The Great Hunt

I’ve actually read this before, but coming back to it reminded me that it was well written, and that Amazon made a mockery of it. The books together are unusual in some ways, they aren’t GOT (but those got wrapped up worse by HBO), they aren’t TLOTR, which, by far is the best visual telling of any fantasy book so far (sans the hobbit - sigh). Good reading. I loved the first book but it took me a minute to get back into it, I burned through this book.

I had read the first few WoT books over a decade ago, and enjoyed them. The advent of the Amazon serious reignited my curiosity about this saga, so I decided to restart the book series.I’m glad I did. I LOVED this book, especially the second half when the action really started to pick up momentum — the climax of which was very rewarding.Jordan’s work is a sterling example of master craftsmanship at world- and character-building. The settings in this saga are rich and fascinating, and he achieves the writer’s aim for me: making me care about the characters.I highly recommend, especially for those that don’t read a lot of fantasy but love a great and engrossing story (personally I’m more of a hard sci-fi fan that will occasionally read fantasy, and I tell you: this fantasy novel was so well done that I didn’t miss my high technology and starships!).

Slightly shorter than Eye of the World, but slightly faster paced, the Great Hunt matches the bar set by the original and drives the story forward.The two things about the Wheel of Time that I enjoy the most are probably the characterization and the worldbuilding. The various cultures and lands are well-fleshed out, and Jordan develops every place that the heroes stop by on the adventure. Shienar was an excellent example, along with Tar Valon. The characters are at a high caliber, the writing is well-done and descriptive, the story is excellent, the plot is slightly tighter than the first book, and Jordan manages to incorporate some of the grit of real life without turning this into an R-rated book. . . .Though I admit it would probably have been better if he had. ;)Minor bits of goodness mixed in include: The concept of the Heron-mark is cool, the characters' magical powers actually progress over time (I wish Terry Goodkind had copied THIS part instead of ripping off the Aes Sedai), the plot is complex and requires intelligence to keep up with, no ham-handed messages or foreshadowing, realistic take on learning and using swordplay, and some definite moments of hilarity.Sad to say, there are still a couple of problems. Some of the characters are starting to get on my nerves, particularly Nynaeve, who never develops out of her two-dimensional role. Egwene is working her way up there, too, though she's not very annoying compared to Nynaeve.I'd also like to know what strange problem is inducing the female characters to "sniff" every few chapters.The plot is good most of the time. There are a few definite places where it moves along a bit slowly, though it is an improvement from the first book. I have the same problem with the Wheel of Time that I do with the latter books of a Song of Ice and Fire; there are too many damn chapters where we're taken away from the action and getting into the heads of random people along the way. If an author does this, then we should at least be taken right into some tense excitement somewhere. I don't really care about Bayle Domon mulling things over while gloating over his cuendillar collection, or some exotic goons from across the sea arriving to take over villages and make them swear oaths of loyalty. Can we get back to Egwene/Elayne at the White Tower and Rand/Mat/Perrin hunting the Horn, please? The plot is wonderfully structured and engaging and all, with a better resolution than the first book, but that sometimes makes the interruptions all the more annoying.The Great Hunt is at times frustrating, but patience is rewarded with a good storyline and characters. A solid 4 stars out of five.

Excellent world building and character development. This is a classic on par with The Lord of the Rings. Must read this series!

A long book with lots of details,characters, places and events. Definitely a story very intricately woven into a classic novel and once read is likely to never be forgotten. I bought the whole series in both kindle/audible.

One of the best fantasy series ever and the great hunt is a page Turner that leaves you wanting the next book

With "The Great Hunt," Robert Jordan continues to build on the momentum produced with the first book, "The Eye of the World." Rand knows he can channel the One Power and is told he is the prophesied and feared Dragon Reborn, destined to save the world while destroying it at the same time. The Horn of Valere is stolen and with it a tainted dagger Mat relies on to survive. The Children of the Light plot on Almoth Plain while invaders from across the sea threaten the land. The Black Ajah stirs in the White Tower and Dark Friends carry out their master's wishes.Even with all this excitement, two aspects make this good story into a great story:- Rich Characterization that make characters seem like real people- Complex subplots that merge together at the end to produce a grand finaleIn my opinion, the best aspect of Robert Jordan's writing is his ability to produce multi-dimensional characters. Jordan so successfully provides each of his characters their own distinct personality, likes/dislikes, conflicts, goals, and relationships with other characters in such a way that they seem modeled after real people. At many times in the book I think to myself: "Hey, I know someone like that." Mr. Jordan seems to have given much thought into how "normal," simple-folk would react to extraordinary situations such as being told they must save the world from destruction or that all the monsters you were scared of when children are real.One reason why I was hooked to this book (rhyme unintended) was in seeing how the characters I grew attached to after the first book would react to their new lives:- will Rand accept that he is the Dragon Reborn; how would his friends react to him knowing he can channel?- will Perrin accept that he can talk to wolves or will he try to deny it?- how will Egwene and Nynaeve handle training at the White Tower?Robert Jordan has a way of making the reader care about the characters, hate the villains and take sides, despite knowing that the book is fiction. This ability is especially rare in the fantasy genre where though a story may be good, characters are usually wooden and clearly fearless "heroes" that are hard to identify with.Another reason why I like the book is in the manner in which seemingly unrelated story threads are masterfully brought together at the end of the book in an enormous climax. This strongly reinforces the idea portrayed in the book that one cannot escape duty and that the lives of everyone are tied together to help fulfill an ultimate meaning or destiny. It provided for a very satisfying conclusion and several hours of lost sleep!That said, the above reason can also lead to some of the negative aspects of this book and other Robert Jordan books I have read. The beginning can be slow and seemingly directionless with all the separate story threads. Also some subplots are more interesting than others. However, at the end when everything converges, the book becomes truly addictive.Ultimately, "The Great Hunt" by Robert Jordan gets my highest recommendation primarily because of its rich characterization and masterfully handled subplots. A word of caution though, be sure to read book one first or you will be lost. Also, the series is extremely long and after getting hooked, there is no turning back!

As usual, the book is much better than the series, even if taken into consideration that the latter is 'based on' the book itself

After much setup and a satisfying conclusion in The Eye of the World, The Great Hunt partakes yet again in garnering several plotlines that, in their execution, resemble the pacing of the first book. The amount of character development, however, is insurmountably greater than in the first instance. Many characters that struggled to accept plot-relevant revelations finally realize that, in one of the best inner reflections in the series so far, "death is lighter than a feather, and duty heavier than a mountain."My favorite character from the first book appeared again, resurrecting from uncertain death, some new characters were introduced and one completely stole the scenes he was featured in. Reading Hurin and Rand's interactions always brought a smile to my face, and the progression of tone in their conversations served well to foretell heavier stakes in the story. Subtle, yet expertly done.The motivation behind Thom's decision to eventually follow Rand's journey was undoubtedly the most shocking moment in the entire book. I was not expecting the sudden loss and determination birthed from such a tragic event. While being intrinsically realistic, given the absurd setting and culture of the people from Cairhien, it was also heartbreaking to recognize that the wheel cares not for the plans of men. If in the first book characterization was good, in the second it gets even better. All major characters renew their determination, face difficulties that will mold their future interactions, and set in motion events that promise to change the life of everyone in the books to come.The world is further increased in size and complexity with all the lore, important regions visited, and new threats that appear from unknown lands. Just from reading the first two books, I can already tell that The Wheel of Time is among the best fiction world ever written, and I can not wait to see the plotlines and worldbuilding all come to fruition in the next instances of the series.The Great Hunt was an all-around improvement when compared with the previous entry, but it still suffers from the same slow buildup that only gets satisfyingly tight-paced towards the conclusion. That, in my opinion, is not completely a negative point, as all the worldbuilding and character development is fundamental if a gratifying completion is desired. However, the initial seventy percent of the story still distinctively feels like a huge setup and can get difficult to push through all shifts in point of view.

A much better focused continuation to the first book. Had me grip to the story most of the time unlike Eye of the world. The world is expanded in a professional manner where in Eye of the world some areas felt dragged.

Having been introduced to the world and the characters in The Eye of the World, reading The Great Hunt felt like it went a lot faster than the first.The Great Hunt by Robert Jordan is more about character development than anything else, I think. Yes, the story itself was exciting, and we saw even more of the world – both new cultures and new places – but by the end of the fantasy book it was incredible to see how far the characters had come.Rand has grown into someone I don’t hate too much!He’s a good character, but he’s so unsure of himself all the time that it can be difficult to read his POV chapters in The Great Hunt without rolling my eyes!Mat goes through a lot in this book but finds his feet eventually – he’s one of my favourites so I’m glad.Perrin is my favourite character and it was so cool to see him do a little more in The Great Hunt. I hope to see even more in later entries as he’s got a lot to offer.Nynaeve, Egwene, Elayne and Min had much slower storylines than the other characters, but they were all brilliant to read. What they go through later in the book is harrowing, and I think it will affect their characters for a long time to come.I hope they stop squabbling as much though as it’s getting tired now.Overall, The Great Hunt was the perfect second entry to The Wheel of Time series and I hope the quality is kept up for the next one, The Dragon Reborn!

Historia mucho más rápida y emocionante que el libro 1.