theman
2/17/2013
** spoiler alert **
I only started the series three years ago, and so read all the books nearly back to back. I recommend that experience, although such a long series is not for everybody. I have my long list of gripes about the series, but that must be a sign of how invested I became in the world and characters.
Overall, Sanderson's WOT books were far better than Jordan's because the changes to style he made targeted many of the commonly cited flaws of Jordan's WOT books. Pacing, tangential storylines, shallow female characters, et cetera. I read Sanderson's WOT books obsessively, whereas I read Jordan's more as chewing gum for the brain.
My only true complaint was how many times a main character died, only to find out on a later page that the reader was misled. I grieved at the deaths of Lan, Galad, Birgitte, Faile, Aviendha, Mat, Rand, probably some others, all of which had some bait and switch moment meant to fool the reader. I'd rather have them die for real than feel tricked by the author just for the sake of plucking at my heartstrings. In the last pages I was waiting for the gotcha moment when Egwene would be revealed to have survived.