Stormlight Archives, The Dark Tower, The Wheel of Time

[Oracle.Clear.Rivers]

Has anyone read any of the three book series before? I just want to know if they're worth buying. I like their concept but do they deliver them? Are they as good as GRRM or Tolkien? I know that perhaps I should risk it but books are worth a fortune here in my country so I have to make sure it's something I won't regret purchasing in the end. I'm also asking here because Goodreads and other popular sites reviewing books are unreliable. Case in point is my experience with Claudia Gray's Firebird series which had great reviews and tons of recommendations (which ultimately convinced me to buy a copy).  It has an excellent concept that I absolutely love but the execution of it is really horrible that it pissed me off so much because I wasted money on it. I don't want a repeat of that experience.

 

[End of Disc One]

Never heard of these three series. 

[peterbound]

Are you making these names up?  Seems like made up names.  I've never heard of them. 

[SkynJay]

Probably doesn't self published stuff his friends put out.  There has got to be a better way to market books than forum trolling their titles.

[stonebender]

I loved Dark Tower.  A lot of people think the final three books ruined it, but I still dug them.  Maybe because I read them all within a year, so I didn't have years of expectation building up.  If an apocalyptic quest fantasy Western that crosses over into other, more realistic Stephen King worlds sounds cool to you, the books are certainly worth a try.  Book one is kind of rough.  I'd read the second before giving up. 

I read Wheel of time 1-10.  I would've finished the series if Jordan lived to write it, although it's not one of my favorites.  I may or may not get around to reading the final volumes.  It's more "traditional" than Ice and Fire as far as village youths rising in the world on their way to confronting evil.  The whole thing often moves at a crawl, especially through the middle volumes.  Jordan has a lot of stylistic quirks with his prose.  Still, he had some nice long-term plotting going on and at times I did get swept up into the world.  It's worth a try I'd, as long as you're not expecting another Ice and Fire.  Although it could very well be another "good concept, poor execution" for you.

I haven't read any of Sanderson's novels yet.   

 

[redeagl]

The Wheel Of Time and The Dark Tower are two of my top favourite series.The Stormlight Archive is very close to those series in quality but I can't name it a favourite because there are only two books released so far.

[Oracle.Clear.Rivers]

3 hours ago, End of Disc One said:

Never heard of these three series. 

 

1 hour ago, peterbound said:

Are you making these names up?  Seems like made up names.  I've never heard of them. 

 

1 hour ago, SkynJay said:

Probably doesn't self published stuff his friends put out.  There has got to be a better way to market books than forum trolling their titles.

No, I'm not trolling. Yes, these fantasy novel series, in fact, do exists.

Stormlight Archives (August 31, 2010 - ON GOING) by Brandon Sanderson

The Dark Tower (1982-2012) by Stephen King

The Wheel of Time (1990-2003) by Robert Jordan

48 minutes ago, stonebender said:

I loved Dark Tower.  A lot of people think the final three books ruined it, but I still dug them.  Maybe because I read them all within a year, so I didn't have years of expectation building up.  If an apocalyptic quest fantasy Western that crosses over into other, more realistic Stephen King worlds sounds cool to you, the books are certainly worth a try.  Book one is kind of rough.  I'd read the second before giving up. 

First off, you, Stonebender, are a ray of sunshine in this thread, my hero.

I like a nice blend of realism and fantasy which is one of the reasons I like ASoIaF. I'm not that into Western genre but maybe I'll check it out just to see what kind of apocalyptic world Stephen King wrote in this one. The works I often read from him are strictly sci-fi horror like "Dreamcatcher", "Carrie" and "Cell".

Are you implying that perhaps I should skip book one? Or just read the second novel first before going back at it?

48 minutes ago, stonebender said:

I read Wheel of time 1-10.  I would've finished the series if Jordan lived to write it, although it's not one of my favorites.  I may or may not get around to reading the final volumes.  It's more "traditional" than Ice and Fire as far as village youths rising in the world on their way to confronting evil.  The whole thing often moves at a crawl, especially through the middle volumes.  Jordan has a lot of stylistic quirks with his prose.  Still, he had some nice long-term plotting going on and at times I did get swept up into the world.  It's worth a try I'd, as long as you're not expecting another Ice and Fire.  Although it could very well be another "good concept, poor execution" for you.

Ok. Thanks for your honest review of the series. It seems interesting when I read its synopsis but yeah, you're right, I'm looking for something like ASoIaF. TWoW is taking a long time. I want to read something while waiting after I finish the Tales of Dunk and Egg.

You said it's "traditional". Does it hold up to Tolkien? I might give it a chance if it does and risk the "poor execution".

48 minutes ago, stonebender said:

I haven't read any of Sanderson's novels yet.   

I see. It's fine. You did say you didn't read Wheel of Time passed Book 10. He wrote the last 3 novels according to Wikipedia. So I thought to check his works too.

Anyway, thank you very much for sharing your thoughts about them. I really appreciate it.

[redeagl]

1 minute ago, Oracle.Clear.Rivers said:

 

 

No, I'm not trolling. Yes, these fantasy novel series, in fact, do exists.

Stormlight Archives (August 31, 2010 - ON GOING) by Brandon Sanderson

The Dark Tower (1982-2012) by Stephen King

The Wheel of Time (1990-2003) by Robert Jordan

First off, you, Stonebender, are a ray of sunshine in this thread, my hero.

I like a nice blend of realism and fantasy which is one of the reasons I like ASoIaF. I'm not that into Western genre but maybe I'll check it out just to see what kind of apocalyptic world Stephen King wrote in this one. The works I often read from him are strictly sci-fi horror like "Dreamcatcher", "Carrie" and "Cell".

Are you implying that perhaps I should skip book one? Or just read the second novel first before going back at it?

Ok. Thanks for your honest review of the series. It seems interesting when I read its synopsis but yeah, you're right, I'm looking for something like ASoIaF. TWoW is taking a long time. I want to read something while waiting after I finish the Tales of Dunk and Egg.

You said it's "traditional". Does it hold up to Tolkien? I might give it a chance if it does and risk the "poor execution".

I see. It's fine. You did say you didn't read Wheel of Time passed Book 10. He wrote the last 3 novels according to Wikipedia. So I thought to check his works too.

Anyway, thank you very much for sharing your thought about them. I really appreciate it.

Most of the members here are trolls anyway. They were trolling you. I reported them for you.

[Oracle.Clear.Rivers]

10 minutes ago, redeagl said:

Most of the members here are trolls anyway. They were trolling you. I reported them for you.

This forum is dark and full of terrors, Ser Redeagl. It gives me great hope that there are still honorable knights like you to cast the monsters back to darkness from whence they came.

Ok. That's embarrassing. I won't try role playing again.

Seriously though, thanks.  For a moment there I thought that perhaps a large portion of the forum members here didn't know any other novel series aside from ASoIaF by those reactions. It was worrying.

[stonebender]

7 minutes ago, Oracle.Clear.Rivers said:

 

 

 

Are you implying that perhaps I should skip book one? Or just read the second novel first before going back at it?

Ok. Thanks for your honest review of the series. It seems interesting when I read its synopsis but yeah, you're right, I'm looking for something like ASoIaF. TWoW is taking a long time. I want to read something while waiting after I finish the Tales of Dunk and Egg.

You said it's "traditional". Does it hold up to Tolkien? I might give it a chance if it does and risk the "poor execution".

I see. It's fine. You did say you didn't read Wheel of Time passed Book 10. He wrote the last 3 novels according to Wikipedia. So I thought to check his works too.

Anyway, thank you very much for sharing your thoughts about them. I really appreciate it.

No, I didn't mean to skip the first Dark Tower novel.  Just that it felt to me like the work of an obviously younger King who hadn't yet found the distinctive feel of the series.  I think the second book is more indicative of the series as a whole.  If you don't like that one, I doubt the rest of the series will work for you.

Regarding Wheel of Time vs Tolkien, I think critic John Clute said it best in his obituary of Jordan: "The end result had little of the mesmerizing melancholia or mythic glamour of Tolkien; but the 'Wheel of Time' is so solidly, painstakingly and honestly constructed that it has become deeply addictive for its millions of readers." 

Hope this helped!

 

    

[Oracle.Clear.Rivers]

19 minutes ago, redeagl said:

The Wheel Of Time and The Dark Tower are two of my top favourite series.The Stormlight Archive is very close to those series in quality but I can't name it a favourite because there are only two books released so far.

Alright. Judging from your glowing review, I guess they're really good then and can compare with ASoIaF? Ok. Maybe I'll start with The Dark Tower first. Both you and stonebender seem to like them best.

[Oracle.Clear.Rivers]

2 minutes ago, stonebender said:

No, I didn't mean to skip the first Dark Tower novel.  Just that it felt to me like the work of an obviously younger King who hadn't yet found the distinctive feel of the series.  I think the second book is more indicative of the series as a whole.  If you don't like that one, I doubt the rest of the series will work for you.

Regarding Wheel of Time vs Tolkien, I think critic John Clute said it best in his obituary of Jordan: "The end result had little of the mesmerizing melancholia or mythic glamour of Tolkien; but the 'Wheel of Time' is so solidly, painstakingly and honestly constructed that it has become deeply addictive for its millions of readers." 

Hope this helped!

Ok. Thanks for the clarification. I decided to start with The Dark Tower series. Then, if TWoW is still not out at time (which probably will), I'll read Wheel of Time next.

Thank you for everything!

[End of Disc One]

For real though, I'm not a big fan of DT. I am a fan of WoT because it was one of my first fantasy loves. SA is one of my top favorite series after 2 books. 

[matt b]

27 minutes ago, Oracle.Clear.Rivers said:

Seriously though, thanks.  For a moment there I thought that perhaps a large portion of the forum members here didn't know any other novel series aside from ASoIaF by those reactions. It was worrying.

Browsing/searching the forums for a bit might be helpful. All of the series you have mentioned get discussed on here, some quite a lot. We're an irreverent bunch here, expect that when you ask a common question. Also: read the sticky threads at the top of the forum.

The only one of those I've read is The Wheel of Time, which was alright, but not great. It was a tad too juvenile in places, and waaaaay too bloated. Seriously should've been 7-10 books, not 14. The only Sanderson I've read are the last few WoT books he did and they didn't make me want to read any more of his work. Also, the only positive thing I've ever heard anyone say about him is he does great magic systems, which doesn't hold much appeal for me. YMMV.

 

[Oracle.Clear.Rivers]

26 minutes ago, matt b said:

Browsing/searching the forums for a bit might be helpful. All of the series you have mentioned get discussed on here, some quite a lot. We're an irreverent bunch here, expect that when you ask a common question. Also: read the sticky threads at the top of the forum.

Bit of a newbie here and it's my first time joining an online forum with full intention of staying active (I lost count of those that I joined before then left to rot because of RL). So I'm still getting used to how things work here.

Irreverent bunch? Well, when you put it that way, my question really did seem like I'm asking for it huh? lol

Thank you for the advice! Will be looking into some of the topics in the forum archive.

26 minutes ago, matt b said:

The only one of those I've read is The Wheel of Time, which was alright, but not great. It was a tad too juvenile in places, and waaaaay too bloated. Seriously should've been 7-10 books, not 14. The only Sanderson I've read are the last few WoT books he did and they didn't make me want to read any more of his work. Also, the only positive thing I've ever heard anyone say about him is he does great magic systems, which doesn't hold much appeal for me. YMMV.

I like magic systems. Good ones especially. The best ones I've seen so far are from Nasuverse and FMA:B. Still hadn't read a good one in a novel (HP drove me nuts). I might check Sanderson just for that. Thanks for the info.

WoT was juvenile? I'm not sure I understand.

[Oracle.Clear.Rivers]

55 minutes ago, End of Disc One said:

For real though, I'm not a big fan of DT. I am a fan of WoT because it was one of my first fantasy loves. SA is one of my top favorite series after 2 books. 

Thank you for the honest opinion. A bit new here so you'd have to suffer some of my ignorance for some more time (matt b did some explaining). XD

I've decided to check out DT first. SA is starting to sound better though because I was told that the author was good at making magic systems.

[redeagl]

1 hour ago, Oracle.Clear.Rivers said:

This forum is dark and full of terrors, Ser Redeagl. It gives me great hope that there are still honorable knights like you to cast the monsters back to darkness from whence they came.

Ok. That's embarrassing. I won't try role playing again.

Seriously though, thanks.  For a moment there I thought that perhaps a large portion of the forum members here didn't know any other novel series aside from ASoIaF by those reactions. It was worrying.

Well thanks. The people here in the literature sub forum probably knows every fantasy book that was published but since you are new they trolled you.

 

1 hour ago, Oracle.Clear.Rivers said:

Alright. Judging from your glowing review, I guess they're really good then and can compare with ASoIaF? Ok. Maybe I'll start with The Dark Tower first. Both you and stonebender seem to like them best.

Yes WOT and TDT can compare to ASOIAF infact I think they could be better.

[Oracle.Clear.Rivers]

11 minutes ago, redeagl said:

Well thanks. The people here in the literature sub forum probably knows every fantasy book that was published but since you are new they trolled you.

And newbie I was that I took the bait. Oh well, that's life. Live and learn.

11 minutes ago, redeagl said:

Yes WOT and TDT can compare to ASOIAF infact I think they could be better.

That does it. Will be hunting TDT in bookstores soon. Not sure with WoT now since others said it was a clunky but I'll decide whether to read it or not after TDT.

[matt b]

52 minutes ago, Oracle.Clear.Rivers said:

WoT was juvenile? I'm not sure I understand.

I thought so, obviously not everyone does. For me I think it was mostly to do with the way Jordan had men and women interact. It seemed more like an adolescent's idea of how adult men and women talk to each other instead of how it actually works in real life. There's also something about a Good vs. Evil (note the capital letters) kind of a story that seems inherently juvenile to me. Again, YMMV.

[Rhom]

Every book I have read for the last five years has come from recommendations in this sub forum.

Stickied at the top of the page are two topics with titles like Before You Start a Thread Asking For Recommendations

You started a brand new thread to ask about three book series featuring New York Times Bestsellers...

That said, Wheel of Time was fantastic... For when it was written.  It's been accurately described here, comes across as a bit juvenile at times; but it's an enjoyable story.  It features one of the best magic systems in fantasy. I honestly think Sanderson did a better job finishing it than Jordan would have.  It has the notable advantage of being complete.

If the appeal of Stormlight Archives is the magic system, I would actually recommend other complete series/standalones by Sanderson.  Elantris.  Warbreaker.  And especially Mistborn which has two completed trilogies.  They all feature well thought out, unique systems.  Stormlight is fun, but even the prolific Sanderson is slowing down on writing it.

I've not read Dark Tower, but the description in this thread is in line with what I've read.

Look around this sub-forum and you will find many other (better?) recommendations.  

Names like Abercrombie.  Scott Lynch.  Mark Lawrence.  Guy Gavriel Kay (GGK has low magic settings and political intrigue).

Book series like Malazan.  Dune.  The Expanse.  The Dagger and Coin.

Series that take on cult like followings like The Second Apocalypse.

Many others.

The denizens of this part of the forum are some of the most read you'll find in fantasy.  Delve in and you'll never miss GRRM. I haven't thought of TWoW in years.