That's more or less what I thought when I finished the first book in the series, but now I'm stuck in the middle of the second one, trying to muster the strength to read past characters talking about shitting their armor during battle.
Could it be worth it?
I stictly limit this sort of masochism to once a year, last year was Malazan, and this year is ASOIAF.
I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel, so next year might be Sanderson.
>awesome hook >two more prologues >world building >world building >world building >character moment >world building >plot progression >world building >world building >world building >rising action >climax >awesome character moment >awesome finale >awesome ending
If Sanderson could just calm down about his obsession for an "EPIC Fantasy world", this would be a 10/10 fantasy novel. Shallan really serves no purpose in this book either beyond providing setup for sequels.
You're 100% correct on the structure of the book, though I'd have to say the amount of set up he did for Kaladin (that all paid off with the bridge jump moment) makes me trust that whatever multi-novel setup he has planned for Shallan will pay off too.
>Kaladin
Kaladin carried this book for book. I loved every aspect of his arc and he's definitely a favorite for me. While I trust Sanderson as an author, I just don't know if I can invest an even longer stretch of time into another character's journey for a payoff that, while awesome, is held back by hundreds of pages that feel unnecessary to both the destination and the journey.
Plotgay spotted
I hate Sanderson, but we need to stop fixating so much on needing a book to be productive or have some reason to exist. Why can't a book just be about worldbuilding and character interactions.
The American, so fixated with his heretical Protestant work ethic, cannot comprehend a book that's impressionistic in nature and simply about a thing rather than using a thing for a consequential series of events
I want to walk away from a book feeling like I took something away from it. Leave me inspired, leave me horrified, leave me sad, leave me angry, just don't make me shrug. Its cool to world-build and make something very imaginative, but if it simply just exists, then I'm going to forget about it.
Is the way of kings a good series to start with? I've heard people say the first book is a massive slog.
>I've heard people say the first book is a massive slog.
The next books are almost twice as long lol.
Its not bad, but you're going to have to invest time into it. I don't recommend it to people who aren't huge into reading. Overall, I enjoyed it, and Sanderon's effort makes the entire setting feel lived-in and authentic, but expect a lot of moments where you're waiting for the plot or the characters to move along
I hate Sanderson, but we need to stop fixating so much on needing a book to be productive or have some reason to exist. Why can't a book just be about worldbuilding and character interactions.
The American, so fixated with his heretical Protestant work ethic, cannot comprehend a book that's impressionistic in nature and simply about a thing rather than using a thing for a consequential series of events
I genuinly hate worldbuilding. Explaining too much about the made up fantasy world so spergs online can debate if x or y is possible to do is not interesting to me in the least.
>I genuinly hate worldbuilding. Explaining too much about the made up fantasy world so spergs online can debate if x or y is possible to do is not interesting to me in the least.
Same. It's rarely ever worth putting time into learning their world anyway.
I listened to Way of Kings books 1-4 and just finished OG mystborn trilogy after. reading out of published order, because Stormlight Archives >>> Mystborn YA trash is right I'm filtering out mystborn books 4 onwards Wax and Wayne are the dumbest protag names. Just finished Black Company and had a lot of fun with it. It lives up to being a "grunts in the barracks of the world's most evil woman" quite well. Mercenary >>> Vin shitty internal girl worries.
>Kaladin
Kaladin carried this book for book. I loved every aspect of his arc and he's definitely a favorite for me. While I trust Sanderson as an author, I just don't know if I can invest an even longer stretch of time into another character's journey for a payoff that, while awesome, is held back by hundreds of pages that feel unnecessary to both the destination and the journey.
[...]
I want to walk away from a book feeling like I took something away from it. Leave me inspired, leave me horrified, leave me sad, leave me angry, just don't make me shrug. Its cool to world-build and make something very imaginative, but if it simply just exists, then I'm going to forget about it.
[...] >I've heard people say the first book is a massive slog.
The next books are almost twice as long lol.
Its not bad, but you're going to have to invest time into it. I don't recommend it to people who aren't huge into reading. Overall, I enjoyed it, and Sanderon's effort makes the entire setting feel lived-in and authentic, but expect a lot of moments where you're waiting for the plot or the characters to move along
I think when people say the first "book" is a slog they mean the first portion of The Way of Kings. It picks up a lot by part 3. Also, I wouldn't really call any part a slog - Sanderson has a good sense for when his readers are about to get bored and sticks in something exciting.
I wouldnt say its a slog its highly entertaining atleast if you get invested in kaladins storyline. The shallan chapters right in between epic moments in his story though it can make it feel like that though.
Sanderson gets a lot of hate because his works have no long and detailed descriptions of rape, no characters soiling themselves after getting stabbed, nobody tries to scoop up their own guts after getting cut in half, no extremely detailed descriptions of the miserable, disgusting, painful life of a low class peasant and the decadent, revolting debauchery of kings. It's just a superhero story in a fantasy setting, with some characters who aren't all right in the head but since they are written by a neurotypical Mormon dude they come off as a little forced.
This about hits the nail on the head, and I there's frankly nothing wrong with that (as I'm guessing you agree). Within the broader landscape of more "literary" fantasy, I actually appreciate that Sando has characters that say honor & goodness are something one has inside them and are worth fighting for. I think his mormonism comes through in the books, both in his setting/character and his own work ethic. I don't mind it though, I've never actually met a mormon in person that wasn't among the bset folks I know.
No, his work is hated because his prose is mediocre, his dialogue is mediocre, and his characters feel like modern-day millenials playing a fantasy video game where they have to figure out "le cool magic power." It's the Marvel of literature. The story itself isn't very deep, the characters aren't very deep and they feel very modern, and the whole book places a higher emphasis on "le cool video game mechanics" than any artistic merit.
I'm just starting book four and I cannot believe what Sanderson did to Kaladin. In book 1 and 2 the man had motives to be a sasd frick, but by book 3 his "depressions" feels so fricking shoehorned. Does it pay off in book 4? If the price of being a fricking semigod is being a depressed cuck (I'm stil pissed he didn't rail Shallan and he got a token gf who dumped him)
>It's just a superhero story in a fantasy setting
THATS LITERALLY ALL HE WRITES
DOZENS OF FANTASY SUPERHERO BOOKS PRETENDING TO BE COMPLEX
IM OVER IT Black person. OVER IT
Why is midwit literature so popular these days especially among Adults?
I can understand some dumb teen being into YA shlock but everyone i work with exclusively reads some dumb YA shlock if they read at all
In the office i work with about 10 other people and the only person who engages with literature in any way was some fat wheelchair bound Autist who listened to some Audiobook about a guy living in an AI adventure world
The first book is actually super entertaining frick the haters. After oathbringer I have no desire to read more however. And I cannot stand to read another shallan chapter, she is horrible.
You are going to challenge yourself a little more than that if you aspire to be a midwit one day
That's more or less what I thought when I finished the first book in the series, but now I'm stuck in the middle of the second one, trying to muster the strength to read past characters talking about shitting their armor during battle.
Could it be worth it?
shallan's chapters are a slog to ge through, but the climax is probably the best in the series, so I'd say it's worth it
Just by reading one Brandon Sanderson books, you have already read more, than 90% of IQfy does in year. So don't sell yourself short
really!?
you must be new around here. you think anyone here actually reads?
I stictly limit this sort of masochism to once a year, last year was Malazan, and this year is ASOIAF.
I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel, so next year might be Sanderson.
Sanderson kind of mogs GRRM, I have to be honest.
Hell yea great shit right here I hated edge dancer though I couldn't stand to read it.
This guy's fricking "novellas" are the length of full length novels.
>awesome hook
>two more prologues
>world building
>world building
>world building
>character moment
>world building
>plot progression
>world building
>world building
>world building
>rising action
>climax
>awesome character moment
>awesome finale
>awesome ending
If Sanderson could just calm down about his obsession for an "EPIC Fantasy world", this would be a 10/10 fantasy novel. Shallan really serves no purpose in this book either beyond providing setup for sequels.
You're 100% correct on the structure of the book, though I'd have to say the amount of set up he did for Kaladin (that all paid off with the bridge jump moment) makes me trust that whatever multi-novel setup he has planned for Shallan will pay off too.
>Kaladin
Kaladin carried this book for book. I loved every aspect of his arc and he's definitely a favorite for me. While I trust Sanderson as an author, I just don't know if I can invest an even longer stretch of time into another character's journey for a payoff that, while awesome, is held back by hundreds of pages that feel unnecessary to both the destination and the journey.
I want to walk away from a book feeling like I took something away from it. Leave me inspired, leave me horrified, leave me sad, leave me angry, just don't make me shrug. Its cool to world-build and make something very imaginative, but if it simply just exists, then I'm going to forget about it.
>I've heard people say the first book is a massive slog.
The next books are almost twice as long lol.
Its not bad, but you're going to have to invest time into it. I don't recommend it to people who aren't huge into reading. Overall, I enjoyed it, and Sanderon's effort makes the entire setting feel lived-in and authentic, but expect a lot of moments where you're waiting for the plot or the characters to move along
Plotgay spotted
I hate Sanderson, but we need to stop fixating so much on needing a book to be productive or have some reason to exist. Why can't a book just be about worldbuilding and character interactions.
The American, so fixated with his heretical Protestant work ethic, cannot comprehend a book that's impressionistic in nature and simply about a thing rather than using a thing for a consequential series of events
I genuinly hate worldbuilding. Explaining too much about the made up fantasy world so spergs online can debate if x or y is possible to do is not interesting to me in the least.
>I genuinly hate worldbuilding. Explaining too much about the made up fantasy world so spergs online can debate if x or y is possible to do is not interesting to me in the least.
Same. It's rarely ever worth putting time into learning their world anyway.
Is the way of kings a good series to start with? I've heard people say the first book is a massive slog.
Don't bother. They're derivative, soulless, YA trash
I listened to Way of Kings books 1-4 and just finished OG mystborn trilogy after. reading out of published order, because Stormlight Archives >>> Mystborn YA trash is right I'm filtering out mystborn books 4 onwards Wax and Wayne are the dumbest protag names. Just finished Black Company and had a lot of fun with it. It lives up to being a "grunts in the barracks of the world's most evil woman" quite well. Mercenary >>> Vin shitty internal girl worries.
It didn't feel like slog to me at all.
I think when people say the first "book" is a slog they mean the first portion of The Way of Kings. It picks up a lot by part 3. Also, I wouldn't really call any part a slog - Sanderson has a good sense for when his readers are about to get bored and sticks in something exciting.
I wouldnt say its a slog its highly entertaining atleast if you get invested in kaladins storyline. The shallan chapters right in between epic moments in his story though it can make it feel like that though.
Sanderson gets a lot of hate because his works have no long and detailed descriptions of rape, no characters soiling themselves after getting stabbed, nobody tries to scoop up their own guts after getting cut in half, no extremely detailed descriptions of the miserable, disgusting, painful life of a low class peasant and the decadent, revolting debauchery of kings. It's just a superhero story in a fantasy setting, with some characters who aren't all right in the head but since they are written by a neurotypical Mormon dude they come off as a little forced.
This about hits the nail on the head, and I there's frankly nothing wrong with that (as I'm guessing you agree). Within the broader landscape of more "literary" fantasy, I actually appreciate that Sando has characters that say honor & goodness are something one has inside them and are worth fighting for. I think his mormonism comes through in the books, both in his setting/character and his own work ethic. I don't mind it though, I've never actually met a mormon in person that wasn't among the bset folks I know.
>neurotypical Mormon dude
Nobody who writes 2-3 extremely long generic YA slop novels a year could possibly be neurotypical.
This is just completely typical mormon behavior.
Deeply concerning if so
No, his work is hated because his prose is mediocre, his dialogue is mediocre, and his characters feel like modern-day millenials playing a fantasy video game where they have to figure out "le cool magic power." It's the Marvel of literature. The story itself isn't very deep, the characters aren't very deep and they feel very modern, and the whole book places a higher emphasis on "le cool video game mechanics" than any artistic merit.
I'm just starting book four and I cannot believe what Sanderson did to Kaladin. In book 1 and 2 the man had motives to be a sasd frick, but by book 3 his "depressions" feels so fricking shoehorned. Does it pay off in book 4? If the price of being a fricking semigod is being a depressed cuck (I'm stil pissed he didn't rail Shallan and he got a token gf who dumped him)
>Does it pay off in book 4?
yeah, I liked it 🙂
the chapter Moments made me sob. Gonna listen to the audio rn while stoned. Maybe do some pushups I like to pretend I'm Kal when working out
so it gets good in the last part?
>It's just a superhero story in a fantasy setting
THATS LITERALLY ALL HE WRITES
DOZENS OF FANTASY SUPERHERO BOOKS PRETENDING TO BE COMPLEX
IM OVER IT Black person. OVER IT
Mormons seem pretty based tbh
their religion seems gay and moronic but every individual mormon I've met has been a top tier human. Maybe there's something to mormonism.
the story slows to a crawl after book 2
Why is midwit literature so popular these days especially among Adults?
I can understand some dumb teen being into YA shlock but everyone i work with exclusively reads some dumb YA shlock if they read at all
In the office i work with about 10 other people and the only person who engages with literature in any way was some fat wheelchair bound Autist who listened to some Audiobook about a guy living in an AI adventure world
The first book is actually super entertaining frick the haters. After oathbringer I have no desire to read more however. And I cannot stand to read another shallan chapter, she is horrible.