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Words of Radiance review

Words of Radiance is the follow-up to Brandon Sanderson excellent opening of the Stormlight Archive series, The Way of Kings. Book two was released earlier this year (sorry for the delay in delivering the review), four years after the start of this huge endeavor, a project of epic proportion with ten door stoppers on our shelves when it culminates. At the time I'm writing this review, Brandon is 25% finished with Stormlight 3.

Six years ago, the Assassin in White, a hireling of the inscrutable Parshendi, assassinated the Alethi king on the very night a treaty between men and Parshendi was being celebrated. So began the Vengeance Pact among the highprinces of Alethkar and the War of Reckoning against the Parshendi. Now the Assassin is active again, murdering rulers all over the world of Roshar, using his baffling powers to thwart every bodyguard and elude all pursuers. Among his prime targets is Highprince Dalinar, widely considered the power behind the Alethi throne. His leading role in the war would seem reason enough, but the Assassin's master has much deeper motives. 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 must protect the king and Dalinar from every common peril as well as the distinctly uncommon threat of the Assassin, all while secretly struggling to master remarkable new powers that are somehow linked to his honorspren, Syl. Brilliant but troubled Shallan strives along a parallel path. Despite being broken in ways she refuses to acknowledge, she bears a terrible burden: to somehow prevent the return of the legendary Voidbringers and the civilization-ending Desolation that will follow. The secrets she needs can be found at the Shattered Plains, but just arriving there proves more difficult than she could have imagined. Meanwhile, at the heart of the Shattered Plains, the Parshendi are making an epochal decision. Hard pressed by years of Alethi attacks, their numbers ever shrinking, they are convinced by their war leader, Eshonai, to risk everything on a desperate gamble with the very supernatural forces they once fled. The possible consequences for Parshendi and humans alike, indeed, for Roshar itself, are as dangerous as they are incalculable.

Brandon Sanderson is now a well-established and loved Fantasy author and the Stormlight Archive undoubtedly showed much potential in its first opus. Even with a wait of four years, fans seemed to remain eager for the release of Words of Radiance without harassing the author, like we have seen for George R.R. Martin or Scott Lynch.  My speculation (kind of evident) would be that's because he released other books... It looks like Sanderson has a status of its own.  Has he become a master of the genre with an unequivocal respect from the fans? Let's hold this thought while I review the book and try to answer this afterward.

Kaladin Stormblessed, Shallan Davar, Dalinar and Adolin Kholin and Szeth-son-son-Vallano. They are now names that we are accustomed to, they already feel like long acquaintances. They need no introductions and slowly but steadily, we pick up their trail right where we left them at the end of The Way of Kings.  The Stormlight Archive series narrative is not allowing jumps in the storyline. We follow all the adventures and misadventures from a simple talk over a diner or around a fire to Kaladin riding the wind alongside Syl just for the fun of it. Sanderson likes to recount everything of interest that happens to his characters and it creates a huge book the like of which is found less often nowadays. Is it a niche now? I don't think so but it has its rightful place in the Fantasy spectrum.

The origin story of Kaladin has been covered a lot in The Way of Kings.  You could say that it was Kaladin's story. In Words of Radiance, it's Shallan story, her origins unfolded in several flashbacks, that stands at the heart of the tale. While it became obvious as the chapters went by, I was kind of wary since the young woman wasn't my favorite character and her dominant presence in WoK was less enticing initially. I was proven wrong. Sanderson successfully switched the main point of view of the series while retaining its particular voice.

So, Shallan is developed with the help of a rather predictable background, still interesting to learn about, but mostly with her transformation from being the ward of Jasnah Kholin to an impersonation of a spy for the Ghostbloods and a highlady at the 'court' of the king of Alethkar at the Shattered Plains. Quite the journey. She can still be annoying every so often (personality wise) but when Pattern is around, they create a compelling duo. Her spren is even more interesting than Syl. His personality is rougher as he discovers humanity and helps the bold young woman with the surges, the world of Shadesmar and dealing with her past. At least, magic isn't simply an extension of herself that she uses without insight. Shallan grows into it. Her artistic qualities are also skilfully integrated into her storyline.

And then, there's a love triangle looming on the horizon. One romance is obvious and borderline cheesy, while the other in slow in coming. That second one is the result of the meeting, finally, of Shallan and Kaladin (I don't think I spoil anything here, you knew it was coming). This confluence was hiding behind many expectations. I admit that I was disappointed by how it happened at first but by looking at the situation of both protagonists at this point, I should have known. Still, it's better for it, you'll see in the long run. Their relationship is slow in building with some tension, contempt and a little teasing.

Who's next? Dalinar of course. Sadly, his entourage is lacking in Wit (I would have liked more clever interventions from the absurd fellow). The good-hearted old man is still having his fits/dreams and trying to unite Alethkar while fighting Sadeas politically but this time he leaves the spotlight to Adolin. I can't wait to read about Dalinar back story (or maybe Szeth) but it will have to wait and the author made a good decision in putting his son in the front seat of the narrative. It gives more cohesion to the scenes with Shallan and we can witness first hand his transformation. Moreover, when his father instructs him to get back to dueling, finally, the shard blades and plates are out in the field for glorious fights. Even Navani is used as a point of view but she's become expendable for the story told in this volume.

With the plateau runs out of the way (mostly), the duels are one of the parts where Sanderson gives more speed to the action. As with most of books of this type, there's a convergence, a build-up coming near the end and by then, the action is now going at full speed. Through it all, Kaladin still struggling with his new life.  The new position he received from Dalinar put him at a distance from his bridge crew, aside from the core.  Sadly, it means that there's less soldier camaraderie.

Moreover, his nemesis, Amaram is now in his surroundings. With retribution, justice or simply vengeance in mind, and with a new dilemma created by his fellow bridge brothers versus his duty and Dalinar orders, his plate is full. His choices are even affecting Syl. Poor Kaladin. He remains the broken man he became in The Way of Kings and a true champion to rout for as he fights against all his internal conflicts and the threats to his people.  And now, he's playing along the greats of the world, fighting for the blending of the classes. I can't imagine how we'll look at him after many more books but I think Kaladin will become a legendary character.

Between each parts of the book, as was the case with the previous novel, Sanderson throws in a couple of interludes.  This time, there is a mix of a fundamental points of view from the side of the Parshendi, a spren linked young thief and some mysterious people and tales... In the end, it could seem more helpful than not while not being a necessary read but Eshonai (the Parshendi PoV) is bringing nice information to the table. It doesn't feel like info-dumps and with their rhythm and forms (ways of transformation from nimble form to storm form, etc...), the parshmen relative now seem less like an evil gang of oblivious doom bringers.

Worldbuilding and magic systems are always a priority of Sanderson.  The basis for WoR is already solid. Slowly, the focus is taken away from the Shattered Plains, even if it's the full story that's taking place there.  The highstorms, sprens, shardplates and blades, fabrials, lashings, the Stormfather... all feel natural. The icing on the cake is the ability for him to make it even more fascinating. It's accepted but it's novelty. With the surprises at the ending... anyone want to know more about the Everstorm and its effects?

As a complement to the rich tale of the book, the mad king Taravangian and his random daily intelligence that spawned the prophetic diagram is making his plays.  The meta story is becoming more complex and the intrigue thickens while the characters remain at the core of this tapestry. Although the first half of the novel felt like a big epilogue of The Way of Kings in term of overall situation and had the same central setting, a whole new set of opportunities has opened in an intriguing new region.

The Stormlight Archive can now be seen as an impressive series, not simply a prelude of great things to come. Words of Radiance is a fascinating successor to The Way of Kings, but again it's not a revolution and has its flaws.  If I come back to the question I asked at the start of the review, I would say yes, Brandon Sanderson is a master, but not The master, of traditional, lengthy, magic heavy, classic but dexterously crafted, Epic Fantasy. WoR proves it for me. A very good read.

Cover: Michael Whelan is a great artist and I like the color scheme he chose but I think that Shallan's interior cover illustration would have made a better cover.
Release date: March 4th 2014
Map: Yes, and they are gorgeous!
Number of pages: 1087 hardcover edition
Acquisition method: Courtesy of Tor
Other: Several appendices and many amazing illustrations!

I liked...	Was disappointed by...
Kaladin struggle	Wit's lack
The new direction of the narrative with the consequences of the ending	Some interludes
Shallan was redeemed as a character	A couple of dragging parts
The Parshendi PoV	A couple of predictable plot elements
The battle/fight scenes
The world of Roshar and its magic

Words of Radiance review rating :

Brandon Sanderson's page
The Way of Kings review

Fantasy Tropes

Back in 2012, one of my polls (here and here) involved Fantasy tropes (and it was one of my most popular poll). My question was about the most common Fantasy tropes found in our beloved genre and from a list of my own, you chose which of them you were tired the most of. Here's the list:

Empires

Righteous thieves/assassins 

Elder races

Elves/dwarves (or other races)

Prophecies

Evil dark lords

Farm boy saving the world

Medievalism

Middle-east references

Dragons

Unevolved old worlds

Artifact/sword McGuffin

Apostrophes/names with G's and K's

Black-cowled assassins covers

All of them

None

The answer that stood out from the crowd was the farm boy saving the world. Recently, in three separate posts, io9 (andToybox) revived the topic. The discussion is not centered solely around Fantasy literature but in my case, my comments will be. They tackled the following subjects related to tropes:

10 Tropes Involving Fantasy Weapons That Should Die In A Fire
What Common Medieval Fantasy Tropes Have No Basis In Actual History?
7 Worldbuilding Tropes Science Fiction and Fantasy needs to Stop using

Just for sharing and the sake of discussion (wouldn't it be nice with a cold dark beer in hand, in pint format evidently!), here's my thoughts on the first list.  Feel free to comment!

1. The Reforged Weapon
Indeed, and it's a trope dating back to Tolkien with Anduril/Narsil. Even if this one could grow tiresome, I'm not aware of much recent Fantasy books resolving around the reforging of an ancient weapon? What about you?

2. The Secret Legend in Your Back Pocket
This one I agree completely.  This is kind of absurd but as with each trope, it still can be twisted for the benefit of the story.

3. Mystical Materials
I'm not tired of this one.  I think that mystical materials are an inherent part of Fantasy. When you created a world with magic or supernatural elements... that's kind of a necessity....

4. The Absurdly Sharp Blade
Can't deny, that's true, but even more so when you put the "absurdly" adjective in the name of the trope...

5. The Rusted and Dented Swords of Evil
This is found more often in movies/series/comics/visual supports.  I don't remember a book where the swords of "evil" were more rusted and dented...

6. Weapons Tied to Specific Races
This trope tends to die of its own in the recent Fantasy literature.  Still, in everything related to the Dungeon and Dragons universe... I admit that in videogames, I kind of like my dwarf to wield an axe and my elf a bow!

7. The Weapon Too Big to Be Useful
Here again, not sure if that applies much to recent Fantasy literature. I remember some swords that could have been in this category, like Karsa's sword in MBotF but the way Karsa is built, it looks like it's still useful.

8. Unusually Plot-Specific Ability
My god how I hate this one and I always mentions it in my reviews when it is used.  The most common case usually involves magic that the weilder doesn't really understand. Way too easy for authors to use this trick to get a character out of a impossible situation. Get rid of it!

9. The Evil Weapon That Hungers For Blood and Corrupts the Soul
It's not the most common trope but I admit that it could be an easy one to fall into. Still, Jeff Salyards' redeemed this trope with the Bloodsounder Arc.

10. Weapons With Minds of Their Own using
The last time I read about one was Patrick Weekes' The Palace Job and it was kind of funny. That's also the point of Ms. Trendacosta who wrote the io9 post. Not a bad one that we need to throw into the fire as far as my taste go.

***

The second post is about the common medieval tropes that have no basis in actual medieval history. io9 links to the quite interesting sub-reddit r/AskHistorians.  As far as Fantasy goes, the authors who choose to write accurate accounts of medieval life in their stories are kind of few. Still, when they do, or when they do like George R.R. Martin and add a nice layer of Fantasy to a world base on actual medieval history (setting), they are probably using many tropes that are only believed to be true. The sub-reddit is right there for us to prove them wrong ;)

***

Finally but not the least, the 7 worldbuilding tropes that need to disappear.

7. The Evil Empire of Evil Evilness
100% in accordance with this one. Hopefully, contemporary Fantasy literature has washed out most of them (or maybe it's just me who avoids them...).

6. Faux-Medieval Europe
No, no, no. That one is great and I can't tire of it!

5. Insert Apostrophe Here For Exoticness
That one was part of my original poll (Apostrophes/names with G's and K's). I think it's kind of inevitable... and I prefer that to real life names.

4. The Single-Use World
That applies mostly to Sci-fi. No?

3. Common Nouns out the Wazoo
I agree with the author of the post (James Whitbrook) but I didn't find examples in my recent memory of Fantasy books...

2. The Homogeneous Race (That's never Humanity)
I'm biased on this one. The same as the weapons tied to specific races (Erikson's MBotF is a nice example). In my books, I prefer original races but in videogames... I like my elves and dwarves!

1. The Precursor Civilisation
Alright, this is a worldbuilding trope of old. However, it creates so many opportunities... still it ought not to become an obligation. Is there really many Fantasy books that don't use this? Is it a problem? I don't think so but I agree with James: "Not everything has to have happened before." This is more of a problem. Still, you can be quite original with a precursor civilisation.

***

There you go. What do you think? These tropes need to disappear?

Kick ass moment #15

Like last time, it's been a while since I posted a kick ass moment. This one was an instant grin. It's not a grandiose scene, but it's the kind of passage that I cherish. This time, it's about a certain saying a cardinal utters to his son about erring...

[...]

“Are you going to be sick again?”
“Has the river stopped flowing?” I asked.
Snorri snorted.
“Then yes.” I demonstrated, adding another streak of colour into the dark waters of the Seleen. “If God had intended men to go on water he would have given them . . .” I felt too ill for wit and hung limp over the side of the boat, scowling at the grey dawn coming up behind us. “. . . given them whatever it is you need for that kind of thing.”
“A messiah who walked on water to show you all it was exactly where God intended men to go?” Snorri shook that big chiselled head of his. “My people have older learning than the White Christ brought. Aegir owns the sea and he doesn’t intend that we go onto it. But we do even so.” He rumbled through a bar of song: “Undoreth, we. Battle-born. Raise hammer, raise axe, at our war-shout gods tremble.” He rowed on, humming his tuneless tunes.
My nose hurt like buggery, I felt cold, most of me ached, and when I did manage to sniff through my twice-broken snout I could tell that I still smelled only slightly less bad than that dung heap that saved my life.
“My—” I fell silent. My pronunciation sounded comical; my nose would have come out “by dose.” And although I had every right to complain, it might rile the Norseman, and it doesn’t pay to rile the kind of man who can jump on a bear to escape a fight pit. Especially if it was you who put him in that pit in the first place. As my father would say, “To err is human, to forgive is divine . . . but I’m only a cardinal and cardinals are human, so rather than forgiving you I’m going to err towards beating you with this stick.” Snorri didn’t look the forgiving kind either. I settled for another groan.
“What?” He looked up from his rowing. I remembered the remarkable number of bodies he left in his wake coming in and out of Maeres’s poppy farm to get me. All with his weapon hand badly injured.
“Nothing.”

[...]

Mark Lawrence - Prince of Fools

Index

Cover - Mark Lawrence's The Liar's Key

The Us cover for Mark Lawrence's The Liar's Key, the second book in The Red Queen's War series (follow-up to Prince of Fools) was unveiled, at least on the web.

I really like the direction of all of Lawrence's covers for both series and here again, Jason Chan did the job! Nice don't you think?

The book will be out June 2nd 2015 and here's the blurb:

The eyes of the mighty are on the North. Loki’s key has been found and lies in the hands of a feckless prince and a broken warrior. 

Winter has locked Prince Jalan Kendeth far from the luxury of his southern palace. The North may be home to Viking Snorri ver Snagason but he is just as eager to leave. However, even men who hold a key that can open any door must wait for the thaw. 

As the ice unlocks its jaws the Dead King moves to claim what was so nearly his. But there are other players in this game, other hands reaching for Loki’s key. 

Jalan wants only to return to the wine and women of the south, but Snorri has a different and terrifying goal. The warrior aims to find the very door into death and throw it wide. Snorri ver Snagason will challenge all of Hell if that’s what it takes to bring his wife and children back into the living world. He has found the key – now all he needs is to find the door. 

But pawns are played to sacrifice and the Red Queen set both these men upon her board. How many moves ahead has the Silent Sister seen? How far will they get before their part in the game is over?

New poll - Eager meter 2015

As usual, let's do a quick return to the last poll first.

My question, related to a top list of publishers based on the awards they won,  was: "Is the publisher of a book influencing your acquisitions?". A great number of you, fellow Fantasy readers answered... 

And the results are:

No - 78 %

Yes - 21%

It's pretty clear, it's not really a factor. The push the analysis further, I'll return soon with polls on your favorite publishers and even more questions tackling the publisher subject.

For now, it's time for a new poll and a classic one at that.

***

We now have a pretty good idea of the list of Fantasy novels with a 2015 release date.  Among this list, there's several eagerly awaited books form authors.of renown. It's time for the eager meter poll, 2015 edition.

The last years winners were:

2014 - Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson

2013 - a Memory of Light by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson

2012 - Forgot to poll...

2011 - a Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin

For the poll itself, I won't the whole list I have gathered but the most likely contenders in my humble opinion. There's two books in the same series by Abercrombie... I'm not sure someone will pick Half a War but still... Here's the list. You can pick more than one for the poll.

Fall of Light (Kharkanas trilogy book 2) by Steven Erikson

Half the World (The Shattered Sea book 2) by Joe Abercrombie

Half a War (The Shattered Sea book 3) by Joe Abercrombie

Shadow of Self (Mistborn) by Brandon Sanderson

The Dread Wyrm (The Traitor Son Cycle book 3) by Miles Cameron

The Spider's War (The Dagger and the Coin book 5) by Daniel Abraham

The Fifth Season (The Broken Earth book 1) by N.K. Jemisin

The Fool's Quest (The Fitz and the Fool trilogy book 2) by Robin Hobb

Twelve Kings in Sharakhai (The Song of the Shattered Sands book 1) by Bradley P. Beaulieu

The Liar's Key (The Red Queen’s War book 2) by Mark Lawrence

The Silver King (The Silver Kings book 3) by Stephen Deas

The Chart of Tomorrows (Gaunt and Bone book 3) by Chris Willrich

Queen of Fire (Raven's Shadow book 3) by Anthony Ryan

The Price of Valour (The Shadow Campaigns book 3) by Django Wexler

Storm and Steel (The Book of the Black Earth book 2) by Jon Sprunk

The Skull Throne (Demon Cycle book 4) by Peter V. Brett

Old Man's Ghosts (The Empire of a Hundred Houses book 2) by Tom Lloyd

Sword of the North (Grim Company book 2) by Luke Scull

The Black Dream (Heart of the World book 3) by Col Buchanan

Those Above (The Empty Throne book 1) by Daniel Polansky

The Autumn Republic (The Powder Mage book 3) by Brian McClellan

The Providence of Fire (Chronicle of the Unhewn Throne book 2) by Brian Staveley

The Unholy Consult (The Aspect Emperor book 3) by R. Scott Bakker

The Thorn of Emberlain (Gentleman Bastards Sequence book 4) by Scott Lynch

And if there is a book from the next list that you think I should add, speak up in the comments. I think there's only one debut... if you know of more, let me know!

The Dragon House (The Wild Hunt book 4)by Elspeth Cooper

Ruin (The Faithful and the Fallen book 3) by John Gwynne

Trial of Intentions (Vault of Heaven book 2) by Peter Orullian

Blood Will Follow (The Valhalla Saga book 2) by Snorri Kristijansson

Clash of Iron (Iron Age book 2) by Angus Watson

A Crown For Cold Silver by Alex Marshall

The Empire Ascendant (Worldbreaker Saga book 2) by Kameron Hurley

The Mortal Tally (Bring Down Heaven book 2) by Sam Sykes

Black Heart (The Barrow book 2) by Mark Smylie

The Darkling Child (The Defenders of Shannara book 2) by Terry Brooks

Chaos Unleashed (Chaos Born book 3) by Drew Karpyshyn

Hochverrat (Greatcoats book 2) by Sebastien de Castell

Lord of Ashes (Steelhaven book 3) by Richard Ford

The Boy Who Wept Blood (Erebus Sequence book 2) By Den Patrick

The Path of Anger by Antoine Rouaud

Finally, you can consider that the following, eagerly awaited books won't be out in 2015:

The Thousand and One ((The Crescent Moon Kingdoms book 2) by Saladin Ahmed

Winds of Winter (a Song of Ice and Fire book 6) by George R.R. Martin

The Doors of Stone (Kingkiller Chronicles book 3) by Patrick Rothfuss

Rhune (The First Empire book 1) by  Michael J. Sullivan

The Last King of Osten Ard (Memory, Sorrow and Thorn book 4) by Tad Williams

2014 Goodreads choice awards

For the sixth year, Goodreads is hosting his Choice awards. The semifinal rounds nominees are up and here's the list for the 2014 Fantasy category (you can vote here).

The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen

City Stairs by Robert Jackson Bennett

The Magician's Land by Lev Grossman

The Witch with No Name by Kim Harrison

Skin Game by Jim Butcher

Shattered by Kevin Hearne

Murder of Crows by Anne Bishop

The Emperor's Blades by Brian Staveley

The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison

Up from the Grave by Jeaniene Frost

Fool's Assassin by Robin Hobb

Tower Lord by Anthony Ryan

The Broken Eye by Brent Weeks

Magic Breaks by Ilona Andrews

Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson

Night Broken by Patricia Briggs

The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss

Prince of Fools by Mark Lawrence

The Book of Life by Deborah Harkness

Traitor's Blade by Sebatien de Castell

Last years winners were:

2013 - The Ocean at the End of the Line by Neil Gaiman

2012 - The Wind Through the Keyhole by Stephen King

2011 - A Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin

2010 - Towers of Midnight by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson

2009 - Dean and Gone by Charlaine Harris

This list makes me realize the number of interesting books I still haven't read this year. From the ones I have read making the list, so far, my vote is for The Broken Eye by Brent Weeks but it can still change with books like Prince of Fools on my to-read pile. I think that Robin Hobb or Brandon Sanderson are likely winners. What do you think?

November releases

Why do I posted this picture in a monthly releases spotlight post you might ask? The answer is simple, from the list of Fantasy books released this month, I found none that suit my taste or that I wanted to share to you fellow readers. That's a first in the five years I have been blogging (to the best of my knowledge).

To square things with my conscience, I will mention that Peter V. Brett's novella, Messenger's Legacy is out this month.

What about you, found anything interesting this month in the Fantasy field?