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Post by newt5996 on Oct 11, 2017 23:30:00 GMT
The Wheel of Time is a fantasy book series I am about to start (just as I'm finishing up reading Good Omens). I've got the first three books of the fourteen book series and if I enjoy them I'll probably continue. Will post thoughts in this thread and would gladly have opinions on the series for those of you who have read it.
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Post by whiskeybrewer on Oct 12, 2017 11:37:34 GMT
I tried reading the first book ages back and couldn't really get into it. I probably wasn't in the right head space at the time, so I might give it another go
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 12, 2017 16:38:19 GMT
This and Mistborn - I abandoned both after a bit of a start. Just didn’t work for me.
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aztec
Chancellery Guard
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Post by aztec on Oct 12, 2017 17:43:16 GMT
I tried reading the first book ages back and couldn't really get into it. I probably wasn't in the right head space at the time, so I might give it another go Same, picked up a cheap copy of The Eye of The World ages ago, but never got round to reading it, I'm a huge Tolkien geek so you'd have thought I'd be a easy match, but the plot synopsis implies it is rather cliched and derivative (not sure on the high fantasy angle either-Middle Earth may have gods and dragons but it's all grounded in a living breathing history) and frankly the length of the series (14 novels each many hundreds pages long) is rather off putting..
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Post by acousticwolf on Oct 12, 2017 18:35:25 GMT
When I was younger (a long long time ago, in a galaxy far far away) I bought the series but never never managed to start them (might have only been 5 books or so back then). My dad (who was a massive sci-fi and fantasy fan) borrowed and read them. I was so put off by his opinion of them that I put them into charity without another thought.
Cheers
Tony
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shutupbanks
Castellan
There’s a horror movie called Alien? That’s really offensive. No wonder everyone keeps invading you.
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Post by shutupbanks on Oct 13, 2017 10:58:43 GMT
I bought the first four when they came out in paperback (89 to 92) and only read each one the once. I didn't enjoy them: the idea behind the setting was something I'd seen several times before and it didn't feel too revolutionary and the characters did very little for me.
On the other hand, I have friends who love them and think they're great so I'm possibly in the minority here. Have fun with them.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 13, 2017 16:43:45 GMT
I bought the first four when they came out in paperback (89 to 92) and only read each one the once. I didn't enjoy them: the idea behind the setting was something I'd seen several times before and it didn't feel too revolutionary and the characters did very little for me. On the other hand, I have friends who love them and think they're great so I'm possibly in the minority here. Have fun with them. True. It’s finally a matter of individual choice. Though I didn’t get past a few pages the OP could definitely give it a try and see if he likes it.
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Post by charlesuirdhein on Oct 13, 2017 21:52:58 GMT
Finished the series, it is overall pretty good. It has some bits that f***ing infuriate me, and a lot of plots that seem to go nowhere, but Sanderson closed them off in the final three books and brought the series to a damn good finish. See, George Martin? An author actually DIES and still gets their series finished before you.
Frankly? I'd read Erikson's Malazan series instead and then come back to this ;P
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Post by Trace on Oct 14, 2017 3:50:52 GMT
I still think Susan Cooper’s The Dark is Rising Sequence is far better, and it’s only 5 books and not nearly so convoluted, allegorical and self-indulgent. I have read them all and listened to them on Audible.
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Post by newt5996 on Oct 15, 2017 15:58:38 GMT
See, George Martin? An author actually DIES and still gets their series finished before you. Oh how I wish Winds of Winter would get a release date
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Post by newt5996 on Oct 16, 2017 20:26:23 GMT
I'm about 15 chapters into the first book of the series (The Eye of the World) and I think I've figured out what exactly makes the series tick. It isn't a series solely focused on telling a story, but more focused on giving us characters who have interesting backgrounds and taking us on a journey. The first few chapters read like the first half of The Fellowship of the Ring and the Hero's Journey with a few subversions.
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Post by muckypup on Oct 16, 2017 21:47:39 GMT
ok so yes it's a good series but it does need a dam good edit from time to time, but maybe that's it charm. it's hard going in places (if you get that far the collared sections drag) but it is worthwhile.
it truly is epic, and world building.
for me I enjoyed listening to it rather than reading it......in fact I only listen to the last 5 books.
for me its better than George RR Martins fire and ice books, its more akin to Tolkien fantasy than mock history and I like that better.
it does do the classic fantasy trick of building a team of adventurers, give them a half decent back story, gives them a quest.....then splits them up to make the tale 5 times longer.
so its something for the long haul, read each book then have a rest or you will get a bit epic overload.
and the fact that the final few books were written by someone else, barley matters he writes with a similar voice and by that time you have invest that much time you need to find out how it ends!
and you do really need to read at least 2/3 of the first book to stop it from feeling like a LOTR clone.
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Post by newt5996 on Oct 17, 2017 0:53:26 GMT
ok so yes it's a good series but it does need a dam good edit from time to time, but maybe that's it charm. it's hard going in places (if you get that far the collared sections drag) but it is worthwhile. it truly is epic, and world building. for me I enjoyed listening to it rather than reading it......in fact I only listen to the last 5 books. for me its better than George RR Martins fire and ice books, its more akin to Tolkien fantasy than mock history and I like that better. it does do the classic fantasy trick of building a team of adventurers, give them a half decent back story, gives them a quest.....then splits them up to make the tale 5 times longer. so its something for the long haul, read each book then have a rest or you will get a bit epic overload. and the fact that the final few books were written by someone else, barley matters he writes with a similar voice and by that time you have invest that much time you need to find out how it ends! and you do really need to read at least 2/3 of the first book to stop it from feeling like a LOTR clone. Just a couple of clarifications I have: "ok so yes it is a good series" What was the intended tone of that? I initially read as an almost condescending, but the rest of the sentence shows that you obviously like the series. Not trying to attack you or anything, just can't quite work out the tone "2/3 of the first book to stop it from feeling like a LOTR clone." Great to know that it stops as while the plot feels like LOTR, the characters for the most part feel different except Mat and Lan who are Merry/Pippin, and Gandalf/Aragorn respectively. I'm intending to use this thread as my own little opinions as I read the books. (I've got the first three and will probably get the next three pretty soon as I'm doing a bookstore visit soon as I need more Discworld) Will definitely break up the books with some lighter stuff (Probably Discworld), but as over the summer I was easily able to get through A Song of Ice and Fire in a summer. But I'm in this for the long haul, the writing style itself just draws me in in the same way George RR Martin and JRR Tolkien (even Terry Pratchett and JK Rowling) did.
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Post by muckypup on Oct 17, 2017 1:39:33 GMT
ok so yes it's a good series but it does need a dam good edit from time to time, but maybe that's it charm. it's hard going in places (if you get that far the collared sections drag) but it is worthwhile. it truly is epic, and world building. for me I enjoyed listening to it rather than reading it......in fact I only listen to the last 5 books. for me its better than George RR Martins fire and ice books, its more akin to Tolkien fantasy than mock history and I like that better. it does do the classic fantasy trick of building a team of adventurers, give them a half decent back story, gives them a quest.....then splits them up to make the tale 5 times longer. so its something for the long haul, read each book then have a rest or you will get a bit epic overload. and the fact that the final few books were written by someone else, barley matters he writes with a similar voice and by that time you have invest that much time you need to find out how it ends! and you do really need to read at least 2/3 of the first book to stop it from feeling like a LOTR clone. Just a couple of clarifications I have: "ok so yes it is a good series" What was the intended tone of that? I initially read as an almost condescending, but the rest of the sentence shows that you obviously like the series. Not trying to attack you or anything, just can't quite work out the tone "2/3 of the first book to stop it from feeling like a LOTR clone." Great to know that it stops as while the plot feels like LOTR, the characters for the most part feel different except Mat and Lan who are Merry/Pippin, and Gandalf/Aragorn respectively. I'm intending to use this thread as my own little opinions as I read the books. (I've got the first three and will probably get the next three pretty soon as I'm doing a bookstore visit soon as I need more Discworld) Will definitely break up the books with some lighter stuff (Probably Discworld), but as over the summer I was easily able to get through A Song of Ice and Fire in a summer. But I'm in this for the long haul, the writing style itself just draws me in in the same way George RR Martin and JRR Tolkien (even Terry Pratchett and JK Rowling) did. Yes I did like the series no scarcasem intended....I tend to write as I would speak and it makes sense in my head(but probably not to everyone else)......the ok is my pause word before I would start....so it should have a comma ok, so yes it is a good series yes I know it not good grammar but hey this is a forum, you have books for good grammar.......lol by book 2 it loses its LOTR feel altogether and comes into its own, book 1 is not really representative of the rest of the series yeah, pratchett is a good one to chill out with feet of clay, amazing Maurice & johnny maxwell series are my personal favourites I must admit that I read the first 3 WOT books together, I had to wait for book 4 to come out. anyway, happy reading & I hope you enjoy the ride. ps....when you are looking for your next epic probably in a couple of years time......can I surgest wizards first rule, another series that could use a good edit but I enjoyed it but please banish any thoughts of the terrible tv series from your mind it bears little resemblance to the books
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Post by newt5996 on Oct 17, 2017 1:52:27 GMT
Just a couple of clarifications I have: "ok so yes it is a good series" What was the intended tone of that? I initially read as an almost condescending, but the rest of the sentence shows that you obviously like the series. Not trying to attack you or anything, just can't quite work out the tone "2/3 of the first book to stop it from feeling like a LOTR clone." Great to know that it stops as while the plot feels like LOTR, the characters for the most part feel different except Mat and Lan who are Merry/Pippin, and Gandalf/Aragorn respectively. I'm intending to use this thread as my own little opinions as I read the books. (I've got the first three and will probably get the next three pretty soon as I'm doing a bookstore visit soon as I need more Discworld) Will definitely break up the books with some lighter stuff (Probably Discworld), but as over the summer I was easily able to get through A Song of Ice and Fire in a summer. But I'm in this for the long haul, the writing style itself just draws me in in the same way George RR Martin and JRR Tolkien (even Terry Pratchett and JK Rowling) did. Yes I did like the series no scarcasem intended....I tend to write as I would speak and it makes sense in my head(but probably not to everyone else)......the ok is my pause word before I would start....so it should have a comma ok, so yes it is a good series yes I know it not good grammar but hey this is a forum, you have books for good grammar.......lol by book 2 it loses its LOTR feel altogether and comes into its own, book 1 is not really representative of the rest of the series yeah, pratchett is a good one to chill out with feet of clay, amazing Maurice & johnny maxwell series are my personal favourites I must admit that I read the first 3 WOT books together, I had to wait for book 4 to come out. anyway, happy reading & I hope you enjoy the ride. ps....when you are looking for your next epic probably in a couple of years time......can I surgest wizards first rule, another series that could use a good edit but I enjoyed it but please banish any thoughts of the terrible tv series from your mind it bears little resemblance to the books LOL a couple year's time. That's funny considering I read Harry Potter in a week, Lord of the Rings in two, and A Song of Ice and Fire in a period of two months. I bet this one will take a year...as I often spend some cash on books along with Doctor Who stuff
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Post by Ela on Oct 17, 2017 2:08:43 GMT
See, George Martin? An author actually DIES and still gets their series finished before you. Oh how I wish Winds of Winter would get a release date Don't hold your breath. As for Wheel of Time, I've been reluctant to even start it, as it seemed to be the series that would go on forever and ever amen. (I've been hearing about it for years, since before all the books were finished before the original author died.)
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Post by newt5996 on Oct 18, 2017 19:14:28 GMT
Made it halfway through Book 1 and my biggest complaint is the first 15 chapters are pretty dull, the characters are good, but still pretty dull. The slow pace is pretty easy to get through.
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Post by newt5996 on Oct 24, 2017 2:58:33 GMT
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