My brother has tried to get me into reading those since we found the first one in our public library in the early 2000s. Are they as good as he says? I've read The Sword or Truth series, are they similar?
I haven't read sword of truth and I actually started reading because I am a Sanderson fan. But they are good. A bit slow to be honest, and apparently it will get even slower, but the world is fucking awesome. The world is set in an age which lasted for 3000 years, and there are significant things that lead to the creation of this age and Robert Jordan makes it feel like so. The world has a deep fucking history.
There is a part in book 4 where the main character gets to know events of the past (This is the best I can say without spoilers) and that had me in tears man. I would tell you to read upto there at least, then decide. I know it's a long journey but I am loving it.
It is a long journey but absolutely worth it. I have read them through several times, easily one of the best experiences I have had in literature. It can be slow going at times, but that is part of the experience. After all, life before death, strength before weakness, JOURNEY before destination.
If I do read them, I'll need to find a German copy, which I can thankfully order from the bookstore near my apartment 😁
The Pillars of Time, the third book from The Sword of Truth series, played with time shifts, but only for tension building purposes. These explained how one character was following in the tracks of the main character. The second was far more gruesome, still to this day it gives me chills.
When I read it brought you to tears, I added the series to my must read list! I just hope it's been well translated, unfortunatly not all media is.
As someone who has been a fan of the Sword of Truth series, I can confidently say that Wheel of Time is superficially similar but definitely better. Both main characters are unknowing chosen one's with mysterious lineages, who go on their heroes journey to save the world. Both have an interesting magic system, and mostly engaging and enjoyable characters. Both have a morally headstrong lead character who has a hero complex after being thrust into the position, who are genuinely fun to root for as they grow into the hero they become.
Wheel of Time is a much larger story, more grand epic in comparison, with a larger cast and 5 "main" characters that are followed with their satellite characters. The timeline and scope start out with the entire world and remain on that scale in comparison, and Jordan is a significantly better writer in my opinion. I would say that Wheel of Time is like if J.R.R. Martin wrote the Lord of the Rings, so there is more individual depth (almost too much sometimes) and so the story takes longer to tell but is incredibly "lived in".
I have a real soft spot for Terry Goodkind, having found the series in the late 90s or early 00s. It was one of my first big high fantasy series and before Wheel of Time. That said, i just couldn't really get further than Confessor in the series. It looks like there were only 4 more books in the series, so I may have to go back and try and finish it and see if it gets better. Goodkind has a habit of pulling new powers out of Richard's butt or changing how magic works when he seems to have written himself into a corner, which eventually killed my suspension of disbelief. And as much shit as Jordan gets for "men writing women", his female characters are significantly better written than Goodkind's. Both stories are rather traditional male power fantasy, but Goodkind can be kind of egregious there.
I am not ragging on Goodkind even if it seems like it, honestly, but read Wheel of Time because it is that good. The best way I can describe the difference is that it feels like going from a YA or main stream series to adult literature. You won't be disappointed.