Does anybody actually enjoy these books? (Spoilers)

[Beamer]

Yes I enjoy them. There were either 3 or 4 of the books out when I first discovered the series and each time a new book comes out I reread the whole set. I will agree the later books seem to simply extend the story without accomplishing much, but honestly that does not bother me much. I am one of those readers, that when captivated by a story or characters, wants it to just keep on going. Unfortunately that does not work as well with a epic fantasy like WoT as it does with a series like Dresden. I just hope Brandon Sanderson can pull off the unenviable task of finishing this story without leaving us disappointed.

[the good doctor]

Originally Posted by NyneaveSedai

I can't understand why you can say that you didn't enjoy them, you read them all! Surely after you read one or two you didn't like you'd stop, to read them all and then say you didn't like them doesn't make sense. There must have been something about them that kept you turning the pages.

i think that you start out enjoying them, become attached, and then have difficulty stopping. of course, as the books decline, people will have different reactions to them.

you can read a full assessment of my wheel of time experience here:
dancewithsunflowers.blogspot.com/2008/12/best-example-you-will-ever-find-of.html

ahhh, so bittersweet

[Erunanion]

I have read the first three, but it was a while ago. I certainly enjoyed them, and its easily to get attached to the characters (Nynaeve [or however its spelled] angries up my blood though). I haven't followed on with the rest of the books partly because I have found other books to entertain me, partly because, as this thread attests, the middle books are supposedly so long-winded and lacking in the genius of the first few that I'm not sure I want to continue on.

I probably will at some point though - I'm a completist at heart.

[C Of K]

Originally Posted by the good doctor

you can read a full assessment of my wheel of time experience here:
dancewithsunflowers.blogspot.com/2008/12/best-example-you-will-ever-find-of.html

Interesting article. I can agree with it. I find that the WoT is one of the last series of books to recommend to anyone. Also interesting were your thoughts on RJ's illness maybe having something to do with the decline in quality of his books.

Personally I think the quality began to decline long before he got sick. It's my opinion that RJ knew enough about the characters, and his world in general, to publish seven or eight full volumes worth of story. Anything beyond that, and things would get ugly. Upon first glance his world seems highly developed, even developed enough to endure 12 or 13 books worth of story. On further examination, I think he described many things to great detail in his world but failed to add sufficient depth of character to almost anyone.

Certainly the masses in any generic town or city in the WoT were all cookie cutter. From society to society, you knew what to expect before you got there, and even the main characters weren't developed enough to interest me after 10 books.

Thus, I skimmed through book 11.

[ManTimeForgot]

I didn't start reading WoT until I was in college and book 11 was almost out already, and so I don't have any of the pent up frustrations long-time readers of the series have. That said, I love the whole series. I have always been a fan of books with "wheels within wheels" plots (ever since I fell in love with Dune), and so WoT has always held a special place in mind. I have read book 10 probably 5 times and book 11 close to 10 times (cover to cover mind you) and have read the whole series back to back twice. The first several books have an air of adventure about them, and they are more exciting (I will give everyone that). But where many people see a dragging adventure plot line in the later books; I see an expanding political intrigue plot line. There are so many factions doing so many different things that the only thing that has kept Rand, Perrin, and Mat alive is the fact that they are T'aver'en (Sp?) and thus have strange "coincidences" pop up around them all the time.

I find all the tiny details fascinating; being able to see a complete picture of the world creates wonderful imagery in my mind's eye, and when potentially any little detail can turn out to be a "chekov's gun" or piece of foreshadowing 3 books later I was not so readily lost for urgency in my reading. In sum, I am quite content with the quality of all the books.

MTF

[chiz]

I think Rober Jordan said something about wanting to draw them out. Hes said "I couldn't draw them out any longer" like that was a bad thing. Lol

[bunnypeaches]

Originally Posted by Sephiroth

while I have some complaints, I still love the stories (and the characters) enough to forgive these flaws.

I know this was posted ages ago, but I agree. I'm kind of getting bogged down in the slow pace of Winter's Heart right now, but I'm persevering because I want to know how it all ends for certain characters. Some however, I couldn't care less about.

[spacecow]

The first several books have an air of adventure about them, and they are more exciting (I will give everyone that). But where many people see a dragging adventure plot line in the later books; I see an expanding political intrigue plot line.

that sums it up mostly ^^ and explains why i love it so much

slight note: I don't know what he did in book 10, but that I didn't quite like

[Talysia]

I confess that I lost patience with some of the politics in the later books - especially the White Tower politics - and that may well have been a contributing factor to why I didn't like them so much.

Having read the latest book, my opinions on the series have changed slightly, for the better (although I've always liked the series). With some of the revelations and conclusions in The Gathering Storm, I can see why some of the stories took such a meandering turn. The situation with Verin, for example. I remember a few phrases in a couple of books that alluded to her situation (her lie, for example), but I didn't put it together until the latest book. I wouldn't be surprised if there's something minor, mentioned in one of the earlier books, that I've completely overlooked that will play a big part in the next book. It's sort of rekindled my interest in the series.

[Rosemary]

I'm happy to hear the new book has changed your opinion of the series a bit Talysia and brought new interest.

I haven't read The Gathering Storm yet but I am sure there are going to be some answers to some previous hints or suspicions and there have been quite a few! After all these years of reading WOT I'm not giving up now!

[Red 13]

I started reading WoT about two years ago. One of the reasons why i started reading them was because at the time i wanted to read something with a big complexe story, full of characters and plots (it definately ticked all the boxes). I really enjoyed the first three books but for some reason i kind of lost interest by the end of the fourth book.
I'd be interested to know what Fans think of the fourth book? You might convince me to continue reading on.
Plus i've noticed that Brandon Sanderson participated in the latest book of the serie's and i've really enjoyed his books.

[murphy]

Books 4 through 7 seem to be the strongest, if you wanted to do a poll. A lot of people didn't like the later books (I'm not one of them, liked them all. Some more than others though.) Sanderson does a great job with the latest book.

[Talysia]

Originally Posted by Rosemary

I'm happy to hear the new book has changed your opinion of the series a bit Talysia and brought new interest.

I haven't read The Gathering Storm yet but I am sure there are going to be some answers to some previous hints or suspicions and there have been quite a few! After all these years of reading WOT I'm not giving up now!

Yep - my opinion of the series has changed for the better, especially after The Gathering Storm. I'll have to do a reread one of these days, to find all those little details that might crop up later. It might take me a while, though!

[Lady of Winterfell]

I'm currently reading them for the first time, and am on book 4, The Shadow Rising. I am enjoying them so far, but I have to say the interactions between males and females in his books tend to drive me nuts. But I do like the story.

[Devil's Advocate]

Originally Posted by Red 13

I'd be interested to know what Fans think of the fourth book? You might convince me to continue reading on.
Plus i've noticed that Brandon Sanderson participated in the latest book of the serie's and i've really enjoyed his books.

I would actually recommend that you don't continue with the series. This is not because I hate it (I, myself, have read all but 11 and 12), but because I'm quite sure that you will hate it.

I think most of us who've read the series can agree that the first 5/6/7 books are good (depending on who you ask), and it's only later that it all starts dragging a bit. If you're already getting bored by Book 4, then there is no way you'll be able to get through Books 8-10 (which is where hardly anything interesting happens).

So you might as well just quit now.