Science Fiction Writers Workshop

Okay someone had to...

The first few books were terrific. The characters were three dimensional and the world was vast and intricate. I couldn't put them down.

After a while though, the story got a little stale. I enjoyed the last two books but I didn't rush to buy them or to read them. Ten books and counting, plus the prequel (haven't read, probably won't) is a long time to ask fans to wait for an outcome. He should tie them up in mini-trilogies like Brooks did with Sword of Shannara.

Jordan has lost control of his tale. There are too many characters and far too many plotlines. Even though the books are massive, often several books will go by without us knowing what major characters have been up to. By then we forget who they are or why they were in the story in the first place. As a result, the chronology is a mess. And every book brings in more characters!

The protagonist, Rand, has taken a back seat along with his two childhood friends. These three were originally the main characters of the story. It's all about the women now. Women hold all the positions of power, except for Rand, whom we rarely see. This feels like a blatant appeal to a feminine audience. I don't care if the protagonists are female -- but the change in focus feels like a sellout and that irks me.

Some people say Jordan only got his books on the bestseller shelves because his wife is in the publishing business (an editor at Tor, who publishes his books). Apparently they met after Tor bought his first book, but anyway, I don't hold it against him. In any business you use all the contacts you can. I would do the same in his place.