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Tracy
Not that you haven't already read what you will read, but should others wonder the same, I'd emphatically state that no, you should not.
One of the main charms of The Wheel of Time is the mystery, unknowns and half-truths and questions. If you have read this story, you no longer have the ambiguity of feeling towards a few of the main characters. Your doubts are silenced. You read with frustration rather than fear and anxiety, and begin the books not as a confused youth following others into danger, but as a wise looker-on. Where is the fun?
Additionally, this book has about 1/5 the pace of the first couple WoT novels. The initial pacing is intoxicating and pulls you through many duller volumes. This book is not a headlong flight into confusion, but more a detailed snapshot of a small moment that you only come to care deeply about once invested in the characters. Furthermore, the structure of the book is weak. One character is introduced and then disappears for half of the book, before all of the characters are finally united.
I enjoyed it, but only because I had read the others before it.
One of the main charms of The Wheel of Time is the mystery, unknowns and half-truths and questions. If you have read this story, you no longer have the ambiguity of feeling towards a few of the main characters. Your doubts are silenced. You read with frustration rather than fear and anxiety, and begin the books not as a confused youth following others into danger, but as a wise looker-on. Where is the fun?
Additionally, this book has about 1/5 the pace of the first couple WoT novels. The initial pacing is intoxicating and pulls you through many duller volumes. This book is not a headlong flight into confusion, but more a detailed snapshot of a small moment that you only come to care deeply about once invested in the characters. Furthermore, the structure of the book is weak. One character is introduced and then disappears for half of the book, before all of the characters are finally united.
I enjoyed it, but only because I had read the others before it.
Angela
If you read this first it will just be a short book about young people beginning some kind of life changing journey. But you won't understand why it matters. If you save it for last it will make you ugly-cry because you will understand what it all means.
Matt
Just looked into this prior to starting it myself, and I think the conventional wisdom is to read them in publication order (i.e. after Crossroads of Twilight (Wheel of Time, #10)) or somewhere between books 8 and 10.
Being about 2/3rds through it I think that's right, as:
(a) knowing more about the WoT this 'prequel' has more meaning than it would if you read it earlier; you don't know the characters yet so you don't know why you'd care about them and if you wait, it's a lot more interesting and meaningful, and
(b) there is things revealed in New Spring that are minor spoilers.
Being about 2/3rds through it I think that's right, as:
(a) knowing more about the WoT this 'prequel' has more meaning than it would if you read it earlier; you don't know the characters yet so you don't know why you'd care about them and if you wait, it's a lot more interesting and meaningful, and
(b) there is things revealed in New Spring that are minor spoilers.
Henrik
I read it after the last WoT book, as a dessert, just to come down from that trip.
Bryan Thomas
I just finished The Fires of Heaven, book 5. It's my second run thru the series and second time failing to start with the "prequel." So, I'm going to start reading New Spring now, after book 5. I'm hopeful that my poor timing is as well timed as this youtuber seems to believe.
[New Spring after 5](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIyaC...).
[New Spring after 5](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIyaC...).
Steven Jones
I would suggest reading this last. That's what I did and I feel like I appreciated the story better that way.
John Macow
"New Spring" is a prequel novel to Robert Jordan's "The Wheel of Time" series. The book was published in January 2005, after the author's death in 2007, and was completed by fantasy author Brandon Sanderson using notes and outlines left by Jordan. The story takes place 20 years before the events of "The Eye of the World," the first book in "The Wheel of Time" series, and follows the character of Moiraine Damodred as she begins her journey to find the Dragon Reborn. The book also introduces important characters from the series such as Lan Mandragoran and Siuan Sanche. The novel received generally positive reviews from critics and fans of the series. https://btroblox.net/ https://tgmacro.net/
Daiga
I read this book chronologically as it was published - RJ wrote it after book 9, officially published after 10th. I think it would be definitely a no. So many missing info, main series slowly feeds new world rules and terminology and I got swept along very easily, but here? It assumes you know the world and reading it as a first book could be confusing.
Jim
I’ll throw my two cents in. I would only read this book (at all) upon a re-read of the series. I read the whole series and only just read New Spring before starting a re-read that I will do over years along with the airing of the TV series. IMO it’s just not that good and is definitely unnecessary to the series proper. I hear people say to read it in the publication order but that would just add another slow book (though a shorter one) to what’s already considered the slog section of the series.
Joe
If you are reading the Wheel of Time series, then definitely read this prequel around its publishing order, after Crossroads of Twilight. It gives useful insight into the main series and characters, and will add to the impact of later events.
Don't read it before the series, as it will be completely meaningless.
Don't read it before the series, as it will be completely meaningless.
Jim Carleton
I suggest reading "The Eye of the World" first, then read "New Spring", then go back and re-read "The Eye of the World" and go on from there. Here is my reasoning: I bogged down in the series in the 4th or 5th book, some years ago. I bought "New Spring" soon after it published, and a lot of what was going on in the series began to make sense to me. I have just re-read "New Spring", and now feel ready to tackle the entire series, again. Of the people who posted before me, I think that Emma has it best: reading this absolutely first might not work, but waiting until the end won't, either.
Robert
It was first published between book 10 & 11. If you read it early you'll be kind of lost, because some things are just named and not explained like they are elsewhere.
Ryofire
I think it makes more sense to read it chronologically (aka, read this first). If you choose to stick through the rest of the series, you can always come back to catch references you missed. Otherwise, this is also kind of a preview of what you're getting in the main series so it's an easy way to decide if you actually want to read the books or not.
Aaron Toponce
Yes. This book comes chronologically first in the series.
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