Robert Jordan was perhaps the greatest fantasy mega-series writer of all time until book #6 of the WoT came out. After that, his reputation began a downward trend that currently has no end in sight. He could be considered the Charles Dickens of recent times. The first book of the Wheel of Time series, The Eye of the World, was first published in 1990. Jordan then produced another book in the series each year for quite some time. Only after he reached the point of exhaustion did he slow down. Even then, it was only at the command of his editors and publishers that he be careful and take care of himself.
In 2006, Jordan was diagnosed with cardiac amyloidosis and given a life expectancy of about four years. He died September 16, 2007.
A list of the books in the Wheel of Time series is as follows:
- The Eye of the World (1990)
- The Great Hunt (1990)
- The Dragon Reborn (1991)
- The Shadow Rising (1992)
- The Fires of Heaven (1993)
- Lord of Chaos (1994)
- A Crown of Swords (1996)
- Path of Daggers (1998)
- Winter's Heart (2000)
- Crossroads of Twilight (2003)
- Knife of Dreams (2005)
- The Gathering Storm (with Brandon Sanderson; 2009)
- Towers of Midnight (with Brandon Sanderson; 2010)
- A Memory of Light (with Brandon Sanderson; 2013)
Brandon Sanderson is the author of Mistborn: The Final Empire. He was chosen by Harriet McDougal (Jordan's wife) to wrap up the WoT series after Jordan's death, using his notes, drafts and outlines.