The Way of Kings: The Best Fantasy Book Except...

It's been a bit more than a year since I read Way of Kings. Let's talk about whether this book is holding up as one of the all-time greats - totally spoiler free!

Join the Viking Clan and get access to the Viking Book Club⚔️
🢚Get 5% off at The Broken Binding using the code LIBRARYOFAVIKING7
🢚 Get 5% off at Inkstone Books using the code VIKINGOFFER5

Other links!

Contact me? (Review requests allowed but not likely to get reply)

0:00 - Intro
1:15 - I've changed my mind
5:17- What can damage the legacy?

[Tinahgirl]

You said something that I hear often but never understand. I love beautiful and lyrical prose. It’s one of the things that will always attract me to a book, especially if I don’t know anything else about it. However, my love for beautiful prose has never affected my love for a book where beautiful prose isn’t the point. Some of my favorite books have the most beautiful prose. Others have basic to slightly bad prose but something else that I love, like the actual story or character development/moments. I guess I’m saying that if a book isn’t known for having beautiful prose, then I’m not going to judge it for not having beautiful prose. If you tell me to read Rothfuss because of the beautiful prose or Tolkien because of the beautiful descriptions, then I’ll be actively seeking those as I read. If you tell me that Sanderson does great action and character moments, I’m not going to be looking for beautiful prose. I’ll be looking for those other things, and beautiful prose would just be a nice addition. While I love it, I can’t judge an author poorly for not doing something they weren’t trying to do in the first place. It seems a bit unfair. Sanderson’s prose is accessible, which isn’t the same as bad. I actually think his writing is fine, and it accomplishes what he’s going for to the point of perfection, and has the ability to knock me flat with a powerful feeling, idea or quote. I would argue that prose can be beautifully lyrical or beautifully simple. (Dickens VS Hemingway, for instance, or Emily Bronte vs Jane Austen) He doesn’t write lyrically, no, but often there is beauty in the simplicity of the way he words something.

[LagusLykamo]

I read all the previous books again every time a new book is coming out, and the way of kings remains my favorite in the series so far, I particularly LOVE slow build ups, and the whole Bridge 4 storyline has SO many great moments that I'm always excited to revisit. Rythm of War is the one I'm not as fond of as a whole, but it has a couple of my favorite scenes in the whole series.
So excited for the 5th one! BRIDGE FOUR!!!

[ElanorNarmolanya]

Way of Kings was my first Sanderson book and it's just... SPECIAL. The way those characters, those scenes, have stayed with me is just unparalleled for in a book. And while I, too, love a book with beautiful, poetic prose, i cannot deny the fact that Sanderson's moments hit SO hard largely because he uses his "glass window" style of writing, where your focus is on being present WITH the characters rather than on admiring beautiful prose. I have historically preferred poetic prose, with Tolkien being the king and my GOAT author, but until i read Sanderson i had never before been LITERALLY on the edge of my seat or physically pumped my fist in the air while reading a book. Now i have, hahaha. For this reason, i sincerely hope that he never changes his style, because his books would not impact readers the way that they do without it.

[alusarmiento]

Happy birthday Johan! Love and good fantasy books to you :)

[Wordhopper]

Every Stormlight book is the best of the series in a way. Rhythm of War is the same. It’s doing something specific that not everybody likes, but it’s done so well, making this book a favorite for me.

I’m sure book 5 will be amazing!

[kb.]

Your channel happened into my newsfeed and your thoughts about appreciating beautiful prose resonated with me. The plot is a slightly hazy and dreamlike memory for me, but Patricia McKillip's "Song of the Basilisk" stays in my heart as the most beautiful and hauntingly lyrical book I've ever read. ❤

[Danhibbert]

I just finished a reread of Way of Kings, followed along on the readread with the Lost in Roshar podcast which is 2-3 chapters a week. The podcast is so entertaining and diving into all the cosmere details and mysteries made me enjoy the book even more than the first read! I agree about Sanderson's prose being good but not rising to the level of the authors you described, but for me, as long as there is a good standard and the characters and plot are enjoyable it's fine. It's when the prose is really getting in the way that I can't handle it..

[markofascribe]

Presumably if Sanderson wrote more beautifully, his speed/volume would take a hit - no shame in going for high speed/quantity if you have a turbo-charged imagination like his😅

[Steve_Uitz]

This series is on my TBR for this year and i plan to finish right when the 5th book is released

[Foobymaster]

I have all 4 books on my shelf waiting to be read soon

[arlissbunny]

Oathbringer is my favorite of the Stormlight series so far but I’m the one who prefers MB Era 2 over Era 1 so there is that.

For me I want an author to use the prose style best fitted to the story being told. I feel like the lilting prose of Hobb would add hundreds of pages to Stormlight and distract from the rapidity of the action and pace. Sanderson’s rapid fire prose suit his blazing pace, at least to my ear.

And seriously, Steris is my spirit animal.

[elisabethprice]

My brother likes Rhythm of War the best and I think it’s maybe my least fave but as it is a stormlight book it’s still phenomenal

[virginiajb]

I think you think too much; I mean, for me the important thing when I read a book or a saga is the feelings and emotions I get with them. I think that what you will read in a future does not matter, if you enjoy a story that's it. Comparison is just useless. Anyone can like different authors and different writing styles. It's like eating something you like and then thinking that if you eat something you like most you won't like the first one you ate any more 🤷🏻‍♀️

[safinan]

Hi 👋 like Brandon Sanderson books…. He is good writer! Happy reading to you!!! 🎉

[amilisom]

I tried really hard to like Sanderson, concerning how epic his Cosmere is getting, but I really just can't get into it.

[dominoday]

The Final Empire is probably my favorite single book of all time, because it was the one book that got me into reading again, and more specifically into high fantasy as well. Stormlight is my favorite as a series overall. I don't know if I would even agree that RoW is the weakest in the series ... (trying to keep it spoiler free here) I really loved the 'basement' plotline a lot. Overall, they are just all 5 stars to me. I just love the world and magic so much. And man, I never thought I would find characters that could even come close to the characters in Wheel of Time, but Sanderson did just that

[nightowl]

]Do you think that people reading Mistborn are younger, and as they get older the pick up Way of Kings? I wonder if this is why so many gush over this series.

[Izzyzilreads]

Rhythm of War is rough imo but it’s still good. Not great but good

[bauman]

how have you not read rhythm of war yet??

[jakecarlstad]

I like the stormlight archives but I really think it would be a lot better if it was condensed. It feels very bloated at times(3rd and 4th book in particular). I also think Sanderson's humor is very cringe at times haha