title: The Shadow Rising (The Wheel of Time, Book 4)
author:  Robert Jordan 
description: Having declared himself the Dragon Reborn, Rand al'Thor must proceed to fulfill the prophecy that he will protect the world from the return of the Dark One. Jordan's hefty addition to his massive series begins very much in medias res as an unknown danger threatens the city of Tar Valon, home of the powerful, nunlike Aes Sedai. In a whirlwind of uncertainty stirred up by the conflicting motivations of such groups as the Whitecloaks, the Darkfriends and Trollocs (among an abundance of others), Rand travels to the city of Rhuidean in the Aiel Waste for answers. Jordan ( The Dragon Reborn ) seems to be intent on turning the series into an endless soap opera; in each successive volume he introduces more new elements than he resolves. What was originally a mood-setting technique--the tendency of most characters not to share their special knowledge with either their companions or the reader--has by now become boring. Hundreds of characters and dozens of conflicting plots cause much of the action to take place offstage. As a result, this fully imagined saga threatens to burst the seams of its steadily more intricate design. Nevertheless, the sheer force of his invention develops a momentum that established Jordan fans, and probably like-minded new readers, will find hard to resist. <br />Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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  Praise for
  
  
  
  
  
  THE WHEEL OF TIME
  
  
  
  
  
  Book Four
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  THE SHADOW RISING
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
    
  
  
  “Robert Jordan has come to dominate the world Tolkien began to reveal.”
  
  
  —The New York Times
  
  
    
  
  
  “The fourth volume of the most ambitious American fantasy saga continues to
  suggest that The Wheel of Time will also be the finest. . . . This volume,
  indeed the whole saga, surpasses all but a few of its peers and is highly
  recommended for all collections.”
  
  
  —ALA Booklist
  
  
    
  
  
  “Jordan’s multivolume epic continues to live up to its high ambitions . . . a
  feast for fantasy aficionados. Expect demand for this.”
  
  
  —Library Journal
  
  
    
  
  
  “A work of genuine and often stirring imagination.”
  
  
  —Kirkus Reviews
  
  
    
  
  
  “This fully imagined saga threatens to burst the seams of its steadily more
  intricate design. . . . The sheer force of [Jordan’s] invention develops a
  momentum that [is] hard to resist.”
  
  
  —Publishers Weekly
  
  
    
  
  
  “This series is so complex, I can’t recommend starting anywhere