The "OMG I just finished!" Thread

[Suttree]

And to those stating Brian is the greatest new fantasy writer sorry for me George Martin has, with a song of ice and fire, blown bit only Sanderson but also Jordan out of the water.

How dare you sir!!! Brian is without peer. Truly a literary giant. Martin can't come close to touching Brian's mastery of the pen.

[Mats Spare Hat]

I am appalled. Simply, appalled

Brian works his tail off day in day out, skimps on no detail no matter how miniscule irregardless of importance or relevance to the overarching plot. There are no big or small moments, they're ALL big moments, with never(never!) a shortcut taken, and his meticulous attention to even the most minute of circumstances only serves to further endear his super-dooperness to those of us who just know he is the epitome of what we should all strive for, whether we pen novels or pick our noses.

Yes, Brian. A man so fine, some say, that many an editorial team has fallen, stricken in utter shock & disbelief upon learning their services should ever be required, in the service of such an unquestionable giant!

Good day, sir! I say. GOOD DAY *haughty sniff

[groovyjohal]

Good day to you all!

I started reading the wheel of time in the final year of my engineering graduation in 2003 and now, 10 years later on 21 Jan 2013, I have finished what is for me, without a sliver of doubt, the best novel series I have ever read.

 

The impact of this epic has been profound on almost ALL of my life's aspects. As I woke up the next morning after finishing the wheel of time AMOL, the whole story, right from The Eye of The World to A Memory of Light, flashed in front of my eyes and the feeling of cloure and immense satisfaction was amazing!! So Amazing that I took the day off from my office and just sat there and thought back on the whole series (which i had read multiple times in anticipation of the end) :) .

 

No doubt some sections and issues were not perfect, but that's OK as the overall novel was fantastic!

 

I just wish to thank, with all my heart, James Oliver Rigney Jr., Harriet, Brandon Sanderson and all those people who worked and contributed to this epic.

You did well, my Heroes. You did well.

[talligan]

Who the heck is Brian?

[BFG]

The Life of Brian:

 

 

Brian: I am NOT the Messiah!
Arthur: I say you are Lord, and I should know. I've followed a few.

 

 

Sorry, couldn't resist :)

 

 

Bobske a few posts ago switched Brandon for Brian...

[DragonFan]

I know that I am not as well versed as others in everything that is the WoT, but here are my feelins towards the ending.

 

I knew that some of the prominent figures that we knew during the series would not survive TG and I felt sadness for each one lost. The only loss that I felt was necessary after it happened was that of Egwene. I feel that she would have caused a lot of strife between the WT and the BT. Mostly because of her feelings that Rand didn't understand almost anything that he did and that she would feel a need to "guide" the BT which in the end would not allow it to grow to its full potential.

 

The loss of Bela.....I nearly cried at that one.

 

We know that Ituralde is being pushed to the throne of his nation as well as Cadsuane being pushed toward the Amyrlin Seat, and i'm guessing that we should "know" where Mat and Perrin, and most of the other main figures of the story are going to end up, but actually not seeing it in writing for me kind of leaves an unease about it for me. Do Perrin and Mat, and even Rand for that matter, continue to be ta'veren?

 

I kind of like the body swap that Rand and Moridin complete because this gives Rand a fresh body that isn't on the verge of collapse and mutilated. However I don't know if I was completely comfortable with him not being able to channel afterwards. Being able to manipulate the pattern itself is infinitly more powerful true, but should the Dragon/DR be able to channel? He is still the Dragon/DR even after the body swap isn't he? The body swap gives him both a new body as well as anonyminity, which is something that I feel he does want after the last few years, but not having the ability to channel should create a hole inside of him almost like being gentled am I right?

 

Just a random thought here in the middle of my posting, but Mat not wanting to be bound to the HoV even if he was given the opportunity seems like Mat, but knowing that he had already accomplished enough to be invited the be bound to it, on top of his performance in TG I think he should have been bound to it regardless.

 

Where my sense of closure is the most lacking though is that of Rand just slipping away when no one is watching. Obviously we know that Min, Elayne, and Avi know that he is alive and can probably feel him departing, and Cadsuane figures it out too. From Rhudean we know that Avi and Rand have children together which hasn't happened yet, and the babies that he is already going to have with Elayne, we know that Rand is going to be a part of their lives once things have settled back down but as I stated earlier in reference of Mat and Perrin this leaves a feeling of unease with me, and even greater so with Rand since he is who he is. Is he still ta'veren and if so then we know that the pattern is going to affected by his presence. Or maybe with his new ability to manipulate the pattern he can hold this in check?

 

And finally the last bit of closure that I am missing is that I wonder if there will be spinoffs of the series? With the ending being as open as it is to me, I wonder if RJ's widow would allow others that may be worthy, or even BS himself, would write new stories with the prominent figures like Mat, Perrin, Elayne, Avi, or most imprtantly with Rand and his travels afterwards and his reunion with Min, Elayne, and Avi which we know must happen. I'm not looking for a continuation necessarily I don't think, since with TG being completed and Rand fulfilling is destiny, but I feel that new stories with them afterwards that contain entirely new plots could be fulfilling and worhtwhile.

 

As I said, although I am happy that Rand triumphed and that he was able to live, I just feel uneasy and a sense of loss. Maybe some others feel the same and I know that there are others that will think that it ended either just the way that it should have or didn't like it at all. One other thing that I wonder is if RJ had it planned all the way to the end with Rand swapping with Moridin, or did BS come up with the idea? I guess I am just wondering how far RJ had his notes planned out.

 

How do any of you feel about anyting I've said?

[talligan]

I know that I am not as well versed as others in everything that is the WoT, but here are my feelins towards the ending.

 

I knew that some of the prominent figures that we knew during the series would not survive TG and I felt sadness for each one lost. The only loss that I felt was necessary after it happened was that of Egwene. I feel that she would have caused a lot of strife between the WT and the BT. Mostly because of her feelings that Rand didn't understand almost anything that he did and that she would feel a need to "guide" the BT which in the end would not allow it to grow to its full potential.

 

The loss of Bela.....I nearly cried at that one.

 

We know that Ituralde is being pushed to the throne of his nation as well as Cadsuane being pushed toward the Amyrlin Seat, and i'm guessing that we should "know" where Mat and Perrin, and most of the other main figures of the story are going to end up, but actually not seeing it in writing for me kind of leaves an unease about it for me. Do Perrin and Mat, and even Rand for that matter, continue to be ta'veren?

 

I kind of like the body swap that Rand and Moridin complete because this gives Rand a fresh body that isn't on the verge of collapse and mutilated. However I don't know if I was completely comfortable with him not being able to channel afterwards. Being able to manipulate the pattern itself is infinitly more powerful true, but should the Dragon/DR be able to channel? He is still the Dragon/DR even after the body swap isn't he? The body swap gives him both a new body as well as anonyminity, which is something that I feel he does want after the last few years, but not having the ability to channel should create a hole inside of him almost like being gentled am I right?

 

Just a random thought here in the middle of my posting, but Mat not wanting to be bound to the HoV even if he was given the opportunity seems like Mat, but knowing that he had already accomplished enough to be invited the be bound to it, on top of his performance in TG I think he should have been bound to it regardless.

 

Where my sense of closure is the most lacking though is that of Rand just slipping away when no one is watching. Obviously we know that Min, Elayne, and Avi know that he is alive and can probably feel him departing, and Cadsuane figures it out too. From Rhudean we know that Avi and Rand have children together which hasn't happened yet, and the babies that he is already going to have with Elayne, we know that Rand is going to be a part of their lives once things have settled back down but as I stated earlier in reference of Mat and Perrin this leaves a feeling of unease with me, and even greater so with Rand since he is who he is. Is he still ta'veren and if so then we know that the pattern is going to affected by his presence. Or maybe with his new ability to manipulate the pattern he can hold this in check?

 

And finally the last bit of closure that I am missing is that I wonder if there will be spinoffs of the series? With the ending being as open as it is to me, I wonder if RJ's widow would allow others that may be worthy, or even BS himself, would write new stories with the prominent figures like Mat, Perrin, Elayne, Avi, or most imprtantly with Rand and his travels afterwards and his reunion with Min, Elayne, and Avi which we know must happen. I'm not looking for a continuation necessarily I don't think, since with TG being completed and Rand fulfilling is destiny, but I feel that new stories with them afterwards that contain entirely new plots could be fulfilling and worhtwhile.

 

As I said, although I am happy that Rand triumphed and that he was able to live, I just feel uneasy and a sense of loss. Maybe some others feel the same and I know that there are others that will think that it ended either just the way that it should have or didn't like it at all. One other thing that I wonder is if RJ had it planned all the way to the end with Rand swapping with Moridin, or did BS come up with the idea? I guess I am just wondering how far RJ had his notes planned out.

 

How do any of you feel about anyting I've said?

 

I know the very final scene (Rand walking away) was written by RJ himself so that, at least, was definitely planned

[Mats Spare Hat]

GAAAHHHhhhh

BFG you spoil-sport bubble-popper!

*shakes fist

[BFG]

Sorry Mat, but every time you guys started talking about Brian I heard either him denying being the Messiah or

 

"He's not the Messiah, he's just a very naughty boy"

 

I'm sorry, but the madness (my own) had to end :)

[thoro]

 

 

No. I'm notreading the rest of this series without SOME kind of knowledge of how dangerous and competent Team Shadow is. They're the ONLY reason I'm still reading (I'm on book 8) I haven't been reading all the threads. Not even most of the posts here. I don't care about being spoiled

 

There are lots of people exaggerating the faults of the last book. I wouldn't take the bad stuff here too seriously. I got through the entire thing without catching anything these guys are saying. After reading their comments I'm like "Yeah....thats true" - But it doesn't bother me.

 

After finishing yesterday I totally feel this way. All in all it was good and fitting, although AMoL to me seemed a bit more off (in sound and wording) than the other two BS-volumes.

[Ahaz Flagg]

I started my reread to late, so did not read until this past week.  I finished last night.  Chapter * The Last Battle* was awesome imho!!.  The start had me worried, but it soon had me in it's hands and I hated to put the book down.  A lot of unexpected things, and some things went how I thought they would.  I am going to reread it it again in a few days.

 

It seemd to me in this book beyond the last 2, you could see what was Brandon and what was Robert. 

 

Overall, this series will still rank #1 in my heart.   I thought the ending was very fitting based on how the book started!!  Would not have mined a little more peak in the future, but that is the way the Wheel weaves!!

[Mitsobar]

Just finished.

 

Got that slightly overwhelmed/claustophobic feeling that often comes at the end of a good story.

 

 

For the most part I liked it.

 

I think Rand should of died completely though.

 

All in all it was a rather overly happy ending - All 3 main characters live and all of the most immediately special people to those 3 also live. Elayne, Aviendha, Min, Faile, Tuon, Tam, Abel Cauthon, Moiraine, Nyneave, Lan etc.

Only Egwene really stands out as a major character loss and stands out kind of like a 'I want to keep most everyone alive but I have to kill someone major or the ending will be too fairy tale - Egwene can die!'.

 

 

 

So like, Rand just locked the Dark One away as per the cycle?. He just carried on the status quo, the DO will come again with the age legends and a breaking etc?. That's kind of a crappy outcome for them. Regardless of all the existential hoi palloy Rands desire of a more permanent ending was superior.

 

Padan Fain - I thought his role was going to be significant. It was pretty confusing to get through over 90% of the book with no mention of him and wondering what was happening. Then he comes in, dies, and is forgotten in a handful of pages.

 

 

I really wish The Dark One had been fleshed out more. The why and the how of its existence. Alas it remains a faceless entity with little purpose than to be evil. Personally I had hoped for some huge revelation about him. I liked the possibility of it being the creator himself.

 

 

****Edit

 

Damn, now that the high of finishing is fading I just feel depressed that its over.

Edited February 5, 2013 by Mitsobar

[BlackoutNights]

I finished a few days ago. Loved how the whole book was pretty much one long battle.

Some things didn't make much sense to me, but oh well. Overall, I can live with it.

The one thing I would have liked is a little more wrap-up detail. You know, something like, "The Fourth Age started with a strained alliance of nations that, over the course of time, yadda yadda yadda." and so forth, and so forth.

It's amazing to me that we have a 14 novel series that leaves so much open ended at its conclusion.

Still, I'm appreciative that there is some finality and they went the extra length to finish it.

Could've been worse.

Could've been a lot better too.

 

Edit....

But I really like the whole 'it was not the ending, but it was an ending'. That made me smile.

Edited February 6, 2013 by BlackoutNights

[gethane]

I just finished. Though I read all the other 13 books, I listened to this one on audible because I was afraid I wouldn't have time to read it. 

 

I'm still rather in shock. I can't believe its over. It's been a part of my life for around 16 years (though I know for others, its even longer). I am the only one of my friends and family who started the series, to make it through to the end.

[HouseLark]

This is my first post here. I'm a latecomer to the WoT party having only picked up the books in November. The first thing to say is that I really enjoyed the series as a whole and I'm glad it got an ending.

 

I am, however, a little disappointed with aMoL. I feel that it strayed too far from what I loved about the series, and that includes the two previous Sanderson entries. For me, it was the interactions between the characters that made the series so enjoyable and gave it its heart. In aMoL those character driven moments are replaced with a series of events - the fact that the moment between Olver and Noal stands out as probably the one emotional moment in the whole book is testament to that. Overall, It felt strange to have so little interplay betwee the main characters. So here's a few points, good and bad:

 

1. I couldn't udnerstand why characters that have been built up were sidelined so ruthlessly. Nynaeve stands out but add in Rhuarc, Moirain, Thom, all the Wise Ones, Cadusane. These were replaced with endless descriptions of battles - I know it's the Last Battle but you can write an amazing war story without getting bogged down in attack on flanks and strategies. Look at Birdsong, an emotional war story even without the central love story. On the other side, to build up Padan Fain and then have him summarily dismissed with no effect on the narrative in the final book was a bit shoddy. And then for a character like Galad (or Gawyn) to get get so much page time at the expense of others who we've invested in over 12 books... well, it just wasn't satisfying.

 

2. I felt a bit cheated to have Bashere's and Bryne's deaths take place "off screen". They had been a big part of the story and to have them dismissed in a line was a bit of a kick in the teeth.

 

3. I found it staggering that Sanderson didn't write a scene bringing together Rand, Mat and Perrin. In fact, Perrin overall was poorly handled comapred to what has gone before. All he did was run around TAR.

 

4. Can someone help me with the dream Compulsion thing. Since when is that possible? As I understood things, the compulsion weave had to touch the target physically - I thought that was why it left a residue or distincy marks on the brain. If a person can be compelled through their dreams then this opens a whole bunch of questions such as, why didn't the Forsaken do this to drive a wedge in the White Tower rather than going through convoluted plans with BA and hiding Mesaana in the Tower? There are so many plot points where invading dreams and using Compulsion would have been the easier solution.

 

5. The showdown between Rand and the DO was really underwhelming, but I have to admit, I don't have a ready alternative. Maybe if Sanderson had allowed the DO to have a physical form.

 

6. Talmanes should have died in the prologue. It was a really effective piece of writing and I felt cheated when he was Healed "just in time".

 

7. The complete lack of any development of any Seanchan (Tylee and Egeanin to some extent excepted) meant that they remained almost pointless in the story. They were just A. N. Other massive army. The culture that Jordan developed for the Seanchan is pretty irrelevant and if this story is ever adapted for TV/film then I'd expect the Seanchan to be removed from the narrative.

 

Some good points:

7. I liked the scene between Rand and Tam, in fact I just like Tam as a character similar though he is to Perrin.

 

8. The symmetry of Egwene vs. Taim - it felt right to have the leaders of the respective Towers face off even if there's a fanboy element in me that wanted Logain to stick Taim with a sword.

 

9. Androl (and Pevara) - He's a latecomer to the story but he's a good example of the kind of character-driven, rather than event-driven, arc that I felt was largely missing from the book. Yes, he was at the centre of big events, but those events drove his character's development and Androl added some heart to the events.

 

10. Rand surviving, getting the peace he deserves as Tam put it. I'm not a fan of the body swap but I wanted Rand to get through somehow and I suppose it's unrealistic to expect the DR to live a normal life after winning the Last Battle.

 

11. Lan getting his revenge on the Shadow, finally. I mean, I don't understand why it was OK for Demandred to use the Power to fling rocks at him but not OK for him to just explod Lan but hey, it was a good scene. (And I thought the copy foxhead was pretty ineffective against channelling, surely it couldn't have stopped Demandred's strongest weaves?)

 

12.  liked that Lanfear remained true to her character right to the last.

 

13. It was also great that the wolves had their own lupine Heroes of the Horn.

 

A last question: what was the signifcance of the Red Veils with the filed teeth? It turned out that they weren't the only RV channellers so were they the senior channellers or something? I feel like I missed something there.

[Guest fragilistic]

Just finished A Memory Of Light last night, and i'm feeling kinda numb ... so it's finally over.

 

It was an ending, although it did feel a bit rushed and frenetic, but I guess that's how Sanderson intended it, to feel like a battle. And it truly did.

 

Sad that Egwene had to die, although she was annoying at times, she did heal the White Tower and could have been a great Amrylin.

 

Would have liked to have seen more of Moraine and Nynaeve - thought they were underused in the Last Battle, but they had their role to play.

 

Thought that Olver blowing the Horn was a bit of a fix. It should have been Mat !!!

 

Will have to read it again when the dust settles, as i'm sure there's loads I missed in the rush to get to the end.

 

 

[Rhienne]

1. I couldn't udnerstand why characters that have been built up were

sidelined so ruthlessly. Nynaeve stands out but add in Rhuarc, Moirain,

Thom, all the Wise Ones, Cadusane. These were replaced with endless

descriptions of battles - I know it's the Last Battle but you can write

an amazing war story without getting bogged down in attack on flanks and

strategies. Look at Birdsong, an emotional war story even without the

central love story. On the other side, to build up Padan Fain and then

have him summarily dismissed with no effect on the narrative in the

final book was a bit shoddy. And then for a character like Galad (or

Gawyn) to get get so much page time at the expense of others who we've

invested in over 12 books... well, it just wasn't satisfying.

 

2. I felt a bit cheated to have Bashere's and Bryne's deaths take

place "off screen". They had been a big part of the story and to have

them dismissed in a line was a bit of a kick in the teeth.

 

3. I found it staggering that Sanderson didn't write a scene bringing

together Rand, Mat and Perrin. In fact, Perrin overall was poorly

handled comapred to what has gone before. All he did was run around TAR.

Couldn't agree with you more on these points.  This was my main problem with AMoL.  We just didn't get any character interaction, and no real insight into the characters thoughts.  I think the book came off very unbalanced in terms of who had POVs.  To me it seemed we had a lot of Mat, Perrin, Egwene, Elayne, Androl, Pevara, and Gawyn; some of Rand, Aviendha, and Lan, Min; and nowhere near enough of Moiraine and Nynaeve.  I would have preferred the focus to go right back to the Emond's Field bunch (Rand, Mat, Perrin, Egwene, Nynaeve, and possibly Elayne as the other very main character).  There just wasn't enough room to give each character their due so I think it would have been better to stick to the main ones.

[analyticalkeys]

There's a lot that can be said.. but all I'll mention for now is my disappointment in Padan Fain. His character was extensively built up throughout the series and then he ended up just turning into some mist and being killed... his entire scenes in the book didn't even add up to more than five pages. Some people mention that he wasn't really mentioned that often before this.. but that was the point.. he was the type of character you would forget about and then he would do something evil and you'd be shocked. In fact, I was convinced up until the last moments that we were purposefully made to forget about him and he would surprise us at the end with something crazy... but yeah, that seems to be my opinion and the majority of people's opinions, but I can't say what RJ had actually hoped for him.

[jwood01]

Wow, just finished. I think aMoL was definitely a satisfying finish to this long journey most of us have been on with this series. The final book was definitely action packed. Many of the events and resolutions surprised me a lot.

 

I think I was so satisfied with this volume that my main issues seem almost minor quibbles.

 

Where was Dobraine Taborwin? I would've thought a major, early Rand supporter who was also a hardened battle commander would at least get a mention in the final book and the last battle.

 

Narishma is from Arafel and not Kandor. I assume this was just a typo when Mat and Narishma reach Lan after he bested Demandred.

 

What happened to the foot soldiers of the Borderland army? I assume an army of 200K could not be purely cavalry. Were they all destroyed during the retreat and ensuing battles after Tarwin's Gap?

 

The scale of the Last Battle at the FoM seemed off to me. Even after losses in Caemlyn, Shienar, and Kandor, I would've thought the Light-side would've had hundreds of thousands of troops remaining (especially counting the Seanchan armies). In the text this seemed like a battle involving a lot fewer light-side troops; but this may have just been because of the focus on individual characters.

 

I was hoping to get some view of Arafel and Arafellian culture (every other Randland nation has had significant treatment in the series; the only Arafel action I recall is Moiraine and Lan visiting Vandene and Adeleas). I guess the White Tower and Seanchan armies were in Arafel after Demandred's trap, and that the FoM battlefield was half in Arafel; but I am still disapointed.

 

But as I said, my initial quibbles are very, very minor.

 

Also, Androl and Pevara are awesome.

[Guest tonyjdai@gmail.com]

I finished this on Sunday - completing a journey that began in 1991. I thought the ending provided a soft landing with some surprise twists along the way - Gawyn, Galad and Egwene(and her horse Bela) all dying. I was trying to figure out what I struggled with the most in the book and I realized that Sanderson softened the dialogue of those characters who were much harder, less emotional, closed - Lan and Rand are good examples. Lan calls Tam a blademaster then later calls him bowman - the original Lan would have stuck with the first as he did with Rand - sheepherder. The dialogue between characters was flawed in comparison to RJ's writing but we can't expect perfect continuity, so Sanderson gets a pass. Mat's portrayal was very good and I did not mind Perrin being stuck in TAR. The Aiel were left out of this story as well with the exception of Aviendha and Rhuarc and the occasional wise one encounter. I could blather on and on because we all miss RJ and we will miss the series as well. I hope they open the world to other writers as Star Wars did - it would be nice to follow Loial, the Aiel as adjudicators, Seanchan. Who knows?

[Coravron]

I finished.  And I was pretty happy, but not wholy satisfied.

 

I felt so much more could have been written about the days after the last battle.  There is so much detail and lead to up things, that when it just stops I felt incredibly let down.

 

I was so very dissapointed that Egwayne died.  I feel that was a big mistake.  She was going to be the pillar of the Tower that tied everything together.  Her work prior to the last battle was great, but never seeing the fruits of her labour is a loss.  Out of everything that happened, this is my greatest bone of contention.

 

How will Matt influence the Seanchan?  He's clearly against the grain with them, but knowing he knocked up Tuon isn't really enough.

 

Perrin is now essentially the ruler of what, a quarter of the RandLand area now?  All we get from him in the ending is his mastery of the dream, and finding his wife under some trollocs.

 

I'm happy with the book.  But I needed more to be fully satisfied.

[Samuraiflip05]

Not sure I want to go through 24 pages of responses, so I will try to avoid too many common topics. 

 

Egwene gets mentioned a lot.....Don't get me wrong, she did great things....but I am glad she died.....I hated her from the start. 

 

Overall, The novel feels just a bit too much like the scraps left over after the other two volumes of the original aMoL story.  One book devoted almost entirely to a few weeks worth of battle.  I did enjoy it, I will read it and the whole series again someday(My 12th overall reread), and kudos to Sanderson on keeping us from thrashing ourselves to death wondering what we would do without RJ to finish. 

 

Bringing up Sanderson though does give me my biggest gripe.  Call me crazy but it isn't plot based.  It's language.  On page 257, the word "Cajole" is used, and on page 301 "Adage" is used.  I may be completely off my rocker here, but those words feel wrong in the text.  I do not think they would have been words used by RJ.  They are not bad words....they just don't feel right to me.  They actually really bothered me....enough that I carried around a slip of paper with the info, so I could gripe when I was done.

 

I understand that death must occur....especially in a battle this grand.  But, it felt like RJ/Sandy were channeling good ol' George Martin towards the end there.  I felt like there was a whole chapter where sub/main characters pretty much went he died...then she died....then they died....then it died....then more died. 

 

For heartfelt moments, I only had two.  And they kinda surprised me.  I have no emotional attachment to Olver, so I found it quite odd when Noal saving him nearly brought me to tears(FYI nearly for me is the equivalent of most people bawling....ask my wife she says I am made of stone).  The other one that was even more surprising was when Logain has saved the refugees by the ruins.....I can't even put my finger on the emotional part here for me...but, it came almost as close as the Olver one.  Bela's scene with Faile ond Olver was just too silly. 

[Rhienne]

Gawyn, Galad and Egwene(and her horse Bela) all dying.

Galad did not die.  He lost his arm but Annoura Travelled him to Mayene (and Berelain) for Healing.

[Guest quiettimes417]

So, disappointed would be a good start.  After finishing this third book, I would say sincerely disappointed.  I stumbled with the first book a little but enjoyed it.  The second one I enjoyed, said "he nailed it".  Third book.  Completely different author (figuratively and literally), style, character flavor, delivery.  Don't even know where to begin.  Tying off a few story lines and bringing it to an end is all I have to say I am thankful for.  I recognize that I do not know what Mr. Sanderson was left with to cobble together the ending and that likely under any other circumstances he would be decidely amazing.

[Guest ksmassey]

So it's all finally over. Felt the need to say this somewhere, this seemed like a good one. I must thank Robert Jordan (and Brandon Sanderson too) for this grand story. I started reading The Wheel of Time when I was about 14 or so. I'm almost 27 now with a wife and child. This story has fallowed me through the hardest times of my life. Giving me the figures of Taim and Lan as father figures where I had no other. As well as the mother figures Moiraine and Cadsuane. The characters gave me something to strive to be. My favorite is Perrin. Though I mostly identify with Rand, at least as a personality, always becoming what he needs to become to face the challenge ahead. The end is bitter sweet. I will never hear a new story of these people again. They are the family I wish I had. They are the people I want to be. They have affected my life more than any other. Thank you dearly Robert Jordan, Harriet, Brandon, and all the people who have read his books and made them available to me. Thank you for teaching me the values I hold today. You have made me a better Husband, father, and friend than I could be without you.