I don’t know how I could respond to this with anything less than five stars. I feel like I’ve just emerged from a hurricane or something (a fitting image, in the circumstances).
I’ve decided not to worry too much about the content of this review. I could never fully convey the experience of reading this book, or the way it played on my emotions just as strongly as it played on the part of me that likes a mental challenge. Any attempt to explain the plot and how much the characters and their arcs have grown on me will just end up sounding trite. Trying to explain just exactly what was so satisfying about a book that provides such an immersive reading experience is by definition going to come across as hollow. You should all just trust me and read the book to experience it for yourselves.
But I shall try anyway.
Words of Radiance is the second book of ten in Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive series. It takes place in world called Roshar that is rocked by hurricane-like storms called highstorms, and its people, well . . . you know. NO. Fuck this shit. I can’t explain it. I CAN’T. IT’S TOO MUCH. AND I LOVED IT TOO MUCH. AND I’M SO OVERWHELMED RIGHT NOW EMOTIONALLY.
Look, this book is meaty. It was immersive. The characters, my God, THE CHARACTERS AND THEIR ARCS. So much satisfying movement and development and things actually happening. SO MUCH COOL WORLDBUILDING. I mean, the ambition of this series. Just check this post out and tell me you don’t like this guy I DARE YOU. If you like fantasy AT ALL, you need to be reading this series.
I am abusing my capslock privileges; of that I am aware.
Logically, I know this book (this series) isn’t going to be for everyone, but I just find it so impressive I want you to try anyway. Turns out Sanderson is not only a good writer, but a smart one, and a smart speaker, and a kind human being. Look, I don’t like to brag (LIES) but I met him last weekend and he was kind and spoke to every person he met, until he was literally red-faced and hoarse and clearly just needed to have a sit and a nice cup of tea. His answers on the panel I went to were always the most interesting and the most helpful. I would pay serious money to take his writing class. I may also have told him that I wanted to punch one of his main characters in the face (at this point I was only 3/4 of the way through the book). He signed my book anyway.
This review was so ridiculous and unhelpful I can’t even believe I’m going to post it. YOU’RE WELCOME.
DAMNIT NARFNA I’M TRYING TO RESIST THE URGE TO READ THIS AND YOU’RE NOT HELPING! (and that article by Sanderson is terrific)
Seriously, tho, if I read this and love it, then Sanderson pulls a Martin and doesn’t finish the series before 2030, you and I aren’t pals any more.
That seriously won’t be a problem. He is incredibly efficient. He’s published 22 books in eight years. And they’re all good. He finished the Wheel of Time series in four years, and that was a huge undertaking.
That is an excellent point, Sanderson is pretty insanely prolific…
And you’ll be happy to know that I just bought way of kings (hardback, so I don’t have hard/paper back shelving issues down the road), so once I finish the fairly dry book about nuclear warfare I’m currently reading (which I’m going to review, and right now I think it’ll be a review worth reading), I’ll jump in. If Mistborn was any indication, I’ll be buying book #2 by page 300.
Oh, man, I finally bought a copy of the Way of Kings hardback because I found it on sale on Amazon, and I’m so upset! It’s a ‘bargain priced’ book, which Amazon told me might have black lines on the bottom of the book or something, which I wouldn’t have minded at all, but it turned out to be like a mini-me copy of the book! It’s like when Frodo is standing next to Gimli. It’s sitting right next to my copy of Words of Radiance right now being all TINY and NOT MATCHING AT ALL. I’ll probably have to buy it again :/
Although, I must say the smaller size is much easier on the hands . . .
That would drive me up a wall. Personally, I think whoever decided “let’s make all trade paperbacks different sizes!” should be beaten in the street.
Now I’ve got fingers crossed that I didn’t get the mini-me version. It was full-ish price, so I think I might be okay. But of course, one never precisely knows with amazon. If you hear a cry of rage coming from the general southern california area tomorrow, you’ll know why.
I got my Amazon lawsuit credit today and was wondering what new book to try…I guess you’ve decided for me.
I got mine, too! It was so exciting! Also, yay! If you need to bend my ear at the beginning of Way of Kings, feel free. It’s a bit daunting there until you get the feel for it.
So unfair that only American customers get the refund. I suspect I’d be do a fair amount if they awarded it to international customers as well.
Well, mine was only 74 cents or something, so it wasn’t that spectacular. Don’t feel too bad.
You’re totally right about Sanderson in person. He came to Oslo (hardly ANY authors come to Oslo, certainly not prominent fantasy authors) and I was lucky enough to go to the signing. He was so funny and kind and gracious and this was while Way of Kings was just in the planning stages, and I had only really read Mistborn.
You’re also right about the quality of his writing. I can’t speak for his Wheel of Time books because after book 7 I just can’t bear the thought of EVER reading another one of them again, no matter who authored them. I’ve really liked all of the books I’ve read by him so far, and I LOVE that he has standalone fantasy novels. Such a rare thing. I need it to be mid-June, so I have the proper time and attention to devote to these books.
Is it bad that I’m fully planning on reading all the WOT books? I’m curious, and I’m a completionist, and I want to read the last three books.
Of course it’s not bad, if it’s something that you want to do. It’s just that it’s probably been 16 years since I read book 7, and there are just too many awesome books out there that I can spare time to reread even the parts of the series I actually enjoyed (last quarter of book 1 through most of book 6), let alone suffer through the no doubt super boring books Jordan wrote before he died. I have heard many good things about the Sanderson-penned books, which doesn’t surprise me in the slightest, as he’s an excellent writer. But I’m not rereading thousands of pages, and slogging through several books I’m unlikely to enjoy just to read the final books that Sanderson wrote.
You could always wiki that crap and just go for it?
I read up to the last one Jordan wrote out of a sense of obligation and completionism. It actually cured me of the need to finish a series. I still finish individual books (so I can rant about them amusingly) but I no longer feel the need to stick with something to the end because oh my god, I will never get those weeks of my life back. Also I wanted to punch everyone. Except maybe Perrin (? The one who wasn’t Mat or Rand), he was alright.
Sigh, I’m in the middle of ASOIAF and really not looking for more 1000+ page tomes to slow down my CBR reading, but you’ve got me convinced. However long it takes before I get there, I WILL pick these up.
It’s so worth it.