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Pulled along, yes. After all: The Wheel weaves as the Wheel wills.

I think the main element that matters is whether you connect with the characters, and some people just don’t. Does the reader see Rand as just another chosen one, or do they enjoy the way he veers from and back to those tropes as the story progresses? Does watching the other Emond’s Fielders go through their own transformation get the reader invested in them, or are their foibles and idiosyncracies a point of annoyance that pulls them out?

I mean, I think that’s really the core of whether any story works, but doubly so here. You spend a lot of time with these characters, so you better like a good chunk of them.

While I think the criticism of the first 3 books having repetitive endings is fair, I still find the stories themselves very enjoyable. The world building, Rand’s transformation from a back country sheepherder into a frightening chosen one, all of the character’s development really. The links to our world, and the Age of Legends. The heavy use of foreshadowing in vision, dream, and prophecy.

It all builds up to a very nuanced fantasy tale that helps elevate the start of the series above the standard fare. Now I can’t argue that in book 4 things bust wide open and the standard travelling adventure formula is firmly left behind. But The Great Hunt is still my favorite of the 14 books, just for the wild ride it sends everyone on.