The Eye of the World
by Robert Jordan
Epic Fantasy
814 pages
published: 1990
Wheel of Time series #1
4 of 5 stars
This is the first novel of an epic fantasy. It does have the standard beginning of the unsuspecting nobodies being thrust into danger and adventure, but it liked it, like I almost always like it. Beginnings like that have intrigue, adventure, confusion, mystery, and the beginnings of relationships.
From that point there is much running, hiding, fighting, tracking, learning, and separating. Several of the characters end up have to fend for themselves. By the time everyone comes together again, the goals have changed and more adventure awaits.
Could I have been more vague? Probably not. But I don't know how to summarize such a complex "beginning" and I'm not going to try. Instead?
What I loved:
- The characters. Characters and relationships are my favorite part of any story, and characters and relationships develop best under stress. Like the stress of being chased by trollocs, trapped in a city of death, or even just traveling endless miles together and being forced to rely on one another. I loved the three boys, though Rand and Perrin are more loved than Mat. Mat is funny but annoying. I love Nynaeve eventually. At first she is a tad bossy. :) I love Lan. I mentioned before my weakness for capable men. I love Tam and was sorry that he didn't have more of a part in this book.
- The world. I love the sense of timeless history. I love the wealth of stories the gleemen carry around and the effortless details of monuments, ruins, cities, and even weapons that is included. There is a richness there that I wish our own world had more of.
- The adventure. The mystery. The romance. This is why I love fantasy - it has everything! And epic fantasy, well that makes for epic love.
- Intensity. There were times I put the book away to give myself a break.
I love it. I'm already off and reading the next ones. I have so many questions!
Great review! I too loved Lan and Perrin.. and Rand of course. I'm also more about the characters and their relationships than anything else. The politics of these sorts of books are interesting, but I tend to glaze over it sometimes, which I'm sure won't help me understand what's going on down the road.
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