Jake Farmer > Recent Status Updates

Shallan learning her powers is cool. I feel like the mystery behind the Ghostbloods and the true motives behind the people trying to bring the Voidbringers back is getting unbearable, and I just want to know what is up with them. Why is the Herald guy, Talenel, just letting them put him away in an asylum? Why was Amaram chosen as head of the Knights Radiant by Dalinar? And how is Kaladin gonna get his shit together?

Still kinda figuring out how I feel about this book. I loved discovering and exploring the world in WoK. That's settling down a bit and now it's mostly plot and action. Which is great, and I'm having a blast, but I'm not 100% head over heels, just yet. However, man did the Adolin/Kaladin vs. 4 Shardbearers reall get me going. Super exciting and badass.

Shallan and Adolin joking about pooping in shardplate was a genuinely funny part of the book. They are a delightful couple.

Ah! Surprise Szeth attack! Out of nowhere. He's been lurking behind every page of the book. Man. DALINAR IS A BADASS BEAST. Catching a shardblade? Insanity. Kalidan's showdown with Szeth? Oh dear lord. More please.

Well, those chapters with Eshonai in the first interlude certainly weren't expected! Sanderson is pretty masterful at weaving gradual, mysterious impressions in his worldbuilding. You get a vague outline of the new worlds, people, and places, which generates questions you didn't know you had, and are now eager to have answered.

this is very, very upsetting. I do not want Jasnah to be dead. Godammit.

What a prologue! So many questions! Jasnah wanted to assassinate Elhokar's wife? Where was she in WoK, come to think of it! Jasnah's assassin brought Szeth to Rholinar?! Who did she sell him to?! What was the king going to do that was so "dangerous" that got him assassinated?! Just off the top of my head. "Buckle up!" was right! This is gonna be good... :)

Also, I'm kinda over the Mormon conflict. Not entirely, but he does have a decent atheist character and ongoing dialogue about belief and morals. I just need to settle down.

Oh man. I've heard things get real crazy soon and am anticipating it greatly. So K turned down a shardblade! Got totally fucked by Amaram. But he's a surgebinder! Like Szeth! Even better! Dalinar is having legit visions and finally kissed Navani. The Mormon tameness is funny. But romance interests me the least in books like this.

I'm officially in love and obsessed with reading this series. Kaladin's main theme is leadership. Shallan's is morality, ethics, and how those things can shift with perspective. This was illustrated beautifully when Tien was drafted and Kaladin volunteered. Everyone in the scene saw his act differently. Heroic, thoughtless, cruel, wasteful, apathetically. The suspense of the stolen soulcaster is killing me lol

Aaah! The second set of interludes is soooooo good! So much info about the Shin in the first one, a genuinely funny chapter about the guy studying spren (can't remember the name of his race, but heavily inspired by Memento, super cool lol) and that final chapter with Seth?! Oh man. Jaw dropper. Let the drama begin. Was wondering where 10 books worth of material was gonna come from!

Ooooh yeah! And I loved Dalinar's epiphany of using shardplate for constructive uses, not just battle. Of using it for the pursuits of the common man. Never even occurred to me that it could be used that way, and I don't think anyone in Alethkar has considered it either lol Dalinar for the people!

Damn. Dalinar is stepping down. The spanreed communication is cool and interesting. An elegant fantasy method to communicate over long distances. Kaladin had his little moment in the chasm with his spear. Pretty cool. Still want to see him fight! And get a shardblade! Fuckin' Sadeas! Why are the visions telling Dalinar to trust him?

Separate note: I just found out Sanderson is LDS, and for some reason this is throwing me. But it also bothers me that it's an issue for me. Main point: The political/moral implications of consciously/subconsciously including things in a fantasy world as one builds it (the types of creatures, the customs/cultures, presence/absence of LGBT characters) is very difficult. Purely washed away by the "It's just fantasy!"??

Kaladin continues to be badass, a great mixture of surgeon/soldier. Definitely focused on saving/sparing his men. I think it's a smart calculation to make these bridgemen & not soldiers, as it makes his purpose more pure, saving the lowest of low, rather than just saving his men so they can kill more. Will be interesting to see development of K's relationship to killing and the vast question of morality vs. war.

When or how will Shallan reckon with her hypocrisy of looking down on gamblers, sailors, scoundrels, hussling for a living, when she is on a mission to steal for the good of her family?
Dalinar time travelling in his visions? Why is he being shown these things? He's a tragically flawed noble man in a place that rewards more ruthless calculations. Hope he ends up okay... Third book is called Oathbringer so...

LOVES Kal's chapter in which he takes the lead during the bridge run and heals all his wounded men. A true leader. So far, like him a lot more as a healer than a warrior. it's interesting, Sanderson has this warrior character, but engineers the story so you never see him actually fight in action. Wonder when that will finally happen...

Is Syl real? What's her deal? Is Kaladin cray cray? Oathbringer is the shit. I want Kaladin to get a shardblade, real bad. Really liked the battle with the chasmfiend. Dalinar is legit as fuck. The Wit is cool, but think he might be involved with the King's saddle breaking...

Ah so she's stealing it because her dad's was broken and she intends to use it to soulcast her family out of debt. New mystery is how he died? Sounds like a shardblade was involved... Curious!

Still loving it so far. Why steal the Soulcaster if they found one amongst their deceased Father's things? Why does Kaladin want to be such a great warrior? What drives him?

Just testing out this progress thing. Not sure how it works. Hope it works like I think it should. I really, really love this book so far. Super fun read. Like reading a video game. "Oathpact". Lol I'll never get over that. So great.

K, so I've literally read only the first 3-4 pages, but still have some thoughts. Basically, Jezrien tells Kalak after the Desolation, Talenel died in battle, but we all survived and have decided to bail on all this, leaving Talenel to his torture in Taln. My thoughts are, was this aspontaneous decision, or a planned betrayal? Did they sort of sacrifice Talenel to escape? Gotta be more to this story.

K, so I've literally read only the first 3-4 pages, but still have some thoughts. Basically, Jezrien tells Kalak after the Desolation, Talenel died in battle, but we all survived and have decided to bail on all this, leaving Talenel to his torture in Taln. My thoughts are, was this spontaneous decision, or a planned betrayal? Did they sort of sacrifice Talenel to escape? Gotta be more to this story.