Book 4 of The Wheel of Time Series by Robert Jordan is The Shadow Rising.
Min travels to Tar Valon to deliver a message to the white tower for Moiraine. Her talent to see auras around people tell her that there will be fighting in the White Tower, and that several will die. She delivers her message and a warning about the fighting to its recipient. Min is asked in such a way that she can not decline to stay in the tower as a guest, and help to find the black ajah.
In Tear, bubbles of evil attack Rand, Mat and Perrin. Word comes that there are white cloaks in the two rivers where the boys are from. After an attack on the Stone of Tear, our friends separate.
2 of our young ladies head for Tancho, to try to find a threat to The Dragon Reborn, One heads to the Aiel Waist to learn from the Aiel Wise Ones. One of our young men, and Loail head back to the two rivers, and the other two head to the Aiel Waste as well. We also meet a fourth young woman in Tear who heads to the Aiel waste to begin her teaching to become a Wise One.
The Dragon Reborn learns of his parents, and the history of the Aiel people. A secret that if known will break the Aiel.
Once again Jordan shows his tendency to slow down and over explain which drags the story a little, but as I have learned in reading through the books numerous times, these explanations help with understanding down the line in the story. Reading through the dragging portions of the story are well worth the time, and unlike in The Lord of the Rings series where skipping over areas (Tom Bombidil) do not detract from the story down the road, skipping these makes understanding later on more difficult.
Before reading this book, I recommend that you first read, in order, A New Spring, The Eye of the World, The Great Hunt and The Dragon Reborn.
This series is among the highest of my recommendations to anyone who enjoys reading fantasy novels
