of view bridges the gap between the plot and characters from the very start of the series to the places and people the plot of Tower of Dawn now explores. As Aelin has been the primary point of view from the beginning of the series, telling a significant portion of the sixth installment from Chaol’s point of view allows Maas to acclimate what would otherwise be a jarring change in narrative focus.
Nesryn’s point-of-view gives more characterization to a character whose depth has not been fully explored until this point. Though she’s always been loyal to Adarlan, arriving in Antica connects her to a heritage she’s previously neglected. She notes upon arrival:
[Y]es, she lived and served and would die for Adarlan, for the family still there, but this place, where her father had once lived and where even her Adarlan-born mother had felt more at ease…These were her people. […] Her people. A blend of kingdoms and territories, yes, but…Here there were no slurs hissed in the streets. Here there would be no rocks thrown by children. Here her sister’s children would not feel different. Unwanted (10-11).
Nesryn’s heritage provides her a connection to the Southern Continent that Chaol does not have, which, consequently, gives them an advantage in seeking help for the coming war. This introduces the important role identity and belonging play in the text for its leading characters.
Yrene’s point of view continues to connect Aelin’s past to the present narrative. Though she is not yet aware of the identity of the mysterious female stranger who helped her two years ago to escape Innish and become a healer at the Torre Cesme, this connection will be one of the reasons the healers of the Southern Continent amass so passionately behind her banners in the war against the Valg. The interweaving of multiple storylines that Maas implements creates a multi-layered story that depends on the series’ world-building. This approach contrasts the characters’ struggles with the broader conflicts they face.
The opening image of the novel emphasizes Chaol’s impending healing journey, both physical and emotional, introducing the theme of Healing as a Multidimensional Process. As narrated in the first pages, “Chaol Westfall, former Captain of the Royal Guard and now Hand to the newly crowned King of Adarlan, had discovered that he hated one sound above all others. Wheels” (3). His hatred of his wheelchair is a combination of many factors: his grief and frustration with the loss of function in his legs, integral to the active life of a soldier he once lived; his newfound reliance on others, in direct opposition to his usual preference toward independence; and his inability to face the wounds of his past head-on even while blaming them for his current misfortune. This aversion also highlights his newfound dependence on others, contrasting sharply with his usual preference for independence and his difficulty confronting the wounds from his past.
The Importance of Autonomy is central to Chaol’s conflict. He desires to regain autonomy over his body and, by extension, his life. His physical injury is symbolic of his deeper emotional and psychological wounds—his guilt over his past decisions and his feelings of helplessness. In Chapter 1, it is clear Chaol struggles with the fact that he is no longer the soldier and leader he once was. He cannot even look at the soldiers guarding the gates of the Khagan’s palace. This struggle with autonomy and self-worth is a significant part of Maas’s thematic exploration. Chaol’s internal conflict is rooted in his belief that his value is contingent upon his physical strength and ability to protect others. He derives his value from these physical capabilities, and due to his newfound state, he struggles with self-worth. This belief is challenged as the novel progresses, establishing Maas’s thematic exploration of how Worth and Strength Start From Within. Chaol does not yet view his worth or strength as internal. Without his physical strength, he feels weak and purposeless—something that will change throughout the novel.
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