Wheel of Time~An End
Was going to post about this in the previous post but I thought this deserved its own post (and that was getting too long and rambly).
So after 13 years I finally finished Wheel of Time today. Considering some people started WOT in 1990, 13 years doesn't even seem that long but for me personally it feels this series has been with me for a very long time.
How do I feel now that it is over, honestly sad! I can't say the ending was perfect but I was satisfied. Yet I still feel weird that this is it for these characters that I've spent so much time with. From the time we first got his POV in book 3, Mat Cauthon was my favorite character and remains one of my favorite characters of fantasy literature. Mat for me might be the perfect example of a lovable rouge.
However I realized in the end I came to almost love every character in WOT. Yes many characters have annoyed and frustrated me over the course of the series. But after 13 years it was hard to not grow a bit fond of them all. There weren't many deaths but there were some and one death in particular (even though I was spoiled ahead of time) hit me particularly hard.
I would have liked more stuff on the Seanchan (and part of me thinks if Jordan had spent less time wasting on less interesting things like the Shaido and Bowl of the Winds in previous books we would of had more time for them) but it is what it is. Jordan had apparently said he might have written a side story about Mat & Tuon. I am now sad that with Jordan gone that is probably never going to happen, which does make me incredibly sad. I guess I will just have to imagine Mat & Tuon's further adventures.
Although there might have been a bit too much battle and fighting in this book, one thing I did love was like the ending of Fullmetal Alchemist you could really feel everyone working together. That was probably my favorite aspect of the last battle.
I also always complained that Jordan was adding too many character povs in the series (same issue I have with GRRM in ASOIAF) but the focus on the two minor characters: Androl & Pevara in this final book were some of the highlights for me.
As for Rand (the main character) he was actually in the book way less than I expected. Again I was spoiled for his ending but I think it ultimately worked (there is even a bit of mystery left in the end which I liked).
Anyways all in all while I can't say I was never frustrated or disappointed in Wheel of Time, overall I am happy I read this series and I am sad it is over. 14 books + 1 prequel books, and 13 years and I think it was very much worth it. Of course I am way less into fantasy lit now then I was when I started the series (and just getting into the genre) but Wheel of Time will definitely remain one of my favorites of the genre. Perhaps at times it followed too closely to LOTR, but unlike a lot of other fantasy it broke free from Tolkien. And no it's less dark and "realistic" than ASOIAF but I wouldn't want every fantasy series to be like that either. I love ASOIAF (at least the first 3 books) but dark for me does not ultimately=better. Somehow I would say Wheel of Time was comfortably in between Tolkien and GRRM for me and well more importantly it had Mat. And well I still remember how I read the first 9 books in about 2 months and had probably the most fun I had reading anything.
Wheel of Time would also be the perfect series to take with you on a desert island.
So after 13 years I finally finished Wheel of Time today. Considering some people started WOT in 1990, 13 years doesn't even seem that long but for me personally it feels this series has been with me for a very long time.
How do I feel now that it is over, honestly sad! I can't say the ending was perfect but I was satisfied. Yet I still feel weird that this is it for these characters that I've spent so much time with. From the time we first got his POV in book 3, Mat Cauthon was my favorite character and remains one of my favorite characters of fantasy literature. Mat for me might be the perfect example of a lovable rouge.
However I realized in the end I came to almost love every character in WOT. Yes many characters have annoyed and frustrated me over the course of the series. But after 13 years it was hard to not grow a bit fond of them all. There weren't many deaths but there were some and one death in particular (even though I was spoiled ahead of time) hit me particularly hard.
I would have liked more stuff on the Seanchan (and part of me thinks if Jordan had spent less time wasting on less interesting things like the Shaido and Bowl of the Winds in previous books we would of had more time for them) but it is what it is. Jordan had apparently said he might have written a side story about Mat & Tuon. I am now sad that with Jordan gone that is probably never going to happen, which does make me incredibly sad. I guess I will just have to imagine Mat & Tuon's further adventures.
Although there might have been a bit too much battle and fighting in this book, one thing I did love was like the ending of Fullmetal Alchemist you could really feel everyone working together. That was probably my favorite aspect of the last battle.
I also always complained that Jordan was adding too many character povs in the series (same issue I have with GRRM in ASOIAF) but the focus on the two minor characters: Androl & Pevara in this final book were some of the highlights for me.
As for Rand (the main character) he was actually in the book way less than I expected. Again I was spoiled for his ending but I think it ultimately worked (there is even a bit of mystery left in the end which I liked).
Anyways all in all while I can't say I was never frustrated or disappointed in Wheel of Time, overall I am happy I read this series and I am sad it is over. 14 books + 1 prequel books, and 13 years and I think it was very much worth it. Of course I am way less into fantasy lit now then I was when I started the series (and just getting into the genre) but Wheel of Time will definitely remain one of my favorites of the genre. Perhaps at times it followed too closely to LOTR, but unlike a lot of other fantasy it broke free from Tolkien. And no it's less dark and "realistic" than ASOIAF but I wouldn't want every fantasy series to be like that either. I love ASOIAF (at least the first 3 books) but dark for me does not ultimately=better. Somehow I would say Wheel of Time was comfortably in between Tolkien and GRRM for me and well more importantly it had Mat. And well I still remember how I read the first 9 books in about 2 months and had probably the most fun I had reading anything.
Wheel of Time would also be the perfect series to take with you on a desert island.