Kevin's Watch

*finds Brinn* Is that any way for a grown Haruchai to act?? How childish!

Heh, can we talk about Wheel of Time some more?

Well, WoT is probably the first big fantasy that I ever got into. So for that reason I mainly still read and enjoy it. And I like the fact that Jordan can write some interesting characters, who have personality and develop. So it's still one of my favorite series.

But like you all said, Jordan is just so annoying sometimes because he just doesn't seem to know how to end the series. And I'm having the hardest time reading the newest book. I'm only about halfway through it. He makes the scenes with Egwene and Elyane's parts of the story SOOOO boring. I want to read more about the interesting stuff, with Rand, Mat and Perrin.

Still havn't finished LotR yet. Don't think I'll be able to read it anytime soon. Just doesn't fit my interest in reading. Not enough character development.

I started Martin's series, but I remember getting bored with it pretty fast. Maybe I'll try it again later.-jay

Oh most definitely, Jay! You should finish that series, and LotR too, I agree it is boring, but give it a shot!

I am around 7 chapters into Eye of the World, and I am very impressed. The story is very compelling, but all the time I can't help feeling that the narration reminds me of things I have read before - but I'm not entirely sure what, although it could be shades of Tolkien... and not just the style, either - Tolkien is obviously an influence on this.
I am getting drawn into the story very quickly, and I know I'll enjoy the book if it maintains this standard to the end... I'm glad this topic was started, or I might never have got round to reading WoT.

You won't be disappointed Murrin...It does maintain that standard throughout, and the next 3 books do as well. After that well... I won't try to bias your opinion so read on...but promise that you will begin GRR Martin's "A Game of Thrones" after you have finished with Jordan. You'd be cheating yourself if you didn't read them. They're that good.

I am planning to start ASOIAF when I finish WoT, but I might have to look at those two Earthsea books I missed first.

Hmm... just an interesting point about WoT, and that's the names - all the legends and enemies use names and words from the english language and some from mythology, but altered, for example, Shai'tan (Satan), Ba'alzemon (Beelzebub), Artur Peandrag (Arthur Pendragon - aka King Arthur). And there are also the names of Trolloc clans:

Ahf'frait - Ifrit
Bhan'sheen - Banshee
Dha'vol - Devil
Dhai'mon - Demon
Djin'nen - Djinn (genie)
Ghar'ghael - Gargoyle
Ghob'hlin - Goblin
Gho'hlem - Golem
Ghraem'lan - Gremlin
Kno'mon - Gnome

did anyone else notice this when they were reading?

Hmmm...Very interesting. I've noted a few of the more obvious similarities while I was reading but I didn't see all you listed above. Is there an underlying reason for these names or is it the authors concious or subconcious use of english words to create his world?

I'm currently trying to spot the meaning behind Lews Therin Telamon (there has to be one).
I noticed the ones listed above (Trolloc ones) when I looked in the glossary - I think he just chose to use all those words for demons and horrible creatures just to characterise the Trollocs as bad things (even the name does this - Troll + Orc) - He seems to borrow a lot from Tolkien as well as from actual mythology...

God Jordan is soo uncreative! LOL

Telamon - A figure of a man used as a supporting pillar.

However, in this case I think Telamon breaks down further. Tel, in the old tongue meaning "the" and Aman, in the old tongue meaning "dragon" (see siswai d'aman, or "spears of the dragon."). This would give a meaning of Lews Therin the Dragon (would also explain why he apparently has two last names).

Or it could just be an anagram . Some interesting choices...

A reenlistment howl
A hemline strewn lot
A helmet silent worn

Just finished Eye of the World, and wow! Took me a whole week, but that's quicker than I can read Donaldson or Tolkien. The further I got the less I could stop - yesterday I didn't even have my daily look around the internet, I was too busy reading!
Loved the first book, and I've already read the prologue of The Great Hunt, and will be starting chapter one tonight.

Yep, and that's the evil that is Jordan. By the time it starts to tick you off, you're too far in to quit.

I don't know if others have felt this way, but I'm a little... daunted... by book four, The Shadow Rising. I got a copy yesterday, and there is no doubt it is the longest so far, by at least 200 pages. It also occurred to me that both of the first two chapters (I'm only up to chapter three) are the length of two normal chapters in the first three books...

And on top of that, for some reason this particular book in the series, although looking almost identical to the others I have read so far, has pages (and a cover) just thin enough for me to keep coming very close to pulling pages out accidentally...

About the little things that you say start getting to you... I haven't really noticed anything big so far, but in the third book, I found it a little difficult to get past the fact that Jordan had suddenly started using "'round" instead of "around", when he hadn't used it once in the two previous books...

You mean all the sniffing, braid tugging and folding of arms beneath one's chest hasn't started to wear on you even a little? How about the way the woman treat the men as if they had the intelligence of a retarded chimpanzee? Keep reading!

You noticed the 'round thing, too, eh? Hated that, kept make me thinking, "oh yeah, I'm reading." I have to say, though, that Shadow Rising was probably my favorite (and probably the last good book before things start sliding downhill).

And Nynaeve is only tolerable after she gets some.

Murrin, The Shadow Rising is the last good book in the series. The rest is an exercise in futility.

Ny nephew recommends the Wheel of Time but I think I'll listen to you guys and stay away.
(It was a year ago he did this, maybe he sings a different tune now.)

Hmm... A lot of you here seem to be against anything after The Shadow Rising (I must admit it is one of the best so far, and 'Goldeneyes' has to be the best chapter ever), but I don't see why - none of the stuff people have mentioned irritating them has really seemed bad enough to notice, and as far as I can tell so far 'The Fires of Heaven' is not much more than a continuation of the story in 'The Shadow Rising'...

The only thing I'm disappointed about, however, is that fact that 'The Shadow Rising' is the last book in the series with a good title.

Well, as Robert Jordan himself is so fond of saying, "read and find out." It could be the change in pacing and some of the repetition (sniff, braid, dress colors, eyes like teacups, voice like bumblebees, faces like stone, etc.) won't bother you. There are a lot of RJ fans like that, and I kind of envy them. I'm not trying to say the later books aren't enjoyable, just that for myself and others, the frustration level starts to exceed the joy.

If you enjoy tWoT books, though, I strongly recommend Tad Williams Sorrow, Memory, and Thorn trilogy (it will give you something to do between the year or two after you finish reading the books that are out and the time the next one's published).