The Nameless Planet - Book Reviews

The Eye of the World - Robert Jordan

This book sticks out in my mind as being one of the landmarks in epic fantasy. What a ride! The book follows somewhat of a formula: the boy and "chosen one" (Rand) must go on a quest with two mysterious wanderers that suddenly enter his town (the sorceress Moiraine and her warder, Lan). The journey is full of surprises, like meeting the friendly Ogier, Loial or battling the minions of The Dark One. This is the first book of The Wheel of Time and in my opinion, the best. Jordan's descriptions of the system of magic and references to the "Age of Legends" are facinating to read. The introduction to the order of Aes Sedai is also very interesting. The book is lengthy (about 780 pp.), but honestly, cutting anything out would remove essential details. The characters that are introduced in this novel are human, not the usual fantasy cardboard cut-outs. In hindsight, Nynaeve was less annoying in this one. The final battle versus two of the Forsaken is very cool. Lots of magic! One problem I do have with Jordan's writing is his attention to detail of CLOTHING. This gets annoying really fast, and is less prominent in this volume but gets progressively worse in the later books. This is the first book in what is now an eight book series, and it is losing steam. The fans are getting restless and I think RJ is running out of ideas! If you want to start this series, be prepared for a rough ride. This book could probably stand alone, in my opinion. Rating: **** (Added 1999.05.28)

The Great Hunt - Robert Jordan

The second book in the Wheel of Time series begins with a brief recap of how The Eye of the World left off. The main characters are in possession of the The Horn of Valere, and there are Darkfriends out to get it. In this installment, we learn more of Rand's budding magic powers, and what he must do to control them. The book starts off great, the adventures continue with the familiar main characters, plus some new friends and enemies. However, halfway through the story slows...way...down. This is another prominent characteristic of Mr. Jordan that becomes more annoying in the later books. The story focuses on the three girls who wish to become Aes Sedai. Infighting between the girls and awkward "romance" between the main characers really take away from the main story thread. I found myself bored actually, and was tempted to stop reading. However, the book redeems itself with an AWESOME final battle that can only be read to be believed. Plus a really cool duel between Rand and the Dark One. The book ends with you wanting to jump right into the next volume, which is exactly what I did. Overall, The Great Hunt is pretty good epic fantasy, however, you have to want to read the rest of the series to get the whole picture. Rating: *** 1/2 (Added 1999.06.28)