The Wheel of Time is complete!

[Slick Mongoose]

Hurrah!

[Analu]

* Wipes tear * At last!

I first read WoT when I was 12 and thought it was the greatest series ever. I probably reread "The Shadow Rising" and "Fires of Heaven" a dozen times between the ages of 12-14. They got me thru some difficult times as a kid. I'd spend hours at my favorite fishing spot with my dog, latest copy of WoT, and just reread all my favorite parts.

It'll be nice to finally close this part of my life. Started the book at 12. Ended it at (probably) 27. That's over half my life.

As I've said before (and will say again), Jordan dying is the best thing that could have happened to this series.

Maybe so but.... c'mon dude.

[Lightning Lord]

I think a part of me (a very small part of me) is going to be sad that it's all over. For most of my life, I've had the next WoT book to...maybe not look forward to, but expect, at least? The completion will finish a chapter of my life.

Kudos to Sanderson for knocking it out. And thank you and congratulations to RJ - your epic is finally about to be put to rest.

[TerraPrime]

I think a part of me (a very small part of me) is going to be sad that it's all over. For most of my life, I've had the next WoT book to...maybe not look forward to, but expect, at least? The completion will finish a chapter of my life.

That's ok. You will now have GoT to look forward to, for the rest of your life.

[Lightning Lord]

Nah, TP. I mean this in a non-snarky, non-GRRM-is-my-bitch sort of way: I don't expect it'll be finished, ever. George has other projects that he loves and that's okay. I want him to live to be 130 and only work on things he loves and if those aren't GoT, then I'm just happy he's happy.

[nickg]

I read the first six or seven of these books, and then lost interest... It has been an incredibly long time, and would probably have to re read everything in order to get to the conclusion. My initial thoughts are that it just isn't worth it.

My question is, has anyone else on this board had the same experience with this series? I absolutely loved it at one point, and just want to know what others might think of revisiting this series.

I still haven't made it through book 3 yet. I picked up The Eye of the World later than most people and that might have something to do with it. Now that it is finished though, I will pick it back up. It is pretty exciting that a series this huge is done and it actually does make me want to dive back in.

[Liadin]

I started the series once 9 or 10 of the books were out and still found them excruciating starting with 6 or 7--so YMMV as to whether they're better when you read them back-to-back. I think it depends on whether your reason for disliking them is that the first time through you were expecting stuff to happen that didn't (in which case you're more likely to like them now) vs you just don't think Jordan is a very good writer for various reasons that have been discussed ad nauseum on this board (in which case having them all available doesn't make any difference).

So a question for the lukewarm WOT folks (perhaps prematurely): how much sense will the last book make if I don't read Towers of Midnight? I did read the one before it and would kind of like to see the end but have no real desire to read more than one book to get to it.

[Shryke]

Yeah, it's definitely a matter of what you didn't like about the series. If you were annoyed before you started hitting like 7, reading them back to back is not gonna help.

If you were reading them as they came out and got annoyed in like 8 or 9? It can improve the experience a decent chunk.

Shit, even CoT is less crappy when you just read it like a really long prologue to KoD.

[Sivin]

Similar as most of you who have posted, but a different version. My BFF (Best Football Buddy) spent an entire game during our junior year (we were up by 21 by the end of the quarter, but wouldn't be going in until the 4th) explaining the thing to me up until where he was currently at, which was the 3rd book.

So I got the first one and it took me like a month to finish it. Funny story, I was reading it at about 12:30 and felt like I should go to bed, so I stopped literally during the climax with like 5 pages to go and slept.

Then, I burned through the books, spent most of my Winter Break reading the series. Then I got to Crossroads of Twilight and said "what?". The series just went on for so long that it stagnated, and I won't get into Jordan's problems with rounding out his antagonists, or making his protagonists likeable, or tendency to do the dumbest things imaginable, or inexplicable desire to make Matt one of the potentially coolest characters ever but fail to capitalize on them... etc...

All that said, one thing he did right was Rand's story arc, that was actually pretty decent and Sanderson handled it masterfully. Personally, I skimmed through Towers of Midnight, but I will be procuring this book as soon as I can so I can read about how Rand sacrifices his own life to close the bore and Ishamel lets him do it because "why not", and the Senchean learn the ways of peace, and Bridgett gets to see her lost love, and the Asha'man become Aies Sedai, and Lanfear learns the error of her ways before helping Rand close the bore, and the gypsies and aiel become one, and everyone lives happily ever after.

Oh, sorry: Spoiler Alert.

So a question for the lukewarm WOT folks (perhaps prematurely): how much sense will the last book make if I don't read Towers of Midnight? I did read the one before it and would kind of like to see the end but have no real desire to read more than one book to get to it.

Rand isn't bad, and Matt finally deals with the Snakes and Foxes.

[Lady Nerevar]

I decided to finally read WoT this summer, since I felt like I was missing out. Sat down and plowed through all the volumes in 21 days. I didn't really notice much slump during reading, probably because of how fast I went through them and the fact that I didn't have to wait for years in between. I'm not a huge fan or anything, but I do love the world he's set up and am interested in seeing how it all resolves. Even if I hated the thing, I think that the conclusion of such a major series deserves a round of applause :cheers:

[SecretSquirrel]

I have been reading Knife of Dreams for the last 2 years.

I'm all for seeing it completed so that it can be read through and put away. I'm sure finishing the series was on more than a few people's bucket list.

As far as those tedious 1000 page books that advanced the plot/story line one single day. That's just not the way to write a successful series.

[Slurktan]

As far as those tedious 1000 page books that advanced the plot/story line one single day. That's just not the way to write a successful series.

I'm sorry, but what? Have you no idea how insanely successful the WoT series is?

[Switchback]

yeah, WoT did okay. i don't think "success" is something the series lacks.

i also find it strange when people complain about its plodding nature, though this is clearly a personal preference. i read fantasy to get lost in the world. the WoT world is as well developed and interesting as any i've read, and i love spending time there. which is probably while even when i was one of those waiting for the next volume to get released, the "slow" books were still favorites of mine. i just consider a jordan book to be an invitation to spend a few days in a place i really enjoy, with people i like. the lack of huge revelations or plot movements every 200 pages doesn't bother me in the least. even though each book (even the "slow ones") has huge developments.

again though, that's a personal preference that i don't expect everyone to share. it just always make WoT discussions seem bizarre to me, because everyone complains about "nothing happening".

[Isalie]

I'm thinking that being part of the "I quit WoT then and then" crew is starting to lose its cool. I have no problem with people disliking the series, I wouldn't really recommend it to anyone not a fantasy reader. But when every mention of WoT seems to function as a magnet to people wanting to declare how they do not read it, it looks to me that the declarations is more about belonging to the group of good taste than about contributing to the discussion.

Anyway, looking forward to closure ;)

[john]

Nah, TP. I mean this in a non-snarky, non-GRRM-is-my-bitch sort of way: I don't expect it'll be finished, ever. George has other projects that he loves and that's okay. I want him to live to be 130 and only work on things he loves and if those aren't GoT, then I'm just happy he's happy.

Stop calling it GoT. fucking fl00bs.

I'm another who didn't mind the plodding pace. If it really gets to you then just read all the rand, mat and perrin chapters in order. Then It's consistently decent with suprisingly minimal plot gaps.

I have a question - the one plot strand i really have an itch about finishing up is the Moraine/Snakes and Foxes thing. I have ToM but i was saving it along with the other Sanderson's to do a reread when the final book comes out. Is ToM worth reading to resolve that plotline and then reading again next year sometime?

[fionwe1987]

Stop calling it GoT. fucking fl00bs.

I'm another who didn't mind the plodding pace. If it really gets to you then just read all the rand, mat and perrin chapters in order. Then It's consistently decent with suprisingly minimal plot gaps.

I have a question - the one plot strand i really have an itch about finishing up is the Moraine/Snakes and Foxes thing. I have ToM but i was saving it along with the other Sanderson's to do a reread when the final book comes out. Is ToM worth reading to resolve that plotline and then reading again next year sometime?

ToM has a lot of resolutions (and set ups too, some of it probably very very critical), including at least one that I can promise will be somewhat related to what you're looking forward to. Two reads before aMoL is definitely worth it, even though ToM is probably as weak (or weaker than) CoT structurally. Individual scenes/episodes are powerful and rewarding, however.

And I'm with the OPs who feel a little peeved that a thread which is about the end of a popular series, which still has quite a few adherents here, has become one to talk about the slow pace of WoT. Not that the thread should be censored, but hasn't that line of discussion been covered like a gazillion times in this board?

[Myrddin]

And I'm with the OPs who feel a little peeved that a thread which is about the end of a popular series, which still has quite a few adherents here, has become one to talk about the slow pace of WoT. Not that the thread should be censored, but hasn't that line of discussion been covered like a gazillion times in this board?

RJ is a hack and a sellout! :leaving:

:) I remember those days, seeing the WoT thread at the top of the forum and nearly splitting an eyeball trying to read OsRavan's posts.

2012 is going to be a good year.

Before it all ends.

[john]

ToM has a lot of resolutions (and set ups too, some of it probably very very critical), including at least one that I can promise will be somewhat related to what you're looking forward to. Two reads before aMoL is definitely worth it, even though ToM is probably as weak (or weaker than) CoT structurally. Individual scenes/episodes are powerful and rewarding, however.

Thanks. Sounds promising.

[fionwe1987]

2012 is going to be a good year.

Before it all ends.

Hey... maybe that's why WoT is so long. RJ was holding back the apocalypse. Now, in 2012, Tarmon Gaidon will be read by millions... and then the world will meet its doom! Maybe the Dark One will leap off the WoT pages and destroy us all! :P

[fionwe1987]

Lo, it shall come upon the world that the prison of the Greatest One shall grow weak,

like the limbs of those who crafted it. Once again, His glorious cloak shall smother the

Pattern of all things, and the Great Lord shall stretch forth His hand to claim what is His.

The rebellious nations shall be laid barren, their children caused to weep. There shall be

none but Him, and those who have turned their eyes to His majesty.

In that day, when the One-Eyed Fool travels the halls of mourning, and the First Among

Vermin lifts his hand to bring freedom to Him who will Destroy, the last days of the

Fallen Blacksmith's pride shall come. Yea, and the Broken Wolf, the one whom Death

has known, shall fall and be consumed by the Midnight Towers. And his destruction

shall bring fear and sorrow to the hearts of men, and shall shake their very will itself.

And then, shall the Lord of the Evening come. And He shall take our eyes, for our souls

shall bow before Him, and He shall take our skin, for our flesh shall serve Him, and He

shall take our lips, for only Him will we praise. And the Lord of the Evening shall face the

Broken Champion, and shall spill his blood and bring us the Darkness so beautiful. Let

the screams begin, O followers of the Shadow. Beg for your destruction!

-from The Prophecies of the Shadow

Not the most smooth writing, but who else thinks that this closing prophesy from ToM is just one more sign that some really dark and doomy stuff is in store in aMoL?