The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson review

I really wasn't going to buy this book. I really, really wasn't. It's the first book in The Stormlight Archive which is said to be a decalogy. Also, this first volume is one-thousand pages. My big Lord of the Rings single-volume book is only about twelve-hundred pages, and that includes the appendices and index. Anyway, I've become a big fan of Brandon Sanderson's work and I had heard lots of good things about The Way of Kings so I figured I might as well start reading the series from the beginning.

Sanderson does an excellent job of world-building. The story takes place in Roshar where massive and destructive highstorms ravage the land. The storms are so destructive that people must take cover in strong shelters while the storms rage. But the highstorms bring needed water to the land and charge the crystal spheres that the people use as money and to energize magic items such as shardplate - extremely heavy suits of armor that somewhat act as mech suits in the fantasy world. Certain people are also able to use the energy in the spheres directly, in impressive ways. The land at the center of the action is Alethkar. It is ruled exclusively by people with light-colored eyes.

So, this volume centers around a war being fought by Alethkar against a group of people called the Parshendi at a place at the edge of Alethkar known as the Shattered Plains. The Alethi have gone to war because the Parshendi hired an assassin who killed Gavilar, king of Alethkar. And I gotta tell you, that was one epic duel between the assassin, known as Szeth-son-son-Vollano, and Gavilar.

The main characters are Kaladin, a young man initially trained by his father as a surgeon, who becomes a soldier, and then a slave, and finally a bridgeman in one of the highprinces' armies; Dalinar, a highprince, uncle of the king and younger brother of the former king; and Shallan, the daughter of a minor noble in the kingdom of Jah Keved who has traveled in search of the king of Alethkar's sister to become her student.

Kaladin is one of the most interesting characters I've yet encountered. We first meet him through the eyes of a young soldier in brightlord Amaram's army. He's a exceptional soldier who strives to protect those who cannot protect themselves. When next we meet him, he's a slave and gets sold to a highprince to be a bridgeman - carrying bridges that the army uses to cross the chasms between the plateaus of the shattered plains. The life of a bridgeman is nasty, brutish, and short. While still in the slave caravan, Kaladin meets a windspren (spirit) named Syl. Syl is rather unique in that she has a understanding of things that spren of any sort do not have. Her knowledge and understanding grows and she constantly advises and assists Kaladin. Through Kaladin's experiences he has become extremely distrusteful of the ruleres, the lighteyes.

Dalinar provides an excellent counterpoint to Kaladin. He is one of the few lighteyes who lives up to the ideals that people have for them. He is the uncle and one of the prime advisors to the king. He is trying to change the king's tactics in the war, but is having a difficult time because the other highprinces mistrust him. His insistence on following the codes has made the others consider him to be too 'high and mighty' for them. Also, during the highstorms he has been having visions and everyone thinks he's going mad.

Shallan has sought out Jasnah Kholin, the king's sister, to become the princess' student. She also has a plan to help her family, which is deeply in debt. She does not have the training that Jasnah insists upon in a student, but she is quite intelligent and has some extraordinary skills as an artist. She is able to memorize a scene and draw it very quickly. However, sometimes when she's concentrating on something other than her drawing, she sketches in strange creatures without intending to.

I really enjoyed this book, though at times found it to be a bit slow. There were sections that I felt comfortable skimming rather than actually reading. Still, The Way of Kings was an excellent example of worldbuilding filled with some wonderful and unforgettable characters. I'm certainly looking forward to more in the series.







/ [Viking]

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