Winter's Heart ended with Rand and Nynaeve cleansing the male half of the True Source of the Dark One's taint. I'm sure everyone who has read the series was eager to start Crossroads of Twilight to see the repercussions of such a thing. Such a momentous occasion must change everything!

But first, let's see what every other character in series is up to in the days leading up to the event and those just after.

Faile and a few other women were captured by the Shaido Aiel and have been made gai'shain. Perrin is, of course, out of his mind with worry and rage. Many readers might feel for this couple, being separated by unforeseeable circumstances, but not me. I have dislike Faile from her very first appearance in the series. Honestly, I want her to die, but I don't think that's going to happen. I don't know what Perrin sees in her or why he loves her so much. His willingness to do just about anything for her is irritating. He was once one of my favorite characters in the series, but now, not so much.

Mat has finally found the Daughter of the Nine Moons, whom he supposed to marry. Hiding out in a travelling show, he has his hands full with the women he rescued from Ebou Dar, as well as the ones he kidnapped during the escape. Mat is a character I have wavered back and forth between liking and disliking. In the very beginning, he was Rand's best friend, mischievous and easy going. However, the moment he discovers that Rand can channel, he gives in to all the superstition and fear surrounding men who channel. Earlier in the series, all Mat wanted was to get away from Rand as soon as possible. Now that he's away from everyone he knew from the Two Rivers, he's finally had a chance to grow from a boy to a man, even if he is still mischievous.

Elayne is trying to secure her place on the Lion Throne, while Egwene sits outside Tar Valon with her army and rebel Aes Sedai.

There is a lot going on in this series, but not much is actually happening. Time moves slowly as the narration goes between one set of characters to another, usually showing what happens to them in the same time frame. In over 800 pages, only about 2 weeks of time pass in the story. Only those that were with Rand and those who can channel saidin are even aware that it's been cleansed. Everyone else who could sense what happened believes it was the Forsaken preparing some kind of weapon or something else equally as terrible.

So, the repercussions of cleansing saidin are still not known. Everyone seems to be sitting around waiting for things to happen. Only Perrin has any sense of urgency and only because he wants his wife back. Everything is supposed to lead up to the Last Battle. With four more books to go, I hope the pacing increases. As Brandon Sanderson finished the last 3 books after Robert Jordan passed away, I'm eager to see how his writing style differs.

Overall, I give this book 3 stars. It's not amazing, but it's not terrible either. It's a good addition to the series overall and I look forward to starting the next book, especially as it will be the first in the series I haven't previously read.