Knife of Dreams is bittersweet. Let’s start with the sweet. After slowing the pace to a crawl in the previous two books, book eleven moves at breakneck speed! The climactic scenes missing from the last few books are all packed into this one: Rand, Perrin, Matt, and even Elaine get their thrilling moments. Phew! Back on track.

Unfortunately, this was the last book that Robert Jordan would write before his death in 2007. The final ‘book’ (read: trilogy) would be written by Brandon Sanderson in consultation with Jordan’s widow and editor, Harriet, and copious piles of notes from the dearly departed creator of the Wheel.

In retrospect, the build up of the previous slow-paced volumes made this book all the better. Jordan left a satisfying triumph of a novel as his final published work.

Jordan, Robert. Knife of Dreams. TOR, 2005. The Wheel of Time 11.