sleep well and wake
So the long-running joke has come true: Robert Jordan didn't live long enough to see the Wheel of Time through to its conclusion. Of course, the joke was that old age would strike first, not amyloidosis...
I fell out of love with the series by book 7 or so, but the early ones swept me off my feet. The Great Hunt still stands on its own beautifully, with a tightness and pacing that Jordan never managed to repeat. And a certain twist in The Dragon Reborn quite literally knocked the wind out of me. I was so stunned that I criedfor a character that I didn't particularly like.
I only met him twice, at book signings. At one, the group was small enough that he hung around to chat and answer questions. Among other things, he rambled a while about the specs of his new computer. A geek after my own heart.
It's easy enough to deify the man now. Hundreds of people around the world have been doing just that since his "brother/cousin" Wilson broke the news earlier this evening. Is it a testament to his writing or to the silliness of fans who feel they know the man through his fiction?
Either way, I feel the loss too.