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unfortunately quite serious, first thing one of my friends told me on msn after i got home from work

Yes he had been fighting a rare blood disease for a while now.

Anyone heard when the last book is planned to be released?

i thinks its fall 09

im on book 4 now. wont have to worry about the new release for a while. although he died, he's immortal due to his works.

great series so far. expected a let down at every step and am getting tired of walking

Mordack wrote:Uhm, I'll start by saying that I think Robert Jordan has a great imagination, and an interesting story to tell. I thought Book One, the Eye of the World, was a truly brilliant work of fantasy.

But I have two main problems with his writing: One is that he's badly in need of a good editor. He feels compelled to pound ideas into your head. He lacks a good deal of what George R.R Martin, another contemporary fantasy writer, possesses in plentitude - subtlety and/or finesse. What GRRM says in a few words takes RJ reams, after which, the reader has been "worded" into a sort of semi-conscious state only to be jolted awake by an interesting nugget. I would chalk this up to just being a so-so writer, but then I have to admit I am hooked by the story.

The other problem is that - and this is probably the reason for the first problem - the story has been stretched beyond its logical bounds, whether for income-producing reasons or not, I can't say. At this point, I have no idea whether the multitude of names of nobles I've shuffled through will be important and worthy of remembering at a later stage in the book, or whether I can file them away under "useless junk."

So in short, I would give him an A for plotline, but a C for execution.

I did want to give him his props where props are due. I'll continue reading. It's not as though I'm not enjoying a lot of aspects of it. (I've become immune to, or set wards against, the literary tics - braid pulling, glaring, etc.) I like the main characters - yes, even Nynaeve.

lmao....I was about to write something along those lines

Definitely needs a better editing - not just for cutting it back, but he seems to get saidin and saidar mixed up so much I don't know whether Rand is suddenly supposed to be using the female one.

They're definitely good, but he has an annoying tendency to drag things out - for example a boat trip lasting ten days from one place to another: could have spent a couple of pages just saying everyone was restless, instead you get two chapters of Nyneave's braid pulling, Elayne's chin raising, and Aviendha's fear of water.....and nothing remarkable happens on the boat journey except they get to the location....

He could probably write it with half the length - he'd probably claim that you'd miss a lot of the characterisation out, which maybe you'd lose some - but in Lotr (yes, the inevitable comparison) you get the characterisation without needing to know every little squabble they had over who'd do the washing up.

Anyway, I'd give the series a 7/10 - definitely a good plot, and you will find yourself hooked - but be prepared to trudge through some pretty heavy literature at times - and bang your head a lot when you hear the same idea/thought said a hundred times before he thinks you've quite grasped it.

Edit: Also, something I found quite annoying is his ability to forget characters (only see the spoilers if you've read up to book 9)
[spoiler]For example, Perrin gets a fair bit of book 4, but then absolutely no mention in 5 and not much in 6, whereas Mat ends book 7 attacked by the Seanchan and then there's no mention of him in 8 - (not entirely certain on book numbers) but I find it kinda annoying when one of my favourite characters just gets ignored [/spoiler]

You mean you guys dont like hearing about all the different colored panels of such and such cloth in so and so's dress? Like Mordack, Ive learned to absorb the extensive descriptions and such without reading them. I started reading this series in December of 89 on Christmas break from college and despite the expanded publishing schedule, I find myself running to the book store the day the latest volume goes on sale.

lol. Taishar Manetheren

I like the series - I'm re-reading them after a break of about five years - I guess I notice more of the downsides when I know roughly whats gonna happen.

Something I've been meaning to ask people who've read it: again - up to 9th book don't read spoilers:
[spoiler]Doesn't anyone else think the Forsaken (indeed, the forces of Shadow) are a bit weak (at least up until book 9) - Nyneave is supposed to be the only woman strong enough to take on a Forsaken at the start, but now there's a few Windfinders, Seanchan, some old granny, who are all strong enough, and presumably quite a few men are as well - even though the Forsaken were supposed to be some of the most powerful from an Age when everyone was powerful. At the end of book 9, ten Aes Sedai and Ashaman hold off a bunch of Forsaken attacking Rand - ten?! Yes they had a couple of angreal, and a sa'angreal, but there are thousands of men and women who could channel to defend against the Shadow - I just don't see the enemy as particularly threatening atm - I've only read up to book 9, so maybe they'll come up with something new [/spoiler]

I guess the strength of the book is I can critise it, and still like it.