The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan (The Wheel of Time #1)

Hey, my darling readers!
I just finished the first actual novel in Robert Jordan’s epic The Wheel of Time series. Prior to reading it, I had heard nothing but good things about it, so let’s see whether that holds true!

The Wheel of Time on Goodreads

The Plot (according to Goodreads):

The Wheel of Time turns and Ages come and pass. What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the Shadow.

Let the Dragon ride again on the winds of time.

The Wheel of Time turns and Ages come and go, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth returns again. In the Third Age, an Age of Prophecy, the World and Time themselves hang in the balance. What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the Shadow.

When The Two Rivers is attacked by Trollocs-a savage tribe of half-men, half-beasts- five villagers flee that night into a world they barely imagined, with new dangers waiting in the shadows and in the light.

The Rating:

Wow. This was *a lot*. And I mean it in the best way possible! This book was quite long. The eBook copy I have contains all novels, so I kept glancing at my progress for the page total (a bit over 13,000 pages), which made this seem even more massive. Regardless of that, I essentially burned through the first novel, unable to put it down.

The world-building is super cool, and I can’t wait to learn in the next 10+ books. The story comes with a lot of twists and turns, chapters that will give you goosebumps, moments that will make you hold your breath. I loved the story, especially because you can tell just how much thought went into it. There are no gaping holes in the logic staring you in the face. This world, this legend, this story was crafted meticulously.

New Spring by Robert Jordan (The Wheel of Time #0)

Hey guys!
I got roped into reading The Wheel of Times series! Let’s have a quick chat about the prequel novel first and see if that gets me motivated to read the other 14 books. 😅

New Spring on Goodreads

The Plot (as found on Goodreads):

The city of Canluum lies close to the scarred and desolate wastes of the Blight, a walled haven from the dangers away to the north, and a refuge from the ill works of those who serve the Dark One. Or so it is said. The city that greets Al’Lan Mandragoran, exiled king of Malkier and the finest swordsman of his generation, is instead one that is rife with rumor and the whisperings of Shadowspawn. Proof, should he have required it, that the Dark One grows powerful once more and that his minions are at work throughout the lands.

And yet it is within Canluum’s walls that Lan will meet a woman who will shape his destiny. Moiraine is a young and powerful Aes Sedai who has journeyed to the city in search of a bondsman. She requires aid in a desperate quest to prove the truth of a vague and largely discredited prophecy – one that speaks of a means to turn back the shadow, and of a child who may be the dragon reborn.

The Rating:

Sometimes I’m really not the brightest candle on the cake. I wanted to read the first book so I can go check out the Amazon show. I went and downloaded a collection that has all the novels and started reading. Only halfway through did I realize, though, that this is a prequel novel. Whoopsie!

However, the story was intriguing and in comparison to the rest of the books this one was also really short (300 something pages), so I’m glad I actually started with this one! It gives you a taste of the world-building, of the vibe, of the stories to come. So, you can decide whether it is for you or not without having to read over 800 pages (which is the actual first novel). My e-reader tells me that all in all, I’m going to read over 13,000 pages, so that’ll take a hot minute.

But back to the story! As I am writing this, I’m already halfway through the first actual novel which allows me to tell you that reading the prequel really helps to understand some stuff. It is by no means necessary to read it in order to follow the story. But I tend to ask a lot of questions and those questions didn’t get answered so far. So, I appreciate this backstory on two important characters!