RIP Robert Jordan (1948 - 2007)

[straycat]

Sad note - Robert Jordan, author of the Wheel of Time series has died.

Interesting to see what will happen next - he was still writing the final volume - presumably someone will take over and finish, but such a shame he didn't get to conclude it himself...

[Tessalicious]

I've been waiting for the last book in that bloody epic series for 5 years and he's wimped out on us! I was so looking forward to spending a year reading all 13 books once it was published!

I hope he made extensive notes on how he wanted the story to end, or anything anyone else writes will be a crappy wussy happy ending like all other fantasy and the whole series will be ruined.

Oh yeah, and commisserations to his family, and all that. Sorry, my selfish streak really won out there!

[straycat]

Originally Posted by Tessalicious

I've been waiting for the last book in that bloody epic series for 5 years and he's wimped out on us! I was so looking forward to spending a year reading all 13 books once it was published!

I hope he made extensive notes on how he wanted the story to end, or anything anyone else writes will be a crappy wussy happy ending like all other fantasy and the whole series will be ruined.

Oh yeah, and commisserations to his family, and all that. Sorry, my selfish streak really won out there!

Mine too - I had the extremely unworthy thought of "If he'd only stopped all his female characters bickering, he'd have been finished years ago..."
Ahem.

Anyway - he did, apparently, record everything about the plot that he didn't manage to write, so someone will probably pick up from where he left off. As the book wasn't scheduled to appear until 2009 though, I'd say we probably shouldn't hold our collective breath...

[Dreadful Scathe]

never read any of Wheel of Time - "Tolkein rip off" was what one of my friends called it though.

I did read the few Conan books he did - pretty good.

r.i.p.

[NZ Monkey]

Wow! I hadn't heard until I spottend this thread. I have several friends who will be sorely dissapointed.

However, I have to admit that after making it halfway through the 10th book in the series I realised I couldn't come up with a worthy answer to the question "why bother continuing?"

I found a review of a box set of the books from Amazon that sums my feelings of that series up perfectly:

Originally Posted by Amazon

Robert Jordan's "Wheel of Time" is a love-'em-or-hate-'em series -- either you will adore it for its thick machinations and intense detail, or hate it for the glacial pace and often-annoying characters.

By the time the sixth novel arrived, it was becoming clear that if Jordan even possessed the ability to finish the series, he wasn't going to anytime soon. The seventh, eighth and ninth books are compiled in this boxed set, but it seems like very little actually happens in these doorstoppers.

"Crown of Swords," which suffers from this glacial pace, includes Elayne, Aviendha, and Mat searching for a magical bowl that will reverse a deadly heat wave, but Mat's flirtatious nature attracts a ravenous Queen who won't take "no" for an answer. Unfortunately, Rand (who spends most of the book thinking) now believes that he's going bonkers.

Things only go further downhill in "Path of Daggers," both for the characters and the readers. Rand believes that his magic will kill everyone he holds dear, and must also deal with the Seanchan as they attack the Dragon Reborn (that's Rand), Ebou Dar and everybody Rand commands. Meanwhile, his friends are still en route to wherever they are going, and the Bowl of Winds has cooled the heat wave.

The same holding pattern is in place in "Winter's Heart," where Rand is still upset and has nearby been killed. His friends are distracted by a series of kidnappings, crownings and civil wars within the Aes Sedai, and so Rand must tip the balance against the Dark One by himself, even if it takes twenty more books to do so.

Long books or series can sometimes be a blessing; the best and most beloved of the fantasy genre are usually big awkward tomes, or at least several books long.

Unfortunately, when a series loses momentum, and the same cast is used in every book... the series is going to inevitably deteriorate. As a result, Jordan's series is overflowing with potentially glorious plotlines, but most of them are stretched thin until you just want the things to end.

One of the biggest problems with Jordan's series is that his women -- almost without exception -- act like the most demented man-haters in the world. This wasn't as annoying when the series showed some forward momentum, but when it's in a holding pattern, this becomes teeth-grindingly unbearable. It makes one wonder about Jordan's own relationships.

So do descriptions of braid-pulling, cleavage, smoothing clothing, and the details of farms, vases and statues that we will never, ever see again. Jordan does not seem to realize that except for the monumentally talented -- Tolkien, McKillip, Lewis -- less is more. His focus on minutiae feels like he is trying to fill out the required number of pages.

Virtually nothing is accomplished in these three novels, except for finding that bloody bowl and fighting a few battles; there are meetings that decide nothing, journeys that don't end, and political conflicts that get progressively messier without reaching a finale. And Rand, who spends relatively few pages being active, has reached the level of a polygamous demi-god, yet he doesn't come across as being a future savior, but an uncertain kid.

The seventh, eighth and ninth volumes of the "Wheel of Time" series seem impressive, until it becomes clear that virtually nothing is going on. In truth, Jordan is spinning his "wheel."

[straycat]

Originally Posted by NZ Monkey

Wow! I hadn't heard until I spottend this thread. I have several friends who will be sorely dissapointed.

However, I have to admit that after making it halfway through the 10th book in the series I realised I couldn't come up with a worthy answer to the question "why bother continuing?"

I found a review of a box set of the books from Amazon that sums my feelings of that series up perfectly:

Mmm. I can understand that, but - I for one want to find out how it all ends.... having read all the books so far, and very much enjoyed most of them, it'd be frustrating not to get the conclusion. Yes, parts of the series dragged far too much, and I think he could have chopped out a good quarter of the series without harming it at all - but still I want to read that last book.

As an aside, George R. R. Martin better stay healthy and get a Song of Ice and Fire finished**. I'd be devastated not to find out where that one's headed, and I imagine we're at least six years away from the last book.

**And because I care about him. Honest.