Right from the start it’s clear that this is no ordinary book. The world of the Fourlands incorporate elements from the renaissance as well as the modern world. At first it was a bit off-putting to discover things that don’t normally exist in your average fantasy world – such as drugs, cigarettes, newspapers, t-shirts, and jeans – since it seemed that the author didn’t go all the way when creating the new world. But once I learned to see through my scepticism and my own foolish notions of what is right and what is wrong in fantasy worlds it was easy to lay back and enjoy the ride.

The Fourlands has been waging a long and bloody war against a race of huge and monstrous insects, and it’s not going well. Ruling the Fourlands is the immortal and mysterious Emperor, assisted by The Circle, of which each member is the embodiment of a profession and through contests granted immortality. Among them is Jant, the Messenger, whose spot in the Circle has been fairly secure for the last two hundred years as he is the only one in a race of winged people who can fly. However, Jant seems intent to recklessly push the boundaries of both immortality and the patience of his friends to the limit with his addiction to a lethal drug. But it’s only when he is deeply within the effects of the drug – in quantities that would kill mortal men – that Jant can travel to a bizarre and dark alternate world, where he start to see a way to save the Fourlands against the insect threat. If the world is real that is.

Although the book is mainly about those immortal, Swainston does a good job at displaying the view from those that are not. Because after all, bitterness and envy run can only run high when looking at those that will never die, and knowing that you will. The character Swallow is determined to be the first Musician in the Circle, but it’s hard to see art as equal to swordsmanship when the biggest issue of a realm is killing insects before they kill you.

I like when books are intentionally vague in details of the world and not just cram all the worlds history, secrets, and present events into the first few chapters or prologue. If, after the first chapter, you are not wondering “how?” or “why?” and want to continue reading then the author did something wrong. But you could also take the secrecy too far, and I think that’s one of the books few flaws; unless you have read a summary of the story (like this review) it will require some effort to fully get into the world. Just a simple thing that everyone in the Circle have three different names is enough to confuse the best of us.

The book is well paced, and with flashbacks and present events it paints the bizarre and complicated picture of the world without banging you on the head with information. Although Jant has the traits to become your typical anti-hero I feel it would be an insult to already redeemed anti-heroes by including him in their midst. Jant is, to put it plainly, a douchebag, and considering that he was a douchebag before he became immortal – and still is two hundred years later – I’d say he is not likely to change his ways. But oddly enough it’s still fascinating to read about him.

This is a book much recommended if you have grown tired of your usual fantasy and like something weird. It’s a story told from the perspective of strange people with strange habits in a strange world, but it’s a good story – and that’s all that matters.

The tone of the novel is set right from the start in the prologue, with a loaming black storm and a sense that the battle is upon the world. I knew since the last DragonCon that part of the prologue was done by Robert Jordan himself, but where Jordan stopped and Brandon Sanderson begun I couldn’t tell at first. I did notice his style later during the reading, and Sanderson is definitely less free with his descriptions, instead preferring a tighter writing that still paints pictures satisfactory. Several times during the reading I entirely forgot that I was reading a different author than Jordan, only to be reminded later by noticing how “fast” things seemed to be moving.

Moving plots constantly forward has sadly been one of Jordan’s lacking feats, but something that Sanderson apparently has no trouble with. The book slows down a bit in the middle, but it is barely noticeable and no way near as painful as in some of the later books of the series. Yes, Winter’s Heart, I’m looking at you.

With only a few chapters about Mat, and Perrin only with a few pages, the entire book is more or less only about Rand and Egwene. Elayne and the Black Tower are completely absent, which is somewhat annoying, especially considering the ending of Knife of Dreams. One of the bigger faults of the Wheel of Time series is that it tries to do too much with too many people. If you let every character – and there is a lot of them – have their share of pages not much will happen, and if you only focus on a few you will miss the others.

While The Gathering Storm only focuses on two storylines it manages to do so wonderfully well. Rand struggle with his madness as he gathers his forces for the Last Battle and desperately tries to force the rest of the world under his banner. As people around him continue to worry about the Dragon Reborn’s sanity, he himself turns even more inwards as he tries to find a way to actually defeat the Dark One. Meanwhile, Egwene does all she can to reunite the shattered White Tower without breaking it completely, but even from within it’s no easy task.

Unlike the other books in the series, you can actually feel the Last Battle loaming over the world, instead of it being something everyone just talks about. The book is definitely a lot darker than others in the series, and I only expect it to get darker from here. It will be a scene with Rand in the middle of the book that will shock you deeply. You will get the impression – very strongly – that the Dark One is not just sitting and waiting, and that he is deviously cunning.

Since I hadn’t read anything of Sanderson’s work previously I was a bit concerned that characters would feel unfamiliar, but I felt that he nailed almost every one of them perfectly. The “almost” is there because of Mat, who I felt wasn’t entirely familiar. He was more humorous – up to the point where I actually laughed out loud on several occasions – but while he had previously been more of a sardonic rogue he was almost too much here. I didn’t dislike him – I actually liked him very much – but I didn’t recognize him as the Mat from previous books.

Sanderson does a wonderful job on all the other characters, and even does a fairly good job on most of the women. I didn’t notice any who complained about the sweetness of their tea, Aes Sedai didn’t think so much of themselves (they still do, only a bit less), Nynaeve kept her braid-pulling to a minimum, and Egwene didn’t want to box someone’s ears all the time. He even managed to make Cadsuane into a slightly more understandable character, and that is no small feat.

Although the Forsaken are having appearances and clashes with Rand, they are not providing the usual action-filled climatic endings like in previous books of the series. Instead (I don’t think I spoil anything here) there is a very powerful and emotional scene with Rand, standing at the top of Dragonmount, where he begins to doubt the very cause he is committed to, the futility, and why he fights. It is very possibly the best scene in the series, and a perfect ending that sets the tone for the remaining two books.

So to conclude, The Gathering Storm might have a new writer, but the series remains true to its vision and there is not a single time I felt that Jordan would have done differently. It is extremely well written, and it’s nice to see storylines that has kept going throughout the series come to conclusions in most satisfying ways. The Gathering Storm is without a doubt the best book in the series so far, and it strongly shows that Sanderson is committed, and perfect, for the job of finishing the most epic fantasy series of them all.

Do you want to torture me and get book reviews at the same time? If you have answered yes to any of those, here is your chance to share the pain ladies and gents.

Once a month I am going to throw myself on the literary sword (as opposed to a literal one) and order into the local library, download or otherwise lay my hands on whatever really bad book you choose to inflict upon me. I am sure we can throw up a poll if there are a lot of suggestions, otherwise it will be random pick by the staff.

Go for it, torture Ardy.

(Word of warning to the staff, most of you live within smiting distance.)