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The Dragon Reborn (The Wheel of Time, Book 3)

The Dragon Reborn (The Wheel of Time, Book 3)

List Price: $7.99
Your Price: $7.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Not bad but not great either
Review: I have just completed the third book in this series and I must admit I am getting tired of Rand continually beating the Dark One only to have him reappear in the next book. It is becoming predictable, dark one on top right to the very end then Rand winning easily.

I also tend to rate books on what I call the "stupidity scale" that is, characters doing things that are really stupid. Perrin for instance can talk to wolves but he refuses to because he fears becoming one. Yet if he links with the wolves he will at least know whether he is about to be shot by an arrow or attacked, for me talking to the wolves would obviously hold the less danger.

Rand has beaten a forsaken and has obtained the dragon banner and can channel, he needs help but what does he do? He runs away from those who can help him and questions whether in fact he truly is the Dragon reborn.

Moraine has consistently saved their skins yet all the males treat her as the enemy, wake up guys! If she was the enemy, she could have killed you long ago!

All in all it is a good read, nowhere near as good as Tolkien (based on my stupidity scale) I just hope the characters start using their brains a little bit more.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A good book for a cruise
Review: Read "Dragon Reborn" while on a cruise -- nice relaxing book to pass the time away with at the pool. Many people criticize that Rand is not in the book that much. I think that's a plus since most of the first two books dealt with him. I'm not at all crazy about him. Mat emerges as a very strong figure in the book as does Perrin and the girls. Too me its' sort of like "The Two Towers." I love the parts with Aragorn, Gimli etc and got quite bored with all of Frodo's wanderings.

We learn more about the world of the characters. The Forsaken, The Black Ajah and the Aiel all take on larger roles.

I thought there was much more action in this book than either of the first two which are the only ones I have read to date.

I capped my review at a 4 because I'm not as excited about this "world of Dreams" that most of the characters experience in the book, especially the "convenient" ways it helps Egwene and Perrin later in the book.

But I'm hooked and will order Book 4 in a few days!!!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The continuation of a great saga.
Review: The Dragon Reborn is better than the first two novels. It's better paced, has more action, and many plot twist. If the next WOT novels are this good the series will easily be the greatest fantasy saga ever.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Starts to drone...
Review: This book seems little more than an extension of the last. The series of events is predictable by now; the book begins with a bang and tapers off into too much character work in the middle before ending with a confrontation that makes the reader want to go on to the next part. Some interesting developments, but I would not start reading this unless one has a commitment to the whole series.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Solid fantasy,evolvin plot
Review: While reading the third book of the WOT series I had a clear,consistent sense of multiple threads weaving tight to form a solid story (much like the wheel of time itself :-) )
The value of a book,I think,lies on how much of it you can read the first time you pick it up..well I read it almost halfway..(it was a looong night :-) ) ..Thus,it is fairly logic to say I loved it..The only annoying thing (as with the previous books,and I think with the next) is this battle of sexes.Nynaeve and Egwene,(and Nynaeve especially) are two of the most annoying characters ever.In this book Nynaeve is..how the saying goes..uhmm "I am THE b%$ch,and MRS.B$#ch to you!" . I mean,hey the scene in the Stone of Tear with Mat is utterly outrageous.
This "You-men-are-all-idiots-and-playthings-for-us-because-we-are-going-to-be-Aes-Sedai(though we almost hate Aes Sedai)-and-we-are-smarter-and-always-know-what-to-do" is sometimes stupid..
Oh well,this cant spoil the whole setting..(But tell me Mr.Jordan,does Nynaeve actually derive from a living character in your social circle?She is unbelievable enough to be true :-) )
The book is awesome..Read it!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Could be so good...
Review: Seems there are two camps readers of the Wheel of Time series; those that think this is the greatest fantasy epic ever written and those that think the series is pure garbage (even though they still read 4-5 of the books). I seem to be one of the rare individuals who like the books yet still see the flaws in them. For this, the gushing fan-boys tend to rate my reviews not helpful.

Seriously, there are great elements to Jordans books but to think any of them are five star books is just fooling yourself. If you are one of those individuals who's about to click the "no - this wasn't helpful to me" button because the Wheel of Time books are some of the best books you've ever read, I urge you to read more books by better authors.

Here is what's good about the Wheel of Time: It's a huge epic fantasy of almost unparalleled scope. It's an immense sweeping saga of good versus evil that plays like soap operah in many aspects. It makes good use of fantasy cliche's such as ignorant farmers grow up to be heroes of the world and prophecies of a chosen one defeating evil. I like Wheel of Time because it is something I can get into. Robert Jordan gives you a world and characters you grow fond of without having it end after a few nights reading. Finally, Jordan's skill at writing alone keeps you turning pages. Nothing may happen, but at least it's enjoyable to read.

The bad: Way too many subplots and way too much development of irrelevent details. Many times, Jordans books seem to lose focus, and this one is no different. He tends to go off into lengthy tangents only to come to the heart of the story at the very end. The other thing (and I fault the editor for allowing this) is Jordan's use of "convenient" storytelling. I talked about this on my review of book two. It's annoying when the characters just seem to be able to do whatever they need to do whenver the script calls for it. When a character manifests some new power or ability, it should not be right when he/she needs it. That is a cheap way to tell stories, and any no-name writer would be reemed by their editor for trying to do so.

Fortunately, in The Dragon Reborn, the climactic ending doesn't make use of convenient storytelling (though other parts of the book do) and Jordan mostly succeeds in writing a book that is only a small part of the series yet works on it's own. Much of the book focuses on the three girls Nynaeve, Egwene, and Elayne and their learning to become Aes Sedai. This is all well and good, but aren't these supposed to be supporting characters? Jordan has still failed to really show a strong main character. Logic would tell you it was Rand, but he get's less screentime than anyone. Jordan's books would all be so much better if they were more focused. He spends too much time juggling way too many characters and all the events that happen with them. Of course, lovers of long fantasy epics don't seem to mind this, and since I am one, I enjoy the books.

In all, if you liked the first two books, you will like this one as well. It's better than book one yet not quite as good as book two.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: The best of the first three
Review: I welcomed the change of emphasis in this third book. I was glad to follow Perrin and Matt and learn more of them. Each of the three major characters is fascinating and this third book does reward the reader for following through the first two books. The manipulations of the Aes Sedai do become more complex, and the conflicts between the ajahs are well developed.

I might groan a bit at the thought of seven more novels published with the promise, or is it a threat, of at least two more to come. However, so far, so good.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: She who must not be named
Review: *Here be spoilers*

Take another look at the cover of this book.

Go ahead; I'll wait.

It seems a fairly innocent scene of Rand taking Callandor, right? There is no glimpse of lurking horror in a female form.

This makes it one of the most misleading book covers ever foisted on the public.

If you've read my reviews of the first two books, you'll know that it's been almost eight years since I read these books (at 16), and that I no longer have them. But *The Dragon Reborn* still blazons its glistening slug-track across my mind, because in this book we reach the nadir of all female characters.

Her name is spelled F-A-I-L-E.

I was somewhat under the spell of the first two books at the time, and certainly eager to continue the series. But while I read the first two books in three days each, it took me two weeks to read this one. Perhaps the coming rot sent up a warning stink.

Things I still liked, small islands in the vast swamp:

-Mat's plotline. Finally he starts taking a more active role in the story, which I was glad to see, since he was my favorite character at the time.

-The scene where Perrin frees the half-wild Wolfbrother from his cage. It gave, a lot more concisely than had become RJ's way of mentioning it, a distressing picture of Perrin's possible future. Perrin is almost unique among fantasy characters in gaining the ability to talk to animals and resenting it. He adapts to it a little too well in the latter books, but here his discomfort is alive and flourishing.

-The first true glimpses of Aiel and Darkhounds. They began to seem intriguing, and promised vast expanses to explore, as with the Seanchan in the previous book. Unfortunately, in later books, we wind up with too little about Darkhounds and more than anyone could EVER want to know about the Aiel. (Mainly, they come from Dune, and their women are just as pushy and annoying as the Aes Sedai).

The swamp itself:

-The symbolism of Perrin's choice between war and peace. *Bang* Hammer-blow to face now accomplished.

-Elayne and Nynaeve. They'd always annoyed me, but now they reveal that their annoying features are meant to pass for deep characterization. I spent a great deal of time from this book on cheering for every Forsaken who tried to eliminate them.

-Stupid bad guys. Rand is running around the country with no protection except his own untrained crazy powers, and they don't manage to scoop him up?

-The whole "I am the Dragon Reborn! Watch me disappear!" plotline. If the book is named after him, he should be a main character in it. Yes, his disappearance gives the other characters time to develop, but it also leads to straggling plotlines and a lack of Rand's viewpoint that makes his character even less realistic in the later books.

-Faile.

-Faile.

-Faile.

These last three are not the benefit of hindsight. I hated her enthusiastically while I was reading the book. She mutilates Perrin's character. She's the Spunky Girl traveling with the heroes for no good reason, therefore bringing along a delightful scum of clichés as she bubbles to the surface of the pot. She throws in references to her own culture that seem intended to give an illusion of depth, and only lead to the impression that she has never been out of her country before and should not know how to survive as well as she does. She turns out to be related to royalty. In later books, she gets jealous for no reason. She never listens to the man she professes to love. The falcon is too noble a bird to be associated with her.

Almost the only amusing thing about her is that her name is Fail, plus one letter.

When I'm looking that far for amusement value, I'm not having as good a time as I should be.

Faile is the first sign of the Horrible Creeping Rot that eventually overcomes all the female characters: refusal to listen to anyone male, jealousy and possessiveness to an insane degree, smug self-righteousness when it comes to her own abilities, inability to take criticism, and weird name.

At least I was already reading the books from the library.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The best of the Wheel of Time series
Review: This is my favorite book of the Wheel of Time Series. It is what made me so consumed in fantasy books in the first place. I never read a fantasy book before the Wheel of Time Series. I read Eye of the World and was captured by Jordan's storytelling. He captured the characters and just told the story and helped create a world that you could imagine so well. Then a Great Hunt help explore that world more, and made you eager to read The Dragon Reborn. And the Dragon Reborn is the beginning of Rand's journey as the Dragon Reborn. His task is not simple. His task is to die for the world's sake. He accepts that task in this book by taking the sword Callendor. I think this series is similiar to Tolkien's. But I don't think it's a rip-off as some have claimed it to be. Jordan introduces so many characters it sometimes hard to keep up with them all. And ever since this book Jordan has stretched the story on way to long to hold my attention much longer. Jordan needs to find a end to his saga, before his fans decide to jump ship. I think I am pretty close and I still haven't read books 8, 9, or 10 yet.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Interesting in some places, draggy and cliched in others
Review: I can't decide whether to like these books or not. Sometimes I'll get caught up in the story and find myself rushing ahead, eager to find out what happens next, but these rushes are interspersed with long, dull periods where nothing seems to happen. And I'm having trouble finding a single character that I like. Well, Perrin is okay (way too good for Faile, anyway, but that's not saying much)...but Matt the Brat and Rand the Bland are getting on my nerves. And the Aes Sedai...ugh. To say I dislike them is a vast understatement. They're all incredibly arrogant and manipulative, seeing people as little more than pawns to be moved around on their gameboard.

The Biblical symbolism in this story is fairly obvious, what with Rand being "reborn" and all the false dragons popping up (one classic sign that the armegheddon is approaching is the appearance of false messiahs.) Rand is meant to be a Christ-figure, but I somehow don't think Christianity would have gained many followers if Jesus had been this immature. And the "Dark One" is a Lucifer-figure (he's referred to as "Shai'tan" and "Ba'alzamon"...how subtle). But Lucifer is supposed to be quite the honey-tongued charmer, whereas "Shai'tan" mainly rules through ham-fisted threats and insults ("BOW TO ME, WORM, OR I WILL CRUSH YOU BENEATH MY OMNIPOTENT TOE! FEEL MY EVIL!") Lanfear is a bit more interesting, but even she is a rather stereotyped femme fatale.

In short...decent plot (if slow in places), but the characters will make you grit your teeth.


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