Well, the announcement has been made: A Memory of Light, the final volume of Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time series, will be published as three books. The first (The Gathering Storm) will come out in November this year. It’s hoped that the second and third parts will come out in 2010 and 2011, but nothing is set in stone yet.
This makes me happy. I love The Wheel of Time. It’s an amazing series, and when Robert Jordan passed away, I was terribly afraid we’d never see the end. Brandon Sanderson was chosen to finish (write?) the last book, and he’s been writing at a furious pace.
He’s posted about why the book has been split into three parts. It’s a very, very interesting piece. I’ve been subscribed to his livejournal blog for the last six months or so, and I keep meaning to pick up some of his fantasy books. I probably will once I pay off the last set of boardgames.
Robert Jordan’s wife, Harriet, has also given an interview about the process to dragonmount.com; again, more interesting details. The entire business of finishing off The Wheel of Time is terribly daunting; one of the key features of Jordan’s work was how rich it was on detail. If you compare it to The Lord of the Rings and it’s quite possible that The Wheel of Time has more detail. And then there are all the prophecies it has used. I love prophecies and foreshadowing when well-used, and The Wheel of Time does it very well.
With my speed of reading (200 pages per hour, in general), large books and series really attract me; I’ve certainly been reading a few over the last couple of decades. Steven Erikson’s The Malazan Book of the Fallen may be my favourite, but The Wheel of Time isn’t far behind (and it’s a lot more approachable). With the nearing completion of Katherine Kerr’s Deverry series as well, series that I’ve been reading since my university days are being completed, and that makes me very happy indeed.
I’ve given up on expecting George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire to be ever completed, unfortunately.
Brandon Sanderson writes some great stuff – I was initially surprised at the choice ‘Who is this guy!?’ but he does fantastic work, good closure, lots of stuff happening, epic fantasy.
I’m not sure what to think on Song of Ice and Fire. I do think we’ll get more out of it, but will the series finish? Or, will someone else finish it, like WoT? Don’t know.
200
How can you read Steven Erikson in a pace of 200 pages in one hour? I’m happy when I read 200 pages a month. To my benefit I have to admit I’m Dutch and reading it in English, but still 200 pages is a lot!