I finally finished reading The Wheel of Time (WOT) on the weekend. For those who don’t know what that is, it is a sprawling fantasy epic initially written by Robert Jordan and completed by Brandon Sanderson after Jordan’s unfortunate demise. It consists of a little over four million words spread over 14 mainline novels and one preqeuel and published over the course of more than two decades. There do be spoilers ahead.
Overall, the series is a massive investment to read, and not just the time to read it. From the initial events in Emond’s Field that bring five of the most important characters in the story into the action to the conclusion of the Last Battle, it displays all the earmarks of a good epic tale. We, the readers, are eased gently into the world as the main characters themselves learn that the sleepy world of The Two Rivers is not all there is to their world. Indeed, the parallels to The Lord of the Rings are obvious as a fellowship is forged. Yet despite the obvious parallels with Tolkien’s work, WOT is definitely its own story. Indeed, the scale of its storytelling far dwarf’s Tolkien’s work.
The narrative is not without its faults, however. As the epic grows in scale with the main characters’ expanding perceptions, so, too, does the scope of that narrative. Previously minor characters turn out to have important parts in the action such as the young seer Min Farshaw or a boat captain of questionable repute. As the cast of characters expands and the threads of narrative multiply, the narrative soon gets bogged down and progress on various story lines stalls out, often for entire volumes. As the tale unfolds, it becomes increasingly difficult to keep track of the relative temporal relationships between those narrative threads. Often the clues to that temporal relationship were subtle, relying on rumours from afar. More on that later.
The other major fault the narrative falls into is that it often dwells excessively on the internal monologues and angst of the characters. For instance, in one volume, it is likely that a full tenth could have been omitted had the editors insisted that Jordan trim those incessive monologues. I found myself skimming them more often than not as they became tedious. The feeling that the characters were just not progressing at all could have been largely avoided by trimming those monologues. This fact is quite adequately demonstrated by Sanderson’s work on the final three volumes. He did not eliminate those monologues but he did reduce their frequency and length. Still, this is not a bad enough fault to discount reading the series at all. Jordan is hardly the only writer to ever fall into that trap and, to be fair, it is a hard balance to strike between realistically revealing the internal motivations and state of mind of a character and keeping the story moving.
Much of what causes readers trouble in the story is not actually problems in the storytelling, however. Instead, it is, instead, the accurate depiction of the world and the way information travels. At the opening, the world is medieval with information travelling no faster than foot or horse traffic could take it, often slower. Those with greater means might learn of things sooner through carrier pigeons. And, like the classic game of telephone, information gets corrupted in the retelling. Thus characters in Caemlyn are making decisions based on inaccurate information from The Two Rivers.
As the story progresses, and various techniques for long distance communication develop, the characters with access to those techniques begin to improve their information and make better decisions. Eventually, even rapid long distance travel becomes available and this improves matters even further. Indeed, one can easily see the disruptions such innovations make to the medieval world. Simultaneously with the Last Battle, the world in WOT is undergoing a renaissance and the beginnings of an industrial revolution and modern warfare can be seen. We see such wonders as educational institutions, cannons, steam carriages, and a long distance “video” conference, among others. In the end, with the Dragon’s Peace, it is likely that such developments will accelerate.
Perhaps the most impressive part of the overall story, however, is the Last Battle itself. It is a sprawling battle on four fronts against hopeless odds, as the epic fantasy formula dictates. But it is not merely a clash of armies, nor of channelers. Nor do we see the forces of light executing perfect battle strategy and winning against hopeless odds. Instead, the forces of darkness are led by competent leadership with good battle tactics. And they use every means at their disposal to sabotage the leadership of the light, to the point of compromising the four great generals that lead the forces. Not only that, but rogue elements cause all manner of complications along the way, on both sides of the battle. Personalities come into play, personalities which nearly lead to a complete loss due to stubbornness or blindness.
Finally, the price paid for the final victory, for the Dragon’s Peace, is steep. The casualties are numerous among the prime movers and not even the all of the original five from Emond’s Field survive, powerful though they are! The blood price numbers not in the thousands or tens of thousands. It lies in the hundreds of thousands or more just for the single final united stand. Probably millions more perished during the strife leading up to it. Among the casualties are such notables as Elayne’s siblings, at least two Amyrlin Seats, at least one great general, and a steadfast Two Rivers mare who it had seemed would plod on through all the ages of the world of WOT unharmed and unfazed.
By the time the last unified stand begins in the middle of the final volume, we come to know a great many characters in a surprising degree of detail, and not just the most important characters. We come to understand the motivations of the common folks, and even some of the enemies. It is a kick in the gut when the aforementioned mare dies, or when an Amyrlin Seat dies in a heroic self sacrifice. As the final pages wrap up on the slopes of Shayol Ghul, we feel nearly as drained as the survivors as they watch the Dragon Reborn slowly slip away.
In all, despite its flaws, The Wheel of Time will stand among the best of the epic fantasy genre, easily earning its place beside such works as The Lord of the Rings and The Malazan Book of the Fallen. Indeed, even with its narrative flaws, The Wheel of Time is far more readable than The Lord of the Rings. If sprawling epic fantasy is your thing, do yourself a favour and read this one.