The Wheel of Time Review
The author of The Wheel of Time series is Robert Jordan.
So far there are seven books in the Wheel of Time series.
The Eye of the World
The Great Hunt
The Dragon Reborn
The Shadow Rising
The Fires of Heaven
Lord of Chaos
A Crown of Swords
Path of Daggers (maybe--might be released fall '98)
It is very hard to give a "brief" summary of The Wheel of Time Series since there are 7 LONG books that make it up. The storyline along these books is very detailed and the thousands and thousands of pages are full.
The Wheel of Time series is based around a character named Rand 'al Thor. As seen in many stories, Rand 'al Thor is a simple boy living in a tiny town. Living his peaceful life, things start to turn weird in Rand's life. He is visited by a female sorceress, or Aes Sedai, who says that he is in grave danger, and draws death to the town he lives in the longer he stays there.
Rand as well as two of his childhood friends, Mat Cauthon and Perrin Abyara flee from their hometown. In the time to come, they learn that they are all closely tied to the Wheel of Time and that their actions effect the flow of time and what is to come. These three are known as "ta'vern", and they are specifically born in order to restore balance to the Wheel of Time.
As Rand grows up, always fleeing from danger, he learns of his magical abilities, which allow him to channel the male side of the force, saidin. Everyone knows, though, that men who can channel are affected by a taint which eventually drives them mad, forcing them to kill even their loved ones.
The book takes a twist, and it turns out that Rand is the Dragon reborn, destined to fight against the Dark One in The Last Battle... But before he can gallaumph off in battle, Rand must root out and deal with the Forsaken, minions of the Dark One, who seek to bring him dead to "master." The books tell of Rand's struggles with the Forsaken, as they scheme and plot to outdo him. He also has to deal with his "taint" which grows worse all the time.
It's a hard job to assign a number to such a magnificent series as this. I am probably too young to take advantage of everything going on in the book, so this rating will be limited to the plot most likely.
You usually don't find series as detailed as this. The world and plot is so detailed that there is a glossary in the back to prevent you from getting lost while reading the book. One of the best things about this series is the way Jordan incorporates the fighting and thinking so well. You don't just have the characters running about screaming and killing things. There is killing, but there is thinking involved.
The character development of the book is superb. You know everything about the characters, although there are characters that are shrouded in mystery (on purpose of course). There is a history behind every city and person. Considering that the books in The Wheel of Time of very long, they are very good at keeping you interested. Just when you are sickened of the fighting, there is some drama.
The good things about this series greatly outnumber the bad things. Although, one of the problems is that since the books are so long, things are often dragged out. In many cases, the author will focus in on one character in particular for too long. Of course, you always want to have a taste of all the characters. Also, reading this series can leave you confused with all the different names, people, places, and historical events which are depicted in the greatest detail.
For all the great things about this series, I would rate it as a 9.5 . Why not a 10? Well, simply because sometimes the book was just plain boring. It didn't happen very often, but it did occasionally. Other than the periodical boring spurts, these books were an intense read full of everything a fantasy reader could desire.
Character development: great, very detailed, precise, and rewarding -- reading carefully will link all the character's together
Plot/plot development: great, very detailed but sometimes hauntingly confusing (almost TOO detailed)
Fantasy theme: It's definetly a fantasy book. There's no question about it.
Literature: The books are SO long, how could there not be something good in there? =)
Overall enjoyment: Worth the time and the possible frustration at parts. Very rewarding...
So, you've read Tolkien, and your craving more? Head to the nearest book store and buy this series and your craves will be satisfied (remember to read the book once you buy it!!!). I'm not kidding. They are alike in many ways because they both include the history and detailed plot. Make sure you have the time to read and process the information though. Don' t rush through this book, read slowly to catch all those details that are definately there. Learn the history of each person and place. A great read definately worth your time!
Robert Jordan has left two things hanging in his series. He is probably planning to come to these later in the series, but I thought that I would see what the general public thought first. If you have read this series, please answer the following questions I am sure you are wondering as well.