Review: The Great Hunt

The Great Hunt by Robert Jordan

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



It's so hard to write a good review of this book. There's so much going on, and this is already much more complex than the first in the series. It is no longer a 'flight' narrative, and so there is not as much to compare to the Lord of the Rings anymore. It really takes off in its own direction from this point onward.

The main focus in the first book was the danger of being chased by myrddraal, trollocs, and darkfriends. Now the wider world is opening up, and there are new dangers and challenges. Enemies are introduced - the Forsaken, the Seanchan - and old dangers persist with the White Cloaks, Padan Fain, and of course more myrddraal and trollocs. We meet new Aes Sedai - the Amyrlin herself, Verin, Liandrin - and Egwene and Nynaeve begin their training in the White Tower. There is plenty of world-building, with more glimpses of what has been lost from the Age of Legends, travel in new lands and cities, and political intrigue building both in the White Tower and in Cairhien. On top of it all, ta'veren takes effect and all hell breaks loose!

It's really impossible to do this justice in a review, but I felt I had to try. I can't put into words how I love these books, and what an adventure they are. This is one of my favorites of the series, and it was just as exciting this time as the previous times I've read it. I was trying to skim so that I can get to the books I've not read yet, but it kept sucking me back in. I finally surrendered and just settled in for the long haul.


2/3/2013:

This is still one of the best books I've read. Still gripping, fantastic. Great stuff.



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