A Memory of Light

"A Memory of Light" was published in 2013 and completed by author Brandon Sanderson using extensive notes and drafts left behind. It is the fourteenth and final volume in Robert Jordan's epic fantasy series, "The Wheel of Time." Sanderson was chosen by Jordan's widow, Harriet McDougal, to finish the saga.

The novel centers on the prophesied Last Battle, known as Tarmon Gai'don, where the protagonist Rand al'Thor must face the Dark One. The fate of the world hangs in the balance as armies from across the fictional continents clash in massive, brutal warfare. The book resolves storylines for the massive cast of characters that have built up over the series.

Robert Jordan passed away in 2007 from a terminal illness, specifically cardiac amyloidosis, before he could finish writing the final volume. He spent his final months dictating extensive plot notes and character arcs to ensure the story could be finished. Brandon Sanderson was officially announced as the completing author in late 2007.

The manuscript for "A Memory of Light" was incredibly long, reportedly spanning around 360,000 words. The sheer length required Tor Books to publish it as a single, very massive hardcover volume. Despite its massive size, fans devoured the book immediately upon release, pushing it to number one on the New York Times bestseller list.