Hello fellow bloggers!
I actually read The Way of Kings over the summer, as part of Faye's The Way of Kings Read-along. I'm not sure why I didn't review it then, but the reason I have finally decided to now is because The Way of Kings is free on Amazon Kindle.
There is seriously no excuse as to why you shouldn't get this. OH and it's also free on iTunes for those who don't have a Kindle.
The Way of Kings by Brandon SandersonThe Stormlight Archive #1
Publisher: Tor Books
Release Date: August 31st, 2010
Source: ebook
Date Read: 5/15/14 to 6/16/14
1007 Pages
Rating: ✰✰✰✰1/2
Roshar is a world of stone and storms. Uncanny tempests of incredible power sweep across the rocky terrain so frequently that they have shaped ecology and civilization alike. Animals hide in shells, trees pull in branches, and grass retracts into the soiless ground. Cities are built only where the topography offers shelter.
It has been centuries since the fall of the ten consecrated orders known as the Knights Radiant, but their Shardblades and Shardplate remain: mystical swords and suits of armor that transform ordinary men into near-invincible warriors. Men trade kingdoms for Shardblades. Wars were fought for them, and won by them.
One such war rages on a ruined landscape called the Shattered Plains. There, Kaladin, who traded his medical apprenticeship for a spear to protect his little brother, has been reduced to slavery. In a war that makes no sense, where ten armies fight separately against a single foe, he struggles to save his men and to fathom the leaders who consider them expendable.
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The Way of Kings was my first and only epic fantasy novel.
It will probably remain my favorite epic fantasy novel of all time. Except when you know, I read the sequel and I'm blown away, again.
If you have never heard of Sanderson, then you are living under a rock (just kidding). This "little" project of his, aka the planning of the Stormlight Archives, took him 10 years. He's planning to have ten of these massive 1000 page books in the series. If I somehow die before him, or he dies before finishing, I will not be happy.
OK, let me actually try to convince you to read this. First off, this is a slow paced, detailed, fully fleshed out world with a huge emphasis on character development. The world Sanderson creates is gorgeous. He has literally thought of everything possible, from ranks of nobility to soul gems, to the structure of the language, and how the words are pronounced. High ranking women have bright eyes, and are constantly called "Your Brightness", which is just SO COOL. I want to be called "Your Brightness"! I don't even have blue eyes!
The characters. OH the characters. Each chapter is dedicated to the POV of one of the three main characters, Kaladin, Shallan, and Dalinar. They are the best characters ever I am so attached to all three of them.
Kaladin can be described as our hero, but he's fallen pretty far down in both social rank and spirit. He's pretty much lost everything, and is now branded a slave. It's really horrible what he has to do though. Since the Way of Kings centers around war, Kaladin and his team are forced to carry bridges to allow the armies to cross chasms. Because of this, he is constantly in the line of fire on the battlefield. Everyone around him is dying, but still, he still somehow finds the courage and strength to overcome it all. And he's special.....dun dun dunnnnnn.
Shallan comes from a different background. She does come from a wealthy family, but due to her father's death, her family no longer has the means to soulcast new minerals for trade. Therefore, Shallan decides that she'll find a way around it, or you know, steal it from someone who has one. And of course it's someone who's well known. But even so, Shallan is still awesome. She has these amazing drawing abilities, and throughout the book, she questions whether or not she is doing the right thing.
AND LASTLY, there's Dalinar. I'm not as attached to him as I am to Shallan and Kaladin, but he's pretty cool too. He's one of the generals and an advisor to the King. Basically, he's a lord that controls part of the region, and all the other high princes fight for their wins too, and also fight for Shardblades, which to keep it simple, is EPIC INDESTRUCTIBLE ARMOR that makes you almost INVINCIBLE (I'm exaggerating, but you get it).
The characters in this story never actually meet each other, until the second book apparently. That's how slow paced this is. BUT, despite saying that, the pace is what makes this book so good.
In conclusion, please go download the book now. I don't care if it sits on your device for 10 years, you will not regret downloading this!
