** spoiler alert ** 
 What more can I say that hasn't already been said in my other reviews outside of plot summaries? This isn't a stand-alone book; it's just part of a bigger story. It would simply be season 7 if The Wheel of Time were a TV series. It has plot threads that continue from the previous book and will continue into the next one, most noticeably the one about the bloody Bowl of the Winds. They were looking for it in the last book. They found it at the very end of this one, but did they use it? No. That won't happen until the next one, but pretty early on if I recall. They want to use it to fix the weather which has been fucked up since the very first book, though it was temporarily rectified at the end of that one. In the first book the winter just hung on forever. Then somewhere around the 2nd or 3rd book, summer kept hanging on and on and on and on. There was a drought on the land, and nothing but storms on the seas, and nothing was changing. For at least 5 books this weather thing has been going on, for 2 our protagonists have been working on that, and we'll have to wait just one more for it to get fixed. 
 At least events with Sammael are wrapped up at the end of this book. He and Demandred were always my favorites of the Forsaken. Part of it was because they had the coolest names, and the other part was that they were motivated by jealousy of the Dragon, and had the most hate for him. I always thought the battle with Sammael at the end of this book was a little anti-climactic since he gets beaten by Mashadar. That has never sat well with me. He was one of the Forsaken, the best of the best, and during the battle he showed that not only was he an adept and crafty mutha with tactics and strategy on the battlefield, but also quite formidable one on one. Seriously, he nearly gets Rand several times with some traps, and is making Rand work hard just to stay alive. Then he got eaten by a mean fog while his back was turned? I'm not exactly sure what Mashadar is, but I suspect it might be something akin to a large and moving Torg. Sammael knew what it was to be roasted in the depths of a Slor on this day, I can tell you. 
 Way to go, Sammael. Your death calls up an image of Vinz Clortho via Louis Tully as portrayed by Rick Moranis. 
 Everything about that should make you feel shame, and I'm calling "writer fail" on it. You are aptly named "The Destroyer of Hope," for I hoped your death would be cooler, and that hope was dashed. 
 Moving on. I wish I had a dollar for every time clothing was mentioned. This is one of the things I hardly ever pay attention to, but every character's git-up is described in exasperating detail. All nobles wear silk slashed with some color or another. We hear about the belts, and the skirts, and the coats, and the earrings, and the nose rings, and the bracelets, and the necklaces, and the stockings, and the boots, and the shirts, and the undergarments, and the dresses, and the hair ornaments, ad nauseam, and yet I don't know that I ever picture what he describes because I wind up glossing over it. RJ could shorten the book by 100 pages just by cutting out the clothing descriptions alone. Another 100 pages could be lopped off if every mention of hands twitching skirts, or adjusting clothing were also cut. I think Jordan had a passion to work for Vogue or Elle, but didn't get the job and ended up letting all that pent up fashion frustration bleed into his magnum opus. Another 100 pages could be cut if he didn't rehash the previous book in each successive book. Basically, the story could be told in half the length, as usual. 
 Wow, I sure am bitching a lot about a story I really like. Regardless of all that, he's still a great writer, and the sarcastic wit of many of the characters carries this tale, and makes it worth enduring the journey. 
 Other items of note: The Seanchan reappear in this book, and their invasion pisses me off as much this time I read it as the first time. Sadly, due to their arrival Mat doesn't appear at all in the next book, but at least we got to see a lot of him in this one. Nynaeve finally loses her block, and it took her only 7 books to do it. She also marries Lan which means Lan is back in the picture, and he's the epitome of awesomeness. We're introduced to the Kin. Morgase gives up the throne. We meet Moridin as well as Cadsuane. Moghedien gets mind-trapped. Egwene is still a bitch. Elaida is still a bitch. In fact, let me save pages of typing by saying that almost all the women are still bitches. (Min and Birgitte are still cool, though). The Shaido get hold of Galina, though they do nothing in this book (I think they fire it up again in the next one). Mat and Tylin have their... fling? It's pretty much Tylin raping Mat, though it's... amusing? I have mixed feelings about the whole thing since Mat does enjoy himself with her, and I would say rape is never funny, but George Carlin disagrees. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQA6U...) 
 Same recommendation to the same peeps as in my other reviews.