From the Bookshelf of Sci-fi and Heroic Fantasy…

The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive, #1)

Brandon Sanderson

Start date: February 1, 2013

Finish date: February 28, 2013

Discussion: Book Discussions

Why we're reading this: This is our February, 2013, Contemporary Novel choice for group read & discussion
#71 on NPR's Top 100 SF/…more
[close] This is our February, 2013, Contemporary Novel choice for group read & discussion
#71 on NPR's Top 100 SF/F novels of all time (2011 poll) http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/1390858...
#20 on Locus Magazines Best Fantasy novels of the 21st century http://www.locusmag.com/2012/AllCentu...

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What Members Thought

Mar 10, 2014 Athena Shardbearer rated it really liked it

Shelves: buddy-read, fantasy, audiobook, high-fantasy, war, magic, ebook, fan-fucking-tastic, epic, sci-fi-fantasy

Buddy Read April 2015 The Way of the Kings Group Thread

Buddy Read with Armina, Robin, Gavin, DesinkaApril 2014

STORMFATHER! This book was amazing.

This review may be spoilerish?!

It has been a few years since I have read a high fantasy/epic fantasy such as this one. I just recently finished The Name of the Wind and that one is high fantasy, but it does not compare to The Way of Kings.

I love books that are about war, swords and fighting just do something for me. I love books that go into detail ...more

78 likes · Like · see review

Apr 04, 2014 Richard Guion rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2014-to-read

One of the longest yet one of the best fantasy novels I've ever read! I went into this with some trepidation. The Mistborn series was awesome, but one of the things that slowed down the second book in that series was the political maneuverings. In a novel the size of WoK I knew there had to be less action - would Sanderson be able to make that entertaining for 900+ pages? He really did and I think it goes to his maturity as a writer. I never wanted to skip a chapter for any character (something One of the longest yet one of the best fantasy novels I've ever read! I went into this with some trepidation. The Mistborn series was awesome, but one of the things that slowed down the second book in that series was the political maneuverings. In a novel the size of WoK I knew there had to be less action - would Sanderson be able to make that entertaining for 900+ pages? He really did and I think it goes to his maturity as a writer. I never wanted to skip a chapter for any character (something I could not say about Game of Thrones). I was so absorbed into the world I even bought a used copy of the hardback (in addition to the Kindle/Audible versions) so I could look at the illustrations closer. The layers of worldbuilding really add up to something and I am sure there are details that I missed. By the time I got to the last third of the novel I could not stop.

The way that Sanderson constructed this novel reminds me of the TV show LOST. LOST dropped breadcrumbs to hint about each characters past; Sanderson does the same here with Kaladin and Shalann. An early chapter shows Kaladin in battle with an enemy force and then in the next chapter we find that months have passed and he is a slave. Getting between those two points, and the journey from childhood to soldier, takes some time but it was fascinating. A lot of people who read WoK gave up because they didn't like the chapters of Kaladin in the Bridge crew. I found those scenes to be very good and having a classical relationship to movies like Ben-Hur where the slave eventually becomes something greater.

Last year I picked up one of those books that Sanderson signs and leaves in a bookstore to be bought by a fan - the book was Warbreaker and in addition to the autograph it had a card. The card had a picture of the Shattered Plains and a quote from Kaladin: "I will protect those who cannot protect themselves." Now I finally know where that quote comes from and the scene where Kaladin says that is tremendously good.

Now l look forward to reading Words of Radiance - luckily I waited to read WoK until the sequel was published!

Re-read October 2017: even better the 2nd time! I had forgotten so many details from my first read 3 years ago. This time I paid closer attention to the mythology of the Radiants, the Voidbringers, etc, the interactions between Syl & Kaladin. Now onto WoR and finish that in time for Oathbringer. ...more

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Sep 05, 2017 Arindam rated it it was amazing

Shelves: new-fantasy, magic, fantasy, world-building, owned

If Mistborn was a trailer of what Brandon Sanderson could do, The Way of Kings takes it up several levels. It is truly epic in world building, gradual introduction to all major characters and threading multiple storylines around the geopolitical landscape of Roshar.
I have not read such a humongous volume in over 17 years, so it took some motivation to read through all of the 1280 pages.
Like any high fantasy, there is drama, war, magic, politics, good over evil and so on. Some characters do seem ...more

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Sep 21, 2011 Belinda rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, 18-of-my-favourite-books

I think the fact that I read this monster of a book, all 1000 pages of it, in a matter of days goes to show how much I enjoyed it. What I loved the most, and what made me an instant Sanderson fan, was the worldbuilding. It's phenomenal and it starts from the very first page.

Way of Kings features multiple points of view, and normally I'm not a fan, but the way Sanderson has organized the chapters, and the fact that they're short, worked for me. Plus, I liked most of the main characters so it wasn ...more

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Apr 02, 2012 Donna rated it it was amazing

Finally. One of the longest books I've ever read. It got a lot better towards the end as I had put it down for a while as there was just too much back story to wade through. I'm hoping the 2nd book will be a lot more succinct. ...more

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