The Way of Kings

[C is for]

So, I know at least one other person has read this book, and I finished the book this week, so let's discuss a little bit. (Likely spoilers.)

I ended up liking it; I like most everything by Brandon Sanderson. But it took me until I was about halfway through to actually want to keep reading it. It was hard to keep track of who all the characters were supposed to be, and some of the interludes still elude me. For me, Shallan was easiest to keep track of because she was a girl. The others I kind of had to muddle through for a while, but I did end up liking them all and figuring out where they fit.

The landscape was interesting; I wonder if there will be an explanation for why it's the way it is (like in Mistborn), or if we should just accept it like other books. There was that one country that was just like our own earth, which is why I'm even wondering about that.

Was anyone else worried that Teft would betray them all? I was. It'll be interesting to see if we get more of his backstory later.

So, yeah. Those are some of my thoughts. Anyone else?

link to question

[Dead Cat]

I'm supposed to be studying for a test right now, and as much as I love procrastinating, I will have to talk about this later. I read it as fast as I could manage and I haven't reread it yet, so I'll have to go poking through it once more to refresh my memory. (I forgot who Teft was, how sad is that?) So, yes, I shall return to this discussion soon, and anyone else may put in their thoughts in the meantime.

[Dead Cat]

Okay, I'm back and ready to talk. I'm assuming you've read Mistborn and Elantris because there are spoilers in my post if you haven't.

I love this book. I think I worried about Teft a little bit, but not too much. The only thing that I wasn't too fond of is how the "safe hand" idea got banged over the head too much. Yes, I understand it's an important part of their culture, but we don't think "and she was wearing a bra" all the time.
My favorite character was Szeth-son-son-Vallano. I don't know why, he just is. Kaladin is a close second, though. He's like what Raoden would have been if he had been broken when he was thrown in Elantris. You just want to root for the guy.
I totally did not see the truth about the Voidbringers coming. I was as surprised as Shallan, which just goes to show how excellent a writer Brandon is.
I'm very interested in the character Hoid. Why does he (or one with his name) keep showing up in Brandon's books? Are we going to get answers about Brandon's universe (because he has said that his books are different worlds in the same universe) through Hoid? I've always wondered if Lord Ruler caused the Reod. Could Preservation be the same dying god in this book? Maybe I'm thinking too much, but one can always hope for answers.

[Yellow]

I really, really liked the book. (I should have answered the original question, but I didn't see it. Oh well.) I'm posting spoilers in here, though nothing vital to the plot. So if you haven't read it yet and want to avoid all spoilers… well, why are you in here in the first place?

Kaladin was the most interesting to me, which is logical since he's the main focus of the book. I enjoyed his progression as a leader, and I loved the interaction between him and Syl. Some of the flashbacks were a little slow, in my opinion, but the one about how he actually got made a slave was really important, and I suppose the others led up to that.

Shallan was also fairly interesting, but I didn't really figure out why we cared about her until fairly late in the book. And by the end of the book, I was definitely wanting to hear more about her.

Dalinar was the least interesting to me. I enjoyed his viewpoints, but less than I did the other two. Though the visions were really interesting. I totally fell for the "trust Sadeas" thing like Dalinar did.

I'm really intrigued by the spren. I suspect that each type of spren is tied to a certain type of magic, though I'm not sure what drunkenspren would do. Still, there are a number of the interludes that focus on the spren, and there's definitely more there than meets the eye. The one about measuring firespren, for example, seems to have some big implications, but I can't figure out how it would affect other types of spren. I do wonder, though, why Szeth can do what he can without (as far as we know) any honorspren intervention.

I also wonder what the black stone was that Gavilar gave to Szeth before he died. It's never mentioned again.

Laser Jock also read the book, and pointed out that there's a passage where King Elhokar talks about seeing symbol-people in the mirror:

"...We go for years and years, never noticing the real villains, working quietly in my own camp. They watch me. Always. Waiting. I see their faces in mirrors. Symbols, twisted, inhuman..." WoK p. 826

I wonder if these are the same as the spren that Shallan sees? It seems like a similar description, but it's not clear.

I'll probably come back with more later; time to go watch Apple's media event.

[Yellow]

I'm very interested in the character Hoid. Why does he (or one with his name) keep showing up in Brandon's books? Are we going to get answers about Brandon's universe (because he has said that his books are different worlds in the same universe) through Hoid? I've always wondered if Lord Ruler caused the Reod. Could Preservation be the same dying god in this book? Maybe I'm thinking too much, but one can always hope for answers.

I'm also interested in Hoid. If you didn't catch it, the quotes at the beginning of the chapters in part two were almost certainly written by Hoid, and they have some interesting information. For what it's worth, though, it's almost certain that the Lord Ruler didn't cause the Reod. In fact, it's implied in those chapter headings that Odium caused it. (Also, if you're really observant, you may have noticed a mention of a person named "Ati" in those headings; that's the same person that "Atium" is named after. That's Ruin. And it also implies that Odium is a whole lot more scary than Ruin.

Roshar (Way of Kings) is definitely not the same world as Scadrial (Mistborn). The gods in question are definitely separate, but there also appear to be interactions between them at various points.

Also, you remember the interlude about the guys out at Purelake looking for Hoid? One of them has some speech idioms that sound a lot like someone from Duladen in Elantris. (I believe he says "Kolo", but I'd have to go look.) Curious, no?

[Dragon Lady]

I just want you all to know that I'm reading this book right now, so I can't read this thread. Which means I'm super annoyed every time it comes up as new, BECAUSE I CAN'T READ IT.

So don't you worry. In a few weeks after you've all moved on with life, I'll dredge this back up so you all have to deal with it again.

[Dragon Lady]

Ok, sorry I killed this thread. No, really, I am! I just read through it and kinda wished there were more to read. Oh well.

I liked it. I was captivated from the beginning, though I was super annoyed at its length. I think mostly because when I read nothing else gets done, but that's usually ok, because it only lasts a day or two. But this was like reading 3 or 4 books. So it was nigh unto a week before I finished. Which was tonight. So nothing is still done. I'll hate life tomorrow. You can tell that I don't really hate the length by the way that I want to read more right now. Alas.

Well, and I guess after the first couple of chapters I turned to Yellow and said, "This will all make sense later, right? I'm not going to be this confused for the whole book?" But I got over that quick enough.

But back to the book. I loved the character development. I loved all the hints to secrets in their pasts. Especially knowing that this is going to be a long series, it's good to know that there are still lots of things to discover. I'm having a hard time picking a favorite character. In Part 1, it was definitely Shallan. Mostly because her story was a lot less sad and violent than Kaladin's. And I always stayed captivated with her story. But over time, I really grew to like Kaladin a lot. He's just such a good guy that's gone through a really rough life. And it was super hard to read his account next to Dalinar's, especially after they start crossing paths. Because you know how good Dalinar really is, and then you turn around and read Kaladin cursing him for being a lighteye and being certain that Dalinar's honor is a farce. And you just can't blame him for thinking it. I suspected for awhile that Kaladin would end up in Dalinar's army, but I did NOT expect it to happen like it did. I totally fell for the whole "Trust Sadeas" thing, too. And through Dalinar's eyes, Sadeas was an honorable guy, even if he had few morals. (That just sounds so weird.) So his betrayal. Gosh. Man. That just threw all my theories about the visions up in pieces.

So… their all my favorite. Actually, I think Szeth is my favorite. You learn a lot through his chapters, few though they are. And I think he really is a good guy. He's got such a good heart. But whatever makes him Truthless is certainly binding. And he's loyal to whatever it is. I'm assuming religion. First, because he talks about it a lot. Second, because what else could keep a person doing stuff like that so devout? There are hints at the end of the book that he'll break his vows and stop obeying his master. I really hope he does. Though, I don't know what that would do for his soul, either. It's really strange to me how much I hope he'll actually be killed in one of his battles. Maybe when he goes after Dalinar? Cuz obviously we don't want Dalinar to die. But really, the most merciful thing to happen to Szeth would be for someone to kill him.

Yellow missed that Shallan has a shardblade. That made me laugh, I'll admit. He was so shocked at the end when she says her truth about killing her father. Ok, sure, it was only briefly mentioned twice. But it seemed huge to me when I read them.

I theorize that many of our characters will become Radiants. Obviously Kaladin. Jasnah (who I actually really like) and Shallan will be one order of Radiant that can Surgebind. And I suspect Elkohar will be, too. Maybe it runs in families? (Which, if that's true, makes me scared about Shallan's brothers. At least the one we get the interlude from gives me the heebie jeebies.) I suspect Dalinar and Adolin, and maybe even Reinar (? Ok, I'm gonna admit right now that I'm horrible at remembering names and I'm too lazy to look them up right now) will become some order or another. And I think Navani will be one, too, with her obsession with fabrials. Because those were invented to imitate the other orders that could soulcast on their own.

And holy cow. I totally didn't see the Voidbringers coming. What a twist! What a horribly terrifying twist. I mean, seriously. The repercussions of that! Yipes!

Ok, way past my bedtime. I should stop now.