Winter's Heart asks for patience before it shows its full hand. The fragmented structure makes it easy to feel that some characters are waiting while others move. That is a fair frustration. I find the book more rewarding when I read it as an examination of the relationships that make an apparently impossible undertaking conceivable.
Rand's connection with Nynaeve is particularly valuable. She has never been especially impressed by the performance of authority, and that stubbornness gives their scenes a grounding that more formal alliances lack. Mat's return brings a different energy: practical observation, unwilling responsibility, and a stubborn ability to keep noticing the people caught beside him.
The romantic arrangements and repeated interior worries do not all land equally well for me. The final undertaking, however, gives the volume a purpose beyond repositioning pieces. It changes the scale of what the characters are prepared to attempt. The journey there is uneven; the ambition is unmistakable.
— Cory Lane