The Fires of Heaven by Robert Jordan

Being the Tenth Post of my Project Reread...
This is the longest I have taken to read a book in quite some time... in many aspects it was an exhausting, yet rewarding and entertaining, reread. Part of the problem with this reread is that during the process of reading this book I read three other books, returning to the Fires of Heaven at different times, generally making a mess of reading mind - I typically only read one book at a time limiting the confusion that comes along with reading multiple books at once, but over the past month I have been bouncing back and forth between books as if it were a contest of sorts. Oh well, my reading habits seem to be back to normal now and I do have a few words to share about The Fires of Heaven now...

The Fires of Heaven is a fine middle book to a series - stuff happens that matters to the story as a whole, it expands the world, adds complexity, and entertains - but it does also drag a bit in parts. The Fires of Heaven is sometimes the book (but definitely not the most frequent) that readers who give up on the series point to as the last book they read. There were certain sections that were slow, so I can understand that point of view, but for me, I just really enjoying spending time in Robert Jordan’s world, so these slower parts are pleasant from that perspective.

It seems almost a shame for me to have spent so long rereading The Fires of Heaven that I now have so few words to share about it, but so be it, lots more rereading to go before this project ends. The Fires of Heaven adds to the series (both in the complexity level of the going-ons, and the scope) and I enjoyed it very much...

Was it worth a reread? Yes, to me The Fires of Heaven was almost as enjoyable the second time around as it was the first (OK, I admit, it is more like the fourth time around). For anyone reading the series for the first time, I highly recommend it. For those of you who may be preparing to read the final books of the series, well I guess it all depends on your feelings of this book the first time around.
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Collector’s note - if you look around the internet you will most likely see more than a few sellers trying to sell unsigned first editions of The Fires of Heaven for well over the cover the price - do not buy anything from these people... plan to spend no more than the cover price for a nice copy - and in my mind that is good purchase. In this portion of my previous Project Reread post, I mentioned I would be talking about the signed limited editions of the Wheel of Time books, but alas, I have slacked on this subject, and that must wait for a later post (hey, I got to keep readers coming back somehow).
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What’s next on my Project Reread - pretty sure I am sticking with RJ again, so on to the Lord of Chaos I will be shortly. I will likely be holding off on rereading the rest of A Song of Ice and Fire series until the fall - just too much going on this summer with work and whatnot to devote my mental energy to really paying attention to George R.R. Martin’s saga... yes, I know that sounds weak, but ASoIaF is a series that deserves my full attention, and considering my love of the series, I want to devote my full attention to, and get the most out of, my reread of it.