Robert Jordan
1 series15 books
Reading Orders
Series (1)
Books (15)
The Eye of the World
The Wheel of Time
1990
In the remote village of Emond's Field, five young people - Rand al'Thor, Mat Cauthon, Perrin Aybara, Egwene al'Vere, and Nynaeve al'Meara - are drawn into a world-spanning conflict when the Aes Sedai Moiraine arrives with her Warder Lan, pursued by agents of the Dark One. Forced to flee their homes, the group journeys across a dangerous landscape of ruined cities, cursed roads, and ancient strongholds toward the Eye of the World, a pool of pure power hidden in the corrupted Blight. The Eye of the World establishes the series' central tension - Rand's dawning realisation that he may be the Dragon Reborn, the prophesied figure destined to face the Dark One at the Last Battle, and the knowledge that every male channeller before him has gone mad and destroyed everything he loved.
The Great Hunt
The Wheel of Time
1990
The Horn of Valere - an artifact capable of summoning the legendary heroes of ages past - has been stolen by Darkfriends, and Rand al'Thor joins the hunt to recover it while struggling to deny his growing ability to channel the One Power. Meanwhile, Egwene and Nynaeve travel to the White Tower to begin their training as Aes Sedai, and the Seanchan - invaders from across the ocean who enslave women who can channel - make their first devastating appearance on the western coast. The Great Hunt expands the world dramatically, introducing the parallel dimension of Tel'aran'rhiod (the World of Dreams) and the political complexity of the Aes Sedai, while driving Rand closer to accepting the identity he fears most.
The Dragon Reborn
The Wheel of Time
1991
Rand al'Thor has proclaimed himself the Dragon Reborn, but rather than lead, he flees - driven by visions and the growing madness of the male half of the One Power toward the great fortress known as the Stone of Tear. There he intends to find the crystal sword Callandor, a weapon that prophecy says only the true Dragon can wield. Uniquely among the Wheel of Time novels, The Dragon Reborn tells much of its story through the perspectives of Mat, Perrin, Egwene, Elayne, and Nynaeve rather than Rand himself. Mat comes into his own as a roguish gambler with uncanny luck, Perrin confronts his connection to wolves, and the women of the story begin to emerge as political and magical forces in their own right.
Shadow Rising
The Wheel of Time
1992
Widely regarded as the series' strongest volume, The Shadow Rising splits into three major storylines. Rand travels to the Aiel Waste to prove himself to the desert warrior people whose prophecies also speak of a man who will break and remake their world. Perrin returns to the Two Rivers to defend his homeland from a Trolloc invasion and the machinations of the Whitecloaks. And Nynaeve and Elayne journey to Tanchico to hunt members of the Black Ajah - Aes Sedai who secretly serve the Dark One. The novel reveals the true history of the Aiel through Rand's journey through the ancestral memory ter'angreal in Rhuidean, one of the most acclaimed sequences in the series.
Fires of Heaven
The Wheel of Time
1993
Rand leads the Aiel out of the Waste and into the Westlands, pursuing the renegade Aiel clan chief Couladin while navigating the politics of nations that fear his power as much as they need it. Mat, still trying to avoid his destiny, inadvertently becomes a brilliant military commander. Nynaeve confronts one of the Forsaken in Tel'aran'rhiod. And the rebel Aes Sedai who have broken from the White Tower begin to consolidate their power. The Fires of Heaven marks the point where the series fully commits to its political and military scope, with battles, betrayals, and power struggles that set the pattern for the volumes to come.
Lord of Chaos
The Wheel of Time
1994
Rand has established himself as a ruler of nations, but the Aes Sedai of the White Tower - both the loyalists under Elaida and the rebels in Salidar - have their own plans for the Dragon Reborn. When Rand is captured and imprisoned by Elaida's embassy, the resulting rescue at Dumai's Wells produces one of the most dramatic and consequential battles in the series. Lord of Chaos deepens the political complexity significantly, introducing the Asha'man - male channellers trained as weapons by Rand - and escalating the tension between those who would use Rand and those who would follow him.
Crown of Swords
The Wheel of Time
1996
In the aftermath of Dumai's Wells, Rand's relationship with the Aes Sedai is shattered. He pushes forward with his campaign to unite the nations, storming the city of Illian to confront the Forsaken Sammael, while Mat finds himself entangled with the Daughter of the Nine Moons. Egwene, now raised as the Amyrlin Seat of the rebel Aes Sedai, begins the difficult work of turning a figurehead position into real authority. A Crown of Swords tightens the pace after the sprawl of Lord of Chaos and drives several character arcs to critical turning points.
Path of Daggers
The Wheel of Time
1998
Rand uses the Bowl of the Winds - recovered by Nynaeve and Elayne - to fix the unnatural weather caused by the Dark One's influence, but the use of the powerful ter'angreal has unintended consequences. He then launches a campaign against the Seanchan invaders with his Asha'man, but the taint on saidin is eroding his sanity and his control over the male channellers becomes increasingly precarious. Egwene solidifies her authority among the rebel Aes Sedai and begins marching them toward Tar Valon. The Path of Daggers is one of the shorter books in the series and is often noted as the beginning of a slower stretch in the middle volumes.
Winter's Heart
The Wheel of Time
2000
Rand, pushed to the edge by the madness of the taint and the weight of prophecy, makes a desperate gamble - an attempt to cleanse saidin itself, purging the male half of the One Power of the Dark One's corruption. The climactic scene at Shadar Logoth, where Rand channels immense power while nearly every Forsaken converges to stop him, is one of the series' defining moments. Elsewhere, Mat is trapped in the Seanchan-occupied city of Ebou Dar and encounters the woman prophecy has marked for him. Elayne works to secure her claim to the Lion Throne of Andor.
Crossroads of Twilight
The Wheel of Time
2003
The most divisive book in the series, Crossroads of Twilight depicts the immediate aftermath of the cleansing of saidin - but primarily through the perspectives of characters who are elsewhere, reacting to the distant event rather than experiencing it. Perrin continues his pursuit of the Shaido Aiel who captured his wife Faile. Mat plots his escape from Ebou Dar with the Daughter of the Nine Moons. Egwene prepares to lay siege to Tar Valon. The novel is widely regarded as the slowest in the series, with much of its content devoted to political manoeuvring and positioning rather than resolution.
New Spring
The Wheel of Time
2004
The only novel-length prequel to The Wheel of Time, set twenty years before The Eye of the World. New Spring follows two storylines: Moiraine Damodred and Siuan Sanche, newly raised Aes Sedai navigating the politics of the White Tower while hunting for a child born on the slopes of Dragonmount who may be the Dragon Reborn; and Lan Mandragoran, last king of the destroyed nation of Malkier, riding with a mercenary company and trying to forget that he was born to a war he cannot win alone. The two stories converge when Moiraine finds Lan and bonds him as her Warder - the beginning of the partnership that opens The Eye of the World. For readers who have finished the main series, New Spring reframes everything known about these two characters: Moiraine's twenty-year search for Rand, the weight Lan carries, and the relationship between them that cost Moiraine so much to establish. It is best read after the main series rather than before it, despite being set first chronologically - the emotional payoff depends on knowing where the story ends.
Knife of Dreams
The Wheel of Time
2005
Robert Jordan's final solo volume is a dramatic return to form, resolving several long-running plotlines with decisive action. Mat marries Tuon, completing the Seanchan prophecy. Perrin finally rescues Faile from the Shaido in a brutal battle. Elayne secures the Lion Throne. And Egwene, captured by the White Tower Aes Sedai, begins undermining Elaida's authority from within her own prison. Knife of Dreams was widely celebrated as proof that Jordan was driving toward a powerful conclusion. He died two years after its publication.
The Gathering Storm
The Wheel of Time
2009
The first of three volumes completed by Brandon Sanderson from Robert Jordan's notes. Rand al'Thor has reached his darkest point - hardened, paranoid, and willing to sacrifice anything and anyone to prepare for the Last Battle. His arc in The Gathering Storm climaxes atop Dragonmount in a moment of profound personal crisis and renewal that many readers consider the emotional peak of the entire series. Simultaneously, Egwene's campaign to reunify the White Tower reaches its conclusion in a masterful display of political and personal courage. The Gathering Storm was praised for reinvigorating the series' momentum.
Towers of Midnight
The Wheel of Time
2010
With Rand reborn in purpose and the White Tower reunited under Egwene, the forces of Light begin their final preparations. Perrin at last comes to terms with his wolf nature and forges his identity as both lord and wolfbrother. Mat leads an expedition into the Tower of Ghenjei to rescue Moiraine from the otherworldly Aelfinn and Eelfinn - a sequence Jordan had planned for decades. The borders of reality are fraying as the Dark One's influence grows, and the armies of the world must decide whether to follow the Dragon Reborn to Shayol Ghul.
Memory of Light
The Wheel of Time
2013
The final volume. The Last Battle has begun. Rand al'Thor rides to Shayol Ghul to confront the Dark One while the armies of humanity fight on multiple fronts in a battle that spans over two hundred pages - one of the longest sustained battle sequences in fantasy literature. Every major character converges on their destiny: Mat commands the forces of Light, Perrin fights in the World of Dreams, Egwene faces the Forsaken, Lan charges the Gap. A Memory of Light brings closure to storylines that began in 1990 and delivers the ending Robert Jordan envisioned before his death. The prologue and several key scenes were written by Jordan himself; Sanderson wove them into the completed novel.