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The Wheel of Time (abbreviated tWoT, WOT, or WoT) is a fantasy book series written by Robert Jordan, notable for the extreme density of its plotting, the intricate detail of its imaginary world, its generally pessimistic tone in which almost anything that can go wrong eventually does, and the lifelike complexity of relationships and interactions between characters, both individually and collectively. Jordan is considered in some circles to be the spiritual heir to the high fantasy style popularized by J. R. R. Tolkien. The series has spawned one video game and tabletop role-playing game adaptations, released by Wizards of the Coast and based on d20 rules.
When asked how many more books the series will contain, the author has been quoted as saying, "not less than 3 more" (as of book 9). More recently, he has been quoted by overseas publisher Orbit, saying that the main series will conclude with Book 12. He intends to write two more prequel novels after he finishes the series.
The Premise
In the beginning, there was the Creator, who made the Wheel of Time, which spins the Pattern of the Ages using the lives of men as its threads. The Wheel has seven spokes, each representing an age, and it is rotated by the One Power, a source of magic. The One Power is divided into male and female halves, saidin and saidar, which work in opposition and in unison to drive the Wheel; those who can touch this power and use it in their works are known as channelers. There was also the Dark One, a powerful, evil being, whom the Creator imprisoned, sealing him away from the Wheel. At some point, though, the Dark One was freed by the machinations of well-meaning people. Thus the taint of the Shadow was felt upon the world. The Dark One gathered followers to himself and began his efforts to conquer the world, creation, even the Wheel itself. Against them rose the Dragon, a channeling man who led the forces of Light against the legions of evil. The war was fought, and the Light won, for the Dark One did not gain dominion over the Wheel of Time. As the ages passed, the Wheel spun, the Dark One gathered his power again, until the time inevitably came when he would try again. So the cycle continued through innumerable centuries: the Dark One rose, and the Dragon was Reborn, "spun out" by the Wheel to fight the battle again.
Robert Jordan's novels concern one particular war between the Shadow and the Light. It has been three thousand years since the last War of Power, in which Lews Therin Telamon, the Dragon, succeeded in re-sealing the hole on the Dark One's prison with the aid of a group of one hundred male Aes Sedai among the most powerful of the Age of Legends known as the Hundred Companions. Unfortunately, the Dark One managed to taint saidin, the male half of the One Power with a counterstroke resulting of a madness and wasting sickness that grips Lews Therin and the Hundred companions. The Dragon Reborn, then, is viewed with both hope and fear. On the one hand, he is the only force who can stop the Dark One from rising. On the other hand, Lews Therin was such a powerful channeler that he was able to level mountain ranges single-handedly--and did so, once the taint had got a hold of him. A period of horrible destruction ensued, as all male channelers went insane from the taint on saidin, and changed the face of the planet. This period was known as the Breaking of the World or Time of Madness, and ended the Age of Legends. The surviving Aes Sedai, female channelers particularly the Red Ajah have spent the past three thousand years hunting down and gentling any man who can channel in fear of another Time of Madness. For reasons beyond their understanding, the incidence of channeling women has also gone down. Into this situation, the Dragon is born again. He will be the only one who can stop the Dark One from winning.
Other notes
It is interesting that when creating names in the series, Jordan used names and words of foreign languages, or even English, starting with Shai'tan (the prime evil force of the series, also known as the Dark One), and especially visible in names of Trolloc clans (Dha'vol, Kho'bol, etc). The intended impression is that the world in which the series is set might be our own world at some different point on the Wheel of Time.
Books in series (so far)
- The Eye of the World (15 January 1990)
- The Great Hunt (15 November 1990)
- The Dragon Reborn (15 October 1991)
- The Shadow Rising (15 September 1992)
- The Fires of Heaven (15 October 1993)
- Lord of Chaos (15 October 1994)
- A Crown of Swords (15 May 1996)
- The Path of Daggers (20 October 1998)
- Winter's Heart (9 November 2000)
- Glimmers: The Prologue to Crossroads of Twilight (July 2002, E-Book)
- Crossroads of Twilight (7 January 2003)
- Knife of Dreams (6 October 2005)
There is also a prequel novella, "New Spring"
in the Legends anthology edited by Robert Silverberg. The novella was expanded into a standalone novel-length version, New Spring, that was published in January 2004.
In 2002 the first book Eye of the World has been repackaged as two volumes for "younger" readers with new illustrations From the Two Rivers, including an extra chapter before the existing prologue and To the Blight with an expanded glossary. In 2004 the same was made with The Great Hunt as well with , separating it in two volumes for younger readers with illustrations - the Hunt Begins and New Threads in the Pattern.
There is a short story available on the web, "The Strike at Shayol Ghul (http://www.tor.com/shayol.html)", which predates the main series by several thousand years. That story is also found in The World of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time (ISBN 0-312-86219-9), an official hardcover guide to the Wheel of Time published in November 1998.
See also
External links
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