Rating: 
Summary: Will he never end this story?
Review: I have read all the installments in the series. As the series progressed, (slowly,...very slowly) I have expected less and less from each installment. The latest installment is no different. The characters and plot lines are now spread so thin that they appear as cartoon cut-outs rather than characters with any depth. The pacing of the plot is so slow, and the books appear so infrequently that neither Mr. Jordan or myself are likely to be around to write/read about the final battle of good and evil. Save your money; if you have to read this book go the library or borrow it from a friend. It is no longer worth the price of admission.
Rating:
Summary: Mr. Jordan Seems to be "milking" the series
Review: I agree with Rich from Canada. Not again..., November 18, 2000 I was disappointed with Crown of Swords and Winter's Heart is even further evidence that Mr Jordan has run out of ideas or is trying to milk the series for all the money he can get. This series has become a soap opera with no action, no plot, and no momentum; "just endless scenes of pointless bickering, traveling, and whining, with a tiny bit of action thrown in at the end of each book". I will wait until the next one is in the library before reading it.
Rating: 
Summary: Better than the last two but seems filled with artifice
Review: I was delighted when I read this book and found that a lot of questions that have been floating around for a long time were answered... But, I felt like they were answered just for the sake of being answered, and a lot of times, the answers were irrelevant and artificial-seeming. The book would have been so much better if the irrelevant revelations had been replaced with, say, the thoughts in Rand's head, and his reasoning, which lead up to the *SPOILER* cleansing of Saidin. That is, we hardly understand what is happening, which of course may be because Rand himself does not, but in that case I would like a little more insight into Rand's uncertainly, fears, etc. On the whole it feels like RJ has stopped story-telling, and is now using the books for an extended Q&A session with mystery-obsessed readers. Still, I have high hopes for the future, and of course I'll continue to read them.
Rating:
Summary: Somewhere between Daggers and Chaos
Review: I've worked through my anger at an author too contemptuous of his readers to try and produce quality work. I'm now projecting my venom at TOR, whose editors apparently were too busy to proofread this installment of a series that should have ended three books ago. I rate this one with Crown of Swords -- it is not as unreadable as Daggers but only a few things happen, and most of that is in the last 30 pages. But... I bought the book. Living, reading proof that there IS one born every minute! My theory? RJ will never put a bullet in this series. All his WOT fans are too burned out to ever read anything he writes again. His revenge against his faithful, foolish readers will be to die before Rand fights the big one and we will never know....
Rating:
Summary: Not too bad.....I guess
Review: This was definately better than P of D but still not anywhere near the the capability that Jordan showed in the first several books. It ranks right around with C of S. He has introduced too many characters with too many subplots. Even though I reread the series several months ago in preparation for the release, I constantly found myself forgetting who was who. P of D was even worse in that aspect. I have also grown tired of the same phrases used over and over again like, "..considerable tanned cleavage.." and "...a generous bosom...." - and they appear all the time!! There are several things that happen that could be setting up for an even better 10th book like Rand's actions in the last pages and the arrival of the Daughter of the Nine Moons. The absence of the battle of Tar Valon also made me angry because I was anticipating that almost more than anything. THis book takes a time period of only two or three weeks whereas the other books besides P of D took up much more time!! But my patience is waning and I want the series to be over. I dont see him finishing the series in less than two more books. At the most 4 but I am guessing 3 books to finish it off. I also suspect that the SHara will surface. It is mentioned that the Stone of Tear is beseiged and I dont think that it could be the Seanchan or rebels in Haddon Mirk. THe only group not yet involved that has been mentioned to have been turned upside down with Rand's coming is the Shara and he has something to do with their prophecies too (I think it was mentioned in previous book). It was still a captivating book because I feel attached to the characters but there is just not enough substance. I hope that Jordan is working on something brilliant right now but I am becoming disillusioned with where teh series is headed, and after the poor performance in P of D I was anticipating something spectacular from Jordan to show everybody that he still has it. Lets keep the hope alive!
Rating: 
Summary: Picking up some steam from the last one
Review: The lastest installment in Jordan's massive Wheel of Time series gets back to where it should be.... almost. This is one of the stronger books in the series since The Fires of Heaven. The one major thing that lacked in the last book is back with aplumb in this one: Mat. By far my favorite character of Jordan's he plays a pivotal role in the book and his chance encounter with the Daughter of the Nine Moons. Perrin starts the opening chapters of the book searching for Faile who we learned was kidnapped by the Shaido Aiel at the end of the last. But after those first few chapters, Perrin vanishes from the text. Elayne sits on the Lion Throne in Caemylyn. Jordan fleshes her character out more and more. She is a very well rounded character now. It'll be interesting to see where he takes her in the next book. And of course there is Rand. He is, as to be expected, a main point of focus in the book. Jordan delves deeper into Rand's character and he becomes mroe and mroe rounded. One area of complaint though is the battle between the Tower and the Rebels. It is non existent. Egwene shows up only in the world of dreams and for the rest of the rebels and tower, they might as well not exist. A good book after the last. Now we buy have to wait 2 more years to see who gets excluded from the next.
Rating:
Summary: Too much repetition and poorly portrayed women.
Review: I hate to say it, but I've spent too much time with these characters, and it's becoming hard to care what happens to them. I especially have a hard time with the way women are portrayed in this series. At first, I found it refreshing to see such a large number of strong and influential female characters. However, after spending thousands of pages reading about them, it's becoming clear that, first of all, almost every woman in the series is a carbon copy of every other woman, and second of all, that Robert Jordan has a tough time writing from a woman's point-of-view. Nearly every woman in this series has a horrible temper. She manages to get her way by either "the temper tantrum", "the frosty glare", "the sniff", or some combination of the three. She believes it is her solemn duty to keep a man from getting "a swollen head" or "too big for his hat." She calls every man a "big-headed fool." When there is a group of women, they spend a great deal of time discussing men and men's shortcomings, punctuating every sentence with an exasperated "Men!" The problem here is that women don't really act that way. I haven't seen that kind of behavior since I was in jr. high school, but the women here act that way all the time. Even the Ogier women control the men. It's silly and repetitious. The male characters are much better, because each one has separate and identifiable personality. Since the Aes Sedi play such a large role in the series, let's look at them at little more closely. First of all, every member of the Red Ajah is exactly the same as every other member. They're all just cold, unfeeling, rabid man-haters. Jordan tells us that the Red Ajah has always been the largest Ajah. Their purpose is to find men who can channel. OK, but prior to the start of this series, men who can channel were very rare. So why does the Red Ajah have so many members, and what did they do with themselves in the years between finding that rare man who did channel? Members are the Brown Ajah are always dreamy and distracted and usually have an ink stain somewhere on their faces. Do members of the Yellow Ajah, the healers, ever heal anything besides battle injuries, and where did they get their bedside manner? All Aes Sedai seem arrogant and distrustful. No wonder the general populace fears and dislikes them. They have so much power, but they don't use it with any compassion. The only time an Aes Sedai shows much real human emotion is when her warder is killed. The repetition of the descriptions in the series is also starting to be monotonous and annoying. Every dress is "slashed with cream", every meal consists of "turnips and peas", items are always "thumb-thick", braids are always "wrist-thick", and wool clothing is always "stout". Every woman in the series "crosses her arms beneath her breasts" at least twice a day. It's time to describe things in a new and fresh way. Please! The final problem I have with the series is that there are way too many foretellings, dreams, and visions. Are there any suprises left to come? We know what will happen to Rand, we know what will happen to Mat, we know what will happen to Thom and Moiraine. Even if one of the characters frequently wishes for something to happen, it does. (i.e. Nynaeve thinking that "stilling" could be healed, and the way everyone kept telling Egwene she'd be the Amyrlin Seat if she worked hard enough.) In conclusion, there's just too much repetition here too hold my interest. If the series had been shorter, it would have been a classic. Instead, the same things are repeated over & over & over. They were good the first time, but now it's time to move on.
Rating: 
Summary: Micro and Macro and how one has to take the series..........
Review: When I purchased this book I set it aside and re-read the previous 8 novels. <Which I've been doing since book 4> When I came to Winter's Heart I had the Mr. Jordan's world etched into my mind. <So, instead of taking this book simply on it's own merit I took it as part of a larger whole. These books are just chapters that have chapters.> I was not disappointed. SO many things were resolved in this book not just major stings but tons of smaller lines that have been left hanging from several books back. I was completely satisfied with this book and think the real Jordan fans will to. One thing though I seem to be the only one out here that LOVE the ladies in these books. Rand and Matt are important and so is Perrin but I feel the women are just as involving and interesting. What I like to see is a more even coverage of them all instead of paring it down to a couple of the characters. <Which I think would get boring real fast> there is no way I could stand any of these books if I didn't get breaks between the characters. That's just my opinion.
Rating:
Summary: How To Waste Your Time . . .
Review: Have read all of RJ's books and really wished I had waited to read the reviews of WH. Way too many characters, and plots that require access to a database just to keep informed. And yes, I agree that action is not a requirement for a great book, but action is usually required to tie up all of the 1012 loose ends that are still dangling after this book. Count me out for future editions, I will read the reviews that are written in less than a 1000 words and will chalk up the last four books as written by someone barren of inspiration and clouded by greed.
Rating: 
Summary: Maybe I can still return it!
Review: This book is just more of the same, a story that goesnowhere. It's to bad, the first 5 books were great. Maybe he forgothow he was going to end the story, now he just writes aboutnothing. That's it for me, I won't waste [money] on Jordan again. Ifyou want great fantasy look to George R.R. Martin.
|
