If Tolkien is the god of fantasy writing, then Robert Jordan is the king. Robert Jordan was the author of the very influential Wheel of Time series, and prior to his passing in 2007, was a prolific writer whose mark on fantasy can still be seen to this day. He was an exquisite world builder whose ability to write relatable and realistic character driven stories was like no other through charming dialogue and unique. It all started with The Eye of the World, the first book in the Wheel of Time series.
The Eye of the World takes place in a high fantasy setting with magic, knights, mythical beasts, and the like. It is easy to compare it to the likes of the Forgotten Realms or Lord of the Rings book series because of this; however The Eye of the World incorporates new ideas and concepts into its world in order to make it both more fantastical and somehow more grounded than that of the LOTG or FR universes. The Wheel of Time series takes place in the land of Andor, and every one of our main characters come from the “rustic” village of Emond’s Field which is in the Two Rivers region. The home of the heroes in this story is incredibly important to me as a reader, as it sets up the world as a place that is populated by regular, salt of the earth people that seem insignificant in the grand scheme of things. You get a glimpse into the lives of the people that inhabit the land of Andor without having to meet any characters at all. If anything, this is a testament to the brilliant world building that Jordan was known for. He builds a high contrast between the very reality grounded people of Emond’s Field with the fantastical nature of the rest of the world.
A setting is no good without memorable characters, and Jordan excels at creating a cast that is both relatable and likeable. The story follows Rand al’Thor and his two friends, Matrim Cauthon and Perrin Aybara. Without spoiling too much about the background of each character, they’re all from the Two Rivers and share a common past with each other. Jordan writes in such a way so that all three characters bounce off each other’s strengths and weaknesses. They all share a very dynamic relationship that is ever changing due to outside forces and the rapidly changing world around them. It is really easy to see the chemistry between the trio; it is believable that they are friends and have been for a while. Dialogue exchanges between the three characters range from childish and lighthearted to heavy and thoughtful. This is entirely because of the vivid writing style that Jordan uses, which incorporates a lot of lines that almost feel like improvised ad libs.
Jordan has a philosophy of subtlety, and refuses to hit his reader over the head with exposition and unnecessary details. However, as a rule of thumb, he goes through a lot of hoops in order to completely describe characters, events, or settings that ultimately do not matter a whole lot. I could see how this would annoy a lot of people, however I think it is a charming nuance of his. At the beginning of the story, it caught me off guard how many characters are described in great detail, only to serve a purpose for a page or so and never appear again. Out of this nuance however come with the problem of trying to keep track of all the events, characters, and settings. As the reader, I was constantly barraged with names of secondary and tertiary characters that I struggled to keep tabs on. As a side note, this issue only gets worse and worse throughout the series.
The plot is a troublesome subject that is tough to touch on as this is supposed to only be a review of the first book in the fourteen book series. However, to summarize, the story follows our three main characters as they leave their homeland in order to put a stop to the impending darkness that threatens their home. Against them stands the forces of Shai’tan, the “Dark One,” an intriguing villain with dynamic motives and a rich history that is explained in a prologue centuries before the story begins. Along their path to stop Shai’tan, our heroes must travel the lands of Andor, meeting new allies and fighting powerful enemies along the way. As typical as it sounds, it is anything but. Among the many fantasy tropes that you or I have come to know, there’s great political intrigue, plot twists, and powerful revelations in play that lead into a great ending that sets up the series for the next few stories.
Ultimately, there is little to complain about in the first book in the Wheel of Time series. The character driven story that is complemented by Jordan’s subtle yet vivid writing style makes for a unique reading experience. As the first book in the series, it fulfils its purpose of setting up the rest of the universe, and only made me want to read the rest of the series. Naturally, I have read up to book seven, and plan to finish the series over the summer. I love this book, and if I were forced to give an arbitrary rating to it, I would give it an 8/10 due to it suffering from very few issues all the while being a very enjoyable read. Definitely pick this book up if you have the chance.