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Oathbringer
Brandon Sanderson
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OB: Part Four: Defy! Sing Beginnings! (Chapters 88-113)
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I'm only a few chapters in but I must post that its great to have Szeth back. Its been too long in this book without him. And there was a lot of Skybreaker info there.
Mod
It appears Azure is indeed Vivenna from Warbringer. First we see her hair change color. Then near the end of this section she talks of hunting a sword and mentions Zahel.
Szeth having chapters is great. We learn a lot about the Skybreakers, but I'm really annoyed at where his chapters leave off. I worry he's going to be corrupted again.
I've really loved all the world building in Shadesmer. Adolin seeing the dead spren that is his sword is haunting. I wonder if he can somehow revive her.
Shallan seems to be finally accepting who she is. Maybe? It's hard to tell as she slips personas so easily.
Her and Kalladin seem to be growing closer, and Andollin has noticed. I REALLY HATE love triangles. I don't want this to be a thing. It's seemed inevitable since the last book though.
I've had a hard time with Dalinar's flashbacks. I really don't like the man he used to be. I wonder though how much was really him, and how much was this Nergaoul.
He attempts to reach out to Venli with his visions. I can't tell if they had any effect. It seems like they should be fighting together against a common enemy in Odium and the void spren.
He's now been sabotaged politically by Taravangian. Will he be able to recover? I was honestly expecting something much worse, but maybe I'm underestimating the damage it's caused.
And of course the biggest reveal of all. Humans are the true Voidbringers.
Dalinar – A little annoying not to get his visit to the Nightwatcher in the flashbacks yet. It’s a shame that Taravangian’s plans so quickly fracture the alliance. Shadesmar crew – It was great to see so much of Shadesmar here even if I only understand some of it. I like the image of the spren of Adolin’s blade
Szeth – Loved the Szeth chapters. Not enough of him in this book.
Certainly the least interesting part of the book so far but I’m sure it’s all a great set up for the final part.
Nearly done now, and I don't know if this is discussed elsewhere, but I noticed something during this section (and I'm going to try really hard not to be insensitive here, but if I fail I apologize in advance and assure you that any perceived offense is due to ignorance on my part and I would be happy to be set straight by someone more knowledgeable): all the Knights Radiant who we've really gotten to know appear to have psychological disorders.Shallan suffers from some kind of dissociative identity disorder.
Kaladin appears to have clinical depression.
Jasnah is a high functioning sociopath.
Dalinar was previously an amnesiac, but seems to have an addictive personality disorder.
The Skybreakers we've seen all appear to be obsessive-compulsive to some degree.
Lift has some kind of social anxiety disorder
Now, for the main characters at least, all of their disorders seem rooted in their traumatic pasts. The things most of them have lived through would either break a person or uncover that the person was irredeemably broken to begin with. But my deeper question is this: do all Knights Radiant have psychological disorders? Or are the kinds of spren that give powers specifically drawn to people with disorders?
Cryptics, for example, are drawn to people who lie so convincingly that they themselves believe the lies, to the point where admitting the truth has the same weight as the oaths of the other orders. This seems like the kind of trait that would at the very least be most common in people with dissociative disorders, if it can really even appear in anyone else.
Honorspren are drawn to people who need there to be a higher order in the world, something beyond the dredge of everyday life, something noble... the kinds of people who might suffer from depression when faced with the general meaninglessness of life, the kinds of people who have been ground down so often that they feel like the grinding is all there is.
And now I'm remembering that in the foreword, Sanderson thanked someone for help with "tricky scenes with Teft," specifically because of his addiction, and I know that Sanderson is a planner and that the emotional landscapes of his characters probably aren't accidental. I don't know if he's trying to make a point here or start a conversation about mental health, but I wanted to know what everyone else thought about it.
Mod
In the Mistborn characters have to 'snap' to gain their powers. So maybe it's like that in some way. The condition indicates the powers. Maybe
Please keep all discussion and speculation to the events up to and including Chapters 88-113.
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Please do not discuss events from later sections/books. Referring back to events from a previous section/book is fine.