Rating: Summary: A thought... Review: I have read many reviews by people saying that there are too many books in Wheel of Time. Though I have yet to read Winter's Heart, I felt I had to add a comment. I feel that the number of books in WOT is justified by the amazing plot, characterization, and mystery! Each novel leads into the next, and though some may have slow points, they are few and far between. Jordan spins out new and amazing plot twists, and forks in every novel that need to be resolved for the series to end. I prefer that Jordan brings all these things to a grand conclusion that blows the minds of everyone reading in another 2-3 books, rather than try and cut the story short and end it with too many unanswered questions!
Rating: Summary: YES! 'Bout time! Review: Finally, Jordan starts resolving some issues. The book starts out a little slow and looks like it's going the route of The Path of Daggers, however plot lines of old slowly get resolved. Not all questions are answered, but it looks like Jordan is finally getting back on track. This one will leave you shocked and thirsting for book 10.
Rating: Summary: Worth the wait! Review: After Path of Daggers, which wasnt really disappointing and a good read, but without the magic of the first books, I was starting to lose interest in Jordan's books. After reading Storm of Swords by G R R Martin, it only went downhill. I still bought Winter's Heart before the release date (go Holland!) and went to read. And yes, yes, yes! Jordan proved that he still can do it! I had some minor points of irritations: the arrogant Sea Folk and Kin, Perrin's lack of action, and the fact that the Battle of Tar Valon hasnt started yet (*insert dutch curse here*)... ...but that last chapter, 'With the Choedal Kan' made up for it. By far. That chapter was one of the best I *ever* read. The quick POV switching, and the intensity, made me feel that good old stomach knot and breathing problems again. What a finale, it was SO good. Tension, two serious plot boosts (Mat and... well, ehm, Rand), intensity, and a marvellous final chapter. So, RJ, you did it again. You left me, wanting more. Well done!
Rating: Summary: I can't quite give it five... Review: From the get-go, this book beats _The Path of Daggers_ hands down, but, perhaps inevitably in a series this long, a few things begin to grind on the nerves. Jordan is a better storyteller than he is a writer ("writer" defined in this sense as "creator of good prose"). He has used certain analogies and metaphors enough now that they wear on the nerves. How many times have we heard Aes Sedai spoken of in superlatives in the earlier books...and then how many times do we hear things like "[Insert name of member of newly introduced social/ethnic group here] could make an Aes Sedai look slovenly/foolish/etc."? I definitely noticed this in the first few chapters. Which woman or group of women is really the strongest in character? Do we really care by now? This book has more action than TPoD, and yet it still feels strangely anticlimactic, perhaps because so many of the questions that have been plaguing readers for eight books now are answered, with fewer new mysteries to theorize about. Of course, the end of this book is suitably un-put-down-able, as a long-awaited event takes place with RJ's best nail-bitingly tense writing. The story is pretty damn engrossing, and there are some truly stellar scenes, especially Elayne's and Aviendha's first-sister bonding ceremony and another that I won't spoil for you :) I'd put this installment overall on a level somewhere above _Lord of Chaos_ and below _The Great Hunt_. One big quibble: there are way, way too many typos in this book. Makes it look like a rush job, when a few hours with a spell-checker would have fixed many of the problems. (Quite a few simple grammatical errors too.) Was there *really* no time to proofread?
Rating: Summary: TAIM is Demandred and Padan Fain killed Asmodean Review: No i'm just kidding this book still doesn't resolve these little mysteries but i'm pretty sure it doesnt say for certain that Taim isn't Demandred like one reader seems to believe. I'm certain that Taim is Demandred and that Fain killed Asmodean. It is either Fain or Isam and i'd probably give 50/50 odds on it being either of them. Anybody who thinks it is Graendal has their head up their a$$. The book is awesome especially the last chapter. Anybody who's read the book yet knows what i'm talking about. Jordan rules!!
Rating: Summary: If only I wasn't hopelessly addicted . . . Review: Winter's Heart is a definite improvement over the last few books, none of which had anything happen until the very end. Jordan does a good job of restoring the pace which he had in the first five, and the story moves along at a good clip (by Jordan's standards anyway). Some crucial plotlines are resolved, but as usual, more are added. Jordan once again leaves out one of the major characters. In the last book it was Mat, in Winter's Heart, Egwene is hardly to be seen. There is one chapter in which she meets Elayne in Tel'aran'rhiod, but this is set just before she opens the gateway to besiege Tar Valon, which was at the end of TPOD. There is nary a mention of her siege in Winter's Heart. Sigh. Still, this book has its moments. The ending is terrific, and nearly makes up for everything. Rand travels considerably over the course of this book and sticks it to the forces of evil, Elayne rules in Caemlyn, and Mat wanders through Seanchan Ebou Dar, trying to walk the tightrope of Tylin and the Daughter of the Nine Moons. Perrin sets out to find Sevanna's sept and rescue Faile, but as you probably expected, not much happens there. Formerly important characters like the Wise Ones and the Aiel chieftains are nonentities again. Still, the very last sentence in the book, which mentions something about the time of illusions ending does promise excitement in the future. All in all, a solid entry in the series, and worthwhile read. Of course, this could be my addiction talking . . .
Rating: Summary: How many more are to come and how long is the wait? Review: As always Mr. jordan writes a good book, what this lacks from the previous books is the character interaction. He describes the scenes in vivid detail, but he leaves out how this affects the characters themselves. In this book he resolved a lot of issuses that readers speculated about for along time but he started a lot more with no end in sight. I like how he describes Rand's struggle with stress, Mat's problems with women, and Perrin's despreration to find his wife. I hope we see in the next volume the consequences of Rand's enemies and allies continually pushing their own good ahead of everyone elses. Other than that this book was insightful into the world Mr. Jordan has made famous. Can't wait for the next one.
Rating: Summary: he's back Review: he's back after two so and so books. Enough said
Rating: Summary: Great ending, good story, it's the calm before the storm Review: The latest in Robert Jordan's series is what I've come to expect since Book 6. The first 100 pages or so are dull, dull, dull, but it picks up after that. It reminded me of the last book, Path of Daggers. Everything seems pretty quiet right now, but soon everything's going to blow up and get amazing. I was hoping this would happen in Book 9, but alas, it seems we all have to wait for the next one. The main difference between this one and the last one is that Mat and Rand's stories keep moving better than in book 8 and that the ending is incredible!! This is the best ending I've read in the series so far (except for book 2). Overall, you won't be disappointed, but you won't be blown away either (until the end).
Rating: Summary: worth the wait Review: I felt the same way most people did about the last two books, but then I re-read them in preparation for Winter's Heart and now I love them as much as the rest of the series. Winter's Heart continues the many complex stories started in the previous books. You finally get to see whatever happened to Mat, you learn more about Cyndane, the Daughter of the Nine Moons and you get to see how each character has really changed since the first book. The series does seem to be moving towards some conclusion but there could be several more books. I'm running out of space on my shelves. Back to waiting and re-reading for a few more years.
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