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A review by nclcaitlin
A Memory of Light by Robert Jordan, Brandon Sanderson
4.0
And so the Wheel turns for one final book.
Do I recommend reading it?
This is hard.
Yes, if you have read Malazan or the Stormlight Archive and you want something that is similarly big to sink your teeth into. Or if you want a classic fantasy with many moving parts and you have time to dedicate to fourteen long books.
No, if you are new to the genre.
No, if you need your books to be fast-paced or consistently paced throughout.
No, if you can’t deal with tedious amounts of descriptions. Sighing, smoothing, tugging, sniffing, and a lot of focus on cleavage and clothing.
My Wheel of Time Rankings:
1. The Gathering Storm
2. A Memory of Light (Highest rated on GR)
3. Lord of Chaos
4. The Eye of the World
5. Towers of Midnight (2nd Highest rated)
6. Knife of Dreams
7. The Dragon Reborn
8. The Fires of Heaven
9. The Great Hunt
10. The Shadow Rising
11. Crossroads of Twilight (Lowest rated)
12. Winter’s Heart (2nd Lowest rated)
13. A Crown of Swords
14. The Path of Daggers
Final book review:
Camelyn has fallen to Trollocs, the Black Tower has been overtaken by Dark forces and the Gap is being overrun by Shadow spawn.
Every major ruler has been gathered for a meeting to hear Rand’s proposal. He means to break the seals. There will be a Breaking, and the Dark One will try to grind the world to dust unless Rand can unite the nations together.
This includes the Seanchan which is where our very own Prince of Ravens Mat comes in.
Rand aims for lasting peace if there is an after. Rand doesn’t want to die for the nations of humanity, only to have them turn upon one another the moment the last Trolloc falls.
This felt so nostalgic whilst being so epic. A culmination of so many threads and moving parts.
“I thought you had grown up while I was away," Moiraine said.
“Only Perrin grew up," Rand said. "Mat and I have simply learned to pretend to be grown up." He hesitated. "Mat did not learn it so well."
If you have been following my reviews for any length of time, you know that I am not a fan of prolonged battle scenes. This entire book is The Last Battle. It is made up of skirmishes and fights on all fronts.
I did find myself skimming extended fighting scenes, but for the most part my eyes were drinking in the words addictively fast. I needed to know what happened.
The tactics, the ploys of the Dark One, the genius of a certain Mat Cauthon… Incredible.
“Darkness cannot push back Light. Darkness exists only when Light fails, when it flees.”
I don’t know how feel about the ending. I don’t think Sanderson could have written an epilogue that fully satisfied everyone, so I understand why he left it as he did, leaving the tapestry finished with the finer ‘after’ details smudged.
Overall, I am glad I continued with this series.
I loved seeing everything brought together and I loved the political manoeuvring of the Aes Sedai and the White Tower.
Ultimately, I did enjoy the final message of this series and it left me feel fulfilled.
Do I recommend reading it?
This is hard.
Yes, if you have read Malazan or the Stormlight Archive and you want something that is similarly big to sink your teeth into. Or if you want a classic fantasy with many moving parts and you have time to dedicate to fourteen long books.
No, if you are new to the genre.
No, if you need your books to be fast-paced or consistently paced throughout.
No, if you can’t deal with tedious amounts of descriptions. Sighing, smoothing, tugging, sniffing, and a lot of focus on cleavage and clothing.
My Wheel of Time Rankings:
1. The Gathering Storm
2. A Memory of Light (Highest rated on GR)
3. Lord of Chaos
4. The Eye of the World
5. Towers of Midnight (2nd Highest rated)
6. Knife of Dreams
7. The Dragon Reborn
8. The Fires of Heaven
9. The Great Hunt
10. The Shadow Rising
11. Crossroads of Twilight (Lowest rated)
12. Winter’s Heart (2nd Lowest rated)
13. A Crown of Swords
14. The Path of Daggers
Final book review:
Camelyn has fallen to Trollocs, the Black Tower has been overtaken by Dark forces and the Gap is being overrun by Shadow spawn.
Every major ruler has been gathered for a meeting to hear Rand’s proposal. He means to break the seals. There will be a Breaking, and the Dark One will try to grind the world to dust unless Rand can unite the nations together.
This includes the Seanchan which is where our very own Prince of Ravens Mat comes in.
Rand aims for lasting peace if there is an after. Rand doesn’t want to die for the nations of humanity, only to have them turn upon one another the moment the last Trolloc falls.
This felt so nostalgic whilst being so epic. A culmination of so many threads and moving parts.
“I thought you had grown up while I was away," Moiraine said.
“Only Perrin grew up," Rand said. "Mat and I have simply learned to pretend to be grown up." He hesitated. "Mat did not learn it so well."
If you have been following my reviews for any length of time, you know that I am not a fan of prolonged battle scenes. This entire book is The Last Battle. It is made up of skirmishes and fights on all fronts.
I did find myself skimming extended fighting scenes, but for the most part my eyes were drinking in the words addictively fast. I needed to know what happened.
The tactics, the ploys of the Dark One, the genius of a certain Mat Cauthon… Incredible.
“Darkness cannot push back Light. Darkness exists only when Light fails, when it flees.”
I don’t know how feel about the ending. I don’t think Sanderson could have written an epilogue that fully satisfied everyone, so I understand why he left it as he did, leaving the tapestry finished with the finer ‘after’ details smudged.
Overall, I am glad I continued with this series.
I loved seeing everything brought together and I loved the political manoeuvring of the Aes Sedai and the White Tower.
Ultimately, I did enjoy the final message of this series and it left me feel fulfilled.