A MEMORY OF LIGHT (The Wheel of Time #14) by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

…and a big, two-year-long exhale.

What a ride, what a series, what an epic story. How one(ish) person could imagine a world to this extent is incredible. And even more impressive he could share it with the world and nail a quality ending like this.

Finales are tough. I’ve read enough Stephen King to know that some of the best page turners can end with a big plop, fizzling out and making you question if the rest was worth it. This book is so the opposite that it hurts to have it in the rearview. I just want to sit here and think about all that I experienced, all the emotions and revelations in this book and across the fifteen, and how by the end I wasn’t ready for it to be over. Finales are tough, and this one will stick with me for a long time.

I’ve never experienced a finish like in A Memory of Light. It’s the Last Battle from beginning to end, no taking the foot off the gas. One intense finale that truly encompasses what an end-of-times war would look like, down to the gritty details. It’s exactly the ending this series needs, one it prepares you for from the start, and the one it deserves.

The Wheel of Time has its quirks and it’s slogs. But it belongs in the Greatest Fantasy Series conversation. I may not have been sure about that after book #10, but I’m more than ready to say it now. The grand scale of this world and its characters beats just about any I’ve read before, and it gives me a solid standard to compare to from here on out. Have I mentioned how tough endings are?

My favorite book would probably be either #4 The Shadow Rising or this one. One brought the heat early, one capped it all off late. Trying to think of my favorite character overall, Mat still comes to mind. Or Lan. Though any time the Forsaken are around the book gets better. Rand is obvious. Egwene has a strong arc. The forgotten history of the Aiel is still a highlight for me as well.

It’s just too vast a story to pick one I guess. A good problem to have.

I won’t start a series like this for a while. I’m drained from the effort, as amazing as it is. Taking a random book breather between each installment helped a lot and is highly recommended to stay motivated (besides during the last three), but I’m ready to have complete freedom again. So many books accumulated on the to-read list the last two years, it’ll be nice to let fate decide what’s next.

Whatever the wheel wills.