"The Gathering Storm" by Robert Jordan with Brandon Sanderson

If I had to pick a defining theme of the Wheel of Time saga then I would have to say arrogance. The arrogance of the Dark One and his forsaken, the arrogance of the Aes Sedai, the arrogance of the Seanchan, the arrogance of the Wise Women, and even the arrogance of Rand himself are all central to the plot and its many twists and turns. Think of all the times you groaned in frustration when the arrogant pigheadedness of the heroes prevented them from listening to people who could actually help them. Remember also the delicious moments when the most arrogant are finally pulled down to size.

"The Gathering Storm" is the first book finished by Brandon Sanderson after Robert Jordan's untimely death. I put off reading it for some time but my recent enjoyment of Sanderson's Mist-born trilogy reassured me that he could write and I finally took the plunge. I am delighted to report that not only can Sanderson write well but he has also done a masterful job of preserving the feel of the series and his depiction of good old WoT arrogance is central to this.

I am once again enthused but Wheel of time and very much looking forward to the remaining two books.