by Robert Jordan
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Product Description
In this sequel to the phenomenal New York Times bestseller The Fires of Heaven, we plunge again into Robert Jordan's extraordinarily rich, totally unforgettable world:
On the slopes of Shayol Ghul, the Myrddraal swords are forged, and the sky is not the sky of this world;
In Salidar the White Tower in exile prepares an embassy to Caemlyn, where Rand Al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn, holds the throne--and where an unexpected visitor may change the world....
In Emond's Field, Perrin Goldeneyes, Lord of the Two Rivers, feels the pull of ta'veren to ta'veren and prepares to march....
Morgase of Caemlyn finds a most unexpected, and quite unwelcome, ally....And south lies Illian, where Sammael holds sway....
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Average Customer Review:
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
Good beginning and great finish, 2008-11-15
While Jordan's prologues tend to be seriously bloated, this one provides a lot of info, especially some great Forsaken viewpoints. A major plotline is revealed early on when Rand and Taim first meet. After that, the narrative does lull in the middle parts until Nynaeve's discovery and the summoning of Egwene. I especially enjoyed the Egwene/Gawyn interaction, that was a very nice touch by Jordan. I didn't like that Mat/Elayne/Nynaeve were left in limbo at the end of this book. However, the spectacular fight scene at Dumai's Wells made up for it. Not as good as Fires of Heaven, I'd rate this at 3.5, but still good entry for WoT.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
A slow pace redeemed by a spectacular payoff, 2008-10-30
The sixth book of The Wheel of Time takes us deep into the second act of this massive story, with the transition to a more political-oriented narrative continuing apace. Lord of Chaos is one of the more divisive books in the series, with fans praising its deeper exploration of ideas and intrigue, whilst critics bemoan the slow pace of the book compared to earlier volumes.
The kingdoms of Cairhien, Mayene and Tear are now sworn to the Dragon Reborn, and a successful raid on Caemlyn, capital of Andor, has seen that city fall to his forces as well. Several of the Forsaken, the most powerful servants of the Dark One, have been slain and Rand's successes look like they will continue unabated. In the south, he is assembling a vast army to send against the Forsaken Sammael in his stronghold of Illian, whilst the Aes Sedai remain divided on how to proceed with him. However, Rand's announcement of an amnesty for men who can channel has shocked the world, for all male channellers of the One Power are doomed to go mad and die, wreaking havoc as they go, and some of his enemies are prepared to move against him before that can be allowed to happen.
The theme of the sixth book in The Wheel of Time is consolidation. Rand's forces have absorbed vast amounts of territory, but before he can resume his campaign he must secure that which he holds already. With scheming against him in Andor and Cairhien underway and an outright rebellion going on in Tear, this proves a difficult task. Rand also has to find a way of dealing with both factions of the Aes Sedai, an undertaking fraught with peril. His companions also have their own problems to deal with: Perrin must prove his worthiness to his wife's parents, Mat has to deal with the issues of becoming a general, and Egwene, Elayne and Nynaeve have complex currents to negotiate amongst the rebel Aes Sedai. Even Pedron Niall, commander of the Children of the Light, has significant problems he has to overcome in both his own ranks and his dealings with the displaced Queen of Andor, whilst the surviving Forsaken scheme incessantly against one another.
The problem with this kind of stock-taking is that it is hard to work up a dramatic story about it. Instead, you end up with lots and lots of talk. Characters sitting around talking about the plot, about what has already happened and what they think might happen in the future. That's when they are not engaged in increasingly tedious and infantile discussions about male-female relations, which by this volume are starting to get a mite repetitive. The politicking and intrigue is fine as far as it goes (although fans of GRRM or Bakker may find it a bit on the shallow and simplistic side), but you do need a bit more to spice the book up. There's some fine, atmospheric interludes in the book, such as Rand taking a brief sojourn in the desolate, cursed city of Shadar Logoth, but overall the novel has serious pacing issues. Simply put, this is a 1,000-page book in which not a lot happens for the first three-quarters of it.
Towards the end, however, the pace starts to lift quite noticeably as Rand's attempts to play the two Aes Sedai factions off against one another backfire spectacularly and some of the most surprising events in the entire series take place, culminating in a massive battle at the spring of Dumai's Wells in which Jordan's sometimes-variable skills at depicting action, drama and the ability to tie together disparate storylines are put to their best effect. This late burst of action sequences and confrontations is extremely effective, and Dumai's Wells often tops readers' polls as the most satisfying moment of the entire series to date, with some fine moments right at the end of the book which hint at much greater things to come.
Lord of Chaos (****) is a sedentary novel where events unfold slowly, but do succeed in laying the groundwork for the spectacular and satisfying concluding section of the book. I suspect many readers will be put off by the slow pace, but I found the payoff to be more than worth it. The novel is available in the UK from Orbit and in the USA from Tor.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
The lord of chaos: another book well done, 2008-10-12
I enjoyed this book even though not as good as the ones before. It is more of an "event book" than a story. Throughout the thousand pages, there are several important events occurring. Though they are not as intriguing as its predecessors, it has several key developments in it and several questions are answered. Overall a very good book.
I have enjoyed this series a lot. Every book gets better and better. Until the last 100 pages, the book is bland and is very wordy, but it still is able to answer many questions (which in turn creates more questions).
As I have read other reviews, I realized that some readers don't appreciate a good book when they see one. They look for something that they would write. But I on the other hand enjoy his writing. If they don't enjoy it, don't read it.
In this book, Rand has just added another country to his rule. As revealed in the last book, the forsaken Lanfear is no longer, because of Moraine's quick thinking by shoving Lanfear into the Terangreall. (Though I do not believe she is gone for good.) I like how Rand performs in politics. Politics are not fun, but Rand handles them well for an unlearned boy from the country. He intends Elayne for the throne, but the nobles intend it for themselves.
The aiel and the wise ones are interesting and they are pretty good characters. As reading about them, I wondered who would win, an aiel, or an elf? I enjoy these characters.
At the starting of the, book I lost interest quickly, But when certain events occurred, like when rand found Salidar, it renewed my vigor. I also loved the return of Perrin, since has not appeared I two books.
Two characters that I continue to love are Mat and Perrin. Mat has always been a favorite of mine; one reason is because of his ever changing luck. All he wants is a woman to love and an inn to gamble in, yet he gets neither very often. Perrin I feel sorry for. Feile is a demanding woman and it is very interesting to see the marriage progress. I felt really sorry for him when Feile heard rumors of him and Berelain and started to ignore him. It reminds me of a proverb, "it is better to dwell in the wilderness than with an angry and contentious woman." I feel sorry for Perrin.
Finally, Rand is becoming less innocent and soft. He trusts little of Aes Sedai. In the final 100 pages, the best part of the book, his trust is shattered by unfortunate events. His character has changed from his innocent and carefree life in the Two Rivers
This book has many twists and turns. I can't wait for the next book. Though it is wordy in some parts, the story progresses with more plot twists and turns. I feel sad that Robert Jordan is dead, but I hope his son finishes the book soon. I love this series.
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
 Take the time to take it all in!, 2008-09-23
I've noticed some people complaining that this book, and even this series altogether, moves slowly due to the overuse of details. I'll admit that if I didn't want details, then whatever I did, I wouldn't read Robert Jordan or Frank Herbert or anyone else that set a higher standard for sci-fi / fantasy writing by providing dedicated READERS with what they wanted; DETAILS! Robert Jordan could have written 30 books in this series and I'd be all the happier because the characters have detail, the world has detail, and the plots have detail! For those of you that want more than just an expanded outline I highly recommend this book and all the other books that go along with it. Take your time and take it all in. You'll absolutely love it! For those of you that don't like details I recommend you watch a movie or read a magazine rather than a novel. In fact, maybe it'd be best if you didn't read at all. Think about it. If you insist on reading there's a good chance that you'll search for highly rated books and award winning authors only to be disappointed when you realize that the good stories are detailed. And to the person complaining that the women and men in this book(series) are not realistic, I recommend you read something non-fiction rather than fantasy. You might be less frustrated if you do so, and as it sounds from the point of view of any avid fantasy reader you may as well be complaining that the use of magic and the inclusion of fantastical creatures aren't realistic. It's called Fantasy for a reason!
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
A great bounce back after the turgid book 5, 2008-09-23
Book 6 has none of the fluff of book 5. The pace of the book slows to a sinister crawl towards the middle and then speeds up towards a cracking finale. I think it is one of the best in the series, up there with vols 2, 3, 4 The Great Hunt, The Dragon Reborn and The Shadow Rising. The political intrigue reaches a climax and Rand's paranoia is increasingly justified. This book is largely about Rand, Egwene, Perrin.
I always find it strange that people wax lyrical about book 1, which I thought has the most stupid last 200 pages of any of the books in the series.
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