The Dragon Reborn

It will be impossible to review each of these books separately, as the story has to be read from start to finish (yes, all fourteen books). This series really is a true epic fantasy, and I have loved it ever since I read my first part back in 1997. I got that book from my then boyfriend our first Christmas together, and I use to joke and say that was the reason we eventually got married (we're celebrating our 30th anniversary next year, and the books are still amazing). This series really is unique, and to me it has a little bit of everything. The characters are great and very well written, and the magic system really is one of a kind. The world building is amazing, and all the different cultures in the different countries are very well written. I love all of the different monsters, even though I find the Myrdraals particularly spooky. The story is such an adventure, and the books are fantastic. Every fantasy fan that likes a long epos should really read all of them.

Between 4 stars and 5 on this one, but I'm leaning upward because of the overall enthusiasm I have for The Wheel of Time at this point. I'm really sinking in. So, coming off the well paced novel that was the Great Hunt, I zoomed through the early portion of The Dragon Reborn. Things began to slow during the middle however, as there were many moving pieces to arrange the novel's climax, and our cast spent a lot of time traveling. Not a bad thing in itself, their time travelling was eventful, and full of interesting run-ins. One of the major strengths of this installment was the time that it spent developing our cast outside of Rand. For reasons that I won't reveal for any future reader's sake, Rand does not receive a lot of screentime in The Dragon Reborn. While I was initially put off by this, I think it actually did wonders for the rest of the cast. Specifically the girls (Egwene, Nynaeve, and Elayne), Mat, and Perrin. While none of these characters were ignored in the first two installments, by any means, they really had their time to shine here. Each had their motivations fleshed out, their relationships with the characters around them tested, their personalities deepened. I enjoyed it immensely. Perrin especially stood out to me, and I was surprised at how much I enjoyed Mat's POVs, after being annoyed with him for much of the first two books (this was purposeful on Jordan's part I think, and don't get me wrong, Mat went through a lot.) So props to Jordan. He is building a very large cast here, so deepening the reader's relationship with his core group was crucial, and ultimately really well done. Beyond the characters the plot remains sweeping, and engaging. This is traditional Fantasy done right. I've spoken on it before but Jordan's detail is second to none. When I sit down and get in the zone with these books, I'm right there man. You can all but smell it. I'm excited to see where this goes. I'll take a quick break with a palette cleanser book, and then it's on to book four. 'And his paths shall be many, and who shall know his name, for he shall be born among us many times, in many guises, as he has been and ever will be, time without end. His coming shall be like the sharp edge of the plow, turning our lives in furrows from out of the places where we lie in our silence. The breaker of bonds; the forger of chains. The maker of futures; the unshaper of destiny.'

The first two books were good-if you could get past some rather slow pacing at times. This is the best of them so far, though. Who knew that dropping the hero for most of the book would make the story move so much faster? The book is mostly told from the POVs of Egwene, Perrin, and Mat. Those three characters pretty much divide the books between themselves, each having between 25 and 33 percent of the book. Rand sets off on a quest to find and recover the legendary sword Callandor, and only glimpses are seen of him during this endeavor. Meanwhile, Perrin chases after Rand with Moiraine, Lan, and a crazy girl they meet along the way. Egwene remains at the White Tower with Elayne and Nynaeve, searching the tower for the Black Ajah. Mat, after finally being released from his curse, heads to Andor, and afterwards for Tear. Eventually, the various POVs converge in the capital city of Tear, where the crystal sword is hidden inside a vast fortress the size of a small mountain. The lessening of the focus of Rand-who had about third-quarters of the first book and half of the second to himself-gives Jordan the opportunity to develop the rest of the characters, an opportunity that he definitely doesn't waste. There are a few negative things that can be said about the Wheel of Time, especially later on, but not giving sufficient attention to every character and subplot is not one of them. The pace of the story tightens in The Dragon Reborn, the world is developed further, the characters continue to develop and reveal their various personalities(except Nynaeve, who's still the same), old questions are answered and new ones are raised, the dialogue is much better than in the Great Hunt, and the plot and resolution are the strongest yet in the series. The story is well-structured and advances towards a definite culmination point, where the various separate stories converge in an excellent finish. The intense magical duel in the final chapters is spectacular, with the only problem being that it ended too soon. The Wheel of Time has it's moments, but this book boasts the best one yet when Egwene is in Tel'aran'rhiod: She encounters Rand and attempts to subdue him with the One Power when he dismisses her as a disguised enemy. Seconds later, Egwene gets owned and forced to retreat. Priceless. Other memorable moments include: Mat's epic duel against two swordsman with only a quarterstaff, the massive Sa'angreal-powered healing scene, the Aiel showcasing their deadly fighting styles at several points, Rand conjuring the fantasy-equivalent of a lightsaber and slicing an assailant to bits, Mat's incredible gambling exploits, and the triumphant moment where Rand holds Callandor and accepts his role as the Dragon Reborn. Even though he has relatively little time, Rand's role is undoubtedly the centerpiece of this book. Jordan corrects about half of the problems within the Wheel of Time in this book, and plays to his own strengths, namely good prose, a fine attention to detail, strong characters, an interesting and complex magic system, and excellent worldbuilding. Though the pacing could be better, the story itself is great. Few fantasy series are as ambitious as the Wheel of Time, with such an expansive and ambitious scope. I'd consider this point, at the Dragon Reborn, to be the beginning of the "Golden Age" of the Wheel of Time, when the series is at it's best and before it starts to go downhill.

My fourth time through this one and it’s just as good as the first time! Love the story, even if they are fairly whiny at times.

Good quality print, arrived quickly. Book itself is obviously fantastic, highly recommend

great book

Flawless condition, great packaging. A book that got me into fantasy.

I fell in love with this series during high school, but had to stop when life got busy afterwards. Glad I picked it up again. Looking forward to reading the next in the series.

Terzo libro della ruota del tempo