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rorikae's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A slower installment in the Wheel of Time series with an explosive ending. This book has less battles and character movement than the previous installments though we do get some quality time with a number of the characters. This is the first installment where one of our main characters is completely absent, which felt strange but made sense given the context of the wider story. Despite a relatively slow plot for a majority of the book, the ending includes some big moments, including some heartbreaking ones. I am interested to see how this ripples out into the wider plot. I hope that the next book has a bit more going on though I know there are a few books where not a ton happens. The characters are what continue to keep my interest.
Graphic: Death, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Murder, and Gaslighting
Minor: Sexual content
shamciar's review against another edition
DNFing this franchise largely due to the Seanchan, Mat, gender essentialism, another light/dark dichotomy, and the amount of fans who will justify it all. The Seanchan barely appear here, but after having set this book down for over a year, picking it back up again, and still feeling largely the same way, I am deciding that it's not worth me continuing. I was also spoiled on numerous things regarding Mat and the Seanchan and I do not wish to risk RAFO just to have the same disappointment. Aside from this, so much of the character interactions and the way people in positions of power treat the main characters has really started to get under my skin, and as before, I do not have the energy to RAFO and see if things get any better.
Graphic: Slavery and Torture
thebruce's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Slavery and Classism
Minor: Alcohol
surdiablo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The first half of this book is slow in the sense that nothing substantial happens and it's mainly character development for Nynaeve and Elayne. While I wasn't bored at all reading it and it was easy enough to go through, it had some <b>huh?</b> moments, like Elayne and Thom flirting, what??? Lack of Perrin wasn't noticeable at all and I love how Rand becomes more and more badass in each book. I am starting to be fond of Nynaeve, annoyed further by Egwene and Mat is hilarious just like in Shadow Rising. I don't think I loved this book, but the last five chapters had me going through the most impactful rollercoaster in the series for me so far, besides the 'What might be' chapter in Great Hunt.
Moderate: Slavery and Violence
Minor: Sexual content
razzberry_pi's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Slavery
applekettle's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Hmmm.... a little torn on this one. There were parts that I absolutely LOVED and were series highlights. Morgase's chapters, few as they were, were GREAT. They read like a domestic horror story, with the magical elements adding an additional layer of horror. Following Siuan/Min/Leane/Logain was great too - they had an interesting dynamic, and I absolutely love Siuan's determination. Her sparring with Nynaeve was funny, they're both so incredibly stubborn that they naturally rub each other the wrong way.
Nynaeve had a lot of POV chapters this book and they were GREAT. She's really developing as a character and her motivati0ns are starting to shift - glad she's finally acknowledging that she DOES want to be Aes Sedai, if only to learn as much of Healing as she can.
With just these characters, the book would have been five stars. HOWEVER, Rand annoyed me enough to knock off .75 of a star. He had LOADS of POV chapters and they moved SO SLOWLY, until right at the very end where there was a complete 180 and it moved so fast it was hard to keep up. Also, where was Perrin? His POV was the best in book 4, it feels like an odd choice to abandon it right after it hit its stride.
Nynaeve had a lot of POV chapters this book and they were GREAT. She's really developing as a character and her motivati0ns are starting to shift - glad she's finally acknowledging that she DOES want to be Aes Sedai, if only to learn as much of Healing as she can.
With just these characters, the book would have been five stars. HOWEVER, Rand annoyed me enough to knock off .75 of a star. He had LOADS of POV chapters and they moved SO SLOWLY, until right at the very end where there was a complete 180 and it moved so fast it was hard to keep up. Also, where was Perrin? His POV was the best in book 4, it feels like an odd choice to abandon it right after it hit its stride.
Graphic: Domestic abuse
Moderate: Slavery and Injury/Injury detail
the domestic abuse is only really explicit in 1-2 POV chapters, but it is explicit in those chapters.readandfindout's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.5
On first read in 2015: 5 stars
2022 reread:
Overall rating: 4.5 stars
Style/writing: 4 stars
Themes: 4 stars
Characters: 4 stars
Plot: 5 stars
Worldbuilding: 5 stars
2022 reread:
Overall rating: 4.5 stars
Style/writing: 4 stars
Themes: 4 stars
Characters: 4 stars
Plot: 5 stars
Worldbuilding: 5 stars
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Slavery
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