VERY first impressions of WoT

Jarl Lewin

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I found that this series has the ability to create a vivid image in my mind about how the world looks. It's as if I already watched a movie and lived in parts of the world. The detail is amazing.

That is very much the way I experience books, like watching a movie: but the detail is somehow more real because--with the best writers anyway--it's almost like being there . . . but in the safety of your own chair :laugh: I appreciate detail in books if it is presented well because it makes the "movie" that much richer when reading.
 

Thaddius al'Guy

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I received the book for my birthday when I was 13 years old after scoping it out at a local bookstore. I had just finished reading Lord of the Rings and the back quote had “Jordan has come to dominate the world that Tolkien began to reveal.” Which is very enticing to a reader new to fantasy and just coming off the high of Lord of the Rings. I was least to say enamored by the book, though it was a fair bit denser than Lord of the Rings was. I was captivated by Jordan and his way of being able to paint a mental picture of everything going on. The scope was far beyond me at the time, as well. I read the book more than once before moving onto the second one (half because I enjoyed it that much, the other half I didn't have money for 'The Great Hunt' at the time). It shaped who I was as a reader. I owe a lot to this book series, despite never finding anyone locally who had read the books.
 

Jeffan Caliarthan

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Very first thought ever about WoT: "OH COOL A BOOK ABOUT DRAGONS I'M 13 AND I LOVE DRAGONS."
 

Thaddius al'Guy

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Very first thought ever about WoT: "OH COOL A BOOK ABOUT DRAGONS I'M 13 AND I LOVE DRAGONS."
I did think at first that the 'Dragon Reborn' was literal, and there would be a fire breathing dragon at some point. I guess if you made it far enough, you do see Dragons that shoot eggs, but that's not what I was expecting.
 

Adanys Wynterwulf

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My first impression would have to be "OMG I know I was looking for a fantasy series BUT THIS IS MASSIVE and I don't know if my brain can keep up with a world that spans 14 books!!!!" :fire :fire
 

Thaddius al'Guy

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My first impression would have to be "OMG I know I was looking for a fantasy series BUT THIS IS MASSIVE and I don't know if my brain can keep up with a world that spans 14 books!!!!" :fire :fire

AND YET
 

Jarl Lewin

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My first impression would have to be "OMG I know I was looking for a fantasy series BUT THIS IS MASSIVE and I don't know if my brain can keep up with a world that spans 14 books!!!!" :fire :fire

That's what rereads are for.
smoking-smiley.gif
 

Toral Delvar

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Some things I'm not sure about:
I've never been a fan of "this type of people is better than that type" mentalities, and I kinda am afraid that that might be happening with glorifying Aes Sedai and Warders. It's like everyone is worshiping a master race or something. IDK, everyone around here seems to like them, so maybe I'll prove to be wrong.
I'm also realizing what a sexist I am because immediately all of the people with power and authority and control seem to be women - not the ordinary in a high fantasy setting! However, I've read a lot that really refers to some of the main male characters I'm just now meeting, so maybe it won't be so bad.
This is a world where for 3000 years, only women have been able to safely use the Power, so that has had some impact on how the roles of men and women are viewed, though perhaps not as much as I would expect - a lot of societies have what we think of as a fairly traditional view of them
I'm not sure if people glorify Aes Sedai and Warders - they have a pretty mixed, and somewhat inconsistent view - eg, they are darkfriends, but spend their time in the Blight fighting evil. There's also an extent to which they aren't trusted, in a large part because they have so much power and don't seem answerable to anyone other than themselves
 

Laurien Achaur

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Goodness. It looks like no one's posted here since before I went to basic training! Since I'm a new newbie, I'll chip in with my own first impressions.

A favorite teacher in high school handed me Eye of the World one day and said, "These books will change your life." Well, I'd read the Lord of the Rings and knew I loved good fantasy, so thought I'd give it a go. Then I realized I had no time to read because I was already reading so much for school (blasted Honors English). And I looked at how many books there were and thought, "This is way too much." (Never mind that I'd read all the Dragonriders of Pern books by that point.) I tried a few chapters, couldn't follow, and gave the book back with apologies.

Two decades later, the show has me asking, "How could I not have made the time for these books back then?" (Well, I'm not thinking like a teenager anymore, so there's that.) Now that I've started reading EotW again, and while I'm not very far in yet, I can already tell it has everything I loved about LotR - evocative writing, an abundance of detail, subtext and foreshadowing. Maybe the fact that I'm getting a writing-centric degree helps me pick up on these things, and maybe the show giving me a love for these characters and the world helps...but regardless, my new first impression is a good one, and I'm excited to continue on, however long it takes.
 

Nadezhda al'Lanahrin

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The series is definitely a long haul, but I’ve found it’s really worth it. I adore these books and these characters. It’s also given me a new home here in Tar Valon.

@Laurien Achaur How far are you into the first book?
 

Laurien Achaur

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The series is definitely a long haul, but I’ve found it’s really worth it. I adore these books and these characters. It’s also given me a new home here in Tar Valon.

@Laurien Achaur How far are you into the first book?
I'm just getting to the end of the first chapter. So when I say I'm just starting out...I really mean I'm just starting out :pleased-1:
 

Satara al'Caelahn

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It's amusing to me how many people picked it up for the first time only to put it down again, then pick it back up later and fall in love with it.

My first impressions were that it was hard for me to get into. The prologue confused me, and I wanted to understand more of it, but it's just a prologue, so you don't get it. Then it felt like that walk down the Old Quarry Road took 84 years and I got bored with it.

BUT... I kept reading, devoured the rest of the series up to Knife of Dreams (book 10) which was all that was published at that time.

I can honestly say it's a book series that has completely altered the course of my life, my perspective on things, and how I view other books and series. Even Crossroads of Twilight. (If you know, you know. :laugh: )
 
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Oh I'm so excited to see your impressions as you read through for the first time! I never like the prologue, but there is a scene very early in the books 1 that I still remember reading for the first time (almost 30 years ago!) and that scene was when I knew I was hooked on a new series. :pleased-1:
 

Nadezhda al'Lanahrin

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When I started the series, I started Eye of the World twice and put it down. The third time, I haven’t stopped since.
 

Delara Morellin

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I read book five, Fires of Heaven, first as the local bookshop didn't have any of the earlier ones. That was confusing as heck :laugh:
 

Ilverin Matriam

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I read book five, Fires of Heaven, first as the local bookshop didn't have any of the earlier ones. That was confusing as heck :laugh:

Once I heard a guy saying that he didn't like the series. He also said that he picked up Winter's Heart from a bookstore and read that first.... :facepalm
 

Aran Cherubim

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Once I heard a guy saying that he didn't like the series. He also said that he picked up Winter's Heart from a bookstore and read that first.... :facepalm

Oof, that's rough.
 
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