The Great Hunt is the second book in the Wheel of Time series and picks up more or less exactly where The Eye of the World ended. Overall this a wonderful second book, much like the first and definitely a must read for all fantasy fans. This book starts to get the main players for future books into the story, from the strange invaders from across the Aryth Ocean and the Black Ajah to Mat and Perrin stepping up to the forefront of events. The way in which introduces new characters is always varied from rumours to acquaintances, something that he tends to do very well, and in all fairness he needs to, like the first book we are introduced to even more characters, some who will fall by the wayside but not forgotten and some with become catalyst and agonists for future storylines. Like the Eye of the World, this book builds up to a main turning point, something sadly lacking later in the series.

What Jordan does with Fain is show that the story arc is never going to be black and white, but all shade of grey as well. Padan Fain leads the way for the bad guys in this novel his character over the series that I love, an absolute nut job, reading his scenes is definitely a guilty pleasure of mine. Rand has his first encounter with the Amyrlin Seat and all manner of fun ensues. The story starts a month or so after the event of the Eye of the World. This majority book was originally intended to be part of book 1, however Jordan soon realized how huge the novel would have been, he found a good place to split the novels.

The great hunt for the horn