I forgot how much is in this one: Perrin frees the Shire-- I mean, Emond's Field-- from the orcs-- I mean trollocs. And gets married! The Seafolk are introduced, we get the history of the Aiel, and Rand's biological parents, in almost the same chapter. The White Tower is broken, and not one, but TWO Forsaken are captured! Also Mat fights a deck of playing cards, dies and is reborn, gets his spear (and his hat). Which makes later books when NOTHING HAPPENS even more egregious!

This audiobook is the one with Kate Reading doing and fine job, and that other guy. Who has always sounded like he's reading the weather report, but it's even worse here. He clearly didn't read the book before recording it. He transposes words, puts the emphasis in the wrong place, and several times carries on doing a voice from one character into the dialog of another! It's real, real bad, folks.

n  “If you plan for the worst, all surprises are pleasant.”n

fourth book in WoT and I learned few things from last three book, 1) pack your bags to embark on a journey as one set of the character or the other is always on the move, and we hit the jackpot here with everyone on a journey of their own, 2) close your eyes if you don't want them in your brain because the girls would make you eye-roll in every time you meet them, 3) be ready for the dragging middle chapters. And if you somehow still end up liking the characters, world, and magic (like me), then you would be rewarded in end.

This book mainly has three plot lines; Rand & Mat going into Aiel Waste, Nynaeve & Elyane going to Tanchico to find Black Ajah, Perrin & Faile going back to Two Rivers to save from the Whitecloaks. While all the three plot lines were great, I loved Perrin's the best. He really came out of Rand's shadow and hold his own against Whitecloaks and Trollorcs. He was simply superb in his leadership and how he dealt with the whole situation.

Rand's journey was marvelous too, though it took almost whole book to see him in action but the build up to that final scene was amazing. He also got to know about his past, parentage, and got himself a bodyguard. Yup, it was funny to see his bodyguard shadowing his every move.

and in the end, few words for my favorite lady from the book, Nynaeve. She can drive me mad with her antics, and be stubborn like a mule at times but she has a heart of gold and always delivers when it matters the most. That's what she did here. Almost a novice and still she held her own against an old power. You are simply amazing, girl!!

So if you have patience and don't feel too bad for slow burns, this series is definitely for you.

All right. Couldn't take it anymore. I officially quit this series. I got up to halfway through book 4 and realized that life is too short to read bad books. I wrote this as I read the book.

I think a lot of people who compare Tolkien and Jordan miss the point. I'll give Jordan this. He has more than one female character per book and they actually have more than one significant plot line and even interact with each other. That's not to say Jordan is superior to Tolkien, but it's certainly an improvement.

And now that we've commented on the few highlights in this godsawful series...

Yes Rand, remind us that you're not going to dance to anyone's tune. I don't know why you care other than Jordan really wants to remind us that being manipulated by the Aes'Sedai is a bad thing. Although I don't know of any situation in the first four books where Rand was actually manipulated by an Aes'Sedai, except in Andor during that random meeting with the Queen, maybe, and he has no clue what he's doing so he's relying on other people's help anyway so how would he even know if he was being manipulated (unless help = manipulation, which just makes me think he's an idiot because from day 1 he was pretty averse to help in case it was manipulation) and unless it's for evil purposes why does he care? The way things are, he just hates being manipulated BECAUSE he hates being manipulated. I think most people do but he doesn't have to harp on it every POV section like he has an axe to grind.

I still have no idea why any of the women like Rand. At least Lanfear kind of makes sense, because she's possessive (probably out of an "I like really powerful men" trope). It's not even an interesting or well-written relationship, it just makes the most sense of the badly written relationships available, which is kind of pathetic. You could argue 'love at first sight' for Elayne, but no. Jordan used too many words for other things to use a Get Out of Jail Free card on romance. He can't write romantic relationships and 'love at first sight' is not going to be an excuse. Heck, the characters in-universe don't even understand what's going on. Elayne has an inner monologue where she admits that she doesn't understand WHY she loves Rand but she's loved him since they first met(???). Apparently she doesn't question that it's LOVE instead of something else (like lust?). And Min, the character who refuses to be beaten by destiny... is defeated by destiny? WHY? And what is with people and assuming that you only do something for a person of another gender if you're in love with them? Everyone from the Amorlin Seat to random innkeepers and merchants. It's really stupid.

Again, why does Rand have such an abhorrence for Moiraine? She didn't make him magical. She didn't throw him at Tear so he could get the sword. She's helped him where she can, saved his life and his friends' lives multiple times, helped point him in the right direction... What, he's angry because another adult with a lot of power and knowledge is treating him like the child he acts like?

I 'love' the line where Elayne says that the pompous politicians in Tear follow Rand because he's a Leader and not because he's the Dragon Reborn. Yeah. Right. Jordan, you can't write women. And you should really not spend the rest of the story demonstrating just how bad of a politician Rand is while strongly demonstrating that the only reason the politicians haven't murdered/ignored him yet is because they're afraid he could murder them on the spot with his power. Yeah. Rand. A+++ leader material.

In this book, Rand confronts taxes. And attempts to take over a country he gave precisely zero fucks about until this book. I understand that the nobles in Tear are pompous and I support people educating themselves but no. This is not how that works. Exactly when did Rand start caring about whether or not a country was run by pompous idiots or how their farmers did or their economy was run?

Apparently PerrinxZarine is a thing now. I still don't understand why and their relationship 'development' is REALLY disturbing ('I should try yelling at her more because that works' - I couldn't make this shit up if I tried; Perrin legitimately thinks that yelling at her is a good idea). This book seems to actually be JORDAN asking why they're a couple. Like... you wrote them this way Jordan. Make up your freaking mind. They seem to hate each other most of the time. And through this relationship we see more of how much of an entitled arrogant egotistical sexist ass Perrin is. I "love" how he manipulates Zarine (for her own GOOD, of COURSE!) and then gets angry when she does THE EXACT SAME THING TO HIM, only not in as cruel a fashion because POOR BABY she TRIES to make him ask her a question and FORCES her company upon him because she wants to help him save his people, while he pretended he was in lust with someone else and insulted her looks. Poor man. He then spends a large portion of the book pouting and acting all put-out over a character (Loiyal) he was barely on speaking terms with before Zarine spoke to him.

"The Shadow Rising", making us continue to ask: WHY IS MAT A CHARACTER IN THIS STORY? Literally all he does is take up space. His story does NOTHING to advance the plot (heck, even in the HUNT THE DAGGER plotline the Heroes were all looking for The Horn, too, so if the dagger plotline was removed nothing would have been lost; Perrin could have blown the horn, Ninaeve, Elayne and Egwene end up leaving Tar Valon anyway and then essentially rescue themselves and Rand saves the day). I don't care about him. At all. I briefly cared about him last book because the rooftop confrontation scene was one of the like three moments in the first four books and the prequel where I cracked a smile but that was it. Also, where is he randomly getting his Badass Weapons Skills? Book 1 he was the Archer. Last book he magically became a master of the staff. Now he's a master knifethrower/assassin? I guess I'd understand if it was more of this "past life" bs but we're never given that explanation. The section where he's sitting and listening to the nobles talk about raping women was really stupid. Yeah, good that Mat stood up to them, sort of. But was ANY of that necessary? Also this book: more examples of how much an entitled misogynistic lecherous ass Mat is, so like... is Jordan trying to demonstrate that "no, he's actually a good guy who respects women but still feels entitled to their attention and objectifies them every chance he gets". I really, really hate his sections.

Why is Tom Merrillin a character? What does he add to anything? He's done about two things in the first four books: teach Rand how to play the flute and allow Mat and Rand a chance to escape an enemy. I know he does stuff later on but it's really frustrating when not just one but two characters are essentially dead weight for the first four books, if not more, in a series. If Moiraine is the Merlin stand-in, what is Tom supposed to represent? Loiyal is the scribe. Moiraine is the teacher. Lan is the brute force and Rand is the magical brute force. The other Aes'Sedai fill in the magical brute strength and Mat and Perrin are around.

I guess if Moiraine ever figured out that even if she "can't" teach Rand how to use his magic, she can teach him other things like politics, etiquette, language, you know, things someone who is destined to be a leader might find useful, then we might end the book series early.

But then the next part happens. I really like that Egwene and Elayne attempted to help Rand learn what to do with his power. It's a lot more than Moiraine has attempted, at least on the page. She's stated that she's going to try to help but we haven't seen any proof of that other than her upbraiding him for being an idiot. It's deserved but it's not that helpful. And again, I ask, WHY DO YOU HAVE TO LIMIT WHAT YOU CAN TEACH TO MAGIC? Why doesn't he get a book on anatomy (so he knows what to do when he's healing)? Social etiquette? Politics? Perhaps a lesson on the make-up of the various governments in the WoT planet? A monster manual so he knows how to fight various enemies and recognize the Forsaken? What about more weapons practice? Language practice since he's meeting lots of different peoples and some lessons on different cultures? Elayne could do that! Yes, we get that the TWO HALVES OF THE TRUE SOURCE are VERY different and don't work the same way and WOMEN CANNOT TEACH MEN MAGIC and blah blah blah Jordan you don't know what education means. Of course MEN can teach WOMEN magic but HEAVEN FORFEND the reverse happen! Rand seems to remedy this by browsing the library at Tear and lo and behold he actually learns some things it's like you can actually learn useful stuff from books who'da thunk?

I "love" the plot point where Moiraine essentially says "Oh, the Ultimate Evil just messes shit up. It happens now." Because that's going to explain bad magic happening. You know. Bubbles in the pattern my ass. Why? Just cause.

Oh is Moiraine speaking/acting in a detached manner/drily? I'm shocked.

Otherwise the book is so. Boring. Again, if this was a series about the female characters alone, I'd probably finish it. There's a pretty neat cast of people there. Maybe with another writer who would take half the time to tell the story and actually write women well but they're pretty neat nonetheless. I'd love a novella where Aviendha and Egwene go on an adventure together. But whatever.

The writing has not improved much at all. There might be fewer nonsensical similes and repetitive prophecies that are never explained and serve no purpose other than to foreshadow to the reader what's going to happen in the next few pages or remind them of what happened in the last chapter, but since there were already a ridiculous number to begin with and "fewer" is a rather small decrease... so what? The book is still focused on this ridiculous gender warfare bs and if a woman doesn't smooth her dress at least once per page featuring a woman, I feel concerned. Have a taste of my 'favorite' quotations:

"Time to die horn sounder." Its voice was an adder's hiss, warning of death. (Reviewer's note: nawwwww I never woulda guessed, too few death references)

Eyeing him in that way women had. (Reviewer's note: ????)

Acrid Trolloc blood, with its stink that burned his nostrils. (Reviewer's note: the definition of 'acrid': sharp or biting to the taste or smell; bitterly pungent; irritating to the eyes, nose, etc.)

*Possible spoilers on the previous books*

The Shadow Rising is one of my favorites of the series - and one of my all-time personal favorites. It's almost 1000 pages long, but it doesn't feel like it. Actually, it feels more like three separate books once the group splits up again. The introduction to these 'three books' takes place in Tear as Rand tries to figure out how to rule a nation and deal with political intrigue. I enjoy the machinations and details of court just as much as I do fast-paced adventure, so the time in Tear doesn't seem slow to me. Then once the action gets going...

The part on Perrin is fantastic. He comes into his own in this book, and I love where it takes him. We get to meet the hawk, and see a lot more of the falcon. Mat gets himself into a couple of interesting situations, digging himself deeper and deeper into the hole he's trying to escape from, and Egwene grows into one of my favorite characters - she is now solidly my favorite of the girls. Even Nynaeve manages to improve so that her part of the book is enjoyable as well.

I also love anything to do with the Aiel - seriously, they are one of the best aspects of this entire series in my mind. And this book really starts to explore their culture.

I am almost bursting from not saying anything more specific! This is not the sort of book that lends itself to plot summary without giving it all away. You just have to experience it.

And pay attention - a lot of details in this book turn out to be important later!

Reviewed by: Rabid Reads

4.5 stars

I'd forgotten how much happens in this book . . . Holy WOW.

This is the first (but not the last) book that begins with a several seemingly non-related POVs, and as impatient as I always am to "get to the good stuff," I always appreciate these early updates/reminders of what's going on with maybe less important subplots that maybe aren't a main focus of the installment at hand.

B/c really . . . even though you're just starting #4, SO MUCH has already transpired . . . Sometimes it's hard to keep track.

SO. Min (*whispers*), in disguise, returns to the White Tower, and everywhere she looks, she sees future violence and death.

But when or why?

No clue.

Which, Siuan, of course, uses as an excuse to keep her in the Tower. Not that she needs an excuse (b/c Amyrlin). She also decides that it would be best for Min to remain disguised (b/c sneaky Aes Sedai), so poor Min, who prefers to keep her hair short and dress in men's clothing, is forced to play a silly, simpering young miss while keeping her eyes peeled for anything that might be useful.

Meanwhile, somewhere not-on-the-main-landmass, the Seanchan are regrouping, but the High Lady Suroth is distracted by the new information she has in regards to sul'dam and damane . . .

What's an enslaving empire to do when it finds a flaw in its plan for world domination? *whispers* Suppress the new information and ignore it, of course.

And last but not least, a fatal character flaw is revealed in a certain usurping Aes Sedai.

I won't be able to say for certain until much further into my reread, but I'm pretty sure I could directly connect every, single crack in her foundation to this singular flaw . . . *unsuccessfully attempts to suppresses rage* OHMYGAWD, I HATE her!!

After all of that is out of the way, one of the coolest ( and creepiest) things that happens in the whole series goes down:

“As the seals holding the Dark One’s prison weaken,” she said after a time, “it may be inevitable that a . . . miasma . . . will escape even while he is still held. Like bubbles rising from the things rotting on the bottom of a pond. But these bubbles will drift through the Pattern until they attach to a thread and burst.”

Bubbles of Evil. So frickin' cool.

Other ridiculously awesome things I can only vaguely reference:

1. Snakes and Foxes.

Everything about this rocks my socks off. The idea of wholly alien worlds touching our own, a child's game for remembrance in dealing with the inhabitants of those worlds, Slayer disappearing into an entrance to one of those worlds  when we know that Slayer is some weird Luc/Isam mashup person, AND that Cyndine is some alternate, depleted version of Lanfear . . .  GAH. I can barely handle all the awesome.

2. Rhuidean.

Both that it exists and that it's full of . . . what it's full of.

But more importantly, what Rand learns about the Aiel there. AND how he learns it. <------experiencing defining moments to a culture's history by reliving them through your ancestors . . . Are you getting what I'm saying about ALL THE AWESOME?

3. Perrin and Faile.

I love them. Yes, Faile's Saldean-ness can get tiresome, but I love that they love each other so much that it doesn't even matter.

Ask me again when I'm in the middle of the two-birds-for-two-shoulders traveling companions shenanigans and maybe you'll get a different answer, but right now . . . LOVE them.

4. Thatbadthingthathappens in Tar Valon.

Okay, so this one isn't ridiculously anything except a big ol' mess, but it's kind of a big deal, and warrants mentioning.

Poor Gawyn . . .

And those are most of the highlights.

Fair warning: this installment will shatter your heart.

More than once.

But it will also slowly reassemble it.

This is a series for readers who want to FEEL something. You only think you've experienced characters vividly in other books. THESE characters . . . they are real. This world is real. Its struggle is real. And YOU . . . You become part of it.



My other reviews for this series:

n  The Eye of the World (Wheel of Time, #1) by Robert Jordann
n  The Great Hunt (Wheel of Time, #2) by Robert Jordann
n  The Dragon Reborn (Wheel of Time, #3) by Robert Jordann
n  The Fires of Heaven (Wheel of Time, #5) by Robert Jordann
n  Lord of Chaos (Wheel of Time, #6) by Robert Jordann
n  A Crown of Swords (Wheel of Time, #7) by Robert Jordann
n  The Path of Daggers (Wheel of Time, #8) by Robert Jordann
n  Winter's Heart (Wheel of Time, #9) by Robert Jordann
n  Crossroads of Twilight (Wheel of Time, #10) by Robert Jordann
n  New Spring (Wheel of Time, #0) by Robert Jordann

Seriye başlarken 'araya başka kitaplar da alır, yavaş yavaş okurum' diyordum ama bittiği an sonraki kitaba başlamak istiyorum hemen

It was a long journey! But equally satisfying.. So many great moments and twists.. The worldbuilding improved to a different level.. All the complaints which I had with the third book were completely solved in this one.. The best of the first 4 books for sure

As for the ending..
There are neither beginnings nor endings to the turning of the Wheel of Time. But it was a beginning.

2nd Re-read 2025
The best of Fantasy


"The Shadow Rising" ist eines der längsten Bücher der Wheel of Time-Reihe und für viele eingefleischte Fans, inklusive mir, eines der besten. Zu Beginn sind alle wichtigen Charaktere endlich mal wieder vereint und es gibt ein paar schöne Szenen für Lanaeve-Shipper. Das Großartige an dem Buch sind aber Rands Erlebnisse in Rhuidean. Die Leser*innen erfahren dabei aus Rands Perspektive die gesamte Geschichte des Volkes der Aiel, und die ist absolut mind-blowing (das ist für mich das beste Wort dafür). Es ist ein Fest des World-Building, genau das, was ich an den Büchern so liebe. Auch mag ich das Buch dafür, dass mein Lieblingscharakter Nynaeve eine Szene hat, in der sie einfach unfassbar clever ist und ihre ganze Stärke offenbart. Und das Schöne an Jordans Charakteren ist, sie sind nicht perfekt, sie machen Fehler, verhalten sich kindisch, was, wie ich weiß, viele hassen, aber meiner Meinung nach gehört das zu einem runden Charakter (wer will schon eine Mary-Sue?) und lässt besonders in Nynaeves Fall Raum für eine fantastische Charakterentwicklung über die 14 Bücher hinweg. Auch beim Re-Read nach fast 30 Jahren habe ich dieses Buch geliebt.

I find Lanfear hilarious, yet oddly seductive. I can't help but laugh, every time she has an encounter with Rand.

I loved this book! However, I remove a star due to the portrayal of these female characters. I started to find them quite annoying. Although, I do like Nyneave and have a soft spot for Faile. I found parts of this book slow and grinding, but the conclusions from everyone satisfied me.

Onto The Fires of Heaven!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4.5 stars!

41 hours. 41 HOURS!!!! That’s how long the audiobook is and I BARELY was able to finish within my 21 day library hold. But I did it!!

So for those of you who don’t know, I am doing a reread of the WOT series about 17-18 years after I first began reading them. I remember this book, book 4, being one of my favorites of the 5 that I read. I feel like when you’ve reached this point in the series, you’re either invested in it or you aren’t.

There’s a lot that happened in this book and for spoiler reasons I won’t state them. But also, a lot should happen because this book is 1000 pages long. Perrin really comes into his own in this book. I mean, you can almost pinpoint the exact moment he leaves all of his boyhood behind and becomes a man. A lot happening for Mat too, and while it doesn’t seem as obvious in this book, it really comes into play in the next one if I can remember correctly.

One thing came across my mind during this reread was a same though I had reading these books as a teenager: why on earth are all these women madly in love with Rand? I don’t get it! He literally has like five different women pining after him. He must be dang handsome or something because personality wise, there’s not a lot to offer (Rand stands don’t murder me). Don’t get me wrong, love him as a character. But if I were to choose a crush in this book it would be Perrin or Mat.

Thanks for reading my nonsensical ranty review of this reread. Please consider picking up The Eye of the World this series is totally worth it. Amazing characters and world building, it’s all us fantasy lovers can ask for.

I was wrong in my review of The Dragon Reborn, book 3 in Robert Jordan‘s The Wheel of Time fantasy series– The Shadow Rising is now my favourite entry in the series! And wholly because of Perrin’s arc.

In The Shadow Rising, Rand’s life becomes EVEN more complicated, we learn a few new things but there are even more questions to be answered.

Perrin’s storyline is by far the best in this one.
I said in my review of The Dragon Reborn that I wanted to see more of him – well I got it!

His storyline in The Shadow Rising is exactly what I wanted to see. I’m interested in where his character is going to go now though as there are so many books and I feel so satisfied with his arc already!

I wouldn’t say “no” to more though!

Rand’s storyline felt a little slow in this one but I’m sure it’ll pick up eventually, likewise with Mat. Having said that, a lot happens when they meet the Aiel.

The Aiel are an incredible addiction to a world already brimming with life and fascinating places and cultures to explore. I loved meeting them in The Shadow Rising and hope to learn more about their way of life and see their culture develop with the new things that are happening around them, in future books.

My only criticism of this series would be that whenever Robert Jordan wants his characters to move on to somewhere else, he attacks them with Trollocs. Those scenes are exciting, but they are used so much as a plot device that I just don’t care anymore.

In the first book, The Eye of the World, that was fine, as it was an introduction to the enemy ranks, but now, with everything that’s happening, there must have been a more satisfying way to get the characters to start moving again.

Overall, I did enjoy The Shadow Rising and I am loving The Wheel of Time series so far.

View the full review at The Fantasy Review

5 increíbles ★★★★★

El Ascenso de la Sombra se convierte en mi entrega favorita de La Rueda del Tiempo (de los libros leídos hasta el momento).

¡Disfruté muchísimo esta lectura!

En esta oportunidad, la historia sigue cuatro hilos. Tenemos el que se desarrolla en el yermo, la tierra de los Aiel, y definitivamente mi favorito. Me encantó por completo todo lo que tiene que ver con los Aiel y lo que se descubre sobre ellos me voló la cabeza. Regresamos a Dos Ríos, y me ha gustado porque desde la primera entrega había quedado olvidado. Un pequeño hilo se desarrolla en la Torre Blanca, estoy muy intrigada por todo lo que sucederá debido a lo acaecido. Me fascinó. El otro hilo nos lleva hasta Tanchico, una ciudad nueva para descubrir; al principio me parecía el hilo más flojo, pero después se volvió tan interesante como los demás.

Sin duda alguna, esta ha sido la entrega en la que más me han gustado los personajes. Primero aclarar que Loial sigue siendo mi favorito. Pero debo admitir que en este libro me gustó mucho más Perrin y Rand (dos de los protagonistas que no me terminaban de convencer). Mat y Thom me siguen fascinando.

Rand ha cambiado tanto desde que se sabe que él es el Dragón Renacido. Me gustó cómo comienzan a verse atisbos de la locura, y el poder que posee.

Perrin convirtiéndose en el Lord de Dos Ríos. Y Mat, las profecías, eso esta muy interesante.


El romance no es punto fuerte. Menos mal que estoy aquí por la trama, porque ha pasado de todo. Es el libro más largo hasta el momento, y por mucho el que más giros y descubrimientos tiene. Robert Jordan me sorprendió de principio a fin, los caminos de todos los personajes se cruzan de manera tan increíble. Y los personajes secundarios también me fascinan. A mí, particularmente, me encanta lo detallista de Jordan, sé que a varios no les gusta exactamente eso, pero a mi sí y lo disfruto mucho.

No sé qué más agregar a esta reseña, es la cuarta entrega y con lo recorrido puedo decir que esta saga será de mis favoritas. Y todavía me faltan diez libros, ¡qué emoción!