Faile's Kidnapping

[Grishnak01]

So... I just started Winter's Heart. I had already heard that Faile was going to get kidnapped and that it drags on for books and adds nothing to the story. Admittedly, I've already skipped chapters upon chapters in the earlier books that had no bearing on the story. Thoughts?

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

skip them. skip them hard. unless you are in solitary confinement and have nothing else to read and are in need of a substitute for ambien.

[MasterAblar]

If it's your first read, then yes you should probably read them. You probably won't find them to be the entertaining part of the books, but it's best to know what happen or you'l likely feel confused at times later on.

[Kahsm]

Hilairous. I was all ready to vote for 1, and then I saw 3 and was like, "Well, I guess I should be honest here"

 

Though I may suggest that the kidnapping is what made us biased, thus 1 and 3 are the same answer.

[LemonPastie]

First time through, you should read each chapter - otherwise why aren't you just reading chapter summaries? or waiting till AMoL comes out and reading the last chapter in the shop?

[MauricXe]

might as well read them your first time through. I'm always for completion the first time around.

 

on re-reads, SKIP!!!!!

[OptimusPrime]

So... I just started Winter's Heart. I had already heard that Faile was going to get kidnapped and that it drags on for books and adds nothing to the story. Admittedly, I've already skipped chapters upon chapters in the earlier books that had no bearing on the story. Thoughts?

 

It seems obvious to me that its your first time through, so Id say read it. Theres more to it than just Faile getting kidnapped. Yes, it feels dragged out to a lot of people, myself included, but on your first time through a book you should never skip, be it WoT or something else.

[Guest PiotrekS]

Isn't your own opinion most important? Read a little, see if you enjoy those chapters or not, then decide if you want to read them to the end or skip.

You might find yourself not sharing the popular belief about those chapters are so terrible, or, if you do and decide to skip them, it would be because of your own opinion, not sobody else's.

[Grishnak01]

Well.. There's quite a bit I DID skip already that I knew within a few paragraphs it would have no bearing on the storyline. I'm not afraid to skip to get to the end result. I'm not a back-page reader, but I do want to get to the point instead of reading all about the Shaido.

The Shaido side-story arc leaves me

[Haggis]

Personally I say at least skim it.

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

life is short. use it wisely.

 

i skimmed more the first time through than on re-reads, having gotten over some of my annoyance in the interval. i read these as they came out, so the annoyance was much greater after the waiting. like, seriously, are we still on about this?

 

so i'm biased. and as noted, answers 1 and 3 are the same.

 

i reread on audo, so i'm stuck listening to every word. it's a miracle these chapters haven't driven me off the road...

 

you'll know what to do when you get to them. it's not like a subtle kind of boredom.... but if you like it when you get there, you'll read it.

[Grishnak01]

I'm personally a Perrin fan.. I just don't want to be side-lined by nonsense.

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

if you;re a perrin fan and would like to stay that way...

 

ok, no spoilers. you'll know when enough is enough.

[dwn]

You should definitely read them. While it took 15 years of waiting for that story arc to reach its end, it's really not that long by chapter count. And while some of the Perrin/Faile chapters are tedious, the same could be (and has been) said about every other character at some point. Objectively speaking, Mat's chapters in WH, CoT and KoD are just as plodding as Perrin's.

 

-- dwn

[francy]

If it's your first read, then yes you should probably read them. You probably won't find them to be the entertaining part of the books, but it's best to know what happen or you'l likely feel confused at times later on.

 

I agree. read them through if its your first read. There are some pleasurable moments, but very few, and I skip the whole sequence across the books on my re-reads.

 

I don't think there is ANYTHING that should be skipped on a first time read of the series. Read it through, then make up your own mind... :-)

[Songstress]

It's funny, because I'm finishing up my second re-read, and I actually have found the Faile-napping story arc less tedious on re-reads than it was on my initial read-through. The Faile chapters are harder to pay attention to, but every Perrin chapter actually does take the story a step closer to resolution, and I see the progression now that I know the whole story so I'm less impatient to get through it.

 

And ironically, I am currently on the climactic chapter in my re-read. :)

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

yeah, that's what i found. couldn't get through it the first time. but not as bad on reread.

 

also, nice kitty.

[Songstress]

yeah, that's what i found. couldn't get through it the first time. but not as bad on reread.

 

also, nice kitty.

 

Thank you! (He is nice... sometimes. He's a lover *and* a fighter!)

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

all the best kitties are. he looks very much like my bugsy. my boy has tuxedo markings on his neck and tummy. and in the sun at the right angle he's striped black and brown and red. but he's shiny black like yours in most light.

[tlburchhardt]

1) If this is your first time through why are you skipping chapters? What chapters did you skip up to this point? One of my favorite things about the series is the little details that may be brought up in a chapter "worth skipping" that turn out to be pivotal later on.

 

2) Even the worst parts of the series add to it. Look at the story as a whole, not just story lines.

 

3) Keep in mind that you are asking these questions to people who have devoted a fair amount of their lives to this series and have very strong feeling for/against certain characters.

[Majsju]

Sorry, I voted before reaing the first post.

 

If you consider skipping a single sentence in your first read, you should read something like Eddings instead.

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

really not the bible. read what you want, if you want to read it again, read what you want then.

 

you will not be arrested for crimes gainst literature.

 

i love RJ, but... the man did go on a bit for a few books, and on and on.

 

and if that's your thing, great. it doesn't make someone a bad person for not feeling the same way.

[UncleButcher1980]

I think you shouldn't skip anything on your first read. There's so much I picked up on in subsequent read-throughs that I missed the first time. Also, you shouldn't skip anything on Faile, she's awesome.

[Lisa Campbell]

I never skip even on re-reads and believe me I've done quite a few. Especially since joining Dragonmount, I'm always looking for those tiny little clues and nuances.

 

But it's entirely up to you. Personally I don't hold grudges against any of the characters and even enjoyed the books that many have described as boring or dragging. What I found that dragged was the wait between books 7-10. On re-reads I found that they go quicker and that there is a lot of subtle humour and character building in them.

 

You might consider that back around book six and seven, the same was being said about Nynaeve and Elayne but now Nynaeve at least, is a fave character of, I dare say, most WoTfans. This is where Mat really started to shine as well.

 

If it's your first read then you won't have those years long wait between books and you really should read every single word, including the glossaries as new info is always added. Don't be decieved by the hate posts you see. Make up your own mind and remember, it's more a case of 'love to hate' and if you do feel that way, it means that the artwork has made an impression on you which really, just emphasises what a magical, spellbinding and fantastic pieces of art that it is.

[RAbbott85]

I think you shouldn't skip anything on your first read. There's so much I picked up on in subsequent read-throughs that I missed the first time. Also, you shouldn't skip anything on Faile, she's awesome.

 

False. She needs to be captured by Fades so they can have fun with her.