Indeed, I knew by name, but the amount of paperbacks that meant I was a tad cool (about twenty I think). So the idea of grouping tomes, it is rather tempting. The floor is heavy - really - quality, but still costs 25 ... well it's still reasonable.
The story is fairly standard in the background: young people, simple, and nothing seemed predestined to this story, finds himself torn from their land and families to engage in a long and exhausting journey. The goal? Save the world from destruction, evil begins to stir and gnawing the bars of his prison. This is serious, and Rand and his friends recover their fate in the hands of Moiraine and Lan, his most faithful ally. Will then follow in many adventures and dramas. The strange company will sometimes split - willy-nilly - but will meet for the final action, with developments in the characters 'secondary' group.
In fact, we understand from the first pages that Rand is most important, but Perrin and Matt will have a significant role to play, and I do not even talk about women! But in terms of the people who help them - or not for that matter - there will be movement at the mercy of events.
Perverse effect of the communication campaign, all my reading I had images of movies The Lord of the Rings head! (I never read the books) The beginning, which shows the transition of the Wheel of Time, the choice of characters, separations etc. Really perverse effect since the coup, one thinks one watching / reading the other compares, we think.
The story is well written, it's pretty fluid reading. Like many fresco, the author takes time to describe the world and nature around (less for cities later) which makes the sometimes all a bit ... slow. The action starts slowly, yet what happens in this introduction helps to get into the story later on.
The biggest flaw of all is the way the story is made up. At one point, there was a temporal divide, then we will be entitled to a flashback without warning after another scene. It is disturbing and requires some adjustment on the part of the reader.
There is action, I do not deny that, but also many walking lengthens the whole story. So when we add the extension to descriptions and return in time, we must admit that the whole is sometimes a bit heavy.
An equally annoying point, what are the reactions of boys. There is such repetition in the behavior of young people it gets boring and spends more than annoying. An example: Rand spends his time that Perrin is doing better than him with the girls, and Perrin did the same on his side. The first time, it's funny. Plus the second. After, it's just pain in the neck.
But let's not be negative. It's good fantasy, excavated, built, sought. It's a great job, and I loved reading it. Having said this first volume offers a good end, and I do not know when I'll read later - or prequel.
