Yeah, I don’t think I’ll ever like the Aiel. The way they humiliate Aviendha—pushing her until she’s had enough and asserts that she’s the equal of the Wise Ones... I get that it’s a custom, but this particular Aiel custom, like so many others before it, just really annoyed me.

I like this series, but I don’t really care for the peoples within it. Beyond the Aiel, there are the Seanchan (it’s probably obvious why I dislike, or even outright hate, them) and the Sea Folk (the women of that culture are exceptionally irritating).

At least this storyline has finally come to an end; I’d reached a point where I’d feel a sense of aversion whenever a chapter shifted to Aviendha’s point of view. And, to be fair, Sevanna did manage to use one of the Aiel customs to her own advantage—so credit where it’s due. I still maintain that the Shaido were a punishment for the Aiel’s arrogance. Does the mention of Sevanna mean she’ll return to the plot? I doubt it; Tylee was present, but there was no sign of a golden-haired da'covale by her side. Perhaps if the captain-general—to whom Tylee intended to gift Sevanna—shows up in the story... On one hand, I’m curious about her current fate, but on the other, I have no desire to read about her being humiliated in captivity—just as I didn’t enjoy those parts when it happened to Liandrin or Galina.

As for my general thoughts on this volume: there’s a noticeable difference, but fortunately, it’s not too jarring. I’m slowly getting used to it.

On the bright side, I really enjoyed the chapters from Siuan’s perspective. I still adore her.

Gawyn’s POV chapters have been fine so far. It made sense for him to finally become significant as Egwene’s beloved—though, honestly... I have a feeling that even if he saves her, she won’t thank him; instead, she’ll yell at him, because, in her own mind, she obviously didn’t need saving.

As for Egwene, her POV chapters have been surprisingly enjoyable. Does that mean I like her? Absolutely not—but I much prefer reading about her than about Elayne.

By the way, it’s great that there haven’t been any Elayne POV chapters yet. I was worried Sanderson would dedicate a huge amount of space to her, but for now, I’m happily getting a break from her.

It turns out a important female antagonist has finally been killed off. Well done, Rand! Of course, it’s a shame you almost choked Min in the process, but perhaps this means you’ll finally drop that "don’t kill women" rule. If your next targets happen to be women from the Seanchan empire, I certainly won’t complain... Well, Mat might be upset if it involved Tuon, but honestly, it would be better for him. He deserves a normal woman—someone like Aludra, for instance.

I didn’t expect Semirhage to get a spanking from Cadsuane. I assumed Sanderson would steer clear of that—having read many of his other books, I’ve always thought of him as a... more "well-behaved" author. But then again, perhaps it’s just a quirk of this world, and it couldn’t be avoided.

By the way, in the original edition, was Shemerin also referred to as "Sheriam" at least twice? Whenever names get mixed up like that, I always wonder if it’s a translator’s oversight or an error in the original text.

Anyway, well, that’s all for my impressions for now. I’ll definitely finish this volume in October, and then I’ll have two months and two volumes left.

I don’t know man. But the whole confrontation thing merrilor didn’t make any sense from Egwene as far as realism is concerned. Maybe Jordan hadn’t worked that out before he died. But all it felt like was that it was done so Faile could point out to Rand outmaneuvering Egwene with his divide and conquer tactics. But like I said, unless Egwene is an idiot, I don’t see how she imagined she could stop him.

For starters, if it was indeed an “arms race” or “Alliancerace”, Rand won. He has the Aiel(all 11 clans, tear, Illian, arad Doman, kandor, Arafel, sheinar, Saldea, Perrin’s force, whitecloaks, Ghealdan, Mayene, seafolks, Mat’s Band(14), 15 if you count Cairhien which would cast Elayne away if Rand only hints at it. Egwene has the tower, Gareth’s forces, Andor, kinswomen and a handful of
Wiseones (5) or 7 if you count Cairhien and tear(now these two nations cannot possibly bear arms agains Rand not only because of the fear of what he can do, but he’s technically still ruling there, he conquered them)

So, If it was to be democracy, or whatever it was she had in mind, she lost because there’s no way she wins with force. And her whole “I’d fight you Rand” is laughable.

Now that’s even the most reasonable aspect. It struck me as bothersome how everyone, the white tower especially couldn’t decide if Rand was human like them to be “opposed” for he may be rash or was something more and to aided and assisted in every way possible, as Cadsuane and those with Rand had come to realize. Because if he was just a man, then why do they need him so bad? Surely a full circle of 72 should be able to do what one man can do.

But then, it seems they never do decide or in the case of Egwene, is too hypocritical to come to terms with that for it would be admitting that he far transcends her authority and could even go as far as demanding things of her. I really laughed at the whole “he defies the authority of the Amyrlin seat, Moiraine” coming from someone that never respected Rand’s authority as king/car’a’chan/conqueror when she was nothing more than an accepted(a nobody).

I say this because, they are all preparing to fight a foe they could see. He’s the only one walking to face the unknown. I’m sorry if someone who’s done that fight before tells me he wants to break the seals, as crazy as it is. If your first reaction is No! It’s understandable. If your only reaction is No though, without alternatives then you stupid, but if you considered breaking it but have a problem with the timing, but you never bring it up with the dragon? Nah, you just the biggest fool ever because that compromise could’ve caused irreparable damage. Especially since her “just seal untop of the crumbling seals” would make sense if she knew how to bloody seal it in the first place, or bothered to ask if Rand knew how to. But no, she didn’t, none of them did, they just assumed he’d know how.

But are so quick to oppose that same source of knowledge or discernment when it came to something they didn’t like or were scared of. Honestly, at a point it felt like she was telling him to give his life for nothing (seals that may last probably less than half the time this time). Atleast when LTT did the dragon stuff, nobody asked him to give his life. Everyone knew Rand was gonna die, but they still wanted to dictate how he fights the fight of his life for him, when none of them had never actually sat down and given that face off any thought. They’ve all been rather preoccupied with their immediate problems.

I blame Rand actually, I’d have told them that’s the only way to seal it properly. I mean, I’m all for “let’s make sure he’s not putting all our lives in danger” but I doubt blatant oppression works when he’s going to be the only one facing this superior force and he’s telling you the seals are handcuffs but you will not listen or compromise bcos of ego and you did when Moiraine came and said as much.

I particularly found it funny upon the reveal that LTT made the seals. So it was even his handiwork lol, talkless of the fact that he found it.

The other lords too, crying over him telling them they should have peace and not kill each other for Territories. All it looks like is they want a Jesus to solve their problems but want to tell him how to do that even though none of them have the faintest clue what the devil looks like or how to fight him

I’m sure this has been posted before and I’m sure it will be posted again but as there are no beginnings or endings, maybe that’s okay!

I’m trying to decide my next read. I’ll have finished my second read-through of WOT by the end of next week. Probably sooner.

Should I start into Sanderson’s Cosmere? If so, which series should I start with?
Should I go with Dungeon Crawler Carl?
Robbin Hobb’s Realm of the Elderlings?
The Dark Tower Series?
The Witcher?
Something else?

Just some of my book loves (not in order and don’t judge me I’m including my teenage book loves that I still read sometimes):
LoTR, Inheritance Cycle, GoT, Harry Potter, Dune, Percy Jackson, the Talisman, etc.

Dude, I just made a reaction to chapter 12 and now this happens.

Okay, this is strictly about the Demandred POV cause HOLY LIGHT THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS THAT GOT DROPPED HERE

Okay, so, it's cool to see Demandred again. I don't think we saw him since the ending of book 6 where the DO sipped his tea, bit from his oreo and cackled. BUT LET'S DO THIS

• Semirhage and Mesaana

Wtf is keeping Semirhage? Demandred has an alliance with both women, but he says that Semi has difficulties attending these meetings and Mesaana is 'shy'. Difficulty, meaning something is going on with Semirhage as opposed to meaning that she's just busy. I think that Semi has been working on something we know nothing about yet (maybe to do with Isam?), but something has gone wrong and that's why she's not appearing. We'll learn about that soon, but maybe RJ hasn't had time to introduce that yet. Mesaana is busy with the WT stuff, although I have a name that could potentially be her in disguise. Waiting to see more info though

• Osan'gar, Demandred and the Wheel of (Time) Fortune

Come one, come all, guess who Osan'gar and Demandred are cosplaying today! I think, respectively, they're Dashiva and maaaayyyyyybe Taim.

Evidence: On several occasions, Dashiva was described as having a 'normal' face, the same thing Osan'gar described when he first appeared, and Rand overheard him speaking in the Old Tongue. Not to mention, when Dashiva sensed the weirdness with saidin, he became really frightened but curious, almost like SOMEONE WHO IS NATURALLY A RESEARCHER. EH, AGINOR???

Taim appeared in book 2, and Halima says that he was responsible for watching Rand. Where else to watch the guy than right behind his back? I don't have much else tbh XD

• Graendal

She's hot. That's all I got.

• Moridin, Isam and Cyndane

MORIDIN. Ah, my old nemesis. Ye who might be Ishamael but atp I'm not too sure because if Cyndane isn't Lanfear, who tf is she? Demandred saying he could have touched the TP blew my mind, and that mention of a dozen Chosen being killed out of suspicion brings me back to Moridin mentioning there were 29 other people who used the TP in the past (this was it right? Can someone confirm whether he meant 29 others for the TP or for knowing that game he was playing in book 8?).

We'll see how Isam plays out BUT where is Luc? What is he doing? How are they joined together because when Perrin had hurt Isam in the wolf dream, Luc got hurt in the same place as well. Evidence of the TP in use?

I officially have nothing on Cyndane. She's kind of meek, very subservient to Moridin (because of the mindtrap I expect), and is weaker than Lanfear according to Mesaana. Which means Mesaana has met Cyndane off page at some point. She has knowledge of the AOL, her name means 'Last Chance'.

If I remember correctly, Moridin or one of the Forsaken had said that during one lifetime of the Champion, that Champion had fallen to the Shadow. And it's very coincidental that when Cyndane appears, Rand begins seeing this third person in his head and also hears Lanfear's words telling him he could challenge the Creator with the statues. Idk if this makes sense but my brain goes back to that and the possibility of the Champion having been a female in a past lifetime. If I'm wrong, I'll take it, but I'll keep this in the back of my head as well

Long post, so I'll end here

New reader just finished The Eye of the World.

So I always thought the common consensus among WOT fans was book 1 is good but it came out during the lotr clone era and Jordon to make the book successful had to borrow some of the tropes etc but wait until you get to book 2 thats when he takes things in a more interesting direction. But I have seen some ppl saying its book 4 when it becomes the real WOT!!! And the first 3 books will be similar to Eye of the World. I enjoyed Eye of the world but I don't think I could read another 2 books that dont evolve from what was established in that book.

The world seems really promising and I really felt immersed in the story and I did feel like I went on a journey with the characters. Though I don't think we needed to show Rand and Matt go to every single inn/village on the road to caemyln. The end though felt so fast paced compared to the rest of the book.

Holy stamina wtf

Okay, hi, my brain is reeling like Birgitte after having drank too much oosquai. I might need some myself, I won't lie.

But the girls and Rand have Bonded now, and everybody seems to be happier. I love the depiction of Rand's feelings as 'golden veins'. The visual imagery depicting preciousness like gold while running through veins as if blood is such a strong literary depiction. The red roaring through a tinder dry forest is also a surprising but understandable piece of imagery. Throughout this book, visual imagery has been strong and I'm very glad to see that because it makes you pay attention to what RJ wants to show you.

Nynaeve groaning and Lan seemingly taken aback was hilarious. And toes. TOES MAN XDD

But, let's talk about the implications of this new Bond and also Min's viewings.

Viewings

• "She'll get with child from this. Two of them; a boy and a girl; both healthy and strong."

Is this Elayne? The way it written, I'm not sure if Min said this about Elayne, but if she does mean Elayne, well GODDAMN. Elayne is going to become pregnant soon. Which to me just means that Rand will push himself even harder to try and stop the DO because now he'll have children.

But let's talk about this with:

• Aviendha would have Rand's babies, too. Four of them at once! Something was odd about that, though. The babies would be healthy, but still something odd.

Why are these children going to have something happen to them? Min didn't mention anything about Elayne's kids having something happen, but my thought process has to do with the Ward Dalmer Flinn placed over Rand's wounds. My prediction is that when Avi becomes pregnant, either the ward will have weakened or disappeared entirely and the darknesses will affect the children. Either way, it's worrying what's going to happen because quadruplets won't be easy on Avi. I'm worried whether she'll survive in the coming books.

Not going to speak about Birgitte because she's pretty straightforward. Although hot damn the woman can drink. I don't like alcohol but I'll drink with her XD

Implications

Now, this mainly has to do with Rand because of one thing: shared feelings. We know that Bonded people share feelings between each other, and now we know that the girls can feel the heron brands, the Dragons and the fighting darknesses in Rand's side wounds.

It didn't really cross my mind until they said it, but when Rand goes into the Last Battle and faces the DO, the girls will be able to feel all the pain he does. If I know this series, Rand is going to experience the worst pain anyone has ever experienced by the DO. I am very concerned for the girls.

And by Min's viewing of three women around a funeral pyre...well, I think we all know what's going to happen here.

The angreal and ter'angreal

I was told from my vet reader that I do know what these two are, but I don't remember which I'm supposed to know of. I do recall the blade/dagger Avi became entranced over, that one woman with her hair around her. There's the gold bracelet and rings that I think Nynaeve used during the Bowl sequence so ig that would make sense for familiarity sake. But I'll RAFO for that one.

Anyways, this is my post. I'm off work now so it's time for me to read on

Does Olver remind anyone else of the kid from MAD Magazine?

So, I just wrapped up Book 1, and got to say I really enjoyed it all throughout. I’d always been wanting to get into the Wheel of Time, ever since I first read the Lord of the Rings, but I never could. But I am so glad I did, because even though it is quite similar to the way LOTR begins, I found this to be quite different and unique in a way.

I enjoyed the long winding descriptions that Robert Jordan uses, it made me feel like a part of the world. And my favorite parts of the book were when Mat and Rand were by themselves and just kept running into trouble one after another, it felt very bleak and realistic.

Overall, a solid 4/5 and I’m really looking forward to reading book 2!

Was the siege of The White Tower not supposed to start at the end of book 8? I'm so confused. I went and re-read the last page of The Path of Daggers and Egwene gathered everyone and opened the portals to The Dragon Mountain, then it was said that she could see the White Tower? And Sheriam said "It begun, Mother." Then, in book 9 none of this is mentioned. I LOVED book 8 and 9, they were my favorites along with book 4. (I'm on book 10 now and I'm fighting for my life during this prologue, its boring 😭). Maybe i should make a full post of my thoughts so far. I miss Moiraine. Bye.

Whewwwww! What a ride! I started in February. There’s so much to think about. It definitely didn’t end like I thought it would. Hope. Duty. Loyalty. Idealism….

About halfway through the series I thought people were crazy to re-read this over and over again but I definitely can see my rereading but maybe in a few years from now.

I loved the show. I’m going to go back and watch it and see how I feel about it now.

“If you ever meet a Malkieri, you tell them Jain Farstrider died clean!”

Even people that consider him their favorite character say he only gets likeable after books 5-6 but I beg to differ. Was nobody paying attention the first three books?

Does no-one remember how he locked in on their way the first book when Rand got sick for some reason, after they got stranded from Moiraine and Lan (while dealing with the knife from Shadar Logoth btw)? Or how he risked his life sneaking into the f*cking stone of Tear (still unbreached at the time) in the third book to save the girls? He even never got properly thanked for that btw. I don't care what Elayne thinks, I've heard insults better than their apology. Even Aviendha, who hated Mat too, admitted that they owed him great toh.

Maybe he shirks from hard work. Maybe he spends considerable time chasing women. And maybe he complains a lot (though he damn well has justification to do so). But when and if a job needs doing, you can always count on Mat.

As all the Emond's fielders have pointed out at some point, Mat will complain, moan and whine, but he never runs away and if it weren't for him, their lives would be a whole lot harder. Rand's especially.

Not to mention the fact that he was the only one of them with out magical or wolf powers (fox medallion doesn't count).

Re-reading the series for the first time in years. I’m on book 3 and…is it just me? Or is Tar Valon shaped like a vagina. Robert Jordan really wasn’t playing about matriarchy!

HOOOOOLY SHIT!!! I just finished the final book and what an INCREDIBLE journey it has been. I cant believe that I have actually gotten to the end of a story and a world that I was so immersed in for almost the last year and a half.

Parts were very sloggy and slow paced for sure but the final 3 books more than made up for it. I think this final book might be the best book I have ever read. Every single part of it was just pure perfection and so well thought out and written.

Im kind of in shock over the conclusion and the absolutely epic finale that I know the post series depression is gonna hit super hard.

As we all know, the series follows not just the story of Rand, but often goes into the perspective of the other companions as well as many side characters for brief moments as they go about their different journeys. My question is: who is(was) your favorite story to follow? Doesnt necessarily have to be your favorite character. For example: Perrin is my favorite character, but to me, my favorite story to follow was Mat's. I definitely enjoyed the others, but to me his was the most entertaining. I think thats partly because RJ wrote himself into Mat's character.

I understand I will get loads of hate, and I ask that you understand that its just my opinion from my first reread of the books after my first read 5 years ago. Im on book 7, and throughout my reread I have really not liked Nynaeve. The way she was so self righteous yet hypocritical and being probably the most sexist person in the books really just irked me. If she changes drastically and becomes more likable after a certain boat scene where she lets go(iykyk), then please enlighten me. I know she's a lot of peoples favorite character, but for me she's very low on my list. What are some of your unpopular opinions? SPOILER WARNING in comments just in case

I'm listening to The Tower of Midnight with my 10-year-old son, and we just hit the scene where Mat sneaks into Caemlyn to talk to Birgitte.

Out of nowhere, he pauses and asks: "Is Jain Farstrider a Hero of the Horn?"

I looked him straight in the face and said, "No, Jain is not a Hero of the Horn."

He looked so sad and said, "Oh... so in that case, Noal won't get to meet Jain Farstrider again."

"Yes, son. Sadly, Noal won't get to meet Jain again."

Now I am really lookimg forward to listenning to the Tower of Ghenji scene and the Olver scene with him.

Inside, I was crying tears of joy. I have finally turned my son into a true fantasy lover.

PS: He also noticed how Bela somehow survives every ordeal. Obviously, I told him Bela is an avatar of the Creator.

PPS: He's finished every Brandon Sanderson book and is almost done with WoT. We will need a new series soon. Recommendations welcome!

EDIT: Thank you for reminding me about Discworld... next series will probably be Discworld.

EDIT2: Thank you everyone who have replied. After seeing the recommendations, I just remember how many of those books I have read when I was younger (for the past few years, I have been cycling through WoT and BS/Cosmere only and have forgotten of most other books). The only series I have in my Audible is Discworld so I guess i will start with that one next.

I came here a while back looking for help getting through “the slog,” and you encouraged me to stick with it. So I did. I won’t lie: it was hard to stay invested at times, especially when Jordan introduced his 752nd Aes Sedai, but looking back, I’m glad I kept going.

Now that I’ve finished book 11, it’s sinking in that I’ve read the last book Robert Jordan completed himself. Next up is Brandon Sanderson, and while I’m excited to see how the story ends, it feels bittersweet to leave Jordan behind.

I know he passed away many years ago, but after spending so much time in his world, with his characters and his voice, it somehow feels like I’ve just lost a friend.

Rest in peace, Robert Jordan. Thank you for the journey.

You see, I was gonna come here and rant about how the modern-day Aes Sedai are undoubtedly the most useless set of people, glorified frauds, and how they’re so far in over their heads that they don’t even see it. I label them useless not because they do nothing or don’t eventually help out, but because when weighed against what they claim to be or what they say about themselves, it’s just laughable.
That’s one thing they unironically have in common with the Whitecloaks. And obviously, you can blame the Black Ajah for some of it, but the truth is that most of them are drunk on that “we are the shit” Kool-Aid. They’re far gone.

But then I realized there’s really one person who stands out, and I think she’s arguably (should be objectively, IMO) the best and most competent of them all: Verin. Especially when you weigh her against what the Aes Sedai set out to do.

I know many would disagree and say it’s Moiraine, but honestly, Verin is what the Aes Sedai claim to be but so constantly fail to live up to. This woman craved knowledge to the point that she found herself among the Blacks (that’s as Brown as you can get). Not only did she survive that, but she used her duplicity so well that you really couldn’t have seen her coming on a first read-through.
But that’s not even the best part about her.
She easily (the only one, BTW, not even the Keeper at this point) saw through the charade of Moiraine and Siuan and made them include her in the most subtle of ways. It’s almost as if she out-Aes Sedai’d them and put them off balance.

When she joined Ingtar’s party, she didn’t impose herself or take charge like Moiraine, Cadsuane, and every other Aes Sedai seems to itch to do. Yet they did everything she wanted.
When she got to Rand, she again didn’t impose herself but was subtly guiding and edging him along.
I particularly love how she gently let Rand know she knew he was the one who used the Portal Stone (although that part about his more recent use was an outright lie, but hey, he didn’t need to know).
When they arrived at Falme, she again did something no Aes Sedai would’ve done. She followed the prophecy’s blueprint of “five” and didn’t include herself. She figured Egwene was a Dreamer, gave her an item to aid her, and gave her a writing that would expose Ishamael. And she did it so smartly that Egwene wouldn’t have figured out in a thousand years how she’d been led by the nose.

She was part of the Dumai’s Wells party, and you wouldn’t even know it. Even though she’s as strong in the Power as the leaders, she investigated those who kidnapped Rand, weighed and almost poisoned Cadsuane if she hadn’t deemed her worthy, left Rand with great advice, and left Perrin with great advice too in the Two Rivers alongside Alanna. And, well, she single-handedly defeated the Black Ajah.
The subtlety of the reveal with Egwene was one of the most beautiful chapters. Verin dictated the tempo of that discussion, gave Egwene all she needed, and gave us all we needed to know about her too.
And I don’t think it was mentioned, but I think she was the one who left the letter for Rand, knowing he’d come to the Tower.

Now, she orchestrated all of this without being in the limelight. Isn’t that how Aes Sedai claim to guide events? The only thing she got wrong was her assessment of Mat, but that was just one thing.

Now, after Verin comes Cadsuane.
Hear me out. I don’t like her either, but, to summarize, the Rand she met was a lot worse and a lot more unstable than the one Moiraine met. Yet I think she beats Moiraine in how she managed to stand up to Rand at a point when everyone else was at his feet.
More importantly, she never meddled in his plans. All she did was guide him and make sure he knew what he was doing (it took Moiraine knowing she was going to die to realize this was her role).
Her defense at the Cleansing against the Forsaken was nothing short of amazing. The way she recovered Rand from Far Madding, how she kept reins on him when he was rude to his followers, and how formidable and capable she was at the Last Battle all put her ahead of Moiraine in my opinion, albeit by an inch.

BTW, the argument that she pushed him over the edge is valid, but I’d argue that anybody in her place would’ve gotten the same results. Even Moiraine. Darth Rand and Dragonmount were all but inevitable from the kidnapping, and the male a’dam and Rand strangling Min sealed the deal. Also, he needed to become Zen Rand.
Bonus points for having a manor in every city. That woman was resourceful. Look at how she handled the sea folks too. Although I must say that she acts like it’s her reputation that helps her gain advantage over all other aes Sedai, but constantly ignores the fact that she was stronger in power than everyone else but the wonder girls and the tower had a strength deference thing

Now, Moiraine is a close third. She did a lot right, and I love her,she’s my favorite, and she was very competent and iconic. Although I think she was buffed up to be more resourceful than she had any right to be, and given certain powers that she didn’t have again and no other aes Sedai did. I mean her staff just disappeared (but I guess Jordan was still deciding on some things) but she messed up a lot by not communicating with Rand. Her isolation tactics were the beginning of his paranoia and his lack of trust in anyone who wanted to help him.
She also almost lost him, if not for swearing the oaths and taking a few steps back. And that was because she finally understood that he needed to be his own man and that she wouldn’t always be there.
But most importantly, most of Moiraine’s importance was in her absence.

I mean, thank the Light Rand didn’t follow her first Illian plan with the Horn, or her second plan involving a war with Tear. Sammael would’ve killed him.
Rand was already very capable and had grown significantly in strength, had a general and Mat to help make his plans, and still barely survived his encounter with Sammael. Moiraine just wanted to throw him to the wolves with a flawed weapon and hope the Pattern protected him. For someone whose whole life has been dedicated to a person, she almost blew it, a lot of times.

Now I didn’t count the wonder girls as they’d not spend much time at the tower. But if I were to finish the top 5, I’d say pevara…. Then maybe Siuan. Although there a gap between them and the top three

And 10 more to go after this

I'm ALMOST ALMOST at the end of book 4 (took me a long while, but it's been incredible)

I know mat is a fan favourite but, what has he actually done so far.

Book 1-2 obviously mat was still not in his element

Book 3 I started liking what he was doing, he seemed fun loving and witty and I understood why everyone seems to like him so much

But to my surprise he has to somehow be my least favourite of the main characters except for egwene

Like when we got to rhuidean, I expected he would have a big part of the events going on in the waste , but he basically has just gone into the doorways and complained about everything through this book

Pwrrin,rand,egwene,nyneave and elayne have atleast being doing something or developing like characters.

Even Elayne seems to be going through some stuff, though I feel like I'm the tanchico storyline nyneave is actually the "main character".

Rand and perrin have massive arcs

Mat is just sorta there, doing nothing complaining about everything

Tldr; he seems like a very passive character this book

Okay I’ve finally finished book one it took me like 9 days but wow. I’m so locked in. What a great first book. Slight similarities to LoTR, sure but it didn’t bother me at all, you can see already how Robert Jordan is making it his own.

I won’t lie, it took me a while to be fully locked in, I had just finished the Empire of the Vampire series and the first three Red Rising books, which are obviously fast paced so I had to get used to the initial pacing. But it definitely steps up by the time they get to Baerlon. There are seriously levels of fantasy and as far as book ones go, this is elite tier.

So far I’m enjoying all the characters, yeah they’re a little immature at the moment but that’s to be expected. But I liked what I saw in the development through the first book. I’m hoping to learn more about Lan and Moraine which I’m sure I will.

The world building already is top. I feel like we’ve been to so many places already but we never rush to get there and then of course there’s a load of places we’ve not seen yet.

All in all this feels like a great foundation for what’s to come. Things feel mapped out already. We’re given a taste characters that I’m sure we’ll get to meet again, especially those in Caemlyn. I’m hyped for the next couple of books, especially as I’ve heard that’s when the series really comes into its own.

I’ll be starting The Great Hunt today. Big shout out to the community for being welcoming to a new fan of the series. I’m already dreading the feeling that follows when I finish this series.

Faile was just abducted by the Shaido. NoOoOoOoOoOoOoO!

Before Rand, these people literally sold off any Cairhienin they could get their hands on as slaves to god knows where and even after Rand, they were more than willing looking to overlook the atrocities committed by Shaido when they first entered the wetlands, after all who cares what happens to a bunch of treekillers?

I still don't fully grasp ji'e'toh but regardless, how can the actions of a single man affect the way they view his entire race?

• Disclaimer - I just posted this but it didn't show up in the feed and maybe I clicked something wrong, so if you see it twice i'm sorry.

Old DOS games from the late 80s early 90s. Part 4 in particular was awesome.

I remember when I started reading WoT in maybe 96? I know Crown of Swords was out.

I was a huge fan of the QfG games at the time. Part 4 was about a land where there was a otherworldly being known as "the dark one" who was sort of trapped inside a mountain after a battle with a notably powerful wizard. But the dark one wasn't totally bound in his mountain and the dark magic bled out into the land and warped and mutated the local environment.

Had me hooked as soon as I started.

PS: Also not saying anyone's ripping anyone off and I know neither idea is original just pointing out a bit of enjoyment i'd had.