The epigraphs in Part 2 are actually from Sazed about other shards
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Welp read the prologue to Rhythm of War only to discover Dawnshard has been out for awhile, I just didn't get my e-download email. Decided to be patient and read Dawnshard first but man this thread isn't making it easy. Hoping to get through it this week and really focus on Rhythm during Thanksgiving.
Wit and Jasnah are now probably my favorite pairing in the Cosmere
"Harsher". Every time Jasnah said it I felt like cheering
I do love how Wit is more involved in the central plot, at least so far to where I'm at (beginning of part 4). Wonder how much he's told Jasnah about cosmere stuff.
I think part of the reason why Jasnah's focus book isn't until the back 5 is that she knows a bunch of stuff, because clearly Sanderson cuts away when Hoid is going to tell her the juicy stuff. Renarin's part of the back 5 too because I imagine he knows a lot of what is going on due to his ability to see the future.
Renarin's bond also has a lot of implications for the wider cosmology, I feel. It's worth noting that even though the prohibition against seeing the future came about because Odium, none of the Singers, Fused, or other Spren seem to have any
Yeah, that's going to have to happen soon. There's so much accumulated information that I can't help but feel is going to be extremely important, and so many slightly contradictory sources on it - there has to be a bit where they straighten it all out.
Mraize's conversation is really confusing to me when contrasted against Vasher/Zahel's. The whole struggle Mraize describes - about moving Connected investiture from world to world - is apparently one Zahel just sorta... got over. He's a solid mass of the stuff. Dude was a (tiny) god. Nightblood is... whatever the fuck Nightblood is, but definitely a lot of power. But he made it through, and so did Vivenna/Azure. The fact that nobody apparently pulled him aside and was like "yo explain this Azure stuff" in the 8 months between Oathbringer and Rhythms is wild to me. Already got mentioned that Thaidakar is almost certainly Kelsier.
Shallan not having enough wrapup is sort of indicitive of the whole book not having enough wrapup. We're still getting introduced to huge new plot elements like Ishar somehow pulling spren into the physical realm and Taravangian becoming fucking Odium when normally we'd be mostly in the cooldown phase. Really felt like the page count was pressing in, which is wild considering how long the damn thing was.
Maya is great and the court scene was incredible but I do think they're on their way to a Nahel bond eventually.
Seon was cool. Another example of bringing Invested beings between worlds in a way that is supposedly really hard or impossible. Maybe seons are just too small for it to be a problem.
Ehhhh. I will admit, I basically called the events of the back 3/4 of the book the moment the plan to invade the tower got proposed - Die Hard Urithiru featuring Kaladin Stormblessed culminating in him taking his next big step forward and going all glowy. But setting aside that I wasn't expecting that to take place over most of the book, I think it's still a reasonably effective measure. It helps that I really do like the way Kaladin's issues are handled, much moreso than the first couple books. It feels more... nuanced, serious. Even if the stuff about how we used to have no idea how to treat people was really on the nose, I felt... I dunno, it all struck a chord. I will say, I do think you're wrong about the Third or Fourth Ideals. Kaladin spends most of the book vacillating on the 4th, not really regressing on the Third - nobody is asking for his protection and he denies it because of dislike or anything of the kind. He's sort of figured out that there's people he cannot save, but he doesn't really accept it until the very end.
And yes, Navani does rule. Unlike Lopen, whose schtick has long since gotten old, for me.
Mraize's conversation is really confusing to me when contrasted against Vasher/Zahel's. The whole struggle Mraize describes - about moving Connected investiture from world to world - is apparently one Zahel just sorta... got over. He's a solid mass of the stuff. Dude was a (tiny) god. Nightblood is... whatever the fuck Nightblood is, but definitely a lot of power. But he made it through, and so did Vivenna/Azure. The fact that nobody apparently pulled him aside and was like "yo explain this Azure stuff" in the 8 months between Oathbringer and Rhythms is wild to me. Already got mentioned that Thaidakar is almost certainly Kelsier.
Shallan not having enough wrapup is sort of indicitive of the whole book not having enough wrapup. We're still getting introduced to huge new plot elements like Ishar somehow pulling spren into the physical realm and Taravangian becoming fucking Odium when normally we'd be mostly in the cooldown phase. Really felt like the page count was pressing in, which is wild considering how long the damn thing was.
Maya is great and the court scene was incredible but I do think they're on their way to a Nahel bond eventually.
Seon was cool. Another example of bringing Invested beings between worlds in a way that is supposedly really hard or impossible. Maybe seons are just too small for it to be a problem.
Ehhhh. I will admit, I basically called the events of the back 3/4 of the book the moment the plan to invade the tower got proposed - Die Hard Urithiru featuring Kaladin Stormblessed culminating in him taking his next big step forward and going all glowy. But setting aside that I wasn't expecting that to take place over most of the book, I think it's still a reasonably effective measure. It helps that I really do like the way Kaladin's issues are handled, much moreso than the first couple books. It feels more... nuanced, serious. Even if the stuff about how we used to have no idea how to treat people was really on the nose, I felt... I dunno, it all struck a chord. I will say, I do think you're wrong about the Third or Fourth Ideals. Kaladin spends most of the book vacillating on the 4th, not really regressing on the Third - nobody is asking for his protection and he denies it because of dislike or anything of the kind. He's sort of figured out that there's people he cannot save, but he doesn't really accept it until the very end.
And yes, Navani does rule. Unlike Lopen, whose schtick has long since gotten old, for me.
I just finished as well. I think this was my favorite Cosmere book so far, if only because the character moments were better (and more evenly spread among the cast) than they have ever been.
This was the first book in which I felt connected to the singer viewpoints on a more substantial level than just plot. I loved the focus on Navani, and though I wasn't initially sure if I wanted more Urithiru, the bottle episode format just worked for me. I feel emotionally renewed, which is remarkable after a 1200 page book. Brandon is still somehow coming into his powers as a writer, and I am terrified/eager to see what he comes up with next.
And, on Taravangian: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH
And, on Taravangian: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH
Some people read fast, and having nothing better to do in quarantine helps.
Also, the first 20% if the book was already available, so we just continued from there.
Still just thinking through some things.
I am glad that you all caught the Kelsier reference, because I somehow missed the 'Lord of Scars' line. I had thought that that scene was referring to Autonomy or Trell, since Mraize explained that he had only seen an avatar of Thaidakar. It is obviously Kelsier though.
I am guessing that the Biochromatic Breath system is invested in a way that doesn't Connect people to Nalthis. Since everyone on Nalthis has at least one Breath, I would think that everyone from that world would be trapped in the Cognitive Realm unless either 1) only drabs can travel or 2) the Connection of Breath is unique.
I wonder if the Urithiru kid who wanted to be a Windrunner will be a POV in books 6-10, or if he was just there to connect to Kaladin's vision about Tien. (And on that vision, which I assume dipped into the Spiritual Realm: I loved when Teft's voice joined Tien at the end.) I am also thinking that a young Listener may be a POV in 6-10, since Brandon went to the trouble of explaining that a singer ages to adulthood in just ten years.
I am glad that you all caught the Kelsier reference, because I somehow missed the 'Lord of Scars' line. I had thought that that scene was referring to Autonomy or Trell, since Mraize explained that he had only seen an avatar of Thaidakar. It is obviously Kelsier though.
I am guessing that the Biochromatic Breath system is invested in a way that doesn't Connect people to Nalthis. Since everyone on Nalthis has at least one Breath, I would think that everyone from that world would be trapped in the Cognitive Realm unless either 1) only drabs can travel or 2) the Connection of Breath is unique.
I wonder if the Urithiru kid who wanted to be a Windrunner will be a POV in books 6-10, or if he was just there to connect to Kaladin's vision about Tien. (And on that vision, which I assume dipped into the Spiritual Realm: I loved when Teft's voice joined Tien at the end.) I am also thinking that a young Listener may be a POV in 6-10, since Brandon went to the trouble of explaining that a singer ages to adulthood in just ten years.
Also thoughts on my new favorite character relationship.
While Wit/Hoid becoming a Lightweaver is ideal for him from a power perspective, since he can't hurt people, him bonding with a Cryptic is the absolute worst pairing for him. Design is so literal and I love the interactions between the two when Hoid is trying to tell Kaladin a story. I hope this bond is still a thing when Hoid presumedly becomes a bigger spotlight character as the Cosmere nears a conclusion (I think Sanderson said he'd be a PoV character in like, Mistborn era 4?) because if anyone knows how to leave a system despite being heavily Invested and 'stuck' there, like it's implied those with bonds are, it's Hoid.
Full book spoilers
Yes. In one conversation with Jasnah, Wit said that he caught one of the Sleepless cremlings in his trunk and he guesses that particular Sleepless is aligned with Ghostbloods. Pattern said he used the cube to talk with Wit and I think he said he mentioned sprens, so we can assume the Sleepless heard everything and told Mraize.
RIGHT. I'd never put the two together - that's very clever. I will say, the portrayal of what all goes into subterfuge was much better in this one than in most of the priors.
For example, I had been wondering how Taravangian would manipulate Jasnah and Dalinar into leaving Urithiru when he's no longer in a position to betray their trust (which was the only thing we'd really seen people DO in these books - either sneaking or pretending to be trustworthy - and then he flips it around by presenting a threat in a way that would demand a response by pitching in with the Emul offensive, thus weaponizing their distrust of him. Using an opponent's justified caution of you to manipulate them is actually great stuff.
Though TBH Dalinar almost always accompanies large numbers of Radiants and Jasnah was planning on going anyway, now that I think about it, but it was very clever regardless.
Anyway, logically speaking, Shallan would probably not know about Hoid being spied on unless he told her and Pattern at some point, which I don't think we saw, but I'll take it.
Though TBH Dalinar almost always accompanies large numbers of Radiants and Jasnah was planning on going anyway, now that I think about it, but it was very clever regardless.
Anyway, logically speaking, Shallan would probably not know about Hoid being spied on unless he told her and Pattern at some point, which I don't think we saw, but I'll take it.
Yeah, this was a delight. It's hilarious, because if he'd gotten Pattern he would have had a near-perfect audience member, but he got Design instead, who's just a perfect foil.
God, Taravangian's going to fuck that up too, isn't he? Fuck that man.
God, Taravangian's going to fuck that up too, isn't he? Fuck that man.
Whenever Sanderson releases a stormlight book I take off work and just read for like 12 hours+ a day lol.
edit: An upside is that I'm reading so fast I forget half of it and then the re-read is much more rewarding down the line.
Dont take my word for it but I believe there is a WoB that confirms your thoughts re: breaths
Just finished.
Well.
The end of Mistborn Era 2 just became a HELL of a lot more important.
Well.
The end of Mistborn Era 2 just became a HELL of a lot more important.
It's Kelsier. Lord of Scars who Hoid slapped around? It's Kelsier.
Adolin/Maya relationship is probably my favorite thing in the cosmere. It was so damn satisfying when she finally spoke up.
Rlain! My dude! Fuck yeah! Finally given the bond you've deserved for a while now. Also, I fucking loved the Dabbid PoVs. What a sweet guy. I hope a spren picks him up.
Most of the wider cosmere plot stuff eludes me so I just wanted to talk about the characters for a bit.
Rlain! My dude! Fuck yeah! Finally given the bond you've deserved for a while now. Also, I fucking loved the Dabbid PoVs. What a sweet guy. I hope a spren picks him up.
Most of the wider cosmere plot stuff eludes me so I just wanted to talk about the characters for a bit.
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I think all that happened at the end was
Taravangian ended up erasing Hoid's memory of realizing that Rayse was dead? It seemed like Design had just gone off with the corrupted spren already which is why Hoid was wondering why they weren't there any more. Who knows though, but that was a great way to show how much more of a big bad Odium just became, actually mess with Hoid.
Yeah, that's all that happened... this time. Hoid is still storing much or all of his memories in his Breaths - and has no idea that the new Odium is aware of, capable of, and interested in messing with them. I really, really doubt that this is the last time he messes with them. While Taravangian doesn't have Rayse's personal history with Hoid, I wouldn't be shocked if he ended of screwing him over and manipulating him into breaking his oaths or something anyway.
If I remember correctly
Hoid shows up as a stagecoach driver in Mistborn Era 2 and he seems fine, but we don't know if he still has his connection with Design or anything. I believe Mistborn Era 2 takes place between Stormlight 1-5 and 6-10... eventually Sanderson's going to have lay out an official timeline.
This also makes Sazed's letter to Hoid in the chapter epitaphs funny, because he basically says "hey, when you're here please announce yourself so we can talk" and Hoid literally gets so close as driving Wax while Wax is speaking with Harmony yet doesn't let him know he's there.
This also makes Sazed's letter to Hoid in the chapter epitaphs funny, because he basically says "hey, when you're here please announce yourself so we can talk" and Hoid literally gets so close as driving Wax while Wax is speaking with Harmony yet doesn't let him know he's there.
I would honestly put money on that being the recent visit the letter is referring to, lol.
That said, I don't think we know for sure when either Mistborn eras take place relative to Stormlight, or when the letters are being sent relative to either. Best that the wiki has is "he says they're released roughly chronologically but all we really know for certain is that the Oathpact was broken before White Sands so who knows." Could be that Mistborn Era 2 is taking place concurrently with Stormlight, or largely before it, or totally after it.
That said, I don't think we know for sure when either Mistborn eras take place relative to Stormlight, or when the letters are being sent relative to either. Best that the wiki has is "he says they're released roughly chronologically but all we really know for certain is that the Oathpact was broken before White Sands so who knows." Could be that Mistborn Era 2 is taking place concurrently with Stormlight, or largely before it, or totally after it.
It's been mentioned a few times:
Questioner
Time-wise, where do the events of Bands of Mourning happen with respect to Words of Radiance?
Brandon Sanderson
...So, Bands of Mourning, all the Wax & Wayne books take place after Stormlight 5, but I'm not sure if it happens after or before Stormlight 6, It'll have to wait, because there's a time jump between Stormlight 5 and 6 that I haven't exactly defined in the timeline yet.
Greg Ellner
When does the Wax and Wayne series take place compared to The Stormlight Archive?
Brandon Sanderson
Just after.
Greg Ellner
Thank you! So after Stormlight 10, then comes The Alloy of Law? I have noticed a change in Hoid in these books since.
Brandon Sanderson
Alloy is somewhere after Stormlight 5.
Time-wise, where do the events of Bands of Mourning happen with respect to Words of Radiance?
Brandon Sanderson
...So, Bands of Mourning, all the Wax & Wayne books take place after Stormlight 5, but I'm not sure if it happens after or before Stormlight 6, It'll have to wait, because there's a time jump between Stormlight 5 and 6 that I haven't exactly defined in the timeline yet.
Greg Ellner
When does the Wax and Wayne series take place compared to The Stormlight Archive?
Brandon Sanderson
Just after.
Greg Ellner
Thank you! So after Stormlight 10, then comes The Alloy of Law? I have noticed a change in Hoid in these books since.
Brandon Sanderson
Alloy is somewhere after Stormlight 5.
My physical book finally came! First one got lost in shipping with Amazon and they had to send me another one. Nice to enjoy the art in the book, and boy this thing is huge.
I had expected Coppermind to not get updated with spoilers for a bit so you could look up certain things for reference while reading, as I like to do.
I was wrong.
To their credit, there was a banner at the top, but since my link autoscrolled to the header I was searching for I missed that lol.
I was wrong.
To their credit, there was a banner at the top, but since my link autoscrolled to the header I was searching for I missed that lol.
Oh, huh, that's... weird.It's been mentioned a few times:
Questioner
Time-wise, where do the events of Bands of Mourning happen with respect to Words of Radiance?
Brandon Sanderson
...So, Bands of Mourning, all the Wax & Wayne books take place after Stormlight 5, but I'm not sure if it happens after or before Stormlight 6, It'll have to wait, because there's a time jump between Stormlight 5 and 6 that I haven't exactly defined in the timeline yet.
Greg Ellner
When does the Wax and Wayne series take place compared to The Stormlight Archive?
Brandon Sanderson
Just after.
Greg Ellner
Thank you! So after Stormlight 10, then comes The Alloy of Law? I have noticed a change in Hoid in these books since.
Brandon Sanderson
Alloy is somewhere after Stormlight 5.
Just finished the book, so I wanted to share my thoughts on something you brought up
I think Nightblood was able to kill Rayse because it has some ability to sever connection. It didn't kill Odium itself, the power was completely intact and not splintered or anything either, it just severed the connection between the Vessel and the Shard itself and by severing that the vessel was able to be killed. As evidence consider it's use in the fight with Ishar. If we just look at that in a grander scale then I think this explanation might make sense
Just shy of 50% read and...
I'm disappointed we've only had two small appearances by Jasnah. She's been my favorite character of the series.
But ONLY look at that page. There are tons of spoilers, even on things that may have seemed common knowledge at this point, so watch out!
Finished part 2 and Interludes:
Man, Lirin is coming off real damn shitty.
So....Mraize is hunting after Lift? What?! Also who was the other guy with the bird that Mraize's attacked? I am so much more confused by Mraize right now.
Not being a big fan of Shadesmar in Oathbringer, I'm really looking forward to what comes of this Adolin storyline.
So....Mraize is hunting after Lift? What?! Also who was the other guy with the bird that Mraize's attacked? I am so much more confused by Mraize right now.
Not being a big fan of Shadesmar in Oathbringer, I'm really looking forward to what comes of this Adolin storyline.
Slowly making my way through the book, and I absolutely adore how rich and well-thought Sanderson's world building is
but damn these books are so long that re-reads are basically a non-starter, but I don't remember a lot of what happened. Sja-anat who? Nergaoul what? Wait which book was Zahel from and what happened in it? It comes back to me but way too slowly.
I'll have to make a better effort to read the synopses online.
but damn these books are so long that re-reads are basically a non-starter, but I don't remember a lot of what happened. Sja-anat who? Nergaoul what? Wait which book was Zahel from and what happened in it? It comes back to me but way too slowly.
I'll have to make a better effort to read the synopses online.
Finished on Saturday night. As far as an SA novel, probably on the bottom for me. As far as a Cosmere novel though.... There's 1 chapter in particular that has me scared about the future :(
PSA for those still reading, since I don't think it has been mentioned: Coppermind has a Time Machine feature as of last week, which allows you to navigate the Wiki as it appeared before Rhythm of War without hoping for internet archive back-ups. The blog post explaining it is here:
www.17thshard.com
You can now visit previous versions of Coppermind pages with Time Machine!
Hi everyone! I wanted to talk about spoilers on the Coppermind and some things we are doing on the Coppermind to assist here. First, whoa, our servers have had some serious problems keeping up with you all! The server load was really high, so apologies if you were trying to get to the wiki Tuesda...
www.17thshard.com
I love Navani, in no small part because she acts as a conduit of pure Cosmere/Roshar lore. Lifelight?! My current speculation is that Radiants have access to two Surges, one from Honor and one from Cultivation, though either can be powered with Stormlight or any other form of relevant Investiture. The Fused only have one Surge, from Odium.
Part 3 was pretty rad, mainly a guerilla/stealth war section. The glove mechanic was cool for a fight, and the Pursuer, despite his dumb name, is a truly terrifying villain. I wonder if that's the surge of Transportation, but if so, why there seems to be only one Fused of that type?
Part 3 was pretty rad, mainly a guerilla/stealth war section. The glove mechanic was cool for a fight, and the Pursuer, despite his dumb name, is a truly terrifying villain. I wonder if that's the surge of Transportation, but if so, why there seems to be only one Fused of that type?
End of book spoilers:
Adolin had my favourite character arc.The line about his trial being from Maya and that being the only really important trial was great.
He's such a good character and I can't wait to see what happens with him in the future - looks like he'll have a bond but not be a radiant? Something different? That's so cool
He's such a good character and I can't wait to see what happens with him in the future - looks like he'll have a bond but not be a radiant? Something different? That's so cool
Finished the book:
Now to wait for the next one.
I wish there were less flashbacks, this time they didn't really tell us much besides some stuff about the Listener's culture, but it was worth it for Eshonai's last flashback.
So Kelsier is more than likely the leader of the Ghostbloods, I wonder what their real plan is, especially after Mraize gave Lift to the Singers.
Kaladin's fourth ideal was what we all knew it was going to be, but it was a nice moment. Lirin is still an asshole though.
Can't wait for Moash to get bodied. Fuck you, Moash.
I had no issues with Shallan's plot, you all just hate on her too much :P
I wonder if Adolin will end up becoming a Radiant, or something different.
How many Breaths did Hoid lose to lose his perfect pitch? Also is he misdirecting Odium there? He was talking about misdirection before that, after all.
I wonder what Vasher was doing during the invasion, he showed his abilities pretty openly to Kaladin before that, but didn't show up at all after.
So Kelsier is more than likely the leader of the Ghostbloods, I wonder what their real plan is, especially after Mraize gave Lift to the Singers.
Kaladin's fourth ideal was what we all knew it was going to be, but it was a nice moment. Lirin is still an asshole though.
Can't wait for Moash to get bodied. Fuck you, Moash.
I had no issues with Shallan's plot, you all just hate on her too much :P
I wonder if Adolin will end up becoming a Radiant, or something different.
How many Breaths did Hoid lose to lose his perfect pitch? Also is he misdirecting Odium there? He was talking about misdirection before that, after all.
I wonder what Vasher was doing during the invasion, he showed his abilities pretty openly to Kaladin before that, but didn't show up at all after.
Now to wait for the next one.
Ok, I finished the other day, and I let the book percolate a little bit before I wrote my thoughts down. Spoilers for the full book and the Cosmere at large.
Ultimately, I was disappointed in this book. Brandon decided on a structure for the Stormlight books back before he started, and this is the first book where the cracks have begun to show. I'm primarily thinking of flashbacks and the timing of radiant oaths.
The flashbacks have been done to death, but I just wanted to say I agree. They added nothing to narrative, there was no "revelation" apart from maybe the person who provided the Void-spren to Venli. Everything was just a fork of something we've seen before, and I just didn't need to re-tread that again.
Just like I didn't need to re-tread depressed Kaladin again. His moment with Tien was heartwarming and beautiful and I absolutely teared up. But I did not need ANOTHER book of him being sad and depressed and fighting losing battles again. It was like we were back running bridges again. Regress and grow, regress and grow. I was so much more interested in Kaladin the therapist and part time surgeon. How could he use his radiant abilities to help these folks out? Hell, I was eagerly anticipating a new way to use a shardblade after Syl mentioned her old knight built aqueducts in the past. But nope, Die Hard Kaladin it is.
I will say I appreciated more of Shallan's story this time around, but once again, it felt very same-y. The revelation at the end about her previous spren was great, but dear god. I just wanted something new. Her interactions with Adolin were great, and Shadesmar as a whole was a different kind of adventure. But I wanted less internal strife between the personalities and just something new. Again, felt very same-y.
I felt we were a little robbed of Dalinar and Jasnah in this book, though what we did get was great. Warrior queen and no-nonsense Jasnah who's going to wield her power to force the Alethi to modernize? Hell yes! She is what Dalinar wanted to be back at the Shattered Plains. She's doing things her way and showing the Highprinces that she can do it their way too. More of this please! I wanted more of Dalinar and the Mink. The odd couple directing the war. All of the Bondsmith stuff was great, and the "stretching" of the Stormfather, very cool.
Navani - another bright point for the book. I loved her fantasy science. Her climax was a little too predictable, but I suppose you can't win them all. Her relationship with Raboniel was great, and I'm disappointed we're losing such an interesting character after one book. Looking forward to learning more about the Sibling, who I think has a deeper connection to the Recreance than we know just yet.
Side characters - Lift, keep doing what you do. Interested to see how growing up affects her. Some interesting trauma to be potentially explored there. Leshwi, I'm shipping you and Kaladin hard at this point. Rlain, hope you get more viewpoints in the future. Dabbid, the real hero of this book, his chapter was heartbreaking and heartwarming, he doesn't need a spren, he's great the way he is but I hope that he gets what he wants. Vasher, Bro come on, help out once the tower gets taken.
Odium/Taravangian - God damn. What a way to up the stakes. I'm a little disappointed that Rayse seemed to just lose it after losing Dalinar as his champion. There was something very clearly happening against the shard's intent there towards the end that has Cosmere implications, and I hope we can explore that. TOdium makes so much sense as a villain, I'm shocked I didn't see it coming. I'm glad we got an "evil" ascension, but I'm somewhat concerned that Brandon is pointing towards none of the "villains" in the Cosmere actually being bad. Maybe Taravangian will be corrupted by the Shard's intent, but his goal to save everyone could easily evolve into normal villainy or actual self-sacrifice. Either way, the Ascension scene was fantastic and I'm looking forward to seeing where this goes.
Nightblood - So, he gets stronger after consuming investiture, right? And he just stabbed a Shard. Even before that, he was able to chip an Honorblade. Assuming Szeth takes him to purge Shinovar... he is well on his way to becoming one of, if not the most powerful object in the Cosmere. And considering he doesn't appear to be bound by the same rules of investment as other things like cognitive shadows, wooooo.
Overall, while I enjoyed this book, Brandon needed an editor to say "no." Unfortunately, he is at the point in his career where that just won't happen since he's such a moneymaker for Tor. I wasn't a huge fan of exactly how the story played out, but even if he went in the same direction, I think you could cut part 3 in half and remove the flashbacks entirely (except for maybe the last one and include some of the thoughts from current Venli) and you'd have a much tighter, more enjoyable book. Hell, just reduce the number of "shields" around the tower to 2 and things move much quicker.
The Cosmere continues to develop in exciting ways, but this is the first time where I felt the book was more of a vehicle for the "post-credits scene" than the story contained within. I don't mind connecting everything to the wider Cosmere, but the singular story of the novel shouldn't suffer for that.
Oh, and before I forget, when we finally get down to the inevitable conflict between worlds, I side with the Ghostbloods and Kelsier... I mean Thaidakar. I look forward to him re-taking center stage and fighting for the people.
The flashbacks have been done to death, but I just wanted to say I agree. They added nothing to narrative, there was no "revelation" apart from maybe the person who provided the Void-spren to Venli. Everything was just a fork of something we've seen before, and I just didn't need to re-tread that again.
Just like I didn't need to re-tread depressed Kaladin again. His moment with Tien was heartwarming and beautiful and I absolutely teared up. But I did not need ANOTHER book of him being sad and depressed and fighting losing battles again. It was like we were back running bridges again. Regress and grow, regress and grow. I was so much more interested in Kaladin the therapist and part time surgeon. How could he use his radiant abilities to help these folks out? Hell, I was eagerly anticipating a new way to use a shardblade after Syl mentioned her old knight built aqueducts in the past. But nope, Die Hard Kaladin it is.
I will say I appreciated more of Shallan's story this time around, but once again, it felt very same-y. The revelation at the end about her previous spren was great, but dear god. I just wanted something new. Her interactions with Adolin were great, and Shadesmar as a whole was a different kind of adventure. But I wanted less internal strife between the personalities and just something new. Again, felt very same-y.
I felt we were a little robbed of Dalinar and Jasnah in this book, though what we did get was great. Warrior queen and no-nonsense Jasnah who's going to wield her power to force the Alethi to modernize? Hell yes! She is what Dalinar wanted to be back at the Shattered Plains. She's doing things her way and showing the Highprinces that she can do it their way too. More of this please! I wanted more of Dalinar and the Mink. The odd couple directing the war. All of the Bondsmith stuff was great, and the "stretching" of the Stormfather, very cool.
Navani - another bright point for the book. I loved her fantasy science. Her climax was a little too predictable, but I suppose you can't win them all. Her relationship with Raboniel was great, and I'm disappointed we're losing such an interesting character after one book. Looking forward to learning more about the Sibling, who I think has a deeper connection to the Recreance than we know just yet.
Side characters - Lift, keep doing what you do. Interested to see how growing up affects her. Some interesting trauma to be potentially explored there. Leshwi, I'm shipping you and Kaladin hard at this point. Rlain, hope you get more viewpoints in the future. Dabbid, the real hero of this book, his chapter was heartbreaking and heartwarming, he doesn't need a spren, he's great the way he is but I hope that he gets what he wants. Vasher, Bro come on, help out once the tower gets taken.
Odium/Taravangian - God damn. What a way to up the stakes. I'm a little disappointed that Rayse seemed to just lose it after losing Dalinar as his champion. There was something very clearly happening against the shard's intent there towards the end that has Cosmere implications, and I hope we can explore that. TOdium makes so much sense as a villain, I'm shocked I didn't see it coming. I'm glad we got an "evil" ascension, but I'm somewhat concerned that Brandon is pointing towards none of the "villains" in the Cosmere actually being bad. Maybe Taravangian will be corrupted by the Shard's intent, but his goal to save everyone could easily evolve into normal villainy or actual self-sacrifice. Either way, the Ascension scene was fantastic and I'm looking forward to seeing where this goes.
Nightblood - So, he gets stronger after consuming investiture, right? And he just stabbed a Shard. Even before that, he was able to chip an Honorblade. Assuming Szeth takes him to purge Shinovar... he is well on his way to becoming one of, if not the most powerful object in the Cosmere. And considering he doesn't appear to be bound by the same rules of investment as other things like cognitive shadows, wooooo.
Overall, while I enjoyed this book, Brandon needed an editor to say "no." Unfortunately, he is at the point in his career where that just won't happen since he's such a moneymaker for Tor. I wasn't a huge fan of exactly how the story played out, but even if he went in the same direction, I think you could cut part 3 in half and remove the flashbacks entirely (except for maybe the last one and include some of the thoughts from current Venli) and you'd have a much tighter, more enjoyable book. Hell, just reduce the number of "shields" around the tower to 2 and things move much quicker.
The Cosmere continues to develop in exciting ways, but this is the first time where I felt the book was more of a vehicle for the "post-credits scene" than the story contained within. I don't mind connecting everything to the wider Cosmere, but the singular story of the novel shouldn't suffer for that.
Oh, and before I forget, when we finally get down to the inevitable conflict between worlds, I side with the Ghostbloods and Kelsier... I mean Thaidakar. I look forward to him re-taking center stage and fighting for the people.
Thanks for the PSA.PSA for those still reading, since I don't think it has been mentioned: Coppermind has a Time Machine feature as of last week, which allows you to navigate the Wiki as it appeared before Rhythm of War without hoping for internet archive back-ups. The blog post explaining it is here:
You can now visit previous versions of Coppermind pages with Time Machine!
Hi everyone! I wanted to talk about spoilers on the Coppermind and some things we are doing on the Coppermind to assist here. First, whoa, our servers have had some serious problems keeping up with you all! The server load was really high, so apologies if you were trying to get to the wiki Tuesda...
Would've been useful to know before I thought to myself:
What happened to Kelsier? That epithet at the beginning of Chapter 28 made me think of him. Did I miss anything since the novella in the Arcanum Unbounded? Oh wait what's that I noticed in the corner of my eye, his alias is Thaidakar? FUCK
Finished it
The middle part was kinda getting stale and formulaic by the 4th book now, but Brandon absolutely saved it with how much emotionally amazing stuff he managed to put in after part 3.
That saved the book for me from being just ok to being truly great.
As for Kelsier being Thaidakar:
Kalak calls Thaidakar, "old Thaidakar". Kelsier's 300 years old, Kalak is 7000 years old.
We'll see how it goes.
That saved the book for me from being just ok to being truly great.
As for Kelsier being Thaidakar:
Kalak calls Thaidakar, "old Thaidakar". Kelsier's 300 years old, Kalak is 7000 years old.
We'll see how it goes.
Finished it. What a ride.
Overall probably my second favorite of the SA (Words of Radiance is number one).
Teared up at Kal's vision with Tien. Excited to see Taravangian as Odium and greater Cosmere connections. Raboniel was such an amazing character
Overall probably my second favorite of the SA (Words of Radiance is number one).
just realized I never read the last wax and Wayne book. Guess I should read that and secret history. Not sure how I missed that
There's one more coming next year to end Era 2. Leatherbound for Alloy is supposed to be next year as well.
Yeah The Lost Metal was held for timeline reasons, which is the thing that basically confirms the
thing for me.
Thaidakar-Kelsier