Crossroads of Twilight is book ten of the Wheel of Time Series by Robert Jordan. I have persisted with this series even though the last couple of books have been a bit mediocre, with much preamble before anything significant actually happening. I was hoping that this title would have got the series back on track. But no! 700 pages and almost nothing happened. It almost feels like you are reading something in real time, following the characters minute by minute as they mull over events and feelings. And, as usual, there are an immense amount of characters. It is so easy to lose yourself (and not in a good way) trying to get your head around who is who, as well as how and where they relate to each other in the story. The first few books had the main characters together in the thick of events, but now that they have all split up, it's as if you are reading six different books all at the same time. Of course there are still links, but they feel very weak. I am becoming increasingly frustrated by this series. I have invested a heck of an amount of time to it, and am being short-changed in the story-telling department. The plot, such as it is, was around what was happening just after Rand al'Thor - the Dragon Reborn - "cleansed" the male half of the True Source (magic to you and me). This power eventually kills men who use it - but only after it has sent them mad - but has Rand now prevented this from happening? The other characters don't know that this is what has happened as yet, just that a massive use of "the power" took place. Egwene is trying to keep all her Aes Sedai together and plans to take back the White Tower and bring all the Sisters back together as a cohesive group. Mat remains in hiding within the travelling circus, but is drawn to his captive - Tuon - who he is pretty sure he is destined to marry - even though he's not sure he actually likes her. Perrin is on the trail of his wife, and is determined to rescue her from the clutches of her kidnappers. Yes, that's two kidnap plots in the same book! Meanwhile, Elayne, who is pregnant by Rand al'Thor is still manoeuvring to ensure her ascendancy to the throne at Caemlyn. There are hints of intrigues and lots of talking and meaningful looks, but almost no action. Seriously, how long can this be strung out for? I'm begging for the story to reach the heights of the first few books, but doubt as to whether this will actually happen has set in big time. Will my plea of JUST GET ON WITH IT be heeded in book eleven? Fingers crossed all round!
My STAR rating: THREE.
Length: 700 print pages.
Price I paid: £3.00 (at a fantastic second-hand bookshop in Whitstable).
Formats available: print; unabridged audio CD; unabridged audio download; ebook.
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