The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan

Book Review

Adrian Fletcher

With the TV series of the Wheel of Time completing its third season, I thought now would be a good time to re-read the book series. Published in 1990, The Eye of the World is the first instalment of what would go on to be a 14 book epic. I grew up with Wheel of Time. When I first picked up The Eye of the World, there were already 10 books published and I read the last 4 as they were published. 35 years after the first book first appeared in bookstores, as a new reader is it worth the commitment of reading almost 4.5 million words (including the prequel New Spring)?

The Eye of the World begins in a way that will be familiar to fantasy readers. A young man, or in this case a small group, although the focus of POV on Rand until later in the book does centre him. Are forced to leave their small village to fight larger threats. Their village is attacked by Trollocs, causing them to leave with visiting magic user Moiraine and her companion Lan.

Reading The Eye of the World now that I’m a little older, the inspirations Jordan took from Lord of the Rings, Dune, and folklore (especially King Arthur) are undeniable. As the first book in the series, those similarities are most obvious here. Once Wheel of Time finds its feet, it, and Jordan, become more confident in its own world and it really opens up. Which isn’t to say the world building in The Eye of the World is bad, there’s a lot here to enjoy, but portions of it do call to mind other works.

The magic system is interesting, with male and female ‘channelers’ being the magic users. The theme of rebirth and time as a circle that will continue through all 14 books is introduced. Perhaps it’s most intriguing, and famous element of world-building, is the concept that only women can safely use their power. In a previous age, the age of legends, both men and women could use the power. The age of legends ended with the Dark One (Wheel of Time’s overarching big bad) being chained by a man known as the Dragon, but in response the Dark one tainted the male side of the power, causing male channelers to go mad. Those male channelers then broke the world, but prophecy, as it so often does, speaks of the return of the Dragon, reborn to save the world.

The characters here are strong and really carry a familiar story. Jordan makes the most of his protagonists’ narrow initial view of the world to have the reader explore with them. New locations and characters, are introduced with a good balance that makes us feel like we’re discovering these places. Each discovery carries undercurrents, hints at the wider scope of the world still waiting to be discovered. Motivations are sometimes murky but always feel true to the story.

My only real gripe with The Eye of the World is the ending. It feels a little anticlimactic compared to the rest of the story. Looking back now, it seems clear that the book was written with the series in mind, but with a view to being able to standalone as a complete story, and that impulse to give a possible ending of the tale weakens the final scenes. For some readers, some of the scenes may feel a bit repetitive, as there is a lot of travel in the book, but I never found it tiresome.

Other than that, The Eye of the World does a fine job of building on its inspirations to create a new tale, one that engages and serves to set up a base for an epic series. The sequence of the party breaking apart in the middle of the book is well handled and makes for a satisfying reunion in time for the climax. I also enjoy the female characters; they possessed motivations beyond those required purely by the plot, and for the first book at least, hold up well.

I’m a big fan of Wheel of Time, and even 35 years later immensely enjoyed my time returning to The Eye of the World. The series is undoubtedly a huge commitment for a new reader, but it’s a rich and detailed world, one that is worth every second.