"The Gathering Storm"

[CarokV]

I am almost finished with "The Gathering Storm" and I just have to say. 

 

"THANK GOODNESS FOR BRANDON SANDERSON"!!!

 

I am guessing this may annoy some people here, but Jordan had lost it towards the end of his series.  I was so bored reading the same old stuff over and over again I started skimming and just plain skipping over entire sections of the books.  12+ books to tell this story is ridiculous, there are much better stories from authors that are not just milking it...

 

It seemed like Jordan was trying to be as descriptive as Tolkien, but Tolkien told his epic story in three books!

 

I want to hear the end of the story now, but I would not recommend this series to anyone.

 

Heheh... Flame on!  ;)

 

Carok

 

Try reading some Michael Moorcock for an original story that can be told in under a 1000 pages.

[Lambada]

*Grabsw a pitchfork*

Get out of here you traitor!!

 

:P

 

Serisouly though, Most people agree that it got worse near the end - particularly with book 10, but most think that some improvement was made with book 11. Did you find the same pattern, or did you feel that book 11 had few redeeming qualities either?

[CarokV]

*Grabsw a pitchfork*

Get out of here you traitor!!

 

:P

 

Serisouly though, Most people agree that it got worse near the end - particularly with book 10, but most think that some improvement was made with book 11. Did you find the same pattern, or did you feel that book 11 had few redeeming qualities either?

 

Yes, I agree completely!  10 was the book I really had to skim a lot of.  And of course, I did read them all...  ;-)

[ka243]

You will get no flames from me.  I agree that book 10 was very boring.

The gathering storm was a great book and extremely exciting to read.

[cortezthekiller]

I, unfortunately, gotta agree with you a little.  Jordan did seem to be becoming a little, eh.. out of touch.. there neat the end.  KoD saved his reputation in my eyes a good deal, but it was still starting to feel rather dry there near the end.

 

As much as I hate to say it, it's good having a fresh set of eyes, and a fresh pen on the series, especially one as talented as Brandon.

 

I loved Jordan, and he was an amazing author, one of my favorites of all time.  I'm glad I enjoyed KoD, or I would have been left with a sour taste in my mouth after his passing, but I am also glad to have a new (extremely talented) author pick up the pieces and finish this story strong.

[whiteyfats]

I admit it probably needed more than 3 or 4 books, but you can tell from PoD on, that he was just milking it.

[CarokV]

I have to give you guys credit.  I fully admit to trolling for a response, and what I got were thoughtful honest answers. Good job guys!

 

Carok

[Majsju]

What you seem to completely miss, Brandon was able to write TGS the way he did Thanks to the way RJ wrote books 8-11. Basically, RJ wrote a 90 minute football match, now Brandon comes in writing 30 minutes extra time plus a penalty shoot out, knwing exactly who will score, who will get booked etc, he just needs to show us how it happened.

[farthammer]

I have to give you guys credit.  I fully admit to trolling for a response, and what I got were thoughtful honest answers. Good job guys!

 

Carok

 

I think you'd need a lot of MacDonalds signs to count the number of times that troll was already posted lol

 

People were armed and ready.

[Jasonm]

I never had really anything bad to say. I did get bored from time to time and skim through a lot. And I just have to give major props to TGS, not to Brandon individually, but the book itself. I always want to keep reading just to find out what happens (even though I know what happens in this series) but I just could barely put this book down. And the ending, my mouth was hanging open, I absolutely loved the ending. It brought everything together for me and made me very excited again.

[Crael123]

i think that book 10, Perrin Mat and Rands bits were good. alot of development, perrin's torture over Faile, and Mat being himself were all good. but the parts with elayne and egwene... i hate politics so i just skim and skip all of their parts. but like PoD was one of my favs of the series shocker ino. and WH was just stunning. KoD was just amazing so much got wrapped up in that book. But TGS was just... whole different level of awesome. there was not one slow part.

[aunt_pol]

Book 10 proved the maximn about creative people being most prone to creating flabby work when they're quite successful. At that point nobody's gonna tell you stop - they figure you know what you're doing. Tarantino is a case in point. Wonderful talent, but loses the run of himself when there's no external limit placed on him.

 

That said, this is my fave set of books ever.

[DemandredFO]

"...in a really long tale it is not possible to please everyone at all points or to displease others at those same points.  To some, those parts that are specially chosen are to others a blemish."--J.R.R. Tolkien, Forward to the Fellowship of the Ring.

[Barid Bel Medar]

What everyone seems to forget is that Brandon didnt actually come up with any of the plot for tGS, he just wrote it down in novel form.

 

If RJ had lived to write it, it would have the exact same pace and such as Brandon wrote it....

 

That said, ill agree with most of the comments, book 10 did get a little tedious by the fact that it came out after a great ending to WH, then said virtually nothing, and we had to wait another few years to get the next installment.

 

Reading WH, CoT and KoD in immediate sucession really (IMO) shows that CoT was still a great bbook (although not as great as the others) it was the fact that we had to wait so long for anything to happen.

[MikeRiley]

 

It seemed like Jordan was trying to be as descriptive as Tolkien, but Tolkien told his epic story in three books!

 

I don't think Robert Jordan was milking the series for money. It's written out like a TV series in a way. It could have been renamed The Adventures of the Dragon or something instead of The Wheel of Time. Anyway, I don't agree with the part of your post I quoted.

 

Tolkien wrote The Lord of the Rings in 3 parts but he did a terrible job of it. He was great at what he did: create a complete lore-filled world and his own languages, original ideas and all that. He was not a story teller. Reading The Lord of the Rings has a feeling of jumping around too much. There was zero transition between each part. One moment there here, the next they're way over there. Oh and a warg attack inbetween. It was way too rushed. Certain parts could have been fleshed out and would have only benefited the overall story, instead it is like reading the footnotes at the bottom of a page. In order to be called "epic" it required the background books, too, and as I recall there are 10 or more of those.

 

Of course, had you said Silmarillion instead, I'd have agreed. Awesome book.

[DemandredFO]

The Silmarillion was beyond depressing.

[Shadow Rider]

Yes I think Jordan did go on a bit in his detailing of scenes and descriptions of people and the vase with a small chip in it's side on the little table in corner next to a window overlooking a field of dead an dieing ...grass... (not a quote from the books. :P )

 

And Perrin...... even though Perrins POV is so borring, think about it...he just go married, she got taken and he pretty much pushed everything aside to find her... a true Man, boring but a Man's Man.

I have to admit my first read of the books I skimmed and skipped sometimes whole chapters... but on a resent re-read I'm not skimming or skipping and I find that I can't understand why people hate Elayne... she's been taught to be a Queen all her life and she is trying to fit in with the normal folk an with Aviendha's help is meeting her Toh, of which she has much Toh to Mat.

 

[water_seeker]

In my experience, the only time the books ever got boring was when I skimmed through parts I didn't think I'd be interested in.  When I read the whole book, it becomes so much better. :-\

[Shadow Rider]

In my experience, the only time the books ever got boring was when I skimmed through parts I didn't think I'd be interested in.  When I read the whole book, it becomes so much better. :-\

 

Exactly the way I saw it.

[ka243]

What everyone seems to forget is that Brandon didnt actually come up with any of the plot for tGS, he just wrote it down in novel form.

 

From what i understand he left notes and outlines and a few completed scenes but brandon actually wrote most of the words in the book, so that seems an unfair comment to me.  A lot of the success of the book can be certainly attributed to him.

 

As far as book 10 goes I feel like I could have skipped it entirely and gone to book 11 and not missed anything.

[HornOfValere]

I've not been bored, I've just been frustrated, because sometimes threads are created and not picked up for one and a half novels.

 

For example, am I the only one wondering what happened to Asmodeon? He's just suddenly 'gone'!

And don't get me started on the Tower of Genji - one and a half books and finally in TGS we get a sniff at the end that it will carry on in 13? Blimey!

 

I think what I find with Jordan is that he had so many ideas and wanted to incorporate them all and that's why he's had a monster of a series. He didn't simply want to tell a tale of good and evil - you can pick up a score of fantasy trilogies that do that - he wanted to buld an entire world and in many ways leave a legacy through it in case it was ever expanded upon elsewhere.

 

I'm just so impressed that he thought of all this and wanted to put it ALL down, down to how the power is woven and the difference between Saidin and Saidar. It's just so...amazing. And I think that's what keeps bringing me back to it. I can read ao WoT novel and think about it for weeks! That's when I know it's a good book/set of books - when I'm still thinking about it!

 

So I certainly don't think it's been dragged out intentionally, but there is so much to tell!

 

I heard that Jordan thought he could have done the whole series in six books, but it doesn't even fit into the reevalued 12 and is now 14! That's just amazing to me.

 

And honestlyl, I would rather have a series well thought out and told rather than a wham bam job!

 

Brandon Sanderson is a talented man for picking up a legendary series and taking on the feat of finishing it. Jordan may have plotted out how he wanted to finish it, but even with notes and recordings etc I don't think I would have the talent, patience and style to put it into a final few novels, it's a brave task to take on.

 

I'll admit there are particular phrases/descriptions in TGS where I thought 'that's not Jordan' but I can't complain about that, it is another writer writing it after all!

 

Good show!

[Val Mickey]

Perrin is like that blacksmith's puzzle, or like a sudoku puzzle, agony leading to ecstasy.

 

I'm not complaining, but that 'don't kill anyone I wouldn't' was just over the top - I mean Mat is a funny guy, but not.. outright rude. Or a B grade movie dialogue mouther.

 

Overall BWS did a very, very, good job.

[talligan]

I'm rereading the series at the moment before I read book 12 so I really expected to go into book 10 and hate it - but I read every word and loved them all. Its not one of my favorites in the series (like books 5,7 or 9)but it was still very interesting. I liked it better than TPoD (least favourite thus far) 

[The Fisher King]

I Love Elayne.

 

She can be annoying - at times. ALL of RJ's characters can be annoying sometimes.

 

I think that Elayne *ARGUABLY* has grown more than any character. She treats men better than most of Randland's women, she is willing to learn, meet responsibility, accept teaching and punishment - and she sincerely wants to learn to be a better ruler for the good of her people.

 

She really no aint too bad!

 

 

Fish

[Barid Bel Medar]

What everyone seems to forget is that Brandon didnt actually come up with any of the plot for tGS, he just wrote it down in novel form.

 

From what i understand he left notes and outlines and a few completed scenes but brandon actually wrote most of the words in the book, so that seems an unfair comment to me.  A lot of the success of the book can be certainly attributed to him.

 

As far as book 10 goes I feel like I could have skipped it entirely and gone to book 11 and not missed anything.

 

You still dont understand what I am saying. I love Brandons work, and he did a great job, but saying that it was good that he got the books back on pace is rubbish.

 

RJ had outlined the whole story, Brandon didnt just add new plots to make it faster, if RJ was alive to write it, it would be the same plotline, it wouldnt be any slower.