There’s been a lack of good fantasy stories in my life right now, as I await the final season of Game of Thrones (and wait even longer for the release of Winds of Winter), so in the meantime, I started reading the Wheel of Time series.
The Wheel of Time books were released between 1990-2013 and spans fourteen books, but author Robert Jordan only got through the first eleven books before passing away in 2007. The last three books were completed by fellow author (and fan of the books) Brandon Sanderson.
With the end of Game of Thrones looming, people are looking for the next fantasy adaption to latch onto, and it’s been announced that the Wheel of Time TV series is in development. I figured I get a head start on the books now to see what it’s all about.
(Spoilers for Robert Jordan’s The Eye of the World below)
I’m always impressed when authors can build a rich and intricate world in which to set their stories in. From J.K. Rowling’s wizarding world to J.R.R. Tolkien’s insanely detailed Middle-earth, these are the kind of settings that I try to emulate and flesh out in my own writings.
Jordan’s world here is no different. I was drawn immediately into this idea of a power that can be channeled only by women, due to the male power being tainted, creating interesting social dynamics in this world. I also found the concept of this “wheel of time” intriguing, as past repeats itself over thousands of years, acting as an interesting framing device for the story.
The story itself in this first book was relatively simplistic – a group of common folk suddenly get attacked in their tranquil small village, are forced to go on the run and adventure across the lands, and finally, battle the Big Bad at the end. The straightforward storyline didn’t bother me though – there was a lot of world building that needed to be done along the way, as well as a whole collection of characters to introduce.
While the world building was impressive, I was a little less taken with all the characters in the book. To me, the majority of the characters seemed quite one-note and unmemorable, particularly the male characters. Rand is such a basic example of “The Chosen One” trope, and he really has no unique characteristics beyond the generic “brave” and “strong.” I hope he gains a personality over the course of the next few books, otherwise, him as the main protagonist is going to be awfully dull. Perrin is also largely forgettable, but while Mat was extremely annoying throughout the whole book, he at least was expressing something (plus he was possessed) and had a funny personality.
I did like both Moiraine and Egwene, with the latter giving off a Hermione vibe that I can appreciate. Nynaeve was also a bit forgettable and I was confused by the sudden attraction between her and Lan – either I missed something between the lines or their romance came out of left field.
As for the Big Bad himself, the Dark One/Ba’alzamon seemed like any generic fantasy villain – a pure personification of evil with little character motivation beyond “he’s just literal evil” (see also Voldemort and Sauron).
Maybe this is all just because it’s the first book, and an entire world needs to be introduced first, but I hope that in future books, we delve into the characters a little more. More personality and motivation, please!
This review is sounding a bit negative, but I did really enjoy the book. It was a good old-school adventure through fantastical lands with people with mystical powers, and I am looking forward to seeing more of this world develop through the next books and learning more about this mysterious power that runs their world.
Until next (wheel of) time!
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