It was supposed to be the end, or at least the beginning of it. But for a long time, fans thought the end would never come. When Robert Jordan passed away in 2007, the fantasy community felt a collective gut-punch. How do you finish a series with millions of words of lore, hundreds of distinct characters, and a plot so thick it has its own gravity? You don’t, usually. You just let it sit on the shelf, unfinished, a tragic "what if" in the annals of literature. Then came Brandon Sanderson. The Gathering Storm, the twelve wheel of time book, changed everything. It wasn't just a continuation; it was a rescue mission.
Honestly, people were skeptical. I remember the forums back then—Dragonmount and Theoryland were buzzing with a mix of hope and pure, unadulterated dread. Could this guy from Nebraska, who had only recently hit the map with Mistborn, actually capture the "voice" of the Creator? The stakes were astronomical. If he failed, he’d be the guy who ruined the greatest epic of the generation. If he succeeded, he’d just be doing his job.
Why The Gathering Storm Had to Be Three Books
Originally, Robert Jordan insisted the final volume would be one book. He famously said it would be one book even if it required a crane to lift. But when Sanderson and Harriet McDougal (Jordan's widow and longtime editor) looked at the sheer volume of notes, they realized the "Big White Book" was a physical impossibility. The Gathering Storm became the first of a final trilogy.
It covers a massive amount of ground. We finally see the payoff for plot lines that had been simmering since the late nineties. The "Slog"—that stretch of books six through ten where the pacing slowed to a crawl—was officially dead. This book moves. It rips through the narrative like a channeler holding Callandor.
We get the Fall of Arad Doman. We get the reunion of the White Tower. Most importantly, we get the "Darth Rand" era.
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The Transformation of Rand al'Thor
Rand’s arc in this book is, frankly, terrifying. He’s spent eleven books being beaten down by destiny, literal torture in a box, and the weight of the world. By the time we hit the twelve wheel of time installment, he has become a stone. He’s cold. He’s brutal. He’s willing to erase entire fortresses from existence with Balefire without blinking.
There’s a specific scene at Natrin's Barrow. If you’ve read it, you know. It’s the moment Rand stops being the hero we recognize and becomes something... else. He uses a forbidden weapon to delete a Graendal-controlled palace from the pattern. He doesn't just kill his enemies; he undoes their thread. It’s dark. It's the darkest the series ever gets, and it was necessary to make the eventual "Veins of Gold" chapter work. That chapter on the slopes of Dragonmount is arguably the best piece of writing in the entire fourteen-book run. It’s the moment the Dragon Reborn finally chooses to live, not just to die.
The Egwene Masterclass
While Rand is falling apart, Egwene al'Vere is putting the world back together. For years, Egwene was a polarizing character. Some found her arrogant; others saw her as the only person with a spine. In The Gathering Storm, she becomes undeniable.
Captive in a divided White Tower, she refuses to acknowledge her status as a novice. She takes her beatings. She drinks her tea. And slowly, she erodes the authority of Elaida through sheer force of will. It’s a psychological masterclass. Sanderson captured her "Amyrlin-ness" perfectly. When the Seanchan attack the Tower—a sequence that felt like a high-budget action movie in prose form—Egwene’s leadership cements her as one of the most powerful figures in the Age.
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Sanderson’s Learning Curve
Let’s be real for a second: the transition wasn't 100% seamless. Mat Cauthon felt... off. If you compare the Mat of Knife of Dreams to the Mat in the twelve wheel of time book, the dialogue is different. Sanderson’s Mat was a bit too "jokey," a bit too aware of his own tropes. He felt like a modern character dropped into a medieval setting.
Sanderson himself has admitted this. He struggled with Mat's voice more than any other. Mat is a character defined by the gap between what he thinks ("I'm no hero") and what he does (saves everyone). Jordan wrote that gap with a dry, subtle wit. Sanderson turned the volume up a bit too high initially. But you know what? Most of us forgave it because the rest of the book was so good.
- The pacing: Jordan’s "box" was gone. Things happened. People died.
- The clarity: The magic system felt visceral again.
- The stakes: The clouds literally turned black. The food was rotting. You felt the Last Battle approaching.
Verin Mathwin and the Big Reveal
We have to talk about Verin. For decades, fans theorized about her. Was she Black Ajah? Was she a secret hero? The scene in The Gathering Storm where she sits down with Egwene and a dress that is "not quite white" is one of the most satisfying payoffs in fantasy history.
"By the way, that dress you are wearing is green."
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That one line confirmed everything. Verin used a loophole in the Three Oaths to become the ultimate double agent. She spent seventy years soul-searching in the darkness just so she could hand over a ledger of names at the end. It’s a beautiful, tragic arc that proves the twelve wheel of time book wasn't just about finishing the story—it was about honoring the characters.
Actionable Insights for Your Re-read
If you’re diving back into the series or picking up the twelve wheel of time book for the first time, keep these things in mind to get the most out of the experience:
- Watch the weather. Jordan used the weather as a literal manifestation of the Dark One's touch. In this book, the "Gathering Storm" isn't just a metaphor. Pay attention to how the sky is described in different locations; it signals how close reality is to unraveling.
- Track the "Borderland" movement. There is a massive subplot involving the rulers of the Borderlands looking for Rand. It seems like filler initially, but it’s a crucial setup for the political resolution in A Memory of Light.
- Compare Rand’s internal monologue. Contrast the beginning of the book with the final page. The shift in how he perceives the "Lews Therin" voice in his head is the key to the entire series' resolution.
- Audiobook Tip: If you're struggling with the voice shift, listen to the audiobook narrated by Michael Kramer and Kate Reading. They provide the continuity that helps bridge the gap between Jordan’s writing and Sanderson’s.
The wheel turns, and ages come and pass. But for those of us who waited years for this book, the twelve wheel of time entry wasn't just another volume. It was the moment we knew the series would actually be finished. It turned a looming disaster into a triumphant sprint toward the finish line.
To truly appreciate the scope, go back and read the prologue of The Eye of the World right after finishing the final chapter of this book. The symmetry of Rand on Dragonmount vs. Lews Therin on Dragonmount is the kind of high-level storytelling that reminds you why we read these massive tomes in the first place. You’ll see the patterns of the wheel in a whole new light.