Rating: 
Summary: Magnificent
Review: Robert Jordan does a great job in including all the important parts of a fantasy book. He creates a whole world which will not remain in paper, but rather engulf the reader in itself, making it easy to read, despite it's length. The characters clearly evolve during the story, each facing their own situations, despite having a common origin. The series is long, but I intend to read all of it, for it promises a lot. One most important thing is that, though the long walks are still involved in the book, you can easily go through the pages, entangled in a plot which is not over complicated, where, though the element of conspiracy and intrigue is still involved, it does not become a soap opera. A must have for any fantasy reader, or anyone who liked Tolkien's work.
Rating: 
Summary: Good book until you get to the "sucker" ending.
Review: The fact that the Wheel of Time saga is so immensly popular shows me how deeply starved Americans are for good fantasy (this is not sci-fi as many other reviewers mistakenly label it). I've just finished book four of the series, and I'm taking a look back at this first book from that perspective. I'm not a huge fan of American fantasy authors in general, and Jordan doesn't do much to change my viewpoint. American fantasy is usually very watered down, extremely PC (ie women are very liberated, no racism, etc..), and is packed full of modern sociological viewpoints and societies. Jordan is no different, but fortunately is world is. For example, Jordan's 'dark ages' society has women so liberated it's almost matriarchal. Yet, the only people who can weild magic are women (called Aes Sedai). This goes a long way towards helping my suspension of disbelief. Many people have complained that Jordan's books are padded, and they are. This books are big; needlessly so. The first half of this book is some of the best in the whole series I've read thus far as you learn who these characters all are and where they come from. From there, Jordan takes you on mini-adventure after mini-adventure seemingly for no reason other than to fill pages, and he does it in every one of his books. The good news is that TV has been doing this to us for decades. Take the excellent show X-Files for example. Great overall story, but many episodes are just filler to complete the 24 episode season. These books could really be a TV series with each book being a complete season. Also good news is that Jordan's writing style is solid enough to not put you to sleep. Jordan also great with characters even if he juggles more than any book in history. It's no coincidence that "The Wheel of Time" sounds like the title of a soap opera. Obviously, Jordan is doing something right if I have read through book four. At it's heart, this book presents an interesting (if somewhat unoriginal) plot, with characters whose motivations and lives you want to learn more about. This book as a whole was interesting and fun to read even if it was a bit tedious in spots (it should have been edited down 200 or so less pages). Then you get to the end. Jordan rips you off with the most contrived, pulled-it-out-of-his-[behind] ending I've probably ever read. When I closed the book, I was actually mad! The fact that this is only the first part in a series, and that such books rarely have solid endings is what prevented me from giving it less than three stars. However, even if the ending lacks resolution, it should never be contrived. Testimonies from others, including my girlfriend who I got to read the series and long since passed me to finish book seven, and the fact that I did enjoy the character driven, episodic feel (plus I'm a sucker for fantasy sagas) prompted me to read book two (which is much better and without a "sucker" ending). Read this book if you are interested in getting into the series, but as a stand alone book, you'll find it wanting. For all my complaints, these books are enjoyable. This is a critique after all, but thee stars doesn't mean bad.
Rating:
Summary: Great book for first time fantasy readers!
Review: Okay so I read the Lord of the Rings because I saw the movie, and Tolkein totally hooked me...than I was left with a question? What do I read now? Ive never really read anything before except a McDonald's menu. After scouring everywhere I decided to pick up The Eye of the World. I read the glossary first, studied the map, and 100 pages into it, I was HOOKED! Now I'm on book 3, purchasing book 5 on hardcover, and my girlfriend thinks I'm a bookworm now! I'll show her bookworm!
Good Series!!!
Rating:
Summary: Looking Back
Review: Once it comes to Robert Jordan, I'm a chapter skipper. I bet others are too. It's been a while since I've read The Eye of The World (Oh-ho! It will be quite a while considering the horrendous length of this series!) but looking back now, Jordan's writing style is clear, even if unnecessarily detailed. Jordan does have a sense of humor and his characters, in this first book, are identifiable and more or less, human. As a writer, including his style, Jordan can be called a good one. Wheel of Time though, is painfully overhyped. This first book may be a breath of fresh air, but trust me, it gets cloggier and cloggier by the next books as characters increase and as the story gets drawn out. Is Robert Jordan milking his fans for all it's worth? Aside from parallelisms with Tolkien, there are great similarities with Dune as well. For example, Paul & Rand being 'the Dragon' for the 'desert people'. Aes Sedai and the Bene Gesserit and how women dominate it. But of course, we aren't here to poke at the similarities. We've all discussed how painfully detailed Jordan is, now let's discuss his characters. I generally value characters over the story, so I guess this is what made me slam Wheel of Time a bit lower. The women are incredibly irritating. They're overbearing, egocentric and too fussy. And the number of women there are overwhleming. Sometimes, with Nyneave's braid pulling, I just wish one day her hair will fall with her pulling. Some may believe Robert Jordan is writing an epic, but in my opinion, he's digging his own grave deeper and deeper as his series becomes unnecessarily longer and longer.
Rating:
Summary: Best book ever
Review: this is a book of epic proportions. The wonderful description in this book make it come alive. This is like Lord of the Rings times ten. I recomend the entire series for anyone who liked Tolkien.
Rating:
Summary: greatest fantasy series there is
Review: great book/series for young and old. I was only 12 when i started to read this series. you get so into the book, it's hard to put it down. Robert Jordan really is a clever author who really knows how to write a good novel.
Rating:
Summary: Wheel of Time is right
Review: I like this book and the series it begins. Wheel of Time is the right name as it goes on and on, then on and on some more. It is a good story with good characters its just SLOW. My primary complaint besides the slow paced plot is that there are too many characters to keep track of. I get confused when the novel shifts storylin to characters we haven't followed for some time and we begin their story again; remembering names and who's who sometimes confuses me. Other than that this is a good book and story. Make sure you have time before you get into the Wheel of Time itself.
Rating:
Summary: A book rewritten with sequels in mind
Review: On its own, this is a good book. The plot moves along nicely, the descriptions are good, there's a pleasant mythos of magic and history in the background. It all works together rather well. The story is simple enough. A young man is destined to go do battle with a really evil guy and has to travel through dark and dangerous lands to do so. I've heard the claims that this make the book a rip-off of Tolkein, but since Tolkein took all his themes from earlier stories, this isn't that big of a deal. Although the Dhoom Mountain/Mount Doom and Mountains of Mist/Misty Mountains thing is a little too much like plagiarism. We have battles, magic, sorcery, strong-willed women, all the things that make this sort of fantasy novel work and then, without warning, there's a sad effort at a climax and the book is over. No pay-off on the prophecies, which do everything but state that Rand is the Dragon Reborn. No fight with a really cool bad guy, just some random mage. This could have been it, folks. Just a few hundred pages, and you have a nice, tidy story. But, no, it has spawn book after book after book and created a huge, sprawling, messy world that derivative of so many authors other than Tolkein. One star lost for lack of originality. Jordan offers some nifty spins on old classics, but that's about it, and some of the namings smack of a fith-grader's creative writing project. One star lost because Jordan didn't have the guts to write one good book, but started an epic series of mediocre fantasy.
Rating:
Summary: It`s pretty good so far
Review: It`s so far far so good. There are the few occasional boring parts but the book keeps you well wound in. The battle scenes are, in my opinion, better than Tolkien. It`s not just saying he was slayed like in Tolkien but it`s more interesting and it draws you in more. I`ve read all of Tolkien in about 2 months (I`m usally faster than that)and found there not impossible but I`m still wondering if the 30 million or so pages of Jordan will be read by me. I checked out the Eye of the World from the library about 2 weeks ago (I`ve got one more week) and I`m only on page 243 of about 814. I`m writing this review on March 21 2003.
Rating:
Summary: Another Wheel on the World
Review: My first fantasy's reading (I promise, not even Lord of the Rings) and it's been a good start.
A beuatiful exercise of imagination made this Mr. Jordan. He manages to get you inside the Pattern and makes you turn inside the Wheel.
I hope to get through the full series (although ten books seem tooo much for me). I just started The Great Hunt.
Now I'm walking in the Light.
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