Board Thread:Rowan of Rin/@comment-29517617-20160207131718/@comment-71.136.33.132-20170205040943

This is actually a really good question. Because the story line of Rowan of Rin is essentially self-contained, and because the Maris people are so secretive and long-lived, it may at first seem difficult to pinpoint when the series takes place in reference to the main story. However, I believe Emily Rodda may have inadvertantly given us hints as to when it takes place.

One obvious hint is that Perlain shows up, as mentioned before. But as Mr of Deltora has pointed out, this doesn't help very much, given their above average life-spans.

However, there is something else interesting that is suggested. The Keeper of the Crystal appears to be at his most powerful. He is able to cause the Maris to act as one, and manipulate the weather far from shore. Even more tellingly, he is able to detect the Wraiths from VERY far off. This leads me to believe that he has either just become the Keeper, or has been Keeper for less than 100 years or so. The fact that Perlain, a middle aged Maris, is still around narrows it to around 40 years.

According to this rough guestimate, it could have been a maximum of 40 years since Rowan chose the Keeper, probably much less. He's probably still around.