>The general consensus (from rasfwr-j) is that _Crown of Swords_ (#7)
>and _The Path of Daggers_ (#8) were mediocre at best. Personally, I
>think tPoD blew rancid goats. But with _Winter's Heart_, Jordan seems
>to have gotten back on track. On the whole, I still really, really
>like the series. I wouldn't bother with reading the monster out loud
>otherwise. I'm willing to forgive a lot for a good story.

After slogging through CoS and TPoD, reading Winter's Heart was a pleasant surprise, mostly because there was actual forward motion on the overall plot. I mean, I figured Rand would be cleansing the taint from saidin about halfway through The Eye of the World. I think Jordan finally figured out that people are going to get pissed if the series doesn't go somewhere soon. (I sure as hell won't keep up with it if I can't believe that it's going to end by book 15. Book 12? That I'll believe when I see.) I mean, he's still going to milk it for every penny he can get from it, but he's figured out that he ain't gonna sell books if the audience isn't happy.

-- Sean --

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