I read the Stormlight archive for the first time in the span of a month

And wow. Absolutely amazing series. The Way of Kings almost immediately hooked me up and after WoR was heaven from there. I have read the first Mistborn trilogy before this and managed to keep myself mostly spoiler free. Sanderson's writing quality is phenomenal and it feels like each book aged his skills like fine wine. I did only read the 5 main novels and have not read any of the novellas which expand upon the world

I certainly need to go a bit more indepth reviews on the books to get my thoughts out of the way with given hindsight.

Oh, and spoilers.

The Way of Kings - 7/10

A great beginning. This is how you should start an epic fantasy saga, with a limited cast of characters, enough mystery to keep the adventure going on and direct goals that are easy to keep track of.

A complaint regularly given to this book is that you need to read 1000+ pages before it get's good. I don't agree with it. Both Kaladin and Shallan, our first two characters are good starting points and give a good contrast to the world, whilst finding connection between our characters.

What really threw me off-guard was the inclusion of quite long Interlude sections which did almost break my motivation to continue, on multiple occasions. But Journey before destination my friends, because like a certain individual I did not break.

Another point against the commonly spread complaint is that only one sentance from the first book really stuck with me. There are hundreds of great quotes and line from the series, but a simple sentance stuck with me to the end.

"One final torment the world had reserved just for Kaladin. And it was called Bridge Four."

Early in the first book, this simple line pretty much tells the story of Kaladin, past and future. He is haunted man, one who had seemingly failed everyone and everything he had known. Family, soldiers and slaves alike have looked up to him, and Kaladin has failed them all. He is ready to die, perhaps would've killed himself weeks ago if not for being a slave.

Kaladin's pov is the "main" one in this book, and I did find his flashbacks very intresting. He is a man broken deeply by the system, one whose only salvation is death. When he get's to Bridge Four, he is very much a man ready to give up. Yet he doesn't. He almost does, but he doesn't. Kaladin has failed everyone and everything, and yet is still able to give himself one more chance. This isn't the will of a Soldier. Soldiers break. It is not the will of a Surgeon either, they lose their focus. But Kaladin finds his focus and will throughout the book and despite the world throwing every attempt at him, trying to break either, Kaladin keeps it. He makes his final torment into a family and finally when he could make sure his family could survive. He could finally save a group of people - after having failed for so long - Kaladin risks everything. Because Kaladin is a man who understands one thing above everything else: you can kill to protect, if you're willing to pay the price.

And so Bridge Four, saves the lives of the infamous Dalinar "Blackthorn" Kholin, his son Adolin and what remains of his army. Because it was the right thing to do.

The Kholins.

Like the Interludes, they almost broke me. I had grown attached to Kaladin and Shallan, and seeing another two povs to track, I wanted to stop. It felt so overwhelming, how would they all tie. But I knew I was one of the ten fools, and so continued. Alas I eventually found them some of my favorite characters.

In the Way of Kings, the Kholin family very much is a dysfuntional one. A king without authority, a Highprince broken by his past unable to remember his wife (we'll return to this one in Book 3) and his sons who are both quite queer in their own ways. Renarin I won't dare discuss until it is his time, but Adolin is shown as a somewhat self-centered man who believes his ways are here forever and his father Dalinar, very much believes his way is the only one. Their goals in this book are quite clear and they are developed into proper characters much later, for now they serve as agents in Kaladin's story.

And finally Shallan. Her pov serves as exposition into what our cast of characters will become. A countryside noble turned into a thief who seeks to steal from one of the most powerful women in the world, who is guested by a old and eccentric King - who'll surely be only friendly to our entire cast. No, I did not predict what Taravangian would turn into, but his presence in the first book helps to solidify his position later.

I found Shallan's pov quite intresting. Her story would most likely be more important later on.

But overall the Way of Kings is a 7/10 for me. After finishing, it felt like a long prologue to the Stormlight archive with the story being somewhat basic and most twist and turns being predictable, except the one where Parshmen are named Voidbringers (how true will that be later).

The world felt way more complex than the one in Mistborn, though Sanderson's writing has improved between the two series.

My final complaint is that the book's name, Way of Kings, is was too epice to be the first book of this series.

Words of Radiance - 9/10

"Honor is dead, but I'll see what I can do."

Whilst most storylines in the first book felt unfinished and characters felt a bit raw, in the Words of Radiance most of the cast blossoms into proper characters, either by jumping into a dueling arena to help a losing man, or willing to create alternate personalities to hunt down their teacher's assasins.

The world feels more interconnected in this book, even though our characters are all in the same region. So let's start with the good stuff.

Kaladin's story continues naturally where it was left off, and "finishes" like it should've been. Though I did excpect him to actually beat Amaram in this book, it would've left his storyline too finished in for the next books if he did it now. But regardless, a returned Knight Radiant ascends with us. He is also incredibly funny by just aurafarming with oneliners and being miserable all the time - well not as miserable.

Kaladin does everything right and wrong in this book. He learns what it means to be a Knight radiant, but he also wants to refuse that destiny. The price would be his own convictions and opposition to the system. This leads him to almost killing Syl, by making contradicting promises. But I couldn't stop cheering when he finally accepted his fate, as painful as it had to be.

Unlike certain other Radiant.

Shallan's way to fix things, is to make a new personality for it. Which is somehow more and less healthier than Kaladin's way. She is the "main pov" for this book. Whilst getting bethothed to Adolin she also loses her only guide in this world to help her navigate her powers. It is incredibly intresting to look at how she struggles and copes with her trauma and past whilst trying to play a difficult game of cat and mouse with the Ghostbloods.

"I am stick."

Yeah that doesn't really work out.

And then we have Dalinar.

Here is where Dalinar starts to really grow on me. I very much did not like his povs in the first book, but here they start to grow on me. Dalinar's arc is starting to begin here with the bonding of the Stormfather and his attempts at getting the Highprinces finally unified, under the guide of the Kholin banner.

Honestly this is the book I remember the least details about, I just set it down and started devouring Oathbringer the next day.

Good book.

Oathbringer - 9/10

A slight drop from WoR, not by much but I did like this more. The ending of Oathbringer is so much better than WoR, but Oathrbinger suffers from being a tad bit too long. The beginning too was also intresting, seeing Kaladin finally accept who he is and willing to admit that to his family.

For the first time in long time, Kaladin's pov did not hit like it did with me. Do not get me wrong, it was good, but I had gotten used to excellent. Kaladin didn't really have much to do in this book, he just kinda was there trying to not be depressed. A fact which by the next book we'll see the result of. It did actually a greater service to the story with Kaladin stepping back, as him progressing further and further with his oaths would've been natural but this excpectation is broken.

What it comes to Shallan and by proxy to Adolin, their arc was good. The revelations from and about Shadesmar I liked, a lot. It is perhaps by far the best piece of worldbuilding I've found is Cosmere yet - a classic trope of body, mind, sould altered like this. I liked.

Shallan's personalities were a wonderful way of adding more dialogue and depth to her arc without adding more characters - whilst making her even more unstable.

So let's talk about the sauce, shall we. I disliked the length of the Kholinar arc. It was too long for me, too much wandering around etc. I already mentioned the length of this book is a downside for me, but my faith really started to waver. Kholinar arc was imo, the weakpoint of this book. It accomplised only a couple of things, like killing Elhokar off - who was annoyning little piece of shit who I still feel bad about because his uncle took everything away from him causing him to do desperate actions. Narratively it pretty much reinforced the fall of Alethkar but nothing else. The only part I did like was the introduction of Azure - who I didn't know was first introduced in Warbreaker - and so blissfully thought that she would be Kaladin's love-intrest.

Love. The bane of maker of any good fantasy series.

There was a pretty akward love triangle, between Kaladin, Shallan and Adolin. And yes I know Sanderson has said that Adolin and Shallan would be down to a throuple but Kaladin's a pussy. No I didn't like it, I can respect the hustle. To me it was unneccesary as it was pretty clear both Adolin and Shallan were - if not already - falling in love with eachother.

And finally two other things to adress before moving to the big sauce.

I like how Singers were humanised in this book. Whilst it did feel cliche to have humans be the "voidbringers", it was nicely expanded upon in the next two books.

Odium - or atleast Rayse - I found to be a bit too flat of a villain for a series of this magnitude. But that might change later - one way or another...

Finally the sauce. The man, the myth, the legend. Dalinar "Blackthorn" Kholin. This man has killed his wife, been absent from his sons, almost killed his brother and commited so many other sins most men would collapse under their weight. But not Dalinar. When given the opportunity he preferred to keep his pain as his own, rather than be absolved.

It is incredibly hard to write a character this well, it is perhaps not the most nuanced but Dalinar Kholin is by far my favorite character from this series. His struggles are so far from my own, from any of us, yet he is most relatable of them all, because inside we all carry pains and sins we'd rather give away. But without those pains we wouldn't be who we are, there wouldn't be a journey to have.

Oathbringer is amazing.

Rhythym of War - 7/10

Here it is. The destined drop in quality. Alright what's next.

But in all seriousness I found this to be perhaps the weakest of the series. I did like Navani's bits but found Venli and Eshonai to be once more to be boring pov's. Venli's was helped by the curiosity of her situtation.

I do not have many notes on this, very much a filler book in my opinion.

Further exploration into Shadesmar was very much intresting. And after thinking about it for more than two seconds I realised that Shallan's did hold a deadeye Shardblade before earning her radiant one, which ofcourse I think everybody overlooked. Though I am late to this party so I do not know fan theories from a decade ago. (yes it's been that long)

The characters advanced very naturally. Kaladin's depression was finally something more to his character, which had always been there. And I do not understand the hate towards Lirin, but perhaps it is me who is wrong if I can rationalise and understand all his choices.

Fall and reclamation of Urithiru was the coalition's darkest hour thus far, but perhaps losing there would've been better.

The switch in Odium was a twist I did not anticipate, yet it felt so strong. Like the character had taken control of the story.

Yeah not really many notes on this one, kinda just read it and had no thoughts.

Wind and Truth - 10/10

I couldn't think of an ending worthy for the first part of this series. Then I read Wind and Truth.

The structure is diffrent, the interludes are short, the villain is compelling and the journey to the end is amazing.

I read the book a couple of days, three or four.

Whilst it is not anything revolutionary nor perfect, I loved it.

An ending worthy of the ones in it. Sacrifices and loss was the price of a hollow victory, but a victory nontheless. And the cliffhanger of a Cosmere wide war between the shards to finally quell Odium or should I say Retribution. Or perhaps it'll just be Harmony against Odium. Who knows how these things go - well maybe Brandon does.

I could not let this book go away from me. I could only know peace once I'd finished it.

Taln did not break.

Yet a time bubble in Roshar where everything is slowed - and the very steamy shower scene setting up a very quite obvious Shallan pregnancy. And what of her mother. Just so many questions. And no answers.

I did not guess anything correct - only some parts partially but at the same time I am not dissapointed with the ending.

It was really intresting that both Dalinar and Tarvangian thought the other had been right.

I cried when I learned of Szeth's backstory. It was such a raw one.

Szeth wasn't him. Szeth was Tien.

Tears, from me. I don't cry at books, but here I did.

I just can't, there's so much to say but so little words to actually use. So perhaps it's time to just let this be.

I do not have the coginitive capability to put it to words how much I liked every piece of this book.

Perhaps I simply have to say the most important words a man can say.

I understand you.

So after two million words, here's my ranking:

1. Wind and Truth
2. Oathbringer
3. Words of Radiance
4. Way of Kings
5. Ryhtym of War

Thank you for reading this. Journey before destination.