Ryan

The Wheel of Time has really begun to slow down at this point, and this book seems to drag on as all of the characters are perpetually traveling. That said, there is a single scene toward the end of the novel whose power quite literally made me stop and gasp. Of the series so far this was the most difficult for me to get through, but when you hit the passage as I did, you'll realize it was worth it.

Consistancy in pronunciation and voices between this book and the first three. Roy Dotrice has read 100 hours of ASOI&F to me, and then changes up the way he says major character names, without some kind of forward explaining the change? It makes the book difficult to immerse yourself in.

Having to stop the book and rewind in order to figure out who the author was talking about, because I didn't recognize the name.

I would have preferred Roy Dotrice, performer of the first three novels. Not this Roy. Dotrice imposter.

Anger.

If you're a huge fan of the series, there's little doubt that you'll purchase this book too. But if you're not sold yet, end the series with A Storm of Swords and save yourself the frustration.

While anyone reaching this far in the series will not stop having gotten this far, the action of this novel has been put on pause. To quote from wikipedia's plot summary:

"Perrin Aybara continues trying to...

"Mat Cauthon continues trying to...

"Elayne Trakand continues trying to...

"Rand al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn, rests after...

"Egwene leads the rebel Aes Sedai in maintaining..."

Literally no new action begins and no plot lines end. There are some interesting scenes, but Crossroads of Twilight merely rehashes and stretches a few chapters of Winter's Heart into an entire novel. Perhaps this review is colored by the powerful drama and high action of the other novels; Crossroads of Twilight is a novel of intrigues. Newcomers to the series should definitely not start here, and fans will not want to pass this by. Just be prepared for a different type of listen than the first nine novels.

This was an excellent example of what "The Colbert Report" would be like if produced during the WGA strike. Colbert's delivery and character are great, but this audiobook lacks the subtlety, satire, intelligence and humor that makes me love "The Report".

After many years of reading audiobooks, this is one of the few that I could get two-thirds of the way through and still be unable to finish. Lefties will find this book to have a far-end, tree-hugging flavor, while righties will see little or no attempt to meet halfway or uncourage a shift in perspective. The author assumes the audience already agrees, and is unconvincing to anyone the least bit skeptical.

The author (male) mainly writes in the first-person, which becomes confusing when the reader (female) talks about his wife and other personal facts. The author also seems to believe that, like him, everyone in America's children attend schools abroad and begin globetrotting before twenty.

Some good ideas, but the obtuse lack of insight into what the real world is actually like makes this book a slow, unfulfilling listen.

The author engages true scholarly research into an engaging tale. At times the descriptions of the World's Fair seems like a dramatic pause between the more captivating story of "The Devil." The writing, however, is superb, and the minor historical details--shredded wheat, alternating current, and more--make the story fascinating.