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djgarwood's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
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? It's complicated
5.0
sukyamuffin's review
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
eesh25's review against another edition
4.0
3.75 Stars
Some confused feelings with this one. And I've withheld judgement while reading this book to an extent which only happens with my favourite authors. It's just that I've heard so much about the series, and I read the book weirdly. I read a quarter, switched to audio, listened to a bit, put the book on hold, and then picked up the audio again a couple of months later and finished it. Writing the review was bound to get difficult.
The story follows a group of villagers from Two Rivers. When their village is attacked by Trollocs—half-men, half-beast creatures—three boys whom the Trollocs seem to be after flee with two strange visitors who showed up in the village just days ago.
And I know that's like the vaguest synopsis ever, but it's hard to know what to say. A lot is going on in the book, and much of it is based on history that we don't know, so I thought it'd be safe just to go with what the main plot is. Because yes, almost all of the book is just the main characters on the road travelling to one place or another. And we experience what feels like every second of their travel.
If that sounds like a complaint to you... it kind of is? But also not really because it didn't both me as much as I would've expected. The characters visit so many new places, and their experiences are varied, with danger never far off. It was interesting to read and interspersed with facts about the world, history and magic. Though that last one needs more development.
Now, the characters. The three boys from Two Rivers are Rand, Mat and Perrin. The protagonist is Rand al'Thor, and he's probably the least interesting of those in the travelling party. Like, I kinda hate Mat, but at least I have some feelings toward him. With Rand, there's not much there. Perrin was my favourite of all the characters by the end. But that's not saying much since I didn't really love any of them. There was Egwene, who was just annoying. Nynaeve switched between annoying and great. I didn't trust Moiraine. Lan was fine.
I also wanna mention relationships. I liked Rand and Perrin's friendship. And I'd heard that the romances in the series are pretty bad and got evidence of that. I mean, there was a set-up for one near the end, except Jordan jumped straight from set-up to I-would-die-for-you, so that ruined everything.
What else... I enjoyed the setting. The world is huge, and Jordan makes the reader feel that hugeness and potential for exploration far beyond what we see, and we see quite a bit. In fact, it's better to let some of the names of people and places just roll over you. There's a lot of them, and they can feel overwhelming. Or at least they did to me. Besides, if it's important, Jordan will tell you about it a few more times.
Finally, the pay-off at the end wasn't as great as I'd have liked. There were also times when I wondered whether certain scenes were really needed. And whether there was a need for such a detailed description of someone's attire when it didn't matter what they were wearing. But overall, I liked this book, and I'm looking forward to the next one.
Some confused feelings with this one. And I've withheld judgement while reading this book to an extent which only happens with my favourite authors. It's just that I've heard so much about the series, and I read the book weirdly. I read a quarter, switched to audio, listened to a bit, put the book on hold, and then picked up the audio again a couple of months later and finished it. Writing the review was bound to get difficult.
The story follows a group of villagers from Two Rivers. When their village is attacked by Trollocs—half-men, half-beast creatures—three boys whom the Trollocs seem to be after flee with two strange visitors who showed up in the village just days ago.
And I know that's like the vaguest synopsis ever, but it's hard to know what to say. A lot is going on in the book, and much of it is based on history that we don't know, so I thought it'd be safe just to go with what the main plot is. Because yes, almost all of the book is just the main characters on the road travelling to one place or another. And we experience what feels like every second of their travel.
If that sounds like a complaint to you... it kind of is? But also not really because it didn't both me as much as I would've expected. The characters visit so many new places, and their experiences are varied, with danger never far off. It was interesting to read and interspersed with facts about the world, history and magic. Though that last one needs more development.
Now, the characters. The three boys from Two Rivers are Rand, Mat and Perrin. The protagonist is Rand al'Thor, and he's probably the least interesting of those in the travelling party. Like, I kinda hate Mat, but at least I have some feelings toward him. With Rand, there's not much there. Perrin was my favourite of all the characters by the end. But that's not saying much since I didn't really love any of them. There was Egwene, who was just annoying. Nynaeve switched between annoying and great. I didn't trust Moiraine. Lan was fine.
I also wanna mention relationships. I liked Rand and Perrin's friendship. And I'd heard that the romances in the series are pretty bad and got evidence of that. I mean, there was a set-up for one near the end, except Jordan jumped straight from set-up to I-would-die-for-you, so that ruined everything.
What else... I enjoyed the setting. The world is huge, and Jordan makes the reader feel that hugeness and potential for exploration far beyond what we see, and we see quite a bit. In fact, it's better to let some of the names of people and places just roll over you. There's a lot of them, and they can feel overwhelming. Or at least they did to me. Besides, if it's important, Jordan will tell you about it a few more times.
Finally, the pay-off at the end wasn't as great as I'd have liked. There were also times when I wondered whether certain scenes were really needed. And whether there was a need for such a detailed description of someone's attire when it didn't matter what they were wearing. But overall, I liked this book, and I'm looking forward to the next one.
kimberlyisverycool's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-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? It's complicated
4.75
violetspiderwitch's review against another edition
3.0
3.6 Stars
The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan is a classic, that much at least is clear. The Wheel of Time paved the way for the sprawling series and intricate magic systems we see today, and though the series has always been widely praised, there has also long been considerable backlash to it (so much so that its most liked Goodreads review is one star). But the Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass, and the massive fourteen book series along with its devoted fanbase continue to draw newcomers. This year, I was among them, but having finished its first novel am of two minds about it. See, The Eye of the World is certainly a classic, but it also exemplifies the issue with such books.
The first and most glaring critique I have of The Eye of the World is in regards to its pacing. The book starts after an intriguing prologue followed by around sixty pages before the inciting incident happens, which is a slog to get through. The rest of the book doesn’t fare much better as it continually drags its feet while the main cast slowly work their way from medieval village to medieval village. There is rarely any delineation between scenes and the large majority of the story is spent with the characters walking across similar landscapes in between infodumps and brief low stakes action sequences. The prose makes this all the more unbearable, with adverbs after every dialogue tag and every thought the characters have taking up at least a paragraph. These issues make the book much longer than it needs to be with the manuscript clocking in at a blustering 300,000 words, when it could easily be told in 200,000.
The pacing might not be so bad but for the second major issue I have which is the characters. Rand Al’Thor is the main viewpoint character and ostensibly the protagonist, but he is frustratingly bland. His main motivation through the majority of the book is that he wants to protect the people he cares about, but there’s not much more to his character. His backstory consists of sixteen years in a secluded farming town, and he doesn’t have any ideals, he just opposes whatever he’s been told not to like by the people he grew up around. Those prejudices don’t go opposed by the plot either; the morality of the larger world is pretty black and white, and what is evil nearly always aligns with what Rand already doesn’t like. The other characters are slightly better but not by a lot, each filling an established fantasy trope near perfectly, with one even being a dark brooding ranger who is second in command to a wise wizard and was supposed to be a king. One thing I did appreciate was the fact that female characters actually existed in the world as opposed to most 20th century fantasy where they mostly appear as unimportant side characters, or objects for the men to ogle at. The book is far from feminist, with not a huge amount of thought having gone into gender roles and most major characters being men, but it’s still notable for 1990.
I didn’t dislike the whole book: the lore is meticulous, the magic system intriguing, the world grand, and the pace even picks up near the end. The Eye of the World is far from a bad book, it’s a classic for a reason. But there is an issue with classics: when so many of the books that came after a book were inspired by it, the original becomes less interesting. Almost every contemporary fantasy novel has a magic system and fleshed out female characters, so seeing them here isn’t unique to me. But in 1990 it was rare, and The Eye of the World was able to safely question the genre convention by using established tropes, which though not the only reason it is so beloved, helped it stand out when it was otherwise a very generic epic fantasy novel.
That’s not the end for the Wheel of Time, though. Even at the end of The Eye of the World the plot, characters, and setting became a lot more interesting very quickly, and there are thirteen more novels in the series. I don’t think I’ll be reading The Great Hunt very soon, if only due to the volume of books I have on my to-be-read list, but I doubt it will be my last book in The Wheel of Time. Overall, The Eye of the World was a mix of good and bad that became better as it went on, though rarely sucked me in. It is a classic, in all that entails, and though in my opinion it is overshadowed by its contemporaries, it still holds merit.
The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan is a classic, that much at least is clear. The Wheel of Time paved the way for the sprawling series and intricate magic systems we see today, and though the series has always been widely praised, there has also long been considerable backlash to it (so much so that its most liked Goodreads review is one star). But the Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass, and the massive fourteen book series along with its devoted fanbase continue to draw newcomers. This year, I was among them, but having finished its first novel am of two minds about it. See, The Eye of the World is certainly a classic, but it also exemplifies the issue with such books.
The first and most glaring critique I have of The Eye of the World is in regards to its pacing. The book starts after an intriguing prologue followed by around sixty pages before the inciting incident happens, which is a slog to get through. The rest of the book doesn’t fare much better as it continually drags its feet while the main cast slowly work their way from medieval village to medieval village. There is rarely any delineation between scenes and the large majority of the story is spent with the characters walking across similar landscapes in between infodumps and brief low stakes action sequences. The prose makes this all the more unbearable, with adverbs after every dialogue tag and every thought the characters have taking up at least a paragraph. These issues make the book much longer than it needs to be with the manuscript clocking in at a blustering 300,000 words, when it could easily be told in 200,000.
The pacing might not be so bad but for the second major issue I have which is the characters. Rand Al’Thor is the main viewpoint character and ostensibly the protagonist, but he is frustratingly bland. His main motivation through the majority of the book is that he wants to protect the people he cares about, but there’s not much more to his character. His backstory consists of sixteen years in a secluded farming town, and he doesn’t have any ideals, he just opposes whatever he’s been told not to like by the people he grew up around. Those prejudices don’t go opposed by the plot either; the morality of the larger world is pretty black and white, and what is evil nearly always aligns with what Rand already doesn’t like. The other characters are slightly better but not by a lot, each filling an established fantasy trope near perfectly, with one even being a dark brooding ranger who is second in command to a wise wizard and was supposed to be a king. One thing I did appreciate was the fact that female characters actually existed in the world as opposed to most 20th century fantasy where they mostly appear as unimportant side characters, or objects for the men to ogle at. The book is far from feminist, with not a huge amount of thought having gone into gender roles and most major characters being men, but it’s still notable for 1990.
I didn’t dislike the whole book: the lore is meticulous, the magic system intriguing, the world grand, and the pace even picks up near the end. The Eye of the World is far from a bad book, it’s a classic for a reason. But there is an issue with classics: when so many of the books that came after a book were inspired by it, the original becomes less interesting. Almost every contemporary fantasy novel has a magic system and fleshed out female characters, so seeing them here isn’t unique to me. But in 1990 it was rare, and The Eye of the World was able to safely question the genre convention by using established tropes, which though not the only reason it is so beloved, helped it stand out when it was otherwise a very generic epic fantasy novel.
That’s not the end for the Wheel of Time, though. Even at the end of The Eye of the World the plot, characters, and setting became a lot more interesting very quickly, and there are thirteen more novels in the series. I don’t think I’ll be reading The Great Hunt very soon, if only due to the volume of books I have on my to-be-read list, but I doubt it will be my last book in The Wheel of Time. Overall, The Eye of the World was a mix of good and bad that became better as it went on, though rarely sucked me in. It is a classic, in all that entails, and though in my opinion it is overshadowed by its contemporaries, it still holds merit.
katsdaysarebooked's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
bittersweet_symphony's review against another edition
3.0
Jordan mostly balances introducing readers to the magical-world system he creates with interesting them in the characters he involves. The characters are like pawns in his world, rather than ends in and of themselves. While the primary task of a first book in such a series is to establish the world, he sacrifices character development for cosmos-making. He spends too much time describing the world the characters inhabit rather than detailing their unique traits and psyches. He could have invested more time addressing the ideas, histories, and tensions in the series' milieu rather than pages dedicated to the physical landscape.
The book plods along slowly, and unnecessarily yields time to characters who are minor roles--perhaps they will become significant later in the series, but time should be dedicated to them later rather than in book #1. Despite that, his secondary characters are more interesting and endearing than his core players.
He succeeds in setting foundations for a dozen plot lines. Hopefully, he does not continue to mimic too many tropes and story lines found in others like The Lord of the Rings. Perhaps, that is endemic to the genre rather than a failing of the book itself.
Eye of the World shows enough evidence to make one hopeful Jordan can create a more ambiguous and less clearly defined good vs. evil plot than LOTR ever did.
Most endearing characters: Loial, Elyas, the Traveling People (Tinkers), Min, Elayne, and Perrin.
The book plods along slowly, and unnecessarily yields time to characters who are minor roles--perhaps they will become significant later in the series, but time should be dedicated to them later rather than in book #1. Despite that, his secondary characters are more interesting and endearing than his core players.
He succeeds in setting foundations for a dozen plot lines. Hopefully, he does not continue to mimic too many tropes and story lines found in others like The Lord of the Rings. Perhaps, that is endemic to the genre rather than a failing of the book itself.
Eye of the World shows enough evidence to make one hopeful Jordan can create a more ambiguous and less clearly defined good vs. evil plot than LOTR ever did.
Most endearing characters: Loial, Elyas, the Traveling People (Tinkers), Min, Elayne, and Perrin.
kathydavie's review against another edition
5.0
Picked this up in Jo'burg airport as I had nothing to read on the plane...thank you god for directing my hand!! Ended up buying the whole series...I re-read the whole thing whenever a new one comes out.
dorien_s's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75