The Eye of the World

When Emond's Field, a small farming village in the Two Rivers region, is invaded by Trollocs and Myrddraal, agents of the Dark One, it is fortunate that an Aes Sedai and a Warder are staying in the village. Moiraine, the Aes Sedai, a woman who can channel the One Power, and Lan, her Warder, help save Emond's Field and encourage friends Rand, Mat, and Perrin to accompany them to Tar Valon for their protection as Moiraine suspects that the friends are hunted by the Dark One. Egwene, who is training to be the town's Wisdom, yearns for adventure and refuses to be left behind, and Thom, a gleeman, also join the group as they leave Two Rivers. Nynaeve, the town's Wisdom, finds them at an inn in the first town they stop in, completing the group. As they travel, it becomes clear to Moiraine that one of the boys is the Dragon Reborn, and that they must save the Eye of the World from the Dark One.

The Eye of the World contains many references to The Lord of the Rings and Arthurian legend. Jordan had stated that he started in a style reminiscent of The Lord of the Rings to make the books familiar to readers before putting his own spin on the story. I didn't find the book as readable as The Lord of the Rings, and I felt that Jordan didn't do enough to invest me in the characters, whether by design or not. Although the characters were threatened many times, the threats didn't seem serious enough to give me concern that the characters were in any significant danger. I also felt that there were a few minor plot holes, and the ending was very abrupt and unanticipated. I found it odd that although questions remained at the end of the book, it didn't end on the cliffhanger I had expected for a 14 book series. However, the story interested me enough that I will keep reading the series, which is loved by so many.