Wheel of Times series...will it *ever* end?

[madriel]

Robert Jordan's latest hairball is due to be hacked up November 12.

And no, Crossroads of Twilight is not going to be the final book. The writeup on Amazon.com proved that the light at the end of the tunnel is just RJ's latest money train squashing the hopes of his fans. Make that readers.

I loved this series when it first came out. It was the best epic high fantasy I'd read since Tolkien. I liked the first few books better than the Mallorean and Belgariad. I loved rereading the series to pick up on all the little clues I'd missed the first time.

I'm predicting that this series will go twelve books if Robert Jordan doesn't die before he completes it. Don't get me wrong, it's a great series, but he should've wrapped it up at book 8.

Anybody out there still enthusiastic about the series? Or are you like me, waiting for RJ to complete the series then you'll go back to reading it?

 

[Nightfall]

Some where in between my dear cleric of Healing. I'm still an RJ fan, but I admit it. I do think this has gone on a LITTLE too long. I had hope it would be finish by book 8...and then it came.

 

[Crothian]

Last year at Marcon he said it was going to be 12 books in the seeries if I remeber correctly.

 

[Alaric_Prympax]

That's what I've heard as well, it's going to be 12 books. I'll have to check at work on Saturday since I'm off tomorrow but I thought the next one was due out Sept 28 of this year.

OT, Terry Goodkind's series is now going to be 10 books incase anyone was interested.

 

[Ealli]

I'm more likely to believe 13 books. He's been saying "It'll take about 3 more books" since about book 5, so I don't think that "3 more books" (i.e. 10,11,12) is necessarily anymore true than before. However 13 has been such a reoccuring number for him that he might try extra hard to limit himself to that. Whatever the number, I'll be at the bookstore to buy Crossroad of Twilight as soon as it's out.

 

[Jeremy Ackerman-Yost]

Jordan has developed an incredible ability to just wander around without accomplishing ANY plot elements. Until Heart of Winter, I was beginning to think that Jordan didn't intend the series to EVER end. Or else he doesn't know where to go next himself, so he's taking us along for the ride, hoping to find the ending of the thing down one of these rambling paths. Now I think he has some idea, but he's deliberately milking it.

I've already read the whole thing through twice, and some of the books three times. I am NOT reading the whole thing again until he finishes the series or dies.

Besides, IMO Rand and his relationships (physical and otherwise) have gotten completely out of hand. Jordan is apparently going the "gritty, 'realistic' fantasy" route, but the only characters who act even SLIGHTLY like real people are Mat, Perrin, and Birgette (who probably should be a little off). Lan is at least likable, but he's Aragorn with less interesting history and really bad taste in women.

While I'm venting my spleen... The first 3 or 4 books read like a combination of Tolkien and Eddings, and were enjoyable. Jordan found a voice of his own somewhere around 4 or 5, but the quality took a MAJOR dive in 6 that only began to improve in 9 (at least he began to actually progress the plot again, though my complaints about characters stand). Nine gave me some hope for the future, but 10 still has a LOT to prove.

Sorry about the rant...

 

[Storminator]

As far as I'm concerned it's already over. I can't believe that after 9 books and over 6000 pages I don't care enough to see how it ends.

PS

 

[Eosin the Red]

I hope he keeps cranking them out till he dies or I die. I can't get enough good fantasy. I pick up new stuff occasionally but as I get older I find myself reading several series over and over.

RJ is 1 of about 15-20 writers whose work I always buy...Maybe I am just old and set in my ways.

 

[Fyrie]

6 BOOKS! I read 6 books!
Thank god I didn't read the 7th!

 

[Sir Osis of Liver]

I love the series, and i think it's great that Jordans taking his time and making it a huge epic story. In fact thats one of my favorite things about the series, every book leaves me salvating for the next, and when he does finish i think that the wait will make the pay off all the bigger.