Fantastic. WOT is back. This is Egwene's book. Her story has finally reached its highest point. She is finally the Amerlyn, and has finally bested Eliada just by being her best self. Things are happening quickly! Ahviendha is finally a wise one too. That story was spread out a little too long, but I always enjoy reading her POVs. This book has more foresaken: in traditional WOT form, Semerag was spanked. She escaped, but finally met her end. Grendal finally got blasted too. Tuon is officially empress. Some mild frustration in her conversations with Rand. Why can't they just reach a peace. Mat was the only misstep here, and his character definitely felt off. Too pessimistic, too much of a woman-hater. Verin was another highlight. I knew there was something off with her, but I knew she couldn't be evil. Her work was amazing. I knew there were black sisters, but 200 seems like a lot! Likewise, Sheriam surprised me. Finally, Rand is over his dreary self--he finally smiled! That ending on top of dragonmount--beautiful.

With The Gathering Storm (Book TWELVE of the Wheel of Time), Brandon Sanderson steps boldly into Robert Jordan's colossal shoes ... and the fit is noticeably different. And so here we are, in a familiar world, but with a new guide, and Sanderson explicitly says, in the introduction to the book, that he is going to tell us a story in his voice, not the emulated voice of Jordan. And so I think the most important thing to address in this review is authorship, and how the handing of the baton to Sanderson impacted my overall enjoyment of the book.

Let's start with the way of writing. Sanderson's prose is a departure from Jordan's style. I would describe Jordan's style as ornate, a baroque approach not just to details but with a long and drawn out sentence structure. By contrast, Sanderson is straightforward and uses modern terms like "chat" and "carbon" which stand out against the traditional fantasy backdrop of the Wheel of Time. This new vocabulary is more than a mere refresh; it signals a fundamental shift in the narrative voice.

It's not just new words. We see characters thinking about flowers and foodstuffs that they've never thought of before. We also see newly coined phrases, such as Suian’s shift from her typical "Fishguts!" to "By the black seas at midnight!" a phrase which not only feels out of character but inaccurately reflects her background. Sanderson's approach to this book is to introduce new elements ... and to do so without considering whether they fit in the existing narrative fabric.

And not just new words, new catchphrases, and new things. I want to posit that Sanderson did not fully grasp the culture of the world that Jordan was inventing. For example, in Jordan's books, Aes Sedai are seen by the common people as cloaked in distrust. But there's a scene halfway through the book where Nyneave heals a commoner, and is promptly surrounded by people who thank her and quite frankly simper at her. Where's the mistrust? We see something similar when General Gareth Bryne is Delved by Suian. Delving is a very typical Aes Sedai weave, often a precursor of Healing. But in Sanderson's book, Bryne has never been Delved before: "So this must be what delving feels like..." thinks a man who has spent his entire life fighting battles. The thought that a seasoned general and fighting man went his entire life without being delved strains belief.

All these differences aside, the most significant shift in the writing is the openness with which characters now discuss their inner turmoils. A fundamental part of Jordan's approach to writing the wheel of time is that characters are inherently reticent and secretive. It's not just the Forsaken (mistrustful of everyone) and the Aes Sedai (who rarely share their true goals with each other, much less the outside world). It is a rarity when characters share what they are truly thinking; often these moments are pivotal plot points, and the secretiveness ensnares characters to their detriment. Early in this book, Rand begins openly sharing his internal conflicts. Egwene also describes exactly what she wants to accomplish with the Aes Sedai at multiple points. This has the result of reducing the complexity of interpersonal relationships ... but also helps speed the book to its conclusion.

Finally, Sanderson seems to be really into characters who strive to understand themselves. I cannot recall Jordan ever engaging in existential exploration or introspection. Sanderson's Wheel of Time, by contrast, is full of characters who are confronting their identity, their purpose, and their values. Perhaps this is an artifact of Sanderson striving - in real time, on the written page - to understand the characters, and to demonstrate to us that he gets them. And I don't think that his take on the characters is wrong, per se. It's just that this is not how Jordan would have ever written the characters. (Much ado has been made of Sandersons' take on Mat; I think Sanderson wrote that character credibly and truthfully to Jordan's Mat, although it's a bit overdone).

Reflecting on these changes, I wonder if my awareness of the shift in authorship heightens my sensitivity to these alterations. Would I have been as critical if Jordan's name were alone on the cover? Perhaps. Certainly it's good to get out of "The Slump" of books 9-11. For all the changes, perhaps the biggest change in this book is that meaningful things happen, and they happen frequently. But while the book has definitely injected some much needed energy into the series, it also wrestles with the challenge presented by Sanderson full-heartedly embracing the opportunity to refresh Jordan's intricate world. Our new guide's hand, while steady, undeniably alters a world that I thought I knew well.

Concluding this review presents a genuine challenge: deciding whether to award this book three or four stars. On one hand, Sanderson’s fresh energy and significant plot advancements provide a much-needed revitalization following the series' earlier slow pace. And I am thankful for Sanderson's taking up of this burden and carrying the series forward. On the other hand, the changes in narrative style, the introduction of new words and things that have not existed in this world before, and inconsistencies in character behavior contribute to a sense of discontinuity. These issues are significant enough that they might warrant a more cautious three-star rating. Ultimately, the decision teeters on a fine balance between appreciation for Sanderson's contributions to the series and my reservations about the alterations to a beloved world, and a lament for a subtle magic that seems diminished by Jordan's passing.