newest Wheel of Time is out

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Shannow

Staff member
Anyone else picking this up/picked it up. Been reading the series for a decade now, and I will be snagging it this weekend to read on the few days at the new place while waiting for the internet to get hooked up next week.
 
W

Wyrminarrd

Hmmm, it seems to be getting good reviews so I might pick it up though perhaps I will wait for the paperback version or even wait until all three of the books are out.

I´m currently reading book 2 of Brandon Sanderson's "Mistborn" trilogy and I´ve read Elantris so I know the guy is a very good writer. Hopefully he will cut a bit down on the expositions that Jordan loved so much and focus more on advancing the plot.
 

Shannow

Staff member
Hmmm, it seems to be getting good reviews so I might pick it up though perhaps I will wait for the paperback version or even wait until all three of the books are out.

I´m currently reading book 2 of Brandon Sanderson's "Mistborn" trilogy and I´ve read Elantris so I know the guy is a very good writer. Hopefully he will cut a bit down on the expositions that Jordan loved so much and focus more on advancing the plot.

Doubtful, considering what he was basing it off of, and the fact that it has been turned into 3 books instead of 1.

Still, I cannot wait to get my hands on it. I wonder if it was simultaneously released in audio as well, so I can listen to it here at work. They have used the same 2 readers for the entire series of books for audio, and those two are absolutely fantastic for it.
 

Dave

Staff member
There's so much going on, but the basis is:

Bad guy wants to break out of his prison and destroy everything. Kid is taxed to be The Chosen One (the Dragon Reborn) and stop him.

The rest is getting from point A to point B with 11 books of fluff in the middle.
 
I wasn't being negative, was almost hoping to be enlightened a bit.
Starts out as great high fantasy (though the whole "chosen one" theme has been done to death), then fizzles into the same old shit over and over for thousands upon thousands of pages. I don't recommend it. I think I gave up around book six. Too bad, it could have been truly epic if it was 4-5 books.
 

Shannow

Staff member
Started to pick back up about 8 or so. I actually have enjoyed it all the way throguh, though Jake is right, it gets slow in the middle books.

As for a plot synopsis, go to wiki, sheg. There is a shit ton going on, and too much to explain. But yes, High Fantasy.
 
There is a shit ton going on, and too much to explain.
I think it was book seven I opened, realized I had no idea what was going on and didn't care what happened to these characters and had to just put it down and walk away.
 

Dave

Staff member
Books 6 & 7 are the biggest books I've ever read where nothing happened.

They aren't that bad as a whole, but Jordan had a tendency to reuse the same expressions over and over. Yes, I get that the male side of the Force :)D) is cold and a battle to use while the female side is warm and you have to surrender yourself to it. (No misogynistic imagery there, huh?)

We get that all women are beautiful. ALL women. I'm convinced the books are set in the same universe as "Married With Children" in that all women there are hotties. Even the old ones have a "timeless beauty". All women cross their arms under their breasts and smooth their skirts a lot.

Not gonna lie, the books have flaws. But taken as a whole it's a pretty good read.
 

Shannow

Staff member
To each their own. The series has its faults, a lot of them. But what it does right, it does extremely well. The action sequesnces and battles with the power are greatly done. And I love reading anything with the Shadow and the Forsaken.

Edit: Also...woot, looks like the audio was also released, snagging a torrent of it now. Hopefulyl not fake. Will have something to listen to here at work and while moving until I can go buy the book this weekend!
 
Started to pick back up about 8 or so. I actually have enjoyed it all the way throguh, though Jake is right, it gets slow in the middle books.

As for a plot synopsis, go to wiki, sheg. There is a shit ton going on, and too much to explain. But yes, High Fantasy.
Yeah, thing is, wiki's are opinionless (supposed to be anyway).

Another confession: I've never read the Drizzt Salvatore series either....
 

Shannow

Staff member
Started to pick back up about 8 or so. I actually have enjoyed it all the way throguh, though Jake is right, it gets slow in the middle books.

As for a plot synopsis, go to wiki, sheg. There is a shit ton going on, and too much to explain. But yes, High Fantasy.
Yeah, thing is, wiki's are opinionless (supposed to be anyway).

Another confession: I've never read the Drizzt Salvatore series either....[/QUOTE]


Well, this is a love it or hate it series. I'd suggest taking a look into what it is about, and seeing if its for you. personally, I love it, and I read a lot of fantasy and have since I have been like 10. This is one of my favorites. Slow books plodding along or otherwise. Personally, I say get yourself Eye of the World, and give it a try.

If you want, I can point you towards the audios instead, but because the books are long, so are the readings. But there are two readers, one for when it is from a male perspective, the other from a female. Both are great, and make the audio even better.
 
I

Iaculus

Personally, I preferred A Song of Ice and Fire and The Malazan Book of the Fallen as far as epic fantasy went. One for the characterisation, the other for the plot.

The Wheel of Time collapsed under its own weight of characters and subplots, and almost every single female character was an absolute bitch. I kid you not.

Oh, and did he have to put in quite so many gratuitous references to breasts and spanking?
 

Shannow

Staff member
I will have to retry a Song of Ice and Fire. I just could not ge into it a few years ago when I tried.
 
The last series I read through were the Dragonlance series of books revolving around the main crew. Dragons, the Sextant, and the Brother's sagas.

Oh, and did he have to put in quite so many gratuitous references to breasts and spanking?
I think I just got interested. :eek:
 

Shannow

Staff member

Dave

Staff member
It's not fair to tell her to pick up and judge the series on the first book. The first book is WONDERFUL and kinda goes in spurts after that.
 
C

chakz

I will have to retry a Song of Ice and Fire. I just could not ge into it a few years ago when I tried.

Prepare for your emotions to be abused.


Heavily abused.

Also: Try to get over the incest. Its weird at first but it kind of resolves itself in and interesting way.


Sheg could probably get into this. It really slows down in the middle, but awesome stuff started happening again towards the end, which makes it even more sad that Jordon died.

I'm suprised no one mentioned the chains and collars to her yet.
 
I will have to retry a Song of Ice and Fire. I just could not ge into it a few years ago when I tried.

"I will have to retry a kicking myself in the teeth. I just could not get into it a few years ago when I tried."

I get what you mean, but it's funny because "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got."

-Adam
 
W

Wyrminarrd

I discovered the Wheel of Time series at my Library when the first six books were out and I thought that the series was only six books. I was so excited to read the sixth book but about half way through I realized that Jordan couldn't possibly finish the story in the remaining pages of the book :(

The frustrating thing about reading the rest of the series has been that the books come out 1-2 years apart from each other so I´ve long since forgotten most of what happened in books 2-8. Song of Ice and Fire suffers from this as well, it's to big to remember everything that was going on when 3-4 years pass between reading about a set of characters. Malazen book of the fallen also has this problem but since he often starts with new characters it makes things easier plus those books seem to come out a lot faster.

Sometimes I wonder why I read series that aren't finished, there are many books out there that I could read while the authors finish their series.
 
Wait, the author is dead, and there are new books coming out?

Also, I'm not really that good with "unfinished" series of books, simply because when a new one comes out, I end up trying to re-read the first books just to get "back up to speed".
 
I

Iaculus

I discovered the Wheel of Time series at my Library when the first six books were out and I thought that the series was only six books. I was so excited to read the sixth book but about half way through I realized that Jordan couldn't possibly finish the story in the remaining pages of the book :(

The frustrating thing about reading the rest of the series has been that the books come out 1-2 years apart from each other so I´ve long since forgotten most of what happened in books 2-8. Song of Ice and Fire suffers from this as well, it's to big to remember everything that was going on when 3-4 years pass between reading about a set of characters. Malazen book of the fallen also has this problem but since he often starts with new characters it makes things easier plus those books seem to come out a lot faster.

Sometimes I wonder why I read series that aren't finished, there are many books out there that I could read while the authors finish their series.
Plus, Erikson seems to have a much better idea of where he's taking Malazan. There's a lot of complicated stuff going on, but at least there's an underlying direction to it.

Oh, and Stein? ASOIAF is indeed like being kicked repeatedly in the teeth... but in an enjoyable manner.

The Red Wedding... holy shit.
 

Shannow

Staff member
Wait, the author is dead, and there are new books coming out?

Also, I'm not really that good with "unfinished" series of books, simply because when a new one comes out, I end up trying to re-read the first books just to get "back up to speed".
Yes, he died early last year. Long battle with cancer. But the man took insane notes, and even wrote a bunch of the final book, and worked closely with his wife. She chose the new author, and is working with him, and he is working with Jordan's notes.

---------- Post added at 12:06 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:05 PM ----------

I will have to retry a Song of Ice and Fire. I just could not ge into it a few years ago when I tried.

"I will have to retry a kicking myself in the teeth. I just could not get into it a few years ago when I tried."

I get what you mean, but it's funny because "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got."

-Adam[/QUOTE]

yeah, thats pretty much what I got out of it. But I think I may give it another go around. I just saw the first book in my closet as I was packing more last night.
 

Shannow

Staff member
yes, final book divided to 3 due to size and time. most likely 1 a year according to sanderson, though he says it may be less than that.
 
I might pick it up next year as a mass-market paperback when I visit my folks for Christmas.

But there's no way I'm picking up that thing at hardcover prices, even the relatively depressed prices on Amazon.
 
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