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fyse0

I'm reading a twelve part story that has trapped my life. I had watched my dad read these books for years.. and one day he gave me New Spring the novel.. which prequels The Wheel of time. I will describe it as best I can:

A beyond epic story of the shaping of the world by characters bound by a higher power.

the higher power is not god in any ways shape or form.

I am primarily a fantasy reader, among many other things. But what I truly love is lord of the rings, once and future king, mists of avalon.. etc. This book has given me the same and more of the feelings I've gotten reading my bible (ltor ) The story has just expanded the genre of Fantasy in so many dimensions. I have never read a fantasy novel of this caliber.

I am on Book 6. (7 counting prequel)

 

Sam_Stone

I've read a few books in the series. Wasn't to impressed with the first book but continued to read a few of the others just so I could see what all of the hoopla was about. Liked parts, but generally it seemed like pages and pages of complete garbage to me. I just couldn't form any emotinal attachment to the characters ,who seemed emoitionlaly stagnent to me. I couldn't finish the 6th book in the series because it bored me to death., so I've kind of given up on the series.

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When I get back to the country I will be living in a tent. My mom and dad would sure be mad at all the money I spent. Now I know just what they meant. I ain't broke but brother I'm badly bent.

FitShaced

When im done with the Shannara series, ill be starting on the Wheel of Time books. That should be in a few months,considering i read the last 3 books in less then a month. Just waiting on the last 4 that are out to get delivered, hopefully today.

fyse0

you have not read the wheel of time, and if you did you're reading comprehension is nil. sorry, but honestly.. read some reviews, that whole paragraph sounds made up. I could write essays to you on the character development of rand, mat and perrin.

Sam_Stone

Yes I have, and I feel my reading comprehension skills are just fine.Maybe you can write whole essays on their character development, but in "MY OPINION" the characters seem to go through little if any emontinal growth despite all the trials they've faced since leaving Two Rivers.

We have a difference of opinion of the series, you like it, I don't. Theres no need to accuse me of lying or question my reading ability just because we have a difference of opinion.

 

balefire

Lol....when i started reading the Wheel of Time, there were only 7 books.....I'd be interested in finding out what you think of books 8-10 when you don't have to wait 2+ years between each for them to come out.

I really liked the most recent book, Knife of Dreams...it'll be interesting to see how the series turns out.

Arcturus

While I enjoy this series for the most part (and I've read every book twice), the characters and their interactions are consistently unrealistic. Essays on the character development of Rand, Mat and Perrin? Perrin never changes, Mat's basic personality doesn't change much, he just grows up, and Rand slowly goes insane, while growing up. I'm not sure how that constitutes character development. If you want character development, read George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire. Martin is a much, much better writer than Robert Jordan.

The way Robert Jordan writes women is my biggest pet peeve; all they do is fight with each other and treat each other like crap, and try to steal each other's men. Nynaeve is an abortion of a character, and Egwene isn't much better. It's like he had one and only one template for females in his head, and applied it to every female in the book with only cosmetic variations (and I do mean cosmetic, every single woman is beautiful).

I would contend that based on your lack of critical thinking, and your general slurping of the series, your reading comprehension is a bit low.

balefire

I have to take issue with everything you just said. Almost all the things you find fault with the series are what makes it great for me.

Around the time I was reading through The Dragon Reborn , I realized one of the best parts of the Wheel of Time was its incredibly realistic depiction of personal interaction between the characters. In lesser fantasy series, characters are pretty one dimensional and, when they are on the same "side", pretty much disclose everything they know to each other... Not so in the WOT....when characters get together, they might mention some things, but hide others, all based on their biases. Sometimes this seems a minor act that has large implications down the road.

As for characters changing, all you have to do is read the scene near the beginning of book 4 between Rand, Eqwene, and Elayne when they try to help Rand with his channeling. Look at Rands almost boyish hesitency with Elayne. Now go to the end of Book 5, just monthes later in the series timeline, and watch Rands reaction when he thinks Mat and Aviendha are dead. It's a huge shift in his character that has only grown more extreme as the series progresses.

True, in the last 3 books the plot has gone nearly nowhere, and Perrin in particular seems a little stagnant, but to say that in the 2 1/2 years of the stories timeline that the characters haven't changed is, frankly, a bit dumbfounding.

Arcturus

Well like I said, the characters who are young grow up and become jaded/confident/violent, and in addition to growing up Rand goes insane, but that's it. Yes of course Rand's personality changes the most, but most of that is Lews Therin, and in my mind that was a poorly executed bit of plot. Jordan seems to forget about Therin for entire books, then spends a boring dream sequence on him, then forgets about him again. Ironically I enjoy the stagnant characters more; Perrin and Mat's stories become far more interesting than Rand's after book 5 or so.

As for Rand experiencing a huge shift in a couple months, I also found that to be rather jarring. One second he's this stammering hick from Manetheren, but he loses his humanity quicker than a greased koala bear. I don't consider that character development, it's more like deus ex machina.

You say that the characters holding so much back is realistic; perhaps between Moiraine and the group, but between 3 friends who grew up together? I say it's stupid, especially the extreme cattiness inherent in EVERY FEMALE CHARACTER in the book. That's easily my biggest gripe with the series, I hate the female characters and their interactions. Nothing dumbfounding about it, my friends who have read the series agree with me completely.

Jordan is a talented writer who needs a better editor to keep him on track and give him a little more consistency. At one point I had a much higher opinion of him until the second time I read through the series and really analyzed the characters and interactions. Check our George R.R. Martin and it becomes a little more obvious what Jordan's deficiencies as a writer are.

Really, this is the exact same post I wrote to the other guy. I don't want to get into a drawn out debate where we compare character by character and scene by scene, especially since it's been a couple years since I read them. If you enjoy the interactions, and feel the 'character development' is realistic and well thought-out, so much the better. I wish you well in your enjoyment of the series.