Rating: 
Summary: a crown of swords
Review: Where I loved the other Wheel of Time volumes, this book came as a disapointment to me. I think it spent to much time on the weather plot, although it did help develop Mat's character. It had a great ending to the weather plot, but Rand's climactic battle was not so great. Read it, of course, if you are a Wheel fan, but only because. Has some interesting moments but all said, it's the weakest of the series so far.
Rating: 
Summary: Couldn't even finish it
Review: My disappointment with this book is largely based upon the expectations that Jordan has built for me. His story is involved, convoluted and strong. For six books it has been unwavering, dragging at times, but still holding true to the course of the tale, continually weaving events and people back together, setting up the future and growing from the past. Just about the half way point of this book, Jordan blows that. He sets the story aside to go after something he wants to pursue. Granted, it is the author's prerogative to decide what to write in his book, but this blatant disregard for the story is sickening. Especially after such great effort to stay true to the story. I cannot stomach what has happened here. The confrontation between Rand and Cadsuane does not hold true to the story as it has progressed, or Rand's character, even what he is thinking or saying just pages before. Does Jordan think we are idiots and won't notice? Is this a blatant attempt to drag out the Wheel of Time so he can get more sales? I know that I won't read him again.
Rating: 
Summary: Continually excellent
Review: Firstly, don't even bother with this review or any of the others if you havent read any of the previous books in the series. Its so complex (in terms of number of characters etc) that long standing WoT readers often have trouble keeping up. Secondly, if you are thinking of writing a review then please, please, please do not give away any plot points. Its very annoying!This book, in my opinion, mantains Jordans high standards and is an improvement on the last book. Once more the pace is slow and you need to be prepared for this. It won't suit all people no matter how detailed a world he is building up this way. Personally I love this. It makes a marvellous contrast to other books such as the Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven Erikson. Both are different but excellent in their own ways. Its good to read books of variety in pacing. However, Jordan did get a little bogged down occasionally in the last book which I would give 4 stars for this reason. Crown of swords is different. I never once felt that a passage was unneccessary and all the detail simply added up to paint a wonderful picture of another world. Some would say tht nothing happens in much of this book. I disagree, we see a subtle developments in character interaction particualrly between Mat, Elayne and Nynaeve, the intruduction of new elements to the world (true source for example) as well as a cliff-hanger of an ending. This all serves to set us up nicely for not only the next book but the rest of the series. The aforementioned character development helps to negate the fact that Jordan still uses descriptions of Nynaeve tugging her braid, thinking all men are dumb etc. This is because you can see that these developments are leading us away from this. Hence me saying earlier that there are no wasted words. Without this, I would have begun to have become fed up with this but Jordan, skilled writer that he is has advanced things at just the right time. So basically if you love the series then you will love this. It has many classic Jordan moments that stir the soul (a'la dumai wells!). If you are beginning to tire of things then please give it a chance as hopefully you will see the advancements that take place to make this one of the great achievments of fantasy literature. And he hasn't even finished yet!
Rating: 
Summary: Needs an editor
Review: OK, it all started out fine. The first few books were entertaining, but now that I am commited (time and money) in this reading endeavor, I am getting bored. There are so many people coming and going here, I don't even pretend to follow it. Carhein, Caimleyn (sorry about the spelling), it has gone on so long I can not even remember the difference anymore. I just skip ahead until I find something to hold my interest. I mostly read/skim each of these books just looking for whole paragraphs, and sometimes even chapters, that could have been edited out to make the story move along. I used to recommend this series to everyone, but no longer. I can't bring myself to get someone else sucked into this 10 (15?) (20?) book series. I'll keep reading though, with the hope that the next book moves along.
Rating:
Summary: zzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZZZZZ!!!!
Review: Wow, A Crown of Swords, what a snoozefest! I'd rather read Kenneth Starr's 455+ page investigation of the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal. At least I know that THAT story would contain some action. That said, I don't really have much to say about A Crown of Swords. Most people realize that this site, featuring amazon customer reviews of Jordan's most recent books, is little more than a message board. I doubt there's a novice reader out there who's really scanning these reviews in order to make a purchasing decision. Nevertheless, for whoever's interested, I'll sum up the book quickly: for 650 pages nothing-literally nothing-happens; then, finally, Rand awakens from his nearly 30-chapter slumber and defeats one of the Forsaken. Nynaeve and Elayne finally find their precious cereal bowl, the one they've spent 2+ books looking for. Mat gambles. Perrin thumbs the blade of his axe and smells a bunch of stuff. As always, Jordan's main characters continue to embody that odd combination of J.R.R. Tolkien meets "Saved by the Bell." Rather, I'd like to take this moment to address a difference in opinion that has been voiced by several reviewers here. If you read through enough reviews of Jordan's most recent WOT books, you'll notice that the reviews are nearly evenly divided into two camps: those, like me, who find Jordan's most recent fiction about as entertaining as reading the phone book cover to cover, and those who claim that Jordan is a master story teller and eminent craftsman, an author who painstakingly paints his vistas with a steady, deliberate brush. Those of us who complain that Jordan is the king of bore are accused of being impatient; we're accused of being a bunch of attention deficit-disordered miscreants who can't appreciate Jordan's incredible talent for handling description. Description? Ah, now there's the stumbling block. What some label as description, I label "wordiness." First, though, a word, however brief, about my own reading tastes. I read fantasy for fun. I read fantasy when I need a break from my studies. My real passion is for literary fiction (and occasionally, though not often, fantasy and literary cross paths (Ursula LeGuin's fiction comes to mind, or Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale)). I say all this simply to state: I love description, I love detail, and I love the beautifully crafted sentence. But Jordan's "description" always stays commonplace rather than unique. If a character is, say, slightly older, we're invariably told that such character has "streaks of gray at the temples." If a female character is less than gorgeous she's described as either A) "handsome," or B) "attractive rather than pretty." Staying with female characters, women in Jordan's world come in two flavors: thin or "plump." I'm actually reminded of those PC role-playing games where you create a playable character, create a name, and then choose a character portrait. Sure, you may have a dozen portraits to choose from, but you're still limited to pre-rendered caricatures. Similarly, Jordan seems to have about a half dozen stock portraits, and he shuffles through them like playing cards. As for non-character descriptions, the same recycling of limited descriptions occurs; for instance, every ornate item in Jordan's universe is gilded: chairs, table legs, painting frames, beds, etc. Every vase or piece of ceramic is "Sea Folk porcelain." Jeesh, give me novel (pardon the pun) description or else move on. If an author isn't going to provide me with something different-rather than the given, the "already written," the "I've-already-seen-and-read-this-before"-then I don't want to read it. I'll end this review by venting some other frustrations-kind of related to the description stuff I wrote above-that grate on me and which show that Jordan is little more than an amateur hack. Those who hail Jordan as a brilliant writer should take note of the following brilliant flaws, grammatical and otherwise, that crop up repeatedly in Jordan's writing: 1) Misplaced Modifiers-yes, these are difficult to avoid. Even the best writers occasionally let some of these slip out, but usually the combination of a talented author and a knowledgeable and devoted editor stamp out these little bugs before they appear in print. But Jordan and his editor (who, I understand, is his wife) usually miss about one per page (a horrible ratio!). Sure, Jordan's wife should catch these, but Jordan should also learn to write cleaner prose. ***EXAMPLES: A) "At the last, he [Mat] slowed, easing onto the shaded walk bordering the stableyard almost on tiptoe" (grammatically, the stableyard is on tiptoe, not Mat). B) "Six closed coaches with the green Anchor and Sword of House Mitsobar lacquered on the doors already waited in line before the tall arched outer gates with teams hitched and liveried drivers mounted" (grammatically, the gates have hitched teams and liveried drivers). C) Lastly, my personal favorite, (to be honest, though, I pulled this one from The Path of Daggers, but believe me, Jordan has about one (or more) misplaced modifier per page): "Spinning her round-bellied mare like a racer, she [Nynaeve] flicked the reins and galloped after Lan holding her hat on with one hand..." (grammatically, Lan is struggling Mynaeve's hat on his head). 2) Wordiness-many of those pesky misplaced modifiers could probably be avoided if Jordan would simply be economical in language. But when you "fluff" up your sentences, you run into trouble. Even when the errors aren't grammatical, they still make for some awkward sentences. ***EXAMPLE: "The day after the Festival of Birds dawned to strong winds off the Sea of Storms that actually cut the heat in Ebou Dar. A sky without a cloud and the red-gold dome of the sun on the horizon gave promises for once the wind died, though." Ugh! It took me nearly ten minutes to literally-rather than generally-make sense out of what Jordan was trying to say. Here's what Jordan wants to write: "The following morning, strong winds off the Sea of Storms cut through the Ebou Dar heat. The cloudless sky and red-gold sun, however, promised a return to the stifling heat once the wind died." 3) Repetition-several other fine reviewers have made note of Jordan's penchant for using stock words and phrases. Although the impulse is understandable-Jordan wishes to inject his prose with occasional pauses and held beats (think of the way music makes use of rests)-the solution, sadly, is worse than the problem. Relying so heavily on stock phrases makes the work seem amateurish. Here is an incomplete list of Jordan's most overused phrases: braid pulling/tugging, shawl adjusting, skirt smoothing, hands dry washing, eyes popping/bulging, jaw/mouth dropping, Loial's ears tufting, women "planting their fists on their hips," etc. The list goes on and on. Not only is the repetition ridiculous, but in many instances the description simply isn't accurate. Aside from cartoons and comic books, whose eyes really bulge or pop out when surprised? Whose jaw literally drops to the floor? Yes, we all make mistakes in our writing. And to be honest, I don't get pleasure out of spotting as many errors as possible, and I'm not really this anal (I'm sure, if you comb through this review carefully enough, you'll also find plenty of mistakes on my part). My point is simply this: Jordan's amateurish style and fumbling over the English language were palatable early on, when his books were at least entertaining enough to distract readers from these problems, (I actually enjoyed The Great Hunt as entertainment), but now Jordan's books have become a chore to read, and his flaws, easy to ignore before, "pop out" in stark relief.
Rating:
Summary: A Crown of Swords
Review: If you like magic long stories then you should read this injestic book of magic and warlocks were they fight to free there world of intrapment were they can not do anything
Rating:
Summary: Very good!!
Review: I think this was a more humorous book in the Wheel of Time series. Mat and Nynaeve are ALWAYS fun to read about, and they had the most screen time in this book. Or almost the most, anyway. As usual, there were several different plotlines, but Jordan had a different approach this time - he spent the first half of the book with Egwene and her Aes Sedai, and the second half consisted mostly of Nynaeve/Elayne/Mat in Ebou Dar. Rand gets some screen time in both parts, of course. There are several "dark" moments (especially at the end...), several plot twists and surprises, and many parts that made me laugh out loud. All in all, a very enjoyable book to read. And of course, what else would we expect out of The Wheel of Time, right? But...come on!! First Moiraine, and now....I won't spoil it, but it would appear that yet another main character has died at the end of this book. YEEAARRRGH! I'll quit reading the series pretty soon if Jordan doesn't stop killing off my favorite characters! But, seriously, do you really WANT this series to end? I was surprised to find out that some people are getting impatient, saying that it's lasting too long. I say that these people are very close-minded, or maybe SIMPLE-minded. Can't you see that there are so many characters and plots, the series ISN'T going to wrap up in just a few books? Maybe if it was ONLY about Rand, but..it's not. The Wheel of Time series is about an entire world, a world with it's own history and politics. It's about an entire cast of characters, and the parts they play in trying to save this world. And most of all, it's about the battle of Good and Evil. There is not a more timeless tale then that.
Rating: 
Summary: Good but not his best
Review: Jordan obviously has become very wordy in his descriptions of benign things and when it comes to intricate battles or deaths of main characters he is very short and nondescript. I am not sure if he does that on purpose but when you finally get to a point in the story where you cant put the book down then he sorta lets you down. The first three books were the best and the second three were the worst. This 7th novel actually picks up the pace again.
Rating:
Summary: i miss the first few books
Review: Well, this one was better the Lord of Chaos, thats for sure. And as every book in the series, it has its moments. But man alive Jordan must be emotionally attached to this series cause he seems to never want it to end. There are so many scenes that could easily be taken out, and are smiply useless. Taking them out would speed up the book greatly. 100 pages can go by without something significant happening and its incredibly frustrating. He leaves the end of the book in a cliffhanger, but oddly it dodn;t really do anything for me. As i have said earlier, the series is becoming way too predictable, whenever something bad happens, it either happens to a minor character (Nalsean, which pissed me off), and if it does happen to a main character, then you know nothing will come of it. Blame it on taveren if you will, but Jordan seems unwilling to take risks. While this book is still pretty good, it makes me wish for the first 3 books in the series, which were great and defined the series as a whole. nonethless, recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Phenomenal series, but it's getting long.
Review: I've read a lot of the posted reviews and see a recurring viewpoint. Jordan is losing it. Whether it be the corruption of the One Power, an overbearing female editor, or a greedy desire to milk the readers from book to book, it is clear that he is losing direction. I commend him on the first 5 or 6 books. A tremendous storyline and plot, a geographic world that he is able to describe without losing coherence, and a cast of characters that far surpasses Hollywood for movie extras. I especially like the way he does jump around. Some storytellers get too involved with sticking to one scene and finishing it, but Jordan is not afraid to bounce around between characters and scenes (it reminds me of the fast paced scene-changes of Star Wars). I do not like his break from traditional grammar, the way he throwes adverbs and adjectives around makes it hard to follow, kind of like reading something from Shakespeare. Unfortunately, the huge breaks in storylines, the micro-stories that don't just evolve, but appear out of nowhere, the meekness of the male characters, the inability to continue hunting arch-enemies have all contributed to a great fizzle. After book 1, I bought 2-8. I am reading 8, but if it continues to fizzle, I may take a break until the next few books are out in paperback to see if Jordan recaptures the flair needed to bring the story to a climax. Other recommendations: Stephen R. Donaldson, "The Thomas Covenant Chronicles"; Raymond E. Feist, "The Riftwar Saga"; Elizabeth Hayden, "Rhapsody".
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