A review by willowbiblio
Towers of Midnight by Brandon Sanderson, Robert Jordan

4.0

"Nobody walks a difficult path without stumbling now and again. It didn't break you when you fell. That's the important part."
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The pacing of this one really struggled for me again, but there were flashes of brilliance. I think my biggest issue with this series is how all of the adults just communicate like angsty teenagers, especially in romantic contexts.

The Ituralde battle scenes really kept me moving in the first half, and then Rand's utter dominance was perfectly written. I think this balance and peace he's achieved with himself and Lews Therin is so refreshing to read.

The Thom/Moiraine romance feels like sloppy writing. They never once exhibited even the remotest sign of this prior to her death, so it feels like Jordan/Sanderson just giving themselves a way to rationally have Thom be the recipient of this letter. There was no groundwork laid for this in prior books so it rings completely false now.

Aviendha's flashes forward were absolutely devastating and fantastically written. They were a really cool parallel to the flashbacks we experienced from Rand's POV while in Rhuidean. Elayne's character felt needlessly arrogant and irresponsible. Maybe she's always been that but overshadowed.

Some of the secondary plots like the Black Tower and the Borderland leaders have been drawn out for so many books that they're just annoying to read now. However, Androl's POV was believably humble and very enjoyable.

I'm feeling ready to wrap up this series, sort of wish it was over already. It's clear Rand will win, but at what cost? Nynaeve's ability to heal madness is beautiful and I hope that's included in the last book.