Board 8 > Oathbringer, Book 3 of The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson

(+) Yeah! (+)

Figured I'd just make a new topic instead of the one titled about the Codex Alera.

So, I've read the first 8 chapters posted on the Tor website. It's setting everything up really well in the early going. Things seem to be happening a little fast, but there's some stuff that is INCREDIBLY satisfying right from the get go.

I don't know how far I'm going to get before Tuesday but I can't wait to churn through this!
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Never been more excited for a book as I am for Oathbringer
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This is reminding me that I need to clear my book backlog for this
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The fact that it's Dalinar's book instead of Szeth's like Sanderson originally planned has me even more hyped than I would have been because Dalinar is by far my fave in Stormlight.

Can't wait.
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I think Kaladin is my favorite. Shallan also really surprised me and became quite a badass.
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Dalinar is also my favorite. So hype.
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Dalinar and Kaladin are my two favourites. Really looking forward to this book.
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Not reading the preview chapters because I love having the hardback with all the artwork in it. But yeah cant wait. Im gonna save some of it for my vacation after Thanksgiving so Ill have to try hard to avoid spoilers.
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Also waiting for the hardcover. And need to get to Edgedancer this weekend.

Dalinar has definitely been my favorite. Adolin really impressed in WoR and I'm looking forward to seeing more of him. I'd also like to see some more of Taln this time
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Kaladin and Kelsier are my one and two in the Cosmere, and both of those two are definitely in my top ten favorites ever.

Dalinar is incredible though. Some of the backstory stuff we've gotten from him already, just 8 chapters in is seriously impressive.
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I too really like Kelsier, but I enjoy the Wax and Wayne Mistborn books more than the first trilogy. The W&W cast is overall better.
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Note: everyone should try to read Edgedancer before this if possible. Has some fairly significant developments that follow up on the ending of WoR.

And aww, no Shallan fans here? I thought she was pretty excellent in WoR. Though everyone was, really. Considering what happened at the end, I'm probably most interested in seeing what comes next for Adolin. Curious if he'll be able to awaken his Shardblade.
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I like these "main" four quite a bit and would rank them like this. Shallan became a lot more likable in WoR but Adolin improved the most

Dalinar > Kaladin > Adolin > Shallan
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I'm one of the weird ones who like Kaladin more in WoR than TWoK. He's my favorite now, but in TWoK I liked Dalinar more. I expect that to tip the other way again in OB.

Kelsier is still my #1 Sanerson character though.
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This reminds me that I need to actually read some Brandon Sanderson
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Is Edgedancer the short story about the "awesome" girl from book 2? I think I heard she was getting something and ignored it because I could not stand her chapter in WoR. But if it's really that important I can pick it up.
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HeroDelTiempo17 posted...

Is Edgedancer the short story about the "awesome" girl from book 2? I think I heard she was getting something and ignored it because I could not stand her chapter in WoR. But if it's really that important I can pick it up.

Yeah it's her, and it does seem pretty important.
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EndOfDiscOne posted...

I'm one of the weird ones who like Kaladin more in WoR than TWoK. He's my favorite now, but in TWoK I liked Dalinar more. I expect that to tip the other way again in OB.

Is that really weird? I liked him about the same in both. His struggles and progression in WoR feels genuine
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Grimmer posted...

EndOfDiscOne posted...

I'm one of the weird ones who like Kaladin more in WoR than TWoK. He's my favorite now, but in TWoK I liked Dalinar more. I expect that to tip the other way again in OB.

Is that really weird? I liked him about the same in both. His struggles and progression in WoR feels genuine

I've seen a lot of people thought he was whiny and annoying in WoR. I thought he was believable, entertaining, and badass.
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I'm 85% through the reread and don't see him as whiny then or now. He has several badass moments that are a joy to read
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I agree with Grimmer, i wasnt put off by Kal at all in book 2.

So far for me its

Kaladin>Shallan>Dalinar>Szeth>Adolin
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Wedge Antilles posted...

I too really like Kelsier, but I enjoy the Wax and Wayne Mistborn books more than the first trilogy. The W&W cast is overall better.

Huh, I don't feel the same about that. I still have yet to finish Shadows of Self, and it wouldn't take me much longer to finish it, but I'm just not as interested in those characters for some reason. Still like them, no denying that, but nobody is better than my main girl Vin.

I'd say I definitely like the Stormlight Archive better overall, the world itself is just fantastic as all hell.

And I still need to read Edgedancer, I have it sitting here waiting to be read but as someone else mentioned, I wasn't a huge fan of Lift and I'm not excited to read several chapters about her. But I know another character who I am very interested in appears so I want to read for him at least.
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Shallan is amazing. There are so many good characters in Stormlight Archive that it's hard to give them all enough credit.

I am so excited to see where Adolin's story goes as well. I love the way he just kind of got.... passed over by everyone in WoR. Kaladin, Shallan, even Renarin. All Radiants. Suddenly Adolin went from being the head of the class to... well, back of the list. I want to see how he reacts to it.

Him staying in jail while Kaladin was imprisoned was one of my favorite things in WoR.
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I admit I havent read Edgedancer.

And probably won't before I read Oathbreaker at this point.
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What are these books actually like?
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Absolutely fucking incredible.

They're very long, so be aware of that before going in.

But they are bar none the greatest epic fantasy books ever made.
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I've only ever read Lord of the Rings.

I can't really imagine how similar or dissimilar another epic fantasy, especially a modern one, would be.
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I haven't actually read Lord of the Rings. I couldn't make it through the first one. I suppose I should try again, honestly.
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All this talk about favorite characters and all I can think is that... I don't have anyone I really like in SA yet. I like villains (whether played straight or misunderstood/reformed) and powerful, godlike characters. My favorites from his previous works have included the Lord Ruler, the God King, the Professor, and (Mistborn spoilers) Sazed. So far, SA hasn't had anyone that intrigues me on the level of those guys.
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I'm surprised you don't love Sadeas yet.
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ExThaNemesis posted...

I'm surprised you don't love Sadeas yet.

Is there a spoiler rule for this topic? Obviously you don't need to worry about what's in my spoiler text, but I'm not sure if everyone reading this has finished WoR.

I don't remember Sadeas that well, actually, and then he got shanked so... I seem to recall he did a lot of petty things that I felt weren't endearing, even as a villain. I think what it comes down to is this: a lot of Sanderson's villains do things that I would do in their shoes, but Sadeas did things that should have been beneath him. And didn't he also do a lot of petty shit to the bridge crews? While I'm in favor of fictional slavery, I hold their masters to certain standards.

Same with Shallan's brother. As much as I love fictional jerks, I cannot stand anyone who would torture animals.
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I guess I should be more careful with my spoilers.

On Sadeas

I don't remember him personally interacting much with the Bridge Crew until Kaladin made it impossible for him to NOT take note of them, and yeah he was a dismissive jerkoff but that was part of his character.

What really made me love him as a villain was how he duped Dalinar into getting trapped at the battle of the tower. He, PLAYED HIM LIKE A DAMN FIDDLE.

And like all great villains, I loved it when he got his comeuppance. Totally unexpected but I was actually oging YES YES YES when Adolin did it to him.

Also I loved how Sadeas was literally being GIVEN Dalinar's shardblade and he was still like "something is wrong here. This somehow feels like I'm being shafted."
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AquaArcane posted...

Wedge Antilles posted...

I too really like Kelsier, but I enjoy the Wax and Wayne Mistborn books more than the first trilogy. The W&W cast is overall better.

Huh, I don't feel the same about that. I still have yet to finish Shadows of Self, and it wouldn't take me much longer to finish it, but I'm just not as interested in those characters for some reason. Still like them, no denying that, but nobody is better than my main girl Vin.

I'd say I definitely like the Stormlight Archive better overall, the world itself is just fantastic as all hell.

And I still need to read Edgedancer, I have it sitting here waiting to be read but as someone else mentioned, I wasn't a huge fan of Lift and I'm not excited to read several chapters about her. But I know another character who I am very interested in appears so I want to read for him at least.

You should finish Shadows of Self. Fairly decent sized plot twist at the end there.
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Oh and I wanted to say, I definitely didn't like the second two Wax/Wayne books as much as Alloy of Law.

To me it felt too much like Brandon decided later on that he needed to tie Wax/Wayne to the first Mistborn trilogy and they felt tacked on.

Alloy of Law was just this fun little story going on in the world of Scadriel with the awesome magic system we knew and loved.

There were some awesome parts to Shadows of Self and Bands of Mourning, don't get me wrong. I just... something felt off about them to me.
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Maybe it's because I didn't care much for the original trilogy cast aside from Kelsier. Vin and Elend bored me.
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I definitely feel like Shadows of Self and Bands of Mourning are... heavier than Alloy of Law. Part of what made Allow of Law so refreshing was how adventurous it is compared to the first trilogy. But I don't think it really loses that too much. I think they would have suffered if Brandon didn't try to add some weight behind what was going on. I love the whole Wax & Wayne trilogy. In fact, I'd say I really enjoyed Alloy of Law but didn't truly love it until Shadows of Self was over.
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I wasnt that fond if alloy of law.

It was fine but that kind of thing is what I read Iron Druid or Dresden for, not sanderson.
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ExThaNemesis posted...

Oh and I wanted to say, I definitely didn't like the second two Wax/Wayne books as much as Alloy of Law.

To me it felt too much like Brandon decided later on that he needed to tie Wax/Wayne to the first Mistborn trilogy and they felt tacked on.

Alloy of Law was just this fun little story going on in the world of Scadriel with the awesome magic system we knew and loved.

There were some awesome parts to Shadows of Self and Bands of Mourning, don't get me wrong. I just... something felt off about them to me.

Opposite for me. Brandon wrote AoL on a whim and I think it shows. The other two especially BoM are meatier and I like that.
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ExThaNemesis posted...

I guess I should be more careful with my spoilers.

On Sadeas

I don't remember him personally interacting much with the Bridge Crew until Kaladin made it impossible for him to NOT take note of them, and yeah he was a dismissive jerkoff but that was part of his character.

What really made me love him as a villain was how he duped Dalinar into getting trapped at the battle of the tower. He, PLAYED HIM LIKE A DAMN FIDDLE.

And like all great villains, I loved it when he got his comeuppance. Totally unexpected but I was actually oging YES YES YES when Adolin did it to him.

Also I loved how Sadeas was literally being GIVEN Dalinar's shardblade and he was still like "something is wrong here. This somehow feels like I'm being shafted."

Yeah, I don't remember much of that lol. I was the one in the previous topic who asked for the wiki because I couldn't remember big things. But i remember small things! Like I think it was Sadeas who said the bridge crews weren't allowed to carry shields because it meant the parshendi would target the real soldiers instead. Things like that pissed me off.
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I wasn't a fan of Sadeas. I think he had some decent moments but overall he was just a weasel, and those aren't the types of villains I love. Be a man and face your enemies, you coward.

Thankfully he got gutted like the weasel he was. I already really liked Adolin before that point, but god damn if I didn't love him so much more after that.

Wedge Antilles posted...

You should finish Shadows of Self. Fairly decent sized plot twist at the end there.

Oh I'll definitely finish it. I'm just not sure if it'll be before I start Oathbringer. Something that bothers me is Wax and Wayne's name starting with the same letter. This is extremely nitpicky and my problem only, but there's been many times where I just see the first letter of the name and keep reading, so I think I'm reading about Wax and then it makes no sense until I realize it's Wayne. Very silly.
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I like Sadeas. He's the perfect example of a weaselly schemer character and even though I hate him, he's the kind of guy you love to hate. Fuck that guy.

I like his wife - it's neat seeing him have a perfect match like that.
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AquaArcane posted...

I wasn't a fan of Sadeas. I think he had some decent moments but overall he was just a weasel, and those aren't the types of villains I love. Be a man and face your enemies, you coward.

Thankfully he got gutted like the weasel he was. I already really liked Adolin before that point, but god damn if I didn't love him so much more after that.

Wedge Antilles posted...

You should finish Shadows of Self. Fairly decent sized plot twist at the end there.

Oh I'll definitely finish it. I'm just not sure if it'll be before I start Oathbringer. Something that bothers me is Wax and Wayne's name starting with the same letter. This is extremely nitpicky and my problem only, but there's been many times where I just see the first letter of the name and keep reading, so I think I'm reading about Wax and then it makes no sense until I realize it's Wayne. Very silly.

Yes! Weasel-y. That's the idea I was trying to get across. I like villains, but not weasels, and Sadeas is full-on weasel.

As for Wax and Wayne's names, I'm not sure what Sanderson was going for. I mean, waxing and waning are things that the moon does, and that terminology is used in some mental disorders. I'm just not sure how Sanderson intended to connect that to said characters.
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Really excited for Oathbringer. Hate as always for the fact that you have to wait extra time for a paperback, which I far prefer, but I liked the first two books enough to make an exception probably.

Interesting to see that some people prefer Kaladin in book 1; I far prefer him in Book 2 where he gets interesting characters to bounce off of (Adolin, Dalinar, Shallan, even Moash is more interesting in Book 2). IMO Kaladin's bridge crew are the weak point of the books' cast, and Syl doesn't really do much for me either.

Dalinar is my favourite probably, so I'm stoked for more of his backstory. Also the cover implies we're gonna get more Jasnah which is also awesome; she's been a show-stealer in her limited screentime so far.
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Kaladin's bridge crew was by far the most interesting thing in WoK

Kaladin's bridge crew a weak link? Blasphemy! They're all awesome.

I loved Kaladin in both books though but I am a total and utter fanboy.
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I'm a huge fan of Kaladin's bridge crew days.
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CoolCly posted...

I'm a huge fan of Kaladin's bridge crew days.

This.

Rock and Lopen, excuse me, The Lopen, are my favorites.
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We are all just airsick lowlanders.
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Yeah, I like the bridge crew too. Rock is probably my favorite.

CoolCly posted...

I like Sadeas. He's the perfect example of a weaselly schemer character and even though I hate him, he's the kind of guy you love to hate. Fuck that guy.

I like his wife - it's neat seeing him have a perfect match like that.

This is exactly how I feel about Sadeas. He plays the weasel so well.
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My favorite part about Sadeas is how the Kalinar POV in Book 1 hypes him up without even being there. You see how appalling it is for the bridge crew, but you're led to believe they're all that bad until you get snippets from other perspectives. No, it's just Saldeas's that's absolutely despicable, and he's been using it to great profit. It's horrible, and ruthless, and perfect. But more than that, he's the perfect foil to Dalinar, which made the thing with Adolin even more insane. Really enjoyed him.

Speaking of villains, I have high hopes for Taravangian, even if mostly because I'm itching to see more of that person.
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