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tieflingmom's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, Blood, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Slavery, Murder, Police brutality, Violence, Death, Colonisation, Kidnapping, Suicidal thoughts, Body horror, Gaslighting, Classism, Child death, Genocide, Grief, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, War, and Gore
mattiedancer's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Writing: 3.75⭐️/5
This is a 1600-page first novel of a fourteen-book-plus-a-sequel series. Sometimes, the writing is nearly outstanding. At other times, it feels redundant and repetitive. It’s like a love-like-don’t-like smoothie of writing. Overall, it’s adequate, bordering on good. I applaud Jordan’s ability to work within Tolkien’s conventions, nearly calling him into the novel without actually doing that. As a Tolkien fan, I appreciate the nods to Lord of the Rings you can see here and there as well. These incredibly cute Easter Eggs were appreciated.
Characters: 4.5⭐️/5
I like the characters, and I like that – as far as this one goes – they do feel relatively different. I could feel the intention Jordan put into his characters, even minor ones, even near-NPC ones. I felt deeply that if he’d had the time or the desire, he could have written a whole tale on each of the people the crew meets along their journey with ease. Despite relying on a few sexist and/or misogynistic tropes to propel attributes of his female characters, Jordan also created compelling women. Moraine, Nynaeve, and Egwene are all wonderful to read about and have in this tale.
Plot: 4⭐️/5
Think Lord of the Rings, but not. We have a chosen group – an unlikely band of heroes – who embark on adventure after a party goes wrong, compelled to chase after the Dark One, a presence threatening the entire world. It’s a sweater made from LOTR material, but it fits differently. The complexity of the world is just as thought out as LOTR, branching into its own tale in the details. A few qualms I had with the plot: the predictability of the Chosen One made me hope Jordan was going to “pull one over on me” (he didn’t) and the final battle felt a bit odd in pacing. Also, the reliance on “the Pattern” or “the Wheel” felt far too convenient, almost pulling at the threads of our story and unravelling it into a bundle of “so what?” When everything is dictated by the Pattern, then what’s the point of the story?
All in all, I enjoyed reading it, and I am excited to start book two.
Who Should Read This Book?
- Fans of LOTR
- Fans of lengthy high-fantasy novels
- Fans of Sanderson, who don’t mind a bit more exposition in their worldbuilding
- Someone without commitment issues (fourteen books and a prequel require commitment)
Content Warnings?
- War, blood, injury, injury detail, gaslighting, gore, murder, sexism, misogyny, grief,
Post-Reading Rating: 4⭐️/5
Let’s start book two!
Final Rating: 4⭐️/5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Sexism, Violence, War, Body horror, Gore, Grief, Vomit, Blood, Death, Gaslighting, Misogyny, Stalking, Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
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