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The Eye of the World  By  cover art

The Eye of the World

By: Robert Jordan
Narrated by: Kate Reading, Michael Kramer
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Publisher's summary

"These veteran narrators keep the plot moving and the narration fresh" (AudioFile Magazine)

This program is read by Audie Award-winning narrators Michael Kramer and Kate Reading, and includes a bonus interview with the author.

Now an original series starring Rosamund Pike as Moiraine!

The first novel in Robert Jordan's #1 New York Times bestselling epic fantasy series, The Wheel of Time®.

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.

Moiraine Damodred arrives in Emond’s Field on a quest to find the one prophesized to stand against The Dark One, a malicious entity sowing the seeds of chaos and destruction. When a vicious band of half-men, half beasts invade the village 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 readers around the globe with its scope, originality, and compelling characters.

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

Listen to more books in The Wheel of Time series.
©1990 Robert Jordan (P)1996 Books on Tape, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Jordan has come to dominate the world that Tolkien began to reveal." (The New York Times)

Featured Article: Wheel of Time Character Guide—Perrin


Among the most popular and enduring characters in Robert Jordan's epic Wheel of Time series is Perrin Aybara: blacksmith, Wolfbrother, and Steward of the Dragon. Perrin is a beloved character because of his strength and leadership, and because of his parallels to some heroes from various myths throughout time. Here is everything you ever wanted to know about Perrin Aybara, one of the prophesied saviors to stand up against the Dark One.

What listeners say about The Eye of the World

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Your first step down a very long and winding road.

The Eye of the World kicks off Robert Jordan's epic fantasy series and it is a step that should not be taken lightly. This first book is excellent and will likely have you listening to the next book in the journey before you know it. This is a long series (13+ books) and each book so far is between 23-41 hours of listening in unabridged format.

Some things you should know before you start:

1) Robert Jordan did not live long enough to finish the story, but he did pass along his vision for the conclusion to Brandon Sanderson who is writing the final books. Brandon Sanderson is an awesome Fantasy writer so the conclusion of the series is in good hands.

2) Robert Jordan can tend to be wordy at times and some of the books along the way feel a little bloated, but each one does advance the story.

3) The narration is done by 2 excellent narrators: Michael Kramer and Kate Reading. Each chapter will be read by one or the other depending on the chapter's main character. If the main character is female then Kate will read the entire chapter including the male voices. Michael will handle the chapters where the main character is male and he will do the female voices. This means that you must get accustomed to 2 voices for each character. This put me off at first but I quickly became accustomed to it and now I really enjoy the format.

4) After a few books the narrators change the way they pronounce certain character names and this can throw you off until you realize that it is just a pronunciation change and not a different character. Just be prepared for it.

I am glad I started this long journey and I feel that audio is one of the best ways to experience Jordan's work. I had read The Eye of the World years ago but it didn't inspire me to keep going forward in the series, where the audiobook left me wanting more!

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1,480 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

This Series Rocks

I am writing this review on the first of this series because as you consider beginning a multibook series you'll be wondering if the commitment is worth it. After having listened to all of the books now available on Audible (10 or 11 and the story is still not over) I am telling you to GO FOR IT. It took a several chapters to get my bearings with the material, but after that I was hooked in a terribly engrossing world of fantasy that I would never have thought would interest me. Some other reviewers have panned the narrators, and maybe with the first book they hadn't yet found their bearing either, but throughout the series they are outstanding in my opinion. I couldn't get enough of this story. I'm thankful that I came to it late, when there were already more than 10 books to enjoy. I admit that I have expected the author to wrap up this saga before now, but in reality I am thankful that he kept the characters and their world alive. I recommend this series with no reservations.

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561 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

everything you need to know

If you read several of the listener ratings you will find that half love it and half hate it. This is not anything like LotR. This is bigger in every respect. The world is bigger, the characters are deeper and thjere are many, many, more of them. If you take on this series you need to be ready to focus. If you listen half heartedly you will be lost very quickly. I understand some of the points of the bad reviews. This series is detailed. You will always know what everyone is wearing and what every room looks like and some people will find it tiresome. I however really get a sense of being in the story and that is why I read/listen. If your thing is a movie type book, a few hours and everything is rapped up, then you are looking for something else. There are many great stand alone books on this site alone but if you are looking for a neck deep fantasy with as much intrigue as can be put on paper then look no further. Personally this and the Sword of Truth are my favorites. Be warned though that the author recently died and the 12th book (A Memory of Light) is now being written by Brandon Sanderson of Mistborn. The final installment is about 60% through the rough draft phase. I usually dont get books until the series is done because i cant stand waiting a year to see how it ends but just the fact that the last book is on its way has prompted me into a second go round on this series so I know exactly what is going on. WHether you get this one or not happy listening.

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428 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Amazing Series, Amazing Readers

I am overjoyed to find audible choose to carry this Unabridged series. It is pretty much the only place anywhere you can find this extraordinary Unabridged audio series. The abridged version of this series is horrible; however this version is a true and rare audio gem. I have listened to literally a few hundred audio books in my life, most of which were either sci-fi/ fantasy and this series stands out as one of the best I?ve heard. It has exquisite readers both Michael Kramer and Kate Reading are among the best audio readers I've ever heard. As anyone who has heard audio can probably relate to, the quality of the reader is vital to the experience of the book and these are simple two of the best in the business. They capture the characters perfectly and draw you in like few other readers can. Another great and fairly unique thing this audio reading does is when the books comes from the perspective of a female character Kate gives you the female voice to match, where as if you are in the head of a male character Michael reads to give you that male feel. This makes a big difference in the whole experience, how much the reading brings the character to life and draws you into their world. Speaking of which, Robert Jordan's WOT world is one of the most vivid, complex and original world I have experienced in fantasy. The world's complexity continues to grow throughout the huge epic series. It makes you want to know what is going on in different lands almost as much as what is happening with different characters. In the first half of this series each book is better then the one before as the main characters, the world and the adventure expands. If you get a chance, please request that audible carry the rest of this Unabridged series. As of now they carry book one (The Eye of the World) and two (The Great Hunt). I guess that's about it. Enjoy, I hope you have as much fun with it as I did.

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208 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A Masterpiece

There is very little in the way of accolades that I could add to what has already been written about this book except to second the praise for it. When choosing a book, I do consider how many people have taken the time to rate and review a book, as well as what the reviews have to say. Therefore, the value of this book to me requires that I say something to encourage others to take it as a selection. This was my first Robert Jordan book. It's about 30 hours long and I finished it in two and a half days. I could not put it down. It is a masterpiece in almost every aspect of the word and I do not know how the narration could possibly have been improved. I was blown away.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

If you only knew what was coming....

This intro may seem slow to some, but it really is a great beginning to an amazing adventure. Not the best book in the series but it's one that will always be special to me simply because of the world that introduced me to.

If you want to spend 6 months of commuting wishing that your drive was longer so that you could listen to more.... This is your series.

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Mixed feelings

I read this series over a decade ago and waited anxiously for each new book to come out. I wanted to enjoy the series again while I drove 45 mins to/from work. It just didn't work for me. The reader just read too slow for me. And the use of two different readers who both read male and female parts - after the first reader had already read the female parts - didn't make sense to me. If you're going to use various readers, why not have them be consistent in reading the same character throughout the book? Very disappointed.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Give it a chance

My kids and I love fantasy books and were excited about starting a long series that we had heard a lot about. I'm not really sure where everyone gets that Michael Kramer is a great narrator unless they have stuck it out and listened to more books in this series. Frankly, he starts out AWFUL. We almost stopped listening just because of him. His cadence is so predictable and completely got on my nerves for the first 2/3 of the book. The first part that Kate Reading read seriously saved this book for us and we kept listening.

... and then about 2/3 of the way through it get SO much better. We are now almost finished with the 2nd book in the series and it is wonderful. Yes, this book has a slow start. But as you continue with the story you understand why - it NEEDS a slow start. I'm rating it pretty high even though I never thought I would get through it. Give it a chance and you will have a great start on an epic series.

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Narrator

I got this because I remember reading it many years ago. Unfortunately, the narrator makes this sound ridiculous with an exaggerated, dramatic tone.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Hooked!

Awesome! One of the best series of books i've read/listened to and i've read quite a lot of fantasy & scifi. It is a must read for anyone even mildly interested in fantasy adventure.

Pleasssse...don't listen to the abridged volumes you will regret it. Also please request to audible that they get the rest of the series in Unabridged versions. I'm on my second reading and it's as good as the first.

Rob 37yrs old
Cville, VA

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