In The Way of Kings, #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson introduces readers to the fascinating world of Roshar, a world of stone and storms.It has been centuries since the fall of the Knights Radiant, but their mystical swords and armor remain, transforming ordinary men into near-invincible warriors. Men trade kingdoms for them. Wars are fought for them and won by them.One such … them and won by them.
One such war rages on the Shattered Plains where Kaladin, son of a surgeon, has been reduced to slavery, and Dalinar, commander of the armies, is plagued by dreams of ancient times, doubting his own sanity.
Across the ocean, Shallan, a naive but brave and brilliant young woman, plans a daring theft to save her impoverished noble house from ruin.
The result of over ten years of planning, writing, and world-building, The Way of Kings is Book 1 of The Stormlight Archive, an epic fantasy masterpiece in the making.
THE STORMLIGHT ARCHIVE
Book 1: The Way of Kings
Book 2: Words of Radiance
At the Publisher’s request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
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The Way of Kings has been on my TBR list for years, and I’m so glad I finally picked it up (even after 1,000 pages!). It’s a classic epic fantasy, and though I felt like many of the characters fit into familiar molds, the exceptionally well-developed world and some unexpected twists kept things fresh and interesting. Can’t wait to read the rest of the series to see where he takes this story!
Top five all-time! Spectacular book with fantastic story and characters you will care about long after the book is finished. A huge story that will unfold over several very large volumes, but, that doesn’t mean this story is slow. In a very unique and interesting world the Knights Radiant once swore to protect the people. They broke that oath and fled, never to be seen again. Generations later the Evil that they were fighting is returning. Who will protect the world now? Sounds simple? Been done before? Not like this! A very complex history unfolds and the simple plot of defending against evil has way more depth waiting to be revealed. There is nothing simple about this book in any way. Not only recommended, but, required.
An epic fantasy story with amazing world building. This has wonderful characters, unique magic, and a world that’s unlike any other in fantasy. One of the current fantasy masters.
Once again brandon sanderson brings forth a wonderful magic filled world and original story. This is by far one of the best epic fantasy series I’ve ever read!
This is a hard one to rate. I bought the audiobook about two years ago, and started listening. It wasn’t bad, but it didn’t hold me. Very slow paced, full of world-building, and unconnected characters. I listened on and off over two years whenever I had a long road trip, but it never really gripped me to the point where I had to find out what happened next.
I found myself bored while painting my second house of the year, so turned on the book, remembering exactly where I left off in story. It took 20 hours of listening to finally get to the point where I was really interested, and another five hours where I needed to know what happened next. I think the book is 35 hours in total.
The build up is worth it. Now I’m completely vested in characters and story. If you are a patient reader, then I highly recommend. Sanderson certainly delivers. It just takes a bit to get there. Also, it’s refreshing to find a fantasy series that isn’t bursting with gratuitous gore, violence, and sex.
The Way of Kings This behemoth of a book is one of the best epic fantasies I’ve read in a long time. Brandon Sanderson is a master at world-building and creating intriguing magic systems. I can’t wait to dive into the second book of this series (though I’ve taken a week-long break just to let the first book sink in a little).
After reading Lightbringer, I was trying to decide between this series and Wheel of Time. This won. I listened to the audio, which is 45 hours long. There are two narrators and it is quite well done.
The book opens with the assassination of the king. The scene shifts to Kaladin, a soldier who has become a slave. Major players also include Dalinar, the king ‘s brother and Shallon, a young woman with a desperate plan to save her family. The story has a lot of world and character building. There is also a fair bit of switching between storylines and lots of flashbacks. Some readers may have trouble following but it did not bother me.
Damn, what a start to a great series!
This review is for the audio copy.
This series is the definition of an epic fantasy. Often, it can feel overwhelming to read. If you can sit through it, though it is fantastic and well worth it. We listened to it over the course of months while doing errands. Even with the frequent breaks, we never lost interest. The narrators do a really great job bringing the characters to life.
I’ve been a fan of Brandon Sanderson’s work since I read Mistborn several years ago. Mistborn, Warbreaker, Steelheart, Skyward, Perfect State/Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell… These are the books I’ve read by him, and I’ve enjoyed all of them. They’ve had a lasting impact on me.
(Plus, can I just add here that Sanderson is an awesome speaker on panels, and super nice at conventions? I got to see him at a convention once, and it was a great experience.)
Still, I’d been putting off reading The Way of Kings.
Part of it was due to timing. Have you seen the size of that book? You could almost fit two copies of the first Mistborn book into one copy of The Way of Kings.
I tried picking it up as an ebook library loan, but realized there was no way I’d have it finished in time before I had to return it. So I didn’t read past the prologues, and I sent it on to the next person on the list.
The other reason I’d put off reading The Way of Kings was I’d heard one of the books had a major cliffhanger at the end, and I didn’t want to have to wait to find out what happens next.
Well, now there are four books in the series, so I don’t have any more excuses. My parents picked up a paperback copy of the first book for me as a gift (my mom really enjoys this series), which was great, because it meant I could read it at my leisure and not worry about trying to return it on time.
Except… maybe I didn’t need to worry about that.
The day I got the book, I reread the prologues and the first chapter, figuring I’d read a little bit at a time, kind of savor the book as I went…
Less than a month later, I was squeeing over having just finished an awesome book.
In some books, such a huge word count (and page count) would be a bad sign, like maybe there’s a lot of fluff that’s going to lead to some really boring scenes.
But Sanderson absolutely did not let me down with The Way of Kings.
I loved it.
There might have been once when it slowed down for me, but I loved almost every character, I cared about and wanted to know what happened to them, and that’s even with characters I initially wasn’t so certain about.
(Sorry Adolin and Dalinar that I didn’t really like you at first. I was just frustrated that we weren’t back in Kaladin’s head. You both turned out to be really cool characters, too.)
And even though there were several major points of view that alternated (and we sometimes waited a while to find out the outcome… looking at you Shallan), there was just so much to see that I really didn’t mind taking time to switch between everybody.
Also, can we talk about how tightly certain plots came together?
*Insert incoherent gibberish here because of wanting to talk about those plots but without spoilers.*
Let me just say (with a minor spoiler) that the scene where we see Dalinar, Kaladin, and Sadeas together is wonderful. Not just for the “YES!” moment that occurs, but also how much it ties back into an early plot point as the opposite counterpoint. It was beautiful. And I want so badly to talk about it right now but I also don’t want to spoil it for you if you haven’t read this book.
So go read it… if only so you can see the line about a bridgeman’s worth and a shardblade’s worth. ARGH! It’s just… I’m flailing huere, okay? You need that line in your life.
Beyond that, the world-building is delightful. The different cultures, the variations on religion, the types of food they eat and who eats what, the creatures they have, the flora… (There’s a moment where a character who’s used to highstorms and plants that retract around movement comes to a place where grass is just… grass… it doesn’t move. And her reaction is great.)
I don’t think I could have asked for anything more in terms of world-building.
Gotta admit, though, after I realized their “hounds” were crustacean dogs rather than the kind of dogs we normally think about… and cute, per the illustration… I was really questioning if a horse was really a horse. Turns out yes. Same with chickens. At least in this book.
And the way the weather works (or maybe doesn’t work?) and the details of the Shattered Plains…
I’m curious to see what explanation Sanderson has in store for us. I remember the awesome surprise at the end of the Mistborn trilogy, and it seems to me like there might be something similar going on here. Hopefully we’ll learn more in the future books.
As characters go, I was really rooting for Kaladin. I wanted to see him succeed, and to see how he would grow and develop and finally break through all the bad things that keep happening to him. There are a lot of satisfying payoffs with him.
Also Jaznah. She’s cool. I like her.
Then there’s the magic system. (Have we established that Sanderson is a master of magic systems?)
Though it took me a little bit to realize some of the differences in how the magic worked, such as the difference between surgebinding and being a shardbearer, the little-by-little reveals were awesome, and I loved the idea of the shardlight in the spheres, and how they used that for both light and currency.
This is also the rare book series where I really don’t want spoilers… as much as I want to look up details about the world. Many series if I’m curious, I’ll go ahead and look them up. Here, though… nope. Let’s see if I can avoid anything other than the accidental spoiler I saw regarding fabrials.
Now let’s talk a moment about the end of the book.
I expected there to be a few different endings simply due to having so many characters. And there were. But the reveals that came in there! *SQUEE!* Some of them I had an idea of, but there was one with the parshmen that just… I loved it. Absolutely loved it.
The whole book wrapped up in a satisfying way while still leaving plenty of questions for the next book (and the rest of the series, I suspect).
I’m taking a breather after reading this one. It’s too big to really read in day, but I didn’t want to put it down during the last couple hundred pages… which could be the equivalent of its own book. I definitely look forward to reading the next book in the series.
So, to recap:
Excellent world building, relatable and fascinating characters, a cool magic system, and an epic plot with far reaching consequences.
I highly, highly recommend The Way of Kings.
If you like long movies that spin your imagination beyond anything you could possibly imagine then you’ll love this book and the trilogy. The characters are deep, complex and realistic and their individual details are intricately woven to create an era, an ideal and a world that encourage you to cheer for or jeer at them. You’ll want to be IN the scene with them, fighting alongside them or hiding in the shadows waiting for the next thing to happen. An amazing adventure!
So this book is a masterpiece, set in a world where everything is impressive and complex, the plants, the animals, the storms, the gems, the spren, the weapons and the political plots.
There are three main characters, Kaladin, Dalinar and Shallan. In this world people with blue eyes are the nobles and people with dark eyes are considered like lower class because of that.
This is definitely a must read for anyone that loves fantasy.
I personally believe that there is not a bad Brandon Sanderson book. This series is awesome. It is unlike other fantasy novels and doesn’t have all of the same monsters. I really enjoyed the otherness of it.
Great book. I highly recommend this to anyone looking for an action packed fantasy book. Can’t wait to find and read book two.The Way of Kings
This was the first book I’ve read written by Sanderson and I had a hard time putting it down. I was amazed at the detailed world building and character development. Definitely a must read! I look forward to the next in the series!
If you like to stay up way too late crying in bed about a book that is so powerful you literally can’t go to sleep until you find out what happens next, this one is for you! It’s a high fantasy masterpiece that will leave you dying for more. Luckily this book is over 1,000 pages so you have plenty of time to develop an attachment to these characters.
This is only Book 1 in the series and the subsequent books are all equally fantastic. I’m just sad that I finally got to the end of all the available published books in the series and now I have to wait to see what the future holds for Dalinar, Kaladin, and the cast of amazing characters I’ve grown to love.
Brandon Sanderson has created another epic. His world-building drew me in and his characters held me there. I loved every page.
This is the first book from the Stormlight Archive. I’ve read the first three–still haven’t had the time to pick up the most recent one. So far, though, the first is the best. Kaladin’s transformation from “bridge man” to what he becomes… The alternating POVs works well. Shallan and Kaladin are so different, but equally intriguing. When the two meet in a later book the dynamic is humorous and engaging.
Once you get going on this book, you absolutely cannot put it down. Brandon Sanderson is the God-King of world-building!
Just go read anything Sanderson writes.