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The Eye of the World cover art

The Eye of the World

By: Robert Jordan
Narrated by: Kate Reading,Michael Kramer
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Summary

When their village is attacked by trollocs, monsters thought to be only legends, three young men, Rand, Matt, and Perrin, flee in the company of the Lady Moiraine, a sinister visitor of unsuspected powers. Thus begins an epic adventure set in a world of wonders and horror, where what was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the Shadow.
Listen to other books in The Wheel of Time series.
©1990 Robert Jordan (P)1996 Books on Tape, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Jordan has come to dominate the world that Tolkien began to reveal." ( The New York Times)

What listeners say about The Eye of the World

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars

American narration such a turn off

Love Americans and the accent, but fantasy novels so quickly become cringe-worthy when narrated in an American accent. there's a reason why, when you watch The Lord of the Rings there's not an American twang in earshot. totally kills the immersion or any credibility/authenticity.

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149 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Excellent series ... until book 8

I have been listening through this series for a few months now and really enjoying it. I would have given 5 starts to it apart from some of the slightly repetitive statements. Then I got to book 8 and it is not available (the other 10 are), having contacted Audible they informed me that they have not yet got the license for it. I have to say that has put the dampers on my listening pleasure.
If you are thinking about starting this epic listening experience I would wait until it is available.

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76 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Epic Story with a couple of issues.

At approximately 457 hours this series of books are not for the faint hearted and there are a couple of things that I had an issue with.

Firstly, Mr Jordan does like to describe what a character is thinking and in particular, what they are wearing. Heaven help you if there are 10 or more characters in any one scene as you will soon discover in turn what each person is wearing (down the buttons and trim), what facial expression they have, the length of their hair, what they are thinking and everything in-between. This becomes infuriating at times and on more than one occasion I found myself yelling at my phone "Just get on with it!" Honestly, if he had cut down these descriptions I reckon he could have cut the length of the books in half.

Secondly, the vast majority of the female characters are quite unlikable. In the most part I would use the word horrible to describe them. This is toned down a bit when Brandon Sanderson takes over at book 12.

Lastly, the 2 narrators were unnecessary in my opinion. Just a little thing but worth a mention.

Now for the good. Oh my, its epic! Some of the pacing may be a little off in places but it is an excellent story. The pay off is definitely in the last 3 books. You will not be disappointed. No spoilers here but “The last battle” makes the battle of Pelennor Fields or the Siege of Dros Delnoch look like a minor skirmish.

In conclusion, if you have the time and can cope with the issues above (and you will know by the first couple of books) its well worth the listen.

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62 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Intolerable narrator

Knew within a couple of minutes that I was irritated by the narrator. By 30 minutes I was done. Have no idea if this is a good story. Returned.

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50 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Acceptable not classic delivery

While Jordan was American I am disappointed they used people with such heavy accents. It is okay but I would say when compared to Fry reading Harry Potter you will be hugely disappointed.

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46 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Bah

Remember, you're embarking on a 450-hour journey. I'll review it in its entirety. I finished the audiobook series a while ago, but apparently I never wrote a review.

As you might know, the author died before he could finish the series. Brandon Sanderson used his notes to officially finish the series. For whatever reason, those last 3 books are the best in the series.

It's a very good story, when looked at from the outside.
It's the only story I'll never recommend.
Book 10 (out of 14) is atrocious. I gave up on it and read the summary on Wikia. You should too when you realise that nothing is happening in that book. Your time is more valuable... unless you're in jail I suppose.
The last 3 books are excellent.
The story is too long for what it's worth.

The main characters are immature.
The main characters get into a lot of trouble.
The world-building is extensive.
There is magic... a lot of magic.
There are thoroughly depicted and unique cultures.
There is a versatile, but not thoroughly prepared, magic system.
The author does not know how to exploit the potential of his own ideas, or he didn't care.
Many ideas are diamonds in the rough and I weep for their wasted potential.
Yet there are quite a few unique ideas.
Some of those ideas still cross my mind, one year later, after experiencing tons of other fantasy stories.
The idea to length ratio is still not high.
The story is too long.

It's a plot-driven story.
There are some very epic scenes.
The plot warps the characters. If something epic needs to happen and the characters aren't where they should be, they'll start acting out of character until the pawns are all where the plot can have the greatest effect.
After a little practice, I could predict epic scenes with 100% reliability based on when characters stopped acting like themselves.
There aren't THAT many epic scenes, in the grand scheme of things.
The story is too long.

The author filled the story with a lot of annoying characters.
Most of the female characters look down on men.
Most of the male characters look down on women.
Most of the female characters are incompetent, especially the young ones.
Some of the main characters bicker constantly.
Sometimes I felt that the author's best method of achieving realism was to describe it in real-time.
The story is too long.

Most of the time I just wanted The Dark One to succeed because he was more relatable/mature than everyone else. Maybe that was the point? He is pretty old.
The book follows a pretty standard formula, stretched to its breaking point.
The story is too long.

Individually, each book could be described as 5/5 if I were generous.
Only the final book offers any sense of closure.
A shocking plot point towards the end of the story poisoned the ending.
When the closure was offered, it didn't matter because of the aforementioned plot point.
None of the other books are worth reading on their own.
The story is too long.

Despite my determination to complete a story I'd invested so much effort in, I often found myself pausing the audiobooks to do nothing. Doing nothing was less boring than a lot of the scenes. I'm glad I finished the series though because like I said, not finishing it would have been a waste of the time I'd already spent listening to it. It's called effort justification.

Do not listen to it unless you have a good reason to believe you'll enjoy it.
I can't with a good conscience recommend somethig so massive to anyone.
The story is too long.

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41 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Dissappointed

Fantastic book...loved the whole series when I read them......however I was very dissapointed with the audio version.....maybe just me, but the narrators voice makes me cringe.....very piercing and monotone......maybe just an Englishman not liking American accent so best to decide for youselves....listen first like I didn't.....

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38 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Fab

Epic fantasy at its best. Delighted there are so many books in the series as this will solve the commuting boredom problem for many weeks yet!



Very much like Brandon Sanderson (or rather, Brandon Sanderson is very like Robert Jordan). Reminds me of Sanderson's Stormlight book - a very similar feel.



The narration is good - perhaps not the best I have ever heard, but it doesn't detract from the story at all.



Occasionally I would like the female characters to be slightly different from each other - they all seem to be cut from the same cloth, and therefore are a little predictable and perhaps a little boring, but the storyline itself is compelling, and you can't help but download the next book in the series immediately the current one finishes (I am about to download number 5 - still happily enjoying it all).

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35 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Absorbing....

5 well deserved stars from me for this book - part one of the Wheel of Time series.

After listening to the preview a few times I very nearly didn't bother to buy this book. I thought the narrators voice would grate on my nerves and stop me from enjoying the book.

I was attracted by the length of the story, thinking that over 29 hours of 'read' time would keep me occupied for quite some time. Also the number of books available in the series on Audible means I'll not be short of a book to read for quite some time!

I was quickly absorbed by the story and forgot the narrators American accent, although it was a bit of a 'jolt' when a female narrator cut in part way through the book! (Although she only reads a few chapters here and there before the male narrator returns)
The 29 hours passed too quickly and I'm eager to 'read' the second book in the series.

The Eye Of The World reminds me of the Lord of the Rings in lots of ways, strange names, battles, good against evil, a quest, all well told, well described and very enjoyable.

A very good read which I'll probably return to in the fullness of time.



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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A Sizable Literary Feast

Years I ago I read this book as a very young 13 year old. It was daunting then (the sheer size of it, and the sequels) and I gave up half-way through. It's still daunting now, but in a way that I relish - it's massive. This book alone is 29 hours long, and there's currently 13 sequels out with another one on it's way. If you're looking for a series to sink your adventuring teeth into then look no further.

I was initially weary of the American narrator, and I doubted I could listen to his accent for 29 hours, let alone the sequels. However my fears disappeared within the first chapter - he does an excellent job, and I honestly forget about the accent altogether.

I shan't dwell on the book itself, since its continued success and legacy stands testament to its quality. You'll find a plethora of reviews of the Amazon site proper, but my advice is to just dive into this book - it's superb.

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26 people found this helpful