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Words of Radiance

(The Stormlight Archive #2)

Brandon Sanderson (Goodreads Author)

4.77 · Rating details · 148,758 ratings · 9,381 reviews

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson, Words of Radiance, Book Two of the Stormlight Archive, continues the immersive fantasy epic that The Way of Kings began.

Expected by his enemies to die the miserable death of a military slave, Kaladin survived to be given command of the royal bodyguards, a controversial first for a low-status "darkeyes." Now he mu ...more

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Hardcover, 1087 pages

Published March 4th 2014 by Tor Books

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Dec 16, 2016 Petrik rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: epic/high fantasy fans

Shelves: favorites, owned-physical-books

Okay, this is finally happening. I’m ranking The Stormlight Archive as my number one favorite book series of all time, overtaking the throne previously held by Mistborn trilogy, and I don’t think this will change anytime soon. The Gods of the Cosmere knows how much I love the original Mistborn trilogy but Brandon Sanderson really raised the bar for the epic fantasy genre sky high with this series.

Words of Radiance, only the second book in The Stormlight Archive series and the sequel to The Way o ...more

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Dec 02, 2014 Pierce Brown rated it it was amazing

Holy crap on a stick. I bow in supreme awe.

That's it.

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Apr 28, 2013 Obaid Haroon rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This is it. The review no one was waiting for. First thing I must say, I have never given any book 5 stars. Because that would mean it is perfect. And that's a tall order. But I couldn't give it any less. Because it was phenomenal. Like "holy shit" amazing. On to the review. Needless to say...spoilers ho!

The book was too large (not complaining) and there were too many insane parts (definitely not complaining) to do a blow by blow for each character. So I'll stick with the best five. Since it was ...more

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May 07, 2015 Melissa ♥ Dog/Wolf Lover ♥ Martin rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-all, own

Re-read on Audible! Now I'm ready for Oathbringer! 😄

MY BLOG: Melissa Martin's Reading List

HOLY. CRAP. ON. A. CRACKER!

I freaking loved this book! I am going to give a crazy arse review that will probably only make sense to me and throw in some excerpts and pictures and who cares?! Almost everyone has read this right, right?

I love you Brandon Sanderson! But now that I sit and think about it, I will most likely be dead before you finish the books. I still love you though!

I still love all of the m ...more

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Mar 05, 2014 Robin (Bridge Four) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Fans of Lumatere Chronicles, Game of Thrones or In the Name of the Wind

Shelves: 4-5-stars, adorable-alphas, fantastic-fantasy, kick-ass-heroines, o-captain-my-captain, super-sidekicks, awesome-audio, chick-i-want-to-hang-out-with, book-boyfriend-material, buddy-read

Kindle Daily Deal 01Nov18 for $2.99 at Amazon

3rd read even better than the last 2

Don't judge me I made it a full year before rereading this monster book and it is even better the second time through.

Kalidan and Syl I still ship you.

Buddy Read May 1st with many friends over at Sanctum of Fantasy

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My apologies in advance for the ridiculous amount of updates I'm going to post for this book. It cannot be helped as my fangirling refuses to be contained.

Original review April 2014:

“Honor is dead. ...more

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Sep 16, 2011 Kogiopsis rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fangirl-alert, favorite-2014-reads, teary-eyes, flawless, kickass-ladies

March 5th: Done with first readthrough. It was, in fact, more perfect than expected. I only cried a little bit; mostly afterwards I just have this feeling of intense satisfaction.
I will probably still wait to review until I've read through twice; I have a lot that I think I want to say but I haven't fully processed it.

August 10: It's obvious to everyone that I'm not gonna get around to a reread for a while, right? Cool. I'll do it eventually, because I have a lot to say about this book, but it'l ...more

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Nov 30, 2015 Mary ~Ravager of Tomes~ rated it it was amazing

Shelves: owned, 5-star, audiobook, year-2017

Words of Radiance is an absolutely marvelous continuation of the Stormlight Archive series.

As many of you know, it gets harder to review books in a series the further you get away from the first book. Here I am at the end of only book 2 & already over 2000 pages into this series (or over 80 hours in my case) and there is just soooo muchhhh storyyyy! So naturally, it's tough to write a review without any spoilers BUT HERE I GO BECAUSE I CARE ABOUT ALL OF YOU!

So one of the things I appreciate ...more

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Mar 03, 2015 Jessica ❁ ➳ Silverbow ➳ ❁ Rabid Reads-no-more rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: rabid-reads-reviews, fantasy, assassins, bat-shit-crazy, buddy-reads-are-the-best, diabolical, favorite-secondary-characters, i-cried, i-have-rules, it-burns-us-precious

4/29/18: So far the graphic audio version of STORMLIGHT ARCHIVE has been fantastic, so I’m hopeful that Kaladin will annoy me less this time . . . *crosses fingers*

Reviewed by: Rabid Reads

WORDS OF RADIANCE is the second installment of Brandon Sanderson's STORMLIGHT ARCHIVE series, and, unfortunately . . . it fell a little flat for me.

Don't get me wrong, I liked it. This was one of those occasions when my rating steadily declined the more I stewed about the ends and outs . . . but immediately u ...more

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Mar 06, 2014 Eon ♒Windrunner♒ rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: Everyone

Shelves: favourites

I find myself having put off writing this review for a few weeks now. I am still at a loss for words. How do I deliver an appraisal of a book so mind-bogglingly fantastic that anything I write will fall short of conveying the joy of reading it? Words of Radiance might as well be my description of this book and not the title.

WOR, being the second book in a ten book series called The Stormlight Archives, picks up right where The Way of Kings left off but does so at a faster pace. Where TWOK was ...more

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Oct 29, 2017 Choko rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: brandon-sanderson, fantasy

"...“As I fear not a child with a weapon he cannot lift, I will never fear the mind of a man who does not think.”..."

OMG!!! This was not just a book, it was a 4 day vacation to the world of Roshar, the complete package! It came with exotic locations, historical sites, a taste of the lives of all social classes including their cuisines and family traditions ("You're in my home now!" she said, and Lopen mouthed along with the words. "In a Herdazian woman's home, nobody's station means nothing b ...more

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Mar 25, 2014 Felicia rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: epic-fantasy

I mean, Sanderson always puts the word "Epic" in "Epic Fantasy" and at over 750 pages...this is EPIC.

I LOVED the last book, I loved this one as well. If you like Sanderson you'll love it, if you don't...well, this is definitely Sanderson! The same amazing characters continue from the last book, some Game of Thrones-type twists that are shocking as well, and as always, the lore and magic system RULE. Shallan continues to be an amazing character, and the growth of her abilities go into HELLA cool ...more

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Oct 04, 2017 Melanie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: audible, fantasy, buddy-reads, magic, read-in-2017

1.) The Way of Kings ★★★★★

I am so sorry with how this review is like three weeks late! November just got so overwhelming for me with trips and other things, but I’m here now and happily ready to yell at you all about how this series is Brandon Sanderson’s magnum opus!

“Words are where most change begins.”

This is book two of The Stormlight Archive series. It has multiple points of view, but every one of the characters will somehow weasel their way inside of your heart. Like, I know I’m probab ...more

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Dec 14, 2012 Mogsy (MMOGC) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: epic, magic, fantasy, review-copy, favorites

5 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum http://bibliosanctum.blogspot.com/201...

I don't know what was more intimidating, the size of Words of Radiance when I first beheld it, or the thought of having to write the review when I finished. I took me about seven days to read this giant tome, and then five more just to let everything sink in. So many emotions. So amazing. Even now, I don't know if I can completely separate my subjective feelings for this novel, simply because of the MAJOR soft spot I harbo 5 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum http://bibliosanctum.blogspot.com/201...

I don't know what was more intimidating, the size of Words of Radiance when I first beheld it, or the thought of having to write the review when I finished. I took me about seven days to read this giant tome, and then five more just to let everything sink in. So many emotions. So amazing. Even now, I don't know if I can completely separate my subjective feelings for this novel, simply because of the MAJOR soft spot I harbor for this particular series. See, I wasn't always a fan of epic fantasy. I was the type to take one look at the page count and run the other way! Of course, that was before The Way of Kings became one of my favorite books. I guess you could say that I credit Brandon Sanderson and that book for being my gateway into this genre, and I've always been glad for that.

To finally read Words of Radiance was like fist-pumping excitement and all my restless giddiness rolled into one. In this second volume, the world of The Stormlight Archive becomes even more incredible and captivating. My favorite thing about Sanderson's stories are his magic systems, and I know everyone always says that but I don't care! It bears saying again because it's true. Here I thought he was done laying down the ground rules for his world's magic in The Way of Kings, but clearly he was just getting started. It's actually getting so elaborate that part of me is beginning to worry this could become too confusing before long. But if you love Surgebinding, rest assured the storyline continues to build upon basic principles regarding stormlight and its uses in the various types of surges. When it comes to beefing up his magic systems, Sanderson never ceases to amaze.

I've also noticed he has a way of writing inherently good people in the roles of main protagonists. This certainly applies to the important characters here -- Kaladin, Shallan, Dalinar, Adolin, etc. -- all decent folks with decent intentions, natural leaders who always in the end succeed. It took tension out of the story at times, but it's also nice to feel exultant when a character gets ahead. That said, there were still plenty of twists and a couple of big surprises in this book, and of course when bad things happened, the impact of those setbacks felt all the more powerful. Sanderson knows how to pull me in and make me care, even when it comes to his more minor characters.

But what I really didn't expect was how things turned around when it came to the major ones. Kaladin pretty much made the first book for me, so I was shocked to see that his chapters in this one failed to hold my attention the same way. Kaladin himself, the ex-soldier and former bridgeman who has become a Knight Radiant, spirals into self-pity, anger, and impulsion because of his new powers and responsibilities, and I just didn't like the man he was for most of this book. On the other hand, Shallan (who didn't really impress me in The Way of Kings) comes into her own, literally becoming a new woman.

While Kaladin shrank into himself, Shallan branched out, becoming more adventurous and daring. Every time the story focused on her again, I was completely rapt, drawn into her research and personal journey to find the mythical city of Urithuru. I was also impressed by the way Sanderson handled her different relationships with other characters, especially the surprising one developing between her and Adolin. There's no question, Words of Radiance is where Shallan steals the show and gets a lot more of her background filled in, plus the illustrations of "her drawings" do add so much to the narrative (and I agree, Shallan, Adolin is totally *sigh*). I just have to cheer for a fellow artist too, you understand.

As for the story, what can I say? It's moving along, and in a big way. Everything is now converging in on the Shattered Plains, with all the main characters and their plot threads finally weaving together to become more cohesive. There's a countdown to something huge, and while this is the main source conflict in the novel, I like how the side themes continue to play a role. Factors like the infighting between the Highprinces or the social class disparities between Lighteyes and Darkeyes or humans and parshmen only add to the immersion and world building.

I have to say that with Sanderson, you don't often get "epicness for the sake of being epic". Others may disagree, of course, but all I know is with 1000+ pagers like these I always tend to forget a lot due to information overload. However, three and a half years after The Way of Kings, I still find myself remembering almost all the details of Roshar, of its peoples and cultures, lore and magic, the different creatures and spren. My memory's not the best either, so the fact I can remember even the little things means that they really stuck with me, and that simply does not happen with fluff or filler. It tells me the details in The Stormlight Archive are there for a reason, and not just to pad a book. Even the Interludes, which I don't really care for, I can still appreciate because something tells me they will be important at a later stage.

Honestly, sometimes I still have a hard time wrapping my head around the idea that I'll probably be well into my fifth decade by the time the last book of this vast, sweeping series comes out. It's an accepted reality for epic fantasy fans I'm sure, but you can bet your spheres that I'm in this one for the long haul. Premature as it is to say, but I think things are shaping up real nicely, and if you enjoyed the first book then picking up this one will be a must as well. Needless to say, Words of Radiance gets 5 hearty stars from me. Really, was there ever any doubt? ...more

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Dec 06, 2016 J.L. Sutton rated it it was amazing

Words of Radiance is the spectacular 2nd book in Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive. If you’re looking for an epic fantasy series, the Stormlight Archive is it! The world of Roshar keeps getting bigger and bigger (and, at the same time, more interesting). Words of Radiance picks up right where Way of Kings ended, and like the first book it is a fun and satisfying journey. The book will answer many of the questions you had after finishing Way of Kings while, of course, raising completely new ...more

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Apr 04, 2014 TS Chan rated it it was amazing

Shelves: brandon-sanderson, re-read, dr-reading-challenge, favorites, audiobook, physical-owned

Words. Of. Radiance.
- End of review -

Jesting aside, the title of the book does pretty much sum up the magnificence of this sequel to The Way of Kings. It should be the paragon of excellence by which all sequels should hold themselves to as it was the best second book of a series that I've ever read.

If you have read my love letter to The Stormlight Archive, you would know that I pretty much adore everything about The Way of Kings - the characterisation, the worldbuilding, and even the minimal p ...more

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Mar 31, 2015 Em Lost In Books rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: br-with-smitha, 2016, 5-star, massive-tomes, 2017, 2018, 2010-19

My third reading and this was as spectacular as it was the first time. Last 20% of this book is pure gold. Magnificent!!

My first five star book of the year and this book has set the standard so high for all the other fantasy books that am planning to read this year. This book is a page turner, has a really amazing world, and just awesome magic system.

the story starts with Shallan and Jasnah on their way to Shattered Plains but something bad happens on the ship. Now Shallan has only "Pattern" My third reading and this was as spectacular as it was the first time. Last 20% of this book is pure gold. Magnificent!!

My first five star book of the year and this book has set the standard so high for all the other fantasy books that am planning to read this year. This book is a page turner, has a really amazing world, and just awesome magic system.

the story starts with Shallan and Jasnah on their way to Shattered Plains but something bad happens on the ship. Now Shallan has only "Pattern" to help her to reach Shattered Plain. On this journey she rediscover herself and her powers. Shallan plays an important role in the discovery of Urithiru, lost city of Knight Radiants. Sanderson has transformed Shallan from a shy and scared girl of Way of Kings to a very cunning and opportunistic girl here. And finally some questions were answered about Shallan's past and it was easier to understand why Shallan is the kind of girl she is now.

Kaladin is now Captain of Dalinar's personal guard, a duty which he takes very seriously. Beside that he is also doing his best to convert Dalinar's remaining bridgemen into soldiers, teaching them about battle and discipline. I liked Kaladin but sometimes he just irritated me so much with his whining but I thoroughly enjoyed his bantering with Adolin. All the three battles that he was a part of were mesmerizing . But to me Kal was better in WoK.

Dalinar and Adolin are the other main characters after Shallan and Kal. I just loved Dalinar in this edition as much as i loved him in WoK. He is trying so hard to save Alethkar and the world from the return of voidbringers and only few people believe him. but as the saying goes, "fortune favors the brave", he holds his own in the midst of Shallan and Kal which is just amazing considering the powers of these two. I didn't like Adolin in Wok. To me he was a proud prince who didn't give much thought to other people feelings but everything changed in this book. He is more down to earth now after (view spoiler) and very likable.

We get to know more about Parshendis and their Gods because of Eshonai and Rlain. I liked how Sanderson presented them as good and bad and made Dalinar believe that not all Parshendis are bad. Also interludes were full of information and more questions.

Sanderson's writing was good but its the characters that impressed me most in this book. As always magic is awesome and am ignoring one or two things that annoyed me because of that . ...more

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Apr 08, 2016 ☽Luna☾ rated it it was amazing

Shelves: great-books, badassery, favorites, written-by-the-hand-of-god

So I read this book so long ago and never wrote a review. Words won't suffice the way I feel about this book, I have been reading for a long time and this book is THE BEST BOOK I'VE EVER READ IN MY LIFE. Seriously.. Nothing will ever compare to this series & I will wait everyday in suspense for book 3. Hurry the fuck up please KING SANDERSON I need more.

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Feb 06, 2017 Celeste rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, favorites, monstrously-large, best-books-i-ve-ever-read

Full review now posted!

I have a new favorite book, and it’s this one! Words of Radiance was powerful and moving and epic in both size and scope. There is absolutely no negative feedback I could give this book. I know I had some friends that were disappointed in how long it took me to read this, and the fact that I paused and read a few other books. But there’s a reason for that! When I truly love a story with all of my heart, I don’t want to the book I’m reading to end. So I’ll put it down and r Full review now posted!

I have a new favorite book, and it’s this one! Words of Radiance was powerful and moving and epic in both size and scope. There is absolutely no negative feedback I could give this book. I know I had some friends that were disappointed in how long it took me to read this, and the fact that I paused and read a few other books. But there’s a reason for that! When I truly love a story with all of my heart, I don’t want to the book I’m reading to end. So I’ll put it down and read something else for a while, giving myself a reason to stretch out my stay in the world I don’t want to leave. And that’s what I did here. This book is huge, even bigger than The Way of Kings. My “little” mass-marked paperback is 1310 pages long. Its basically a colorful brick. But it never felt like it dragged; in fact, I would’ve been completely happy with another thousand pages.

Since I was young, I have loved the fantasy genre with all of my heart. It transports you in a way nothing else does, in my opinion. And no series has ever transported me and enthralled me quite as much as the Stormlight Archive. The world Sanderson has built here is the most unique I have ever read. The flora and fauna are completely unique from our world. The magic system (like all of Sanderson’s magic systems) is vast and varied and well fleshed-out while still retaining an air of mystery, and the religion of the land ties into that remarkably well. All of the world-building is beyond compare, but what makes this series truly shine are Sanderson’s characters.

Some of my very favorite fantasies have focused mainly on the lives of single individuals. Harry Potter, Kvothe, Ender Wiggins, Locke Lamora, Percy Jackson, Thomas Hunter, Errol Stone, Karou, Meg Corbyn, Mercy Thompson, Bilbo Baggins, and many more (though fewer female characters than I’d like, since I can’t make myself include Katniss or Tris) have been the nearly complete focus of their stories, and I love that. But a lot of fantasies now are choosing to focus on more and more perspectives. Which is completely fine, I just end up picking favorites. In A Song of Ice and Fire, I prefer reading about Tyrion and Danaerys and Arya and Bran than I do Cersei or Jaime or the other Starks. Picking favorites just happens. But so far, that is most definitely not the case with the Stormlight Archive. Every perspective is fantastic, and every character carries their weight in the story. I never caught myself counting the pages until I got back to one of my favorite characters, because they’re all my favorites! And each character has grown so much since being introduced in the first book (which was amazing in its own right, but this one blew it out of the water) that I couldn’t wait to see what new decisions they made and how they changed. I’ve grown really attached to just about every character in the vast cast Sanderson has assembled. There’s determination, despair, romance, hatred, philosophy, stupidity, and humor. A lot of humor!

Another thing I love about Sanderson is that the man knows how to write an ending. The last two hundred pages or so were intense. There was an insane amount of action, character breakthroughs, discoveries, plot twists, new appearances and reappearances. Also, this book begins tying threads of the Cosmere together, which was SO MUCH FUN to read! There were threads in The Way of Kings, but Words of Radiance brought those a bit more to the reader’s attention and built on them further. Sanderson’s creation of the Cosmere is incredibly ambitious, and I can’t wait to see how everything comes together. Which is more than likely going to take decades. But with his work ethic and imagination, I’m excited about the future of the Cosmere instead of despairing of the long road ahead. And good news; the third volume of the Stormlight Archive, Oathbringer, is set to release this November, so we have another installment to look forward to soon!

A buddy read with my friend Chris.

Read all of my reviews, along with my fiction and thoughts on life, at my blog, Celestial Musings. ...more

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Jul 01, 2013 Bradley rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, worldbuilding-sf, 2017-shelf

Re-read 11/26/17:

I had made a last-minute decision to re-read this epic series on the strength of the third book coming out a few days ago and far from being overwhelmed (much), I was actually knocked over. :)

I think what I most liked about this one was the characterizations. Shallan has come so damn far, but compared to the first book, it's a toss-up who has gone farther. Kaladin or her. I mean, just in terms of personal growth rather than outright power, it's head-to-head. I love it. That's no Re-read 11/26/17:

I had made a last-minute decision to re-read this epic series on the strength of the third book coming out a few days ago and far from being overwhelmed (much), I was actually knocked over. :)

I think what I most liked about this one was the characterizations. Shallan has come so damn far, but compared to the first book, it's a toss-up who has gone farther. Kaladin or her. I mean, just in terms of personal growth rather than outright power, it's head-to-head. I love it. That's not to say that outright crazy powers don't manifest because they do. In spades.

Shallan's quest to the Broken Plains is the most surprising and delightful and I think I'll say that most of the novel is made gorgeous by it. Kaladin's being torn apart by conflicting promises, compounded by his powers being locked in his honor, felt more like a tragedy until much later. His story made me whoop in delight at the climax. What a damn blow-out!!!

Talk about a big battle, big events, mind-blowing situation, right?

If I'm going to compare the two books, like-to-like, it's really hard to say which one I like more. The first book was more solid throughout and I suppose I like the Bridgeman-made-good story better than the Bridgeman-falling-into-tragedy, but by the end, none of that matters. The total satisfaction quotient for the second novel might be more than the first. :)

I'm so glad I did this re-read. I'm getting really attached to all these guys and I might seriously want to rank the series up there with WoT in my personal favorites list. :)

Honestly, this epic fantasy is resting high with a small handful of my personal favorites already and the future is very, very bright. I can't wait to dive into the third book for the first time, now!

Original review:

I had been waiting a long time for this second book, having been hook deeply by the end of the first oh so long ago. The despair and subsequent revelations were present in both, but this one was all about the greater story development. Characterizations developed wonderfully and at relative right angles to how they began, but the surprises were truly satisfying. If you want an epic, then here it is. Both novels are very long and a lot happens. It never gets boring.

Sanderson's talents at creating magic systems that are truly unique are still in full force, as is his ability to tell a great tale.

Cognition made into intelligent spirits, gods of thought, the binding of ideals; put like this, it's amazing that he could make a book that was about war and saving humanity from a truly world-breaking intelligent storm. Great stuff! ...more

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Jun 22, 2017 Kainat 《HUFFLEPUFF & PROUD》 rated it really liked it

Shelves: brandon-sanderson, favorites

Shallan needs to ~~fuck off~~ not be in this series.
She was the only reason i couldn't give this absolutely fantastic book 5 stars. On the bright side at least we got her out of the way. Can't wait for Oathbringer AKA Dalinar's book. Anyone knows when we are getting Szeth's?

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Mar 17, 2013 Eric Allen rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Words of Radiance
Book 2 of the Stormlight Archive
By Brandon Sanderson

A Review by Eric Allen

The Stormlight Archive is a series, I have found, that is a love hate sort of thing. Either you love it, or you hate it. I’ve never talked to anyone that was anywhere in the middle. The first book, The Way of Kings, was hugely popular, making the top ten on the New York Times bestseller list, and has spawned its own little island in the vast ocean of fandom. But there have also been a lot of criticisms of ...more

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Jun 04, 2016 Philip rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, high-fantasy, male-author

4ish stars.

I should start by saying that this heifer took me right around ten months to finish with several periods of backburner status. Not that it wasn't good (the second half especially) but because it's such a big commitment! 1000+ pages! If my relationships with books were compared to romantic relationships, I'd be considered a huge hussy.

Bookxual Profile:
1) I don't have the kind of patience a long book requires. A book with 500 pages is really pushing it for me. I'm more of a 450 max kind ...more

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Mar 05, 2012 Lord Nouda rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: epic-fantasy, fantasy, favorites, 2017

Way too damn short. 3rd book, y u no out yet?! T_T

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Sep 03, 2017 Deborah Obida rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: adult, fantasy, favorite-books

Spoiler free review

I’m still lost for words about how to review this book. So I’ll just write anything that comes to my mind. This book was incredible, the world building, character development, writing style has lots of improvement from the first book and finally the amazing plot. I totally get why people love this book this much but I’m still torn between this and Mistborn, still don’t know which I love more, it’s a good thing I have a big heart to contain it all then. There is politics,religi ...more

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Jan 11, 2017 Apatt rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, favorites

“For Oliver Sanderson, Who was born during the middle of the writing of this book, and was walking by the time it was done.”

Aww, I have never started a review with the book's dedication before, dedications are usually “read it and forget it” affairs, nice for the dedicatee, nothing to do with me. However, this one is charming and noteworthy in that I seldom consider how long it must take authors to write lengthy books. This dedication makes me appreciate the time and effort Brandon Sanderson put ...more

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Oct 25, 2017 Gavin rated it it was amazing

The Stormlight Archive series is probably my favourite fantasy series of the lot. It has everything I want in a story. Good worldbuilding, cool magic, great characters, and a fast paced action packed plot that has a little bit of everything.

The story held up well during this reread of mine and although I lost the impact of most of the shock twists and turns and some of the tension of the action scenes I was still fully engaged by the story and the characters and lot in the awesomeness that is t The Stormlight Archive series is probably my favourite fantasy series of the lot. It has everything I want in a story. Good worldbuilding, cool magic, great characters, and a fast paced action packed plot that has a little bit of everything.

The story held up well during this reread of mine and although I lost the impact of most of the shock twists and turns and some of the tension of the action scenes I was still fully engaged by the story and the characters and lot in the awesomeness that is the Stormlight world!

As far as the characters go I felt like Dalinar had a fantastic outing. Dalinar is definitely one of my favourite Sanderson heroes. I was all set to add Adolin to the list of characters who had a fantastic second book but that twist right at the end ruined that. I was a little lukewarm on Adolin in Way of Kings but I felt he showed good growth over the course of this instalment and by the (near) end of this he had made a fan of me. The late twist has totally changed how I view him and how I feel about him overall in this book.

Shallan and Kaladin had super exciting story arcs and both got to show off their new powers plenty of times so reading their POV segments was always good but both did have moments where they managed to annoy me. Shockingly Kaladin was more to blame in that regard than Shallan. I love the guy but he can be so gloomy at times and since some of his choices were bad I spent a bunch of time worrying about Syl, another Stormlight favourite of mine!

We got a bunch of secondary POV characters, mostly through the interludes, and I liked the extra depth this offered to the world. The stand-out character was Taravangian. He is a fascinating guy and his story is shaping up to be as interesting as that of the first books stand-out secondary character, Szeth. Speaking about Szeth, I've gone off the guy a bit. His fanaticism is beginning to annoy me though his appearances continue to provide super intense and exciting moments as he is just so good at his job! I'm tempted to nominate (view spoiler) as best secondary character but with only the few words to his credit I'll refrain from that for now.

I'm not keen on the developing love triangle between (view spoiler)

All in all this was a fantastic read and my reread has me super hyped for Oathbringer.

Rating: 5 stars.

Audio Note: This time around I went with the Graphic Audio. I love the regular audio team of Kramer and Reading but even they cannot compete with the excellent job done by the GA team. The full cast, the sound effects, and the dramatic music really do wonders in enhancing an already awesome story! ...more

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Dec 28, 2014 Twila rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: buddy-read, favourites, great-characters, made-me-laugh, made-me-think, moved-me, audiobook, could-not-put-down, fantastic-narration, favourite-authors

Rereads done! Remarkably, I loved it even more this time. The Graphic Audio really elevated my reading experience and I just had a complete blast.
Read with BB&B from Oct 15-17 and from Oct 18-23
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Original Spoiler Free Review:
Date read: September 1-14, 2015

”I guess I’m just waiting [for the thunder]. It always follows after the lightning. Sometimes you have to wait, but eventually it comes.”

If lightning struck in Th ...more

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Nov 16, 2017 Helen 2.0 rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy-epic, own, brs-done, hype-train, read-17, romance-on-side, unputdownable

On the whole, my life is pretty uneventful. I do normal human things with other normal humans, feeling normal human emotions.

But sometimes, rarely, a book swoops in and uproots my life with a ship for which I would actually die. My poor Fangirl heart bleeds for that ship. You may catch me curled up in my bed for days in the fetal position, obsessively rereading the best scenes.

That ship, my lovelies, was Kal & Shallan for me.

He saw it in her eyes. The anguish, the frustration. The terribl ...more

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Feb 28, 2017 ChopinFC rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, sanderson

Impressions after 2nd time re-read

I honestly did not think any book would top the 'Way of Kings' but I was mistaken! Words of Radiance represents the top echelon of epic fantasy, creative writing , worldbuilding and character development! I'm speechless and in complete awe of Sanderson's imagination and artistry. The second time re-reading/listening through audiobooks was so much better! It allows me to connect all the dots and all the subtleties hidden within the writing. It was almost like ...more

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Mar 28, 2015 Sean Gibson rated it really liked it

*SPOILERS*

It’s always difficult to know where to start reviewing a book heavy enough to be used to squash small-to-medium-sized mammals (not that one would use the book for such a purpose, mind you, though I could have used it to get rid of the scarily large camel crickets in my basement…I hate cleaning guts off books, though). So, let’s try this:

Number of times I inadvertently uttered “Stormfather!” as an epithet whilst reading this book: 14

Number of times inadvertently uttering “Stormfather” a ...more

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topics	posts	views	last activity
Crazy for Young A...: Words of Radiance (The Stormlight Archive 2) by Brandon Sanderson→ Start Date: December 17, 2018	72	26	Jan 16, 2019 02:10PM
Fantasy Buddy Reads: Words of Radiance {May 25, 2018}	292	95	Nov 09, 2018 01:41PM
Fantasy Buddy Reads: Words of Radiance [Mar 15, 2019]	1	7	Sep 03, 2018 02:25AM
Dragons & Jetpacks: Words of Radiance / Overall Discussion / *SPOILERS*	19	103	Aug 06, 2018 04:12AM
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2019 Reading Chal...: Words of Radiance (Stormlight Archives #2)	4	155	May 28, 2018 08:47AM

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About Brandon Sanderson

Brandon Sanderson

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Brandon’s major books for the second half of 2016 are The Dark Talent, the final volume in Alcatraz Smedry’s autobiographical account of his battle against the Evil Librarians who secretly rule our world, and Arcanum Unbounded, the collection of short fiction in the Cosmere universe that includes the Mistborn series and the Stormlight
Archive, among others. This collection features The Emperor’s S ...more