Rating: 
Summary: boring
Review: Are you ever going to finish this story? The first 3 or 4 books in this set are pretty good. But the last few,,,. How long is it going to take to finish this yarn, or yawn. I waited very patently for this one to come out, hoping this would be the last one, or at least a little more to than the last one. But no such luck. I will give it one more book to finish this tale, or I aint going to buy no more. I think Jordan is dragging this out for the money now and has lost sight of the story.
Rating: 
Summary: cool, but could be better
Review: Robert Jordan (if you ever will read this)- I love your Wheel of Time books! However I've felt that the last two books were rather slow-paced and could be better. I still like them though!
Rating: 
Summary: Masterpeice
Review: The only words that can describe Robert Jordans writings. If you like this series you should also read his Conan Series, which I personally think are fantastic.
Rating: 
Summary: Can we reach the conclusion soon please
Review: I am the type of guy that through some personality flaw cannot pick up the first book in a series and then leave off (i.e. I have to know how it ends), so I continue to buy the next in the series when it becomes available (unless the first book is total garbage). I, like some others, found the first few books intriguing and well written. Unfortunately I am starting to find that this series is dragging on a fair bit and to me is starting to wander around in circles struggling for a bit of direction. I agree with everyone else that is seems to be an amazing amount of time between books (in particular by the time it is available in paperback in Australia) and I also find this extremely frustrating. I am hoping that the next book will bring the whole story to a conclusion. Although Mr Jordan doesn't want to do himself out of a job, I am not so sure I am going to want to keep paying, and filling up my bookshelf with more books of the same old, same old.
Rating:
Summary: The Path was too long, Substance to short
Review: While I have gotten hooked on Jordan's work, I was very displeased with the lack of substance and action in The Path of Daggers. This book was full of fillers and non-sensical dialog with absolutely no substance and many inconsistancies from prevous books. Example, the battle between the Senchan and Rands forces was trivialized to the last few pages, but one day of travel of Elaine on horse back had conversations that lead nowhere for 20+ pages. I found myself skipping more than I was reading. One of the key characters in the last 7 books, Mat, wasn't even brought back in this book. It seemed that Jordan needed to drag out the epic, with very little progress toward the final battle with the dark one. If the next book is like this one, it will be the last for me.
Rating:
Summary: The Path of Daggers (Wheel of Time/Robert Jordan, Bk 8)
Review: Having read each of the preceding Wheel of Time books by Robert Jordan, I was disappointed to find this one lacked the excitement of the previous 7 volumes. It's blandness compared to the earlier tomes was evident, although I appreciate that it is difficult to sustain the readers' interest over so many volumes. The Path of Daggers spent too much time on detail concerning the activities of the Seanchan (which I had previously found rather boring in The Great Hunt, Book Two of the Wheel of Time), culminating in Rand al'Thor's efforts to thwart their second invasion of his lands, whilst the entirely believable actions of Rand's own Ta'varen friends, Matrim Cauthon and Perrin Aybara, seem to be almost trivialised. The rebel Aes Sedai's activities still mystify (as do all Aes Sedai actions) and it is difficult to keep hold of the plot where they are concerned. I rather think Mr Jordan has not been able to keep up the impetus of his previous volumes, so I hope that future books will correct this. Essentially, Rand al'Thor has to gather around himself those he can trust - he is beseiged by Aes Sedai from both inside and outside of the White Tower (under the false Amyrlin, Elaida do Avriny d'Roihan), and needs to know whether he can trust those led by the young rebel Amyrlin, Rand's old friend and once intended Egwene al'Vere. She still hopes that their former friendship in The Two Rivers may help to sway him, but her actions in pursuing the false Amyrlin Elaida are honourable in the hope that it will reunite the White Tower under her leadership. In this she is helped by the former stilled, but now Healed, Amyrlin Siuan Sanche together with her former Keeper, Liane Sharif. She, Elayne Trakand and Nynaeve al'Maera are extremely strong in their use of Saidar, the female half of the One Power, especially Nynaeve who discovers that her block to using Saidar has disappeared when her life is threatened. The ever-present plots of the Aes Sedai (who although sworn to tell the truth have a habit of twisting it to suit their own ends) have to be unravelled - what, for example, is the reason why the aged Aes Sedai of legends Cadsuane has suddenly reappeared from her self-imposed exile after many years and how does she hope to influence Rand; exactly how does Alviarin, leader of the Aes Sedai's Black Ajah and Elaida's Keeper of the Chronicles (who had previously sent a pleading missive to Rand), hope to keep her devotion to the Dark One a secret through her subduing of Elaida; will Elaida succeed in her task of unmasking Darkfriends in the Tower; and what are the true aims of the Aiel Wise Ones who currently advise Rand. So many questions to be answered, yet the reader is still left wondering .... Rand's love for the three women in his life:- Elayne Trakand - Daughter Heir of Andor; Aviendha - former Far Dareis Mai (Maiden of the Spear) turned apprentice to the Wise Ones; and the young Min, who is able to view the futures surrounding those who come into contact with Rand, threatens to overwhelm him at times and he must make decisions with their lives that can only cause him utter grief. He knows that he may go mad at any moment, not least when he hears the voice of Lews Therin Telamon daily inside his head, but desperately wants to hold on to his sanity until the time for Tarmon Gaidon arrives when he can confront the Dark One in the battle to end all battles. Can he trust Mazrim Taim, the most intriguing of the former claimants to Rand's title of Dragon Reborn, who gathers around him those men to whom Rand has given sanctuary for being able to embrace the male half of the One Power, Saidin, which has been tainted by the Dark One. Some of those eventually choose to betray Rand by trying to kill him. What of Logain, whom Min viewed as being surrounded by triumph? The Forsaken (or Chosen as they prefer to be known) still seek to destroy him and become Naeblis when the Dark One triumphs in Tarmon Gaidon; and the further emergence of the Myrddraal Shaidar Haran, as the Dark One's emissary to the Forsaken, is intriguing - what does he truly wish for himself? There is a lot yet to come from Robert Jordan as he edges towards the climax of his a series of books about good versus evil in the Tolkien vein. Until this book, I have been riveted by what I have read, and hope that the next instalment holds my interest much more than this one - not that it will stop me reading it when it is published!
Rating:
Summary: PoD Stabs me the Wrong Way
Review: I am an avid fan of Sci Fi Fantasies and RJ's WOT series is one of the best series out there. Like many of the previous reviewers, I have been waiting impatiently for the eighth installment with the "carrot" that this book was to be the end all for the series. I was sorely disappointed! Having said that, here's the pros and the cons. Pros 1 The characters are rich, and they have much depth. I think some of the details are intentionally included to introduce novices to these characters. 2 The plots and subplots abound to keep the reader on edge. The details are such that you can clearly see the workings in your mind's eye. 3 New characters and new menaces are also mind candy. 4 Avid sci fi fans will love the intermingling of high tech, sorcery, new dimensions of reality (aka the Dream World), and the rich history of WOT (3000 yrs or so) with the right mix of jumping between the timelines. Cons 1 Too much redundancy! It's really tiresome to see the same lines of text almost at every other page. I like RJ's style, but he has got to come up with something better than the "glares", the "braid pulling", and the sudden changes in temperature that would have melted the ice caps and hardened them several times over. One suggestion for RJ, if you are reading this, please limit the repetitious use of character traits at each page for each character. By the fourth time we are reminded of this, e.g. "braid pulling" for Nynaeve, it just gets old really quick. 2 I should not criticize a writer's creative license, BUUUTTT, if there is a way, can we move the story along a tad faster? The rich details are fine, but too much can be a bad thing (for the impatient one in all of us). 3 Lack of resolution. I understand that PoD exists to fill in a gap that RJ feels important enough to fill, but there seems to be too many "weaves" that are not being tied up. Like I said earlier, I thought that this book was supposed to answer many of the questions from the last (at least according to another review I read prior to PoD), but by page 400 I knew that resolution was no where to be seen and more books would be in store to complete the saga. 4 When are the other books due? OK this is not a con, but I would like to know. Anybody? In summary, this is a good book for any reader of sci fi fantasy, but it lacks the magic of the first 5 of the series. I did not mind the lack of certain characters, i.e. Matt, because I know he will pop up again later. As some of the other reviewers suggest, I strongly recommend reading the first 7 books before you pick this one up. You will probably agree with the majority of the reviews but I also think that you will forgive many of the criticisms for PoD because it is part of a larger, grandiose, and wonderful new world saga called The Wheel of Time. Ciao
Rating:
Summary: well...
Review: I think that people are being a little too rough on this book, perhaps simply because the plot isn't progressing at the pace they want. I agree that the Wheel of Time is in danger of drowning in its own subplots, there are what...about 17,987 of them now? Although the Path of Daggers is a well written book, the plot doesn't really progress far, and the book leaves off in a sort of a cliffhanger. I hate to say that Mr. Jordan's dragging this book out for the greenbacks, but it would certainly seem that way to the skeptics... :-) perish the thought! Overall, this book is recommended, c'mon, as if you weren't going to buy it ;-), I know how it is with you Wheel of Time junkies, here's hoping that I won't be writing a review for volume 14 in the Wheel of Time series: A Greed of Money! PS: To those complaining that 2 years is too long to wait for the next installment: umm, hello? These are 800 page books, not 5 page book reports, if you think it's so easy try writing a 400 page novel in a year, oh btw, All Work and No Play Makes Jack a Dull Boy over and over again does not count ;-).
Rating:
Summary: Dropping the habit...
Review: I bought the first 5 books at a used book store last summer and enjoyed 1-3. Number 4 was slow and number 5 dragged miserably. From reading the other reviews I see that 7 and 8 drag even more. Folks, I have been reading fantasy and science fiction for 40 years and I have to say, this material is not worth anymore investment of my time. Women glaring and intimitating each other is not a good example of "stronger" female roles in fantasy. If I knew at the time that this was going to be a 10 volume series that would be completed in 2010, I would not have bothered in the first place. I am taking the advice of others and dropping the WoT habit!
Rating:
Summary: Loved It
Review: I am a big fan of The Wheel of Time series, ever since my cousin recomended it to me, telling me it was better than the Lord Of The Rings (at the time I thought he was full of it, now i know better). For a while his copy of The Eye Of The World just gathered dust on my bookshelf, then I decided to read it, Im glad I did. I would finish each book within a few weeks, and buy the next. Eventually I began buying the hardback copies too. Anyway, after reading The Path of Daggers, I consider it as good as the others. I didnt like the lack of Mat in the book, but in Lord Of Chaos (I think thats the one) there was absolutely nothing about Perrin (hated that even more). Also it was a bit slower in the storyline, not quite as much was accomplished (as far as Rand goes, there was more loss in it). But that doesnt make it bad, it still had Jordan's great writing style and still helped paint a picture of the characters. I would liken this to an "Empire Strikes Back" in the series, not quite as much accomplished, the bad guys win some.. Its necessary to have a difference in the format of the books, otherwise we would begin predicting what would happen in the next book of the series. So to conclude my review, I would like to say that this book, although a little slower paced, still retains every bit of magic that the others had in them. Jordan writes as good as he ever did, just in a slightly different format, and it still has all of the plot twists and political intigue that the others had. And some cool battles with the Seanchan as well.
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