The Eye of the World

Book One of The Wheel of Time

By: Robert Jordan

Narrated by: Rosamund Pike

Length: 32 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

A 2023 Audie Award winner for Best Female Narrator!

"Rosamund Pike brings a fresh narration to the first book in the beloved Wheel of Time series. At 33 hours, this audiobook is no small undertaking, but Pike's impressive performance leaves listeners wanting more."—AudioFile (Earphones Award winner)

“Through her smooth, dramatic performance, award-winning actor Rosamund Pike amplifies the new audiobook of book one in Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series.”—BookPage

A #1 New York Times bestselling audiobook!

The Wheel of Time is now an original series on Prime Video, starring Rosamund Pike as Moiraine!

This program is read by narrator Rosamund Pike, star of the hit Prime Video original series.

The Eye of the World, the first novel in Robert Jordan's #1 New York Times bestselling epic fantasy series, The Wheel of Time®, follows Moiraine Damodred as she arrives in Emond's Field on a quest to find the one prophesized to stand against The Dark One.

The Wheel of Time turns and Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth returns again. What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the Shadow.

When a vicious band of half-men, half beasts invade the Two Rivers seeking their master’s enemy, Moiraine persuades Rand al’Thor and his friends to leave their home and enter a larger unimaginable world filled with dangers waiting in the shadows and in the light.

Since its debut in 1990, The Wheel of Time® has captivated millions of fans around the globe with its scope, originality, and compelling characters. The last six books in series were all instant #1 New York Times bestsellers, and The Eye of the World was named one of America's best-loved novels by PBS's The Great American Read.

The Wheel of Time®

New Spring: The Novel

#1 The Eye of the World

#2 The Great Hunt

#3 The Dragon Reborn

#4 The Shadow Rising

#5 The Fires of Heaven

#6 Lord of Chaos

#7 A Crown of Swords

#8 The Path of Daggers

#9 Winter's Heart

#10 Crossroads of Twilight

#11 Knife of Dreams

By Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson

#12 The Gathering Storm

#13 Towers of Midnight

#14 A Memory of Light

By Robert Jordan and Teresa Patterson

The World of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time

By Robert Jordan, Harriet McDougal, Alan Romanczuk, and Maria Simons

The Wheel of Time Companion

By Robert Jordan and Amy Romanczuk

Patterns of the Wheel: Coloring Art Based on Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time

©1990 Robert Jordan (P)2021 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

“His huge, ambitious Wheel of Time series helped redefine the genre.” —George R. R. Martin, author of A Game of Thrones

“Anyone who’s writing epic or secondary world fantasy knows Robert Jordan isn’t just a part of the landscape, he’s a monolith within the landscape.” —Patrick Rothfuss, author of the Kingkiller Chronicle series

“The Eye of the World was a turning point in my life. I read, I enjoyed. (Then continued on to write my larger fantasy novels.)” —Robin Hobb, author of the award-winning Realm of the Elderlings series

This reading is exceptional

Michael Kramer and Kate Reading will always have a special place in my heart for their narration, but Rosamund Pike absolutely knocked it out of the park. This is a reading that elevates the story being told in every possible way, it adds a certain gravitas that is missing in the original recordings.

I really hope she does the rest of the books. I may already have all 14 of them, but I absolutely would spend 14 more credits for the rest of the series done by her.

5 stars!!!

GREATEST OF ALL TIME...

This is a 20 star review. 15 as above and 5 more for Robert Jordan... Greatest of all time in non-scifi fantasy.

Captivating!

This was a stellar performance, would highly recommend to anyone—maybe my favorite audiobook and telling of it I have heard so far!

Brilliant Narrator!!!

The characters are interesting, the story riveting, but what made this book the best I have ever listened to was the brilliant narration by Rosamund Pike. I honestly believe that was the best narration I have ever listened to!

Beautiful narration

Rosamund Pike’s performance is just beautiful. Her rich alto is a fantastic listen, and she encompasses all of the characters very well, both male and female. I don’t look forward to switching back to Kate Reading and Michael Kramer for the rest of the series. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed other books read by Kate Reading alone, but Kramer is at best tolerable as a reader for this series, and at worst, annoying. He has a tendency to sound nasal and a bit, well, bored as he reads, which doesn’t suit the tone of the work/characters and isn’t helped by the slightly lesser sound quality. I sincerely hope they come out with the rest of the series read by Rosamund Pike, and I’ll be looking forward to any other books with her as the reader in the future. She’s definitely a new addition to my list of favorite readers.

For those who are just coming to the series because of the new Amazon tv adaptation there will definitely be surprises with the story and how events were condensed and altered in the first episodes (seven so far) versus the book, and they should still be able to thoroughly enjoy the book without feeling like the show spoiled any of the surprises or character development. The book has so many additional details and things happening that don’t appear in the show but they do not feel like filler material at all. Settle in and enjoy the story! It would make a great book for a long road trip.

Listen to this version, not the original

I started with the Rosamund Pike narrated version of the first book, and can confidently say it is the fastest I have gotten engrossed into a new book/series. Pike's narration is simply fantastic, full of emotion and energy that really brings the world to life. As a regular audiobook listener, I can say that few narrators can bring as much to the table. Her voices for each character are distinct and full of unique personality, as well as executed with emotional depth and understanding.

I sincerely hope Pike gets the opportunity to narrate the rest of the series. After finishing this book and moving on to The Great Hunt with the original series narrators, I had to drop the series because they are just not good. Or maybe it's just impossible for them to compete with the remarkable narration of this book (though I truly believe they are the worst audiobook narrators I've heard so far).

I highly recommend listening to this version of the book, though be prepared for either a dramatic drop in narration quality or a long wait for another Pike narration if you plan to continue the series.

Rosamund Pike

Amazing voice performance. I’m almost scared to go on in the series without her reading it to me. I’m sure to be disappointed.

Longtime fantasy fan, first time reading Wheel of Time

Love the story, the writing, and the narration. Part of me is sorry it’s taken me until 35 to read this, but I’m mostly happy to discover a new-to-me series that’s so good (and so long)!

It's different

Hearing tEotW read this slowly and voices all so similar is so different. Not good or bad, just different. Has the pace of outlander, plus names are yet again pronounced differently. Pike is certainly an actress not a voice actor. Fantastic book. I'll stick to my Kindle though.

Rosamund’s narration really makes the story!

I’ve found that, for me anyway, the narrator can really make or break the story for me. I’ve heard Rosalind Pike narrate another book and done a very good job, however I think her narration skills in this classic - particularly her ability to take on different voices and different characteristics - are right up there with my absolute favorite, Michael Sheen. I’m also watching this series at the same time and, as always, hearing or reading the book really enhances my viewing experience. I certainly can’t wait/am extremely hopeful that Rosamund continues narrating The Wheel of Time books!!