Finished Crossroads of Time, Rant

[jdavis]

I highly enjoyed a chapter or two of the book, shame it had 28 extra chapters of people talking and wandering around. What really gets me was why was this book delayed from last years release date? Did he really need a couple of extra months to work on that, maybe he felt there wasn't enough scenes where people sat around talking. Why was the main character only in the book for a dozen or so pages? Why was nothing really settled or even really advanced that much? Nobody's story really went anywhere, Elayne's story involved her walking around, taking a bath and talking to people in different rooms. Couldn't he of wrapped that all up into one chapter and moved on with other stuff? She took up 5 chapters. I actually liked the chapters about the lesser characters better, at least something happened in them, the main characters sat around and made pleasant chit chat for chapter after chapter. Why doesn't Perren just send one of the Asha'man off with a wise one to bring back a army of Aiel, they have been looking all over for the Shaido and he has found them, there are huge armies just sitting around all over the place, if he was that desperate to save his wife wouldn't he just go find his good friend the most powerful man alive and borrow a army for a day or so? Why on earth would Aviendha not tell Egwene the truth? Why didn't anything happen in this book, it was just a big book of people talking about the stuff that happened in the last book. Am I really supposed to wait another two years for more of this? I really don't think the man actually cares anymore, I get the feeling that he doesn't know where to go with all of this either, I am not mad because there are too many books, I don't care if he just keeps writing them, but I would like them to be good books, this book was so dull I had to make myself keep reading it, nobody did anything, nobody got anywhere and all the stuff that was written about what would happen in this book never happened, nothing happened. Perrin made camp, Elayne took a bath, Mat flirted with a girl, Egwene went to bed after a long day at work and Rand made a guest appearance in the book that is supposed to be about him. They all made it to the Crossroads of Twilight sat down and discussed what happened in the last book and what they had planed for the next, nobody actually did anything. I hope the idiot ass actually listens to what is being said about his book, I have not read anything positive about it yet. If the next book is as boring as this one then I'm burning the whole lot of them and assuming the Dark One won. Of course since he won't have another one out till 2005 the way he's been going I might as well say to hell with it now.

 

[RyanL]

I pretty much agree with everything that's been said. I had defended Jordan and his books even after The Path of Daggers. Winter's Heart gave me some hope. Crossroads of twilight just plain sucked.

At least Bela had a cameo in this one.

-Ryan

 

[Khorod]

Perrin made camp, Elayne took a bath, Mat flirted with a girl, Egwene went to bed after a long day at work and Rand made a guest appearance in the book that is supposed to be about him

Nice phrasing.

You forgot- and some people talked, others thought about killing, and several people were feeling highly ambitious. But none of them matter to anything until time starts moving.

Maybe the 'Crossroads of Time' is the point at which all things are happening, but nothing is progressing. Because which direction time will go, and which unrealized realities will be found, has not been determined. That was pretty thick, so let me sum it up- maybe the very title of the book was a reference to Jordan being totally clueless, and a hint that the book would have not plot, rhyme, or reason.



Spoilerish Talk





I've decided on afterthought that every mention of weevils was interesting. By comparison. There was even some good, creepy visuals to them in that sick town. I kept expecting the reason for that town's 'ghost' problems to be explained. Maybe it was just shoddy, maybe it was some of that long lost foreshadowing skill.

I get the feeling that if the Age of Legends was the height of the science of magic, the current age is the height of the Lost Arts, and the Next Age/Age of Dreams is the height of superstitious ghost stories and werewolves. Of course, that started coming out several books ago...

There, that was something vaguely good. Like every third paragraph in the early books, he had one potential piece of 'foreshadowing' in this one.

 

[jdavis]

You know I think I could of even forgiven this book if it had another 100 or so pages in it that dealt with Rand, I have been waiting for several books for Logain to show up........well lets skim over that very important meeting and get back to Perrin Brooding. Even a little bit of talk of what went on in the last book would of helped, Rand did nothing and said nothing, heck he barely appeared, there were some major things that happened in this book, but they happened "off screen" while we got to learn how to hand wash silk and how Elayne likes her tea. The influence of the dark one is spreading, and how do we know this.... weevels in the grain. Give me a break, this was so obviously a rush job thrown out to cover a deadline (a deadline they missed the first time around) that it is just crazy.

The description on the book cover is just a lie nothing it says that happens does, Matt isn't being persued by anyone, he never has to decide if it is too dangerous to Tuon if he lets her go. Perrin never makes any decision about selling his soul or staying true to Rand, heck all he decides to do is meet some people, and I still don't understand if he is so depirate to free his wife why doesn't he just go get some help, he has people with him who can travel, he can go anywhere in the world to get anything he needs, why is he going to a local town to get supplies, he could go anywhere just as easily, why is he looking for help from the enemy when he can get all the help he would ever need from his friend. Egwene sets on her butt for all of her part but the last two pages where she decides to do something stupid, it has very little to do with what is written in the liner notes. Elayne does nothing, and I mean absolutely nothing, for 5 chapters she does nothing at all, no plot advancement, no character advancement, nothing just her talking to people about the same things she talked about in the last book, and Rand, well more is written in the liner notes about Rand than is actually written in the book. Well that's rant number two, I wish I had went with the flow and bashed the last couple of books instead of defending them, I would feel much better about how I was taken in by book 10 now.

It should of been called "Wheel of Time 10 Attack of the Weevels". Or maybe Ghostbusters 3.

 

[noretoc]

Hate to say it, but I have to agree. I have loved all of the book up until now, but this one really was a piece of crap. Nothing happened. It was horrible.

 

[madriel]

I don't see how any editor worth his salt could actually let it be published in the first place its that bad.

Mrs. Jordan took over as her husband's editor for book 5 or 6.

 

[jdavis]

Mrs. Jordan took over as her husband's editor for book 5 or 6.

Funny just about the same time the first complaints started rolling in from Fans about the story bogging down. I really can't believe just how bad Jordan's diehard fan's are hating the new book.

 

[Pylar]

Ok, like most other Jordan fan, I've loved the series...that is untill the waste of time that was Crossroads of Twilight. But I figured I gave all that time to Mr. Jordan to read his books that I might as well try to find something good.

BEWARE THE FOLLOWING HAS LOTS OF SPOILERS.
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1. I had high hopes for the book when the prologue actually had people...rivals even getting together to share information! What a novel idea, characters actually sharing what they know. I know they were just some minor Shenarian (sp??) nobles..but still.

2. Perrin has at least found the Shiado Aiel that kidnapped his wife (ok I'm grasping at straws)

3. Elaida is standing up against Alvarian (sp??) thus starting to pull the White Tower away from the Black Ajah.

4. There were major developments between Mat and Tuon (The Daughter of the Nine Moons)

5. Rand actually met Logian

Well I tried to find more but nothing else really came to mind. It's unfortunate that the book had to be 700 pages, and only have about 40 pages of plot.

 

[satori01]

people are also forgetting as major plot points:

(please forgive all spelling mistakes)

-egwene being captured

-the groundwork for an alliance with the seanchan on many different fronts

-the rediscovery of how to make cuelindar,(pretty important though not trumpted in the book)

-groundwork for truly reforming the aes sedai in the age of legend sense of the word w/ male and female channerlers

-that the Hand of Shadow might possibly be an avatar for the Dark Lord himself, and that the "idiot" forsaken are being taken to task

-Some more innuendo that Mazrim Taim is probably a Forsaken ie"private lessons"

-The Shadow is rising and starting to take direct action again, which frankly hasnt happend for awhile

-"Halima" it seems might have found a way to access Saidin from a womans body

Sure there were no great battles, and no great strides in characters powers, but for the most part the classic fantasy "ratcheting of the powers" phase might be done for this series.

 

[SableWyvern]

For a long time now, I have said that the Dark One will win (for various reasons above). Methinks I'm right.

And I'd like to thank all who have posted in this thread. Much funnier than "My hate of d02 know no limit" over on RPG.net. Certainly (more enjoyable)^999 than I'm sure the book will be.