Rating: Summary: Please don't let Jordan die before he finishes this Review: Things are shaping up nicely in book 9, and it looks as if this series could actually wrap up soon (which will take about 2,000 pages, knowing Mr. Jordan). The characters are still as real and unbelievably well-developed as always, and the dozens of subplots are finally begining to tie together. Some confusion does arise when minor characters that haven't been seen in the last few books pop up, but there are plenty of resources on the internet to refresh your memory. A great series that everyone, regardless of their opinions of the "Fantasy" genre, should read.
Rating: Summary: Very sweet, but with a rocky start Review: I must admit I was rather disappointed with the first 200 pages. Lots of boring court details with Elayne, a brief part with Perrin, and a lack of "moving on with it" in general. WoT has been a truely awesome series but i'm wishing a conclusion would be nearer on the horizon.However, after the first 200 the book really picks up. We finally find out what happened with Mat Cauthon and Rand participates in several GOOD combat scenes. The finale here was arguably the best in the series, even topping the Horn of Valere ending the second book had. Winter's Heart has a rocky start but continues the series in Jordan's winning style. Definetly worth reading, the last hundred pages or so will have you dancing with excitement (difficult while sitting).
Rating: Summary: The soap opera bubble bursts Review: Ok, don't get me wrong. I've been a big fan of the Wheel of Time series ever since I picked up Eye of the World. I've read all of the previous books 5+ times. But these last two books have been incredibly frustrating in their lack of plot advancement. Jordan has turned his epic into a soap opera, and for me, the soap bubble has burst. Winter's Heart spends an enormous number of pages meandering around slowly grinding out yet another maze of twisty little passages, all alike. After all the trouble Rand and his friends went through in the first 8 books fighting the Dark, they have gotten practically nowhere. Sure, maybe Jordan is trying to convey the feeling of futility the characters must feel about what's (not) happening, but with this volume, I think he succeeded a bit too well. Then, about 30 pages from the end, it appears Mr. Jordan was pressured by the publishers to finish, because it seems as though he suddenly realized he had forgotten to put in a point. I'll admit, those last 30 pages were riveting. But I skimmed the other 630, hoping against hope that something interesting was going to happen to these people I've spent so much time getting to know... and ultimately I discovered that I don't really care any more.
Rating: Summary: As good as it gets.. Review: An excellent book. It's true that Jordan starts a few more twisting plot lines, but that's ok. At least he tied up a few loose ends. The ending is probably the absolute best writing I've seen in any book, ever. To you people that keep complaining about LOC and COS, shutup. When you have a story with this many plotlines and characters, you have to have some boring stuff. You cannot just skip writing about their sections because it doesn't involve the main character. It's part of the story, and it has to be written sometime. There is some of this in Winter's Heart as well, but everything is worth it for the ending. I think this is my favortie TWOT book. ;)
Rating: Summary: Haste Makes Waste Review: I am a long-time reader of Mr. Jordan's (aren't we all?) and I waited anxiously for this book to arrive. While I completely undertand the ebb and flow of the plot, and I certainly comprehend what Mr. Jordan was trying to accomplish with this book, I must still say I am a bit disappointed. Not with the story, but with the editing. I feel that this book needed to stew a bit more, and get a more thorough edit. I know, I know, we all feel that Mr. Jordan is the best around, but his work generally has a bit more polish than this one did. The Perrin story arc was just dropped, there were numerous grammatical errors, and, at the end, people started showing up from out of the woodwork. This is not the quality I have come to expect from Mr. Jordan. Will I continue to read the series? Of course I will. Do I still feel this book is worth reading? Of course I do. A lot of things do get accomplished, a lot of plots are resolved and his capture of the characters is as thrilling as always. It just seems that this book was rushed -- it shows in the flow of the book, the segues from scene to scene and character to character, and the sentence structure, grammar, and spelling. While this book is good, it is not great. I would have preferred to have waited another three or four months and had a full book, than to get a half finished one early. I still rank Mr. Jordan as one of the top writers of the epic fantasy genre. And, while he has stiff competition from George Martin and Tad Williams, he is still, in my opinion, the best guy around. I fully look forward to the remaining novels, and, unlike many, I do not feel that this is "dragging on" unnecessarily. It takes a lot of time, effort, and attention to detail to take over the world and save it. Poor Rand and his friends have a long tale to tell and Mr. Jordan is doing a fine job telling it. I just wish his editors had more time, talent, and guts in the future than they did this time around.
Rating: Summary: Jordan finally starts tying up loose ends Review: I just finished reading the book, and it is a long shot better than the last two. I still don't think the series as a whole is as good as George R.R. Martin's Song of Ice and Fire books, but reading the series from start to end leaves me in awe of how early Jordan started planting some of the seeds in these books. And now, he finally begins down the path of resolving the plot. It starts slow...trust me, I didn't really get into it for at least 200 pages, but after that...wow. If you like the series, it is a wonderful return to the story we love, and if you have never read the series...do yourself a favor and pick up Book 1: Eye of the World, and stick with it all the way to the end. If not for Martin, this would be the undisputed champ of modern fantasy. As it is, it is a wonderfully close second.
Rating: Summary: Same Old, Same Old Review: Having re-read Books 7 and 8 while waiting for Winter's Heart, I expect that I shall upgrade it to 4 stars eventually. Still, some old problems continue to annoy. It starts slowly - deadly dull until about page 225. Some important and winning characters (e.g., Egwene, the White Tower powers) are slighted or left out entirely. Grammar and typography (in the last third especially) are sloppy. And, after ending Book 8 with Faile tramping enslaved through the snow, he visits that subplot early on, then just leaves her tramping through the snow! On the other hand, the author seems finally to be moving toward resolution of several long-standing issues, such as Mat's fate, Rand's ultimate plans and love life, how Nynaeve will mature and fit into Aes Sedai society, Elayne's prospects as Queen, etc. He does further explore Rand's very important relationship with Cadsuane. And the book certainly ends with a great big bang that may change everything! All in all, I feel a little let down, but will probably like it better in a few months. As well for me that these books only come along every two years!
Rating: Summary: The Wheel Turns Again Review: With Winter's Heart, Robert Jordan adds yet another installment to his masterpiece, the Wheel of Time series. Although, page wise, it is a little thinner then some of the other books in the series, nonetheless, it seems to possess as much in the way of content as the best of them. This is in large part due to the fact that Jordan, (perhaps reading some of the commentary that the previous two installments in this series received) has again quickened the pace of the action, placing our beloved characters at the forefront rather then focusing on the armies that each now leads. This is not to say that he is rushing. Even though this book is a MAJOR step forward in the series, it keeps as many avenues open for the story line to take as those which it resolved. Over more then 8000 pages, Robert Jordan has developed an entire world, and set in it a story which constantly reinvents itself evan as it builds up to a climax. He is not about to rush to a closure. The old plot line of thwart evil plot and bring bad guy to justice in under 300 pages is a thing of the past, in large part thanks to this series. Jordan is to be commended for not falling into that trap thus far, and it would disappoint a great many fans if he started down that path at this stage. To the thousands who claim to have been put off by A Crown of Swords and A Path of Daggers, I advise you in the strongest terms possible to pick up this book and see if it does not rekindle your interest and set you salivating for book 10 of the Wheel of Time.
Rating: Summary: The plot finally starts to move again. Review: After the fifth title in this series came out, I figured it would take three more volumes to tie up all the loose ends. Now, after the ninth, it still looks like it will take three more volumes, at least. If you like complex intertwining plotlines, then this series is for you; if you like plots to be resolved, better look elsewhere. Don't by this one without reading the whole series in sequence. This volume nonetheless makes some significant advances towards a final resolution. Several events forshadowed since early volumes finally occur; so do some surprises that can't help but affect the final outcome. I won't spoil things by getting specific, but things move farther forward in this volume than in the previous three combined.
Rating: Summary: Jordan's Back! Review: Well the wait is over and it was actually worth it. Robert Jordan returns to the tried and true foundation which escalated his first six books from story to legend to myth. This foundation was sadly lacking in his last two books, and it appeared that his interests lay in stretching the series out as long as he could for the increased revenue. The fact that he sold the electronic rights to the prologue only solidified this suspicion. But this book abolished those doubts. The storyline honestly progressed. The characters honestlyly appeared rational. And the book honestly ended in a great battle scene, rather than an assasination attempt or a boffed forsaken killing. The only thing missing was Loial. But, even so, the day after finishing the book I found myself wanting to pick it up again and skim through it once more. The eighth book has sat on a shelf collecting dust since the first and only time I read it. What an improvement! Jordan is back.
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