Have you stopped reading Wheel of Time?

I don't mind reading so much for the climatic endings. I read fairly quickly so it is nice when a book is long enough to last a little while. However, I don't want it to be filled with people I don't care about and things that don't matter. Stop saying the same things over and over and just move ahead.

I think one of the only major plot advancements recently was the major battle between the Forsaken and Rand's forces when Rand cleans the source. The cleaning is the major advancement and actually the thing that got me excited enough to read the books after that. Of course, the next book however, Jordan plays it off as if it barely mattered.
 
etburyan said:
I think one of the only major plot advancements recently was the major battle between the Forsaken and Rand's forces when Rand cleans the source. The cleaning is the major advancement
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My problem with the cleaning was that you had no idea Rand was going to try and do it until the very end of the book. So for most of it, there was nothing to look forward to. Most of that book was rubbish.

Of course, the next book however, Jordan plays it off as if it barely mattered.
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I'm still trying to figure out what happened with the female half of the Choden kal:mad: But if You ask RJ, I'm certain he'd say it was RAFO:rolleyes:

He's got one book to make up for a lot of RAFO
 
I'm still sticking with it (having just finished volume 11) and I will stick it out to the end of the road now... I've come too far on this journey not to find out how the resolution is attempted even if I suspect many threads will be left dangling. But it has been a such a dull and dreary slog in so many places and the moments of pleasure have stretched o u t . . . fewer and further between as the volumes progress.

Of course there have been some enjoyable moments in this series. Books 3 and 4 were pretty good; in fact better than the first couple of volumes IMHO which seemed more than a little derivative to me (and also one suspects that volume one was never intended to be the start of such a long series and wraps far too many thing up - a "mistake" which was never to be repeated in the later volumes!)

It's now become a question of refusing to be beaten by this series. As my expectations of each new volume are so low, I am not disappointed and the occassional passage of enjoyment comes as a pleasant surprise. By these standards book 11 was the most rewarding for a while. But still, it is now long past time for Tarmon Gai'don!
 
It might have been a mistake to make volume 1 such a complete story. I didn't really like the ending of that book. But it is often suggested to writers, who are beginning a long drawn out series, to make the first book stand on its own as a complete story because sequels are never a sure thing.

Oh, and welcome to Chronicles, DMFW.
 
Like many of you, I will finish it now, I'm too far along (11 books) to give up. It's very disappointing, though. I loved the first few books. Books 8, 9, 10 and 11 have been a complete shambles. Not only has he completely lost control of the myriad threads he spun out earlier, he doesn't seem to have had any solid structure in place for the later part of the story.

Book 11 was just a series of boxes ticked, prophecies fulfilled, it's getting embarrassing. The Semirhage incident was beyond belief. I could go on, and on, and on...but I won't. Let's just get it over with...
 
I stopped reading the series years ago. I think I got to about book five or six. The series was fun, interesting, and I liked how the main character was darker than most protagonists. And certainly the idea of a big, epic sprawling series called to me. But good grief, after a while, it just felt like he was drawing out needlessly various story lines and from what I've read of reviews of the later books he just continues to do the same. When the whole thing is finally done maybe I'll dive back into it. For now I'm sticking to shorter series.
 
rol7805 said:
But good grief, after a while, it just felt like he was drawing out needlessly various story lines
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That's exactly what he was doing. It's called stalling the plot (among other things)

And welcome Rol7805!
 
rol7805 said:
When the whole thing is finally done maybe I'll dive back into it. For now I'm sticking to shorter series.
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Same here. I recently started a reread of the series, but couldn't get all the way to the end. Instead, I'm waiting for the last book to come out (or at least, for a definite release date) and then I'll either finish my reread or start a new one.

And welcome from me, too!:)
 
After reading New Spring, I ordered the first three books of Wheel of Time from Amazon. I had trouble finishing the second, and really had to grit my teeth to get through the third. So much sameness, so much violence - bleah. I even wondered if someone else wrote New Spring, as it's so much better!
Robert Jordan is permanently off my reading list now.
 
I've kept reading the series this long and if another writer finishes it off I will read the final volume as well.

I was lucky enough not to start at the very begining. From what I remember he was up to book 5 when I started reading the series.

The first 5 books in the WOT series are actually my favourite in the whole fantasy genre (and that includes Martin). But some of the later books are often shockingly bad. Not so much poorly written, but filled with padding.

Three key problems.

1. An ever increasing number of points of view. Some of whom are of absolutely no interest and do not progress the story.

2. Plot lines introduced that merely serve to 'stall' the action.

3. Too much space taken up with descriptions of people we have no interest in.

In the later books it almost as if Robert Jordon wants you to know every single Aes Sedai personally.

The combination of these 3 factors meant that instead of the fast paced action of the early books. Much of the book was spent 'checking in' with all the various characters. As if every book was merely an episode of a soap opera.

When you step back and realise that in many genres a book the length of Book 10 in the WOT could have been used to tell a rich, detailed and complete story it makes you think.

What went wrong with the WOT is a warning to all Fantasy writers. In particular avoid the curse of too many POV.
 
Yes. Too many Points of view will be bad, just as too much of anything is bad. But how do you know when one more will mean too many? The answer, I believe, is probably when that one more contributes to the incoherence of the story. GRRM uses many characters by which to view his world, but as of yet he has not used too many. Had Robert Jordan stuck with the original cast of characters Wot would have been a whole lot better. There is also the fact that he has failed to kill anyone of importance, which can drag a long series down. I stopped fearing that anyone was going to die after book 6.
 
No. These characters didn't seem to stall the plot to me, unlike Jordan's often seem to. I think it's because GRRM often brings the story-lines of newer characters to some unforeseeable conclusion.

I don't think the above mentioned characters slurred the coherency of the story, and some of them actually strengthened it, such Ser Arys Oakheart. I would much rather read about what happened to Myrcella from his POV than from Myrcella's. Areo Hotah was just cool.

The story regarding house Greyjoy actually seemed to go somewhere, though at this point it doesn't seem crucial to the overall story, that may only be because I missed something important. GRRM's loose ends/plot lines are easier to tie together than most of the loose ends in Wot, so the story of the Iron islands may actually become important.
 
I think with Feast for Crows, Martin is on the edge of teetering into too many viewpoints and not enough good stuff a la Robert Jordan, may he rest in peace.
 
I worry too, very close and I am starting to feel where my sympathies should lie, rather than just enjoying the writing.

Wondering what this says about the big epics? Malazan WoT

Duh nothing/
 
i'd like to say that i will finish it, but thats only if it ever comes out. how long has the series been drawn out? didnt eotw come out in like the 70s?

and yeah, the whole cleansing of the source, and then not mentioning it at all. grr.

and yeah, he does tend to draw it out a bit...i tend to skim through the boring bits because it get a bit...well, boring.

but. i started reading it again recently (cos i was broke and couldnt buy any new books - and my local libraries have less sff than i do at home :(...) and i forced myself to read IT ALL word for word. needless to say i did find myself skimming from time to time, but i also saw that there was a lot of depth in it, that i never noticed before. for example, i cant remember the title but when they go to the waste via portal stones and meet the peddlers. how rand knows from the start that they number the forsaken among them, but does not say outright. the touches of paranoia. id actually call them touches of genius. but thats only my pov. i dont forget that i used to call them tedious.

and finally, gutted to hear he's dead - only found out about it just now, reading some of the posts here. had to double check it to be sure.

Robert Jordan a.k.a Reagan O'Neal a.k.a Jackson O'Reilly
James Oliver Rigney (Real Name)
October 17, 1948 – September 16, 2007
R.I.P
 
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