ShawnMC

Yup. Now I'm mad at myself. I clearly remember him beginning the First Ideal in Oathbringer but I completely forgot about him mentioning how he saw figures with twisted symbols for heads in the mirrors. I even remember being excited by that scene during my first read. This annoys me because out of all of the books, I've read The Way of Kings the most, probably five or six times. Ugh! Guess I'll just have to read it again.

You could say that everybody has an accent. It just depends on what language you're speaking and where you are when you're speaking.

Was this confirmed? In the books, I mean. If it's something that was confirmed in an interview or the whole 'Words of Brandon' or something like that then I probably missed it. I'll be disappointed in myself, though if it was in one of the books and I missed it, especially one of the first two considering how many times I've read them.

Ha! Not anymore. Years of speech therapy have done wonders. But I can still bust out a killer NY accent when I want to and my Bostonian isn't too shabby, either.

My father was originally from New York but moved away before having me and so I was born and raised in Ohio. Do you know what you get when you're an Ohioan raised by someone with a New York accent? In my case, a lisp and funny sounding R's.

I said haunted but yeah, semantics. I recall him mentioning how he saw shadowy figures and often felt like he was being watched. As I was reading Oathbringer, I started wondering if he might be have one of the Unmade or some sort of iniquitous spren following him. as I said, I'm probably way off base. I'm not usually very good at picking up on plot twists and stuff like that. I'm also not as familiar with the rest of the Cosmere and a lot of people on here seem to be so. He was probably just paranoid because of what happened to his father as well as the continued activity of the Assassin in White but it just seemed to me that there was some foreshadowing going on (or maybe Moash sticking him was the result of said foreshadowing). Again, I'm probably way off and just read into it more than what was there.

Mistborn and possibly Stormlight SPOILERS for those who care... I really loved the premise for Mistborn but thought that it was poorly executed and TFE doesn't really resemble my understanding of a heist story the way that Brandon always describes it. Also, the most interesting character of the five books I've read is the Lord Ruler and he died in the first book and was only on scene for a couple of chapters. I found his (not really his) journal entries the most interesting. I've only read the first two books of the Wax and Wayne series so please don't tag me in any spoilers but so far I think they're better than the first trilogy with a more fleshed out setting, better plot, and more engaging characters. I also think their belief in the religions established in the first era books to be more plausible. But overall, I don't think any of the Mistborn novels hold a candle to anything found in Stormlight. Still, I get why people enjoy them but personally I'm happy that they weren't my first exposure to Brandon's work. I'm not sure if I really have any truly unpopular opinions other than that... I've seen a lot of people agree with my disappointment in his Reckoners series so I don't feel like that's very unpopular. After reading this thread, I wasn't aware that so many people disliked Shallan or Adolin and was surprised not to find more people complaining about Kaladin being "angsty". I actually like all of the Stormlight characters so far, each for very different and particular reasons. I've seen someone mention on here that they think that Moash is redeemable and I agree with that. I'll also add to it by saying I believe that if Kaladin hadn't be so absorbed in his own self-pity and that if he had sat down and had a more open and frank discussion with Moash that his betrayal could have been prevented and Moash could have learned to move past his grief (even if he still chose not to forgive Elhokar). I also believe that there was more to Elhokar than people give him credit for and based off of some things that he said in The Way of Kings, I thought that he was being haunted by some sort of evil force rather than being unduly paranoid and I wonder if, despite his death, we haven't seen the end of his story yet. But I'm also really bad an guessing stuff like that so I could be waaaaaaay off.

I'd mention the ending but it seems to be a common complaint of the series. Also, this was only my second venture into YA. I started reading Abercrombie's Shattered Sea trilogy without even realizing it was YA (I hadn't realized just how graphic the genre could be, Reckoners included). Anyways, other than the unsatisfying ending, I find myself more interested in what would come next more so than everything I've already read. I would much rather see how this world that has existed among cruel and heartless Epics would react and adapt to them being heroes, especially as human governments start rising again. It is hard to imagine that they would openly welcome heroic Epics, even new Epics who appear post-Calamity (I imagine that all of his power sets would remain and recycle among humans, pretty much creating a world of superpowers among humans without the inevitable corruption bit). Also, this might seem strange since I read the entire trilogy but I didn't really like David. For one, I wasn't aware it was written in first-person when I bought it or I may have waited. Regardless, I didn't really like Dave most of the time and his personality seemed... weird. His whole shtick of being bad at metaphors made me smile here and there and I guess it was meant to be funny but most of the time I just groaned when I read it (and not in a good way like when hearing a corny pun). He did have his moments, though where I did connect with him and actually care about him such as the scene where he recalled riding bikes with his dad. With all that said, I still enjoyed the series. This is one of the few stories I've read in which the plot made me want to keep reading more so than the character, even if the ending flopped a little. I loved the idea of ordinary humans fighting against superpowers (with minimal superpower aid of their own). I also loved all of the unique Epic weaknesses and power-sets. These power-sets are an awesome example of why and how Brandons is so good at creating magic systems. He takes a lot of old, recycled power sets and adds an interesting twist, usually in the coupling of strange and off-the-wall weaknesses and limitations. People keep talking about how they want a movie or a TV series but I'd like to see a comic book version (or continuation, as mentioned above). A table-top RPG would be pretty cool, too.

I've never read Eragon but wasn't the author about fifteen when he wrote it? I understand why veterans of the genre would grow bored of the same old stomping grounds of fantasy but I still enjoy going back to something familiar, even as I crave something more exotic and innovative. Even though it is typically used as an insult, I don't think that a story being cliched necessarily means that it's bad or not worth reading. After all, if Eragon is a young reader's first foray into the fantasy genre then it's something fresh and new from their perspective. My introduction to fantasy outside of Greek and Norse mythology was the Dragonlance Chronicles and I still go back and re-read my favorite scenes. In fact, it was to me what The Lord of the Rings is to a lot of other people and personally (be prepared for incoming blasphemy), I prefer it over Tolkien's work which I've always thought read more like a history than a story. Granted, I'm glad for Tolkien's status within the fantasy genre because without him we might not have all of the wonderful stories that his work inspired. Then again, I don't consider myself to be a "critical reader" or even well-read and I'm relatively easy to please. I tend to forget the books I don't like and forever remember the ones that I do.

I took the test THREE times, only adjusting my answers slightly each time as I tried to be more honest with myself concerning each slider, and all three times I got Truthwatcher as my top result. Truthwatcher: 73% Lightweaker: 66% Windrunner: 63% Edgedancer: 61% Willshaper: 58% Skybreaker: 53% Elsecaller: 49% Stoneward: 48% Dustbringer: 47% Bondsmith: 42% I'm not gonna' lie, I'm a little disappointed by the results. But then these always seem to be the types of results I get in tests like these. I bet if I took a similar test for something like Allomancy, I'd probably get Soother or Tineye when really all I want to do is punch stuff like a Thug. But if I'm being honest, I'd say Truthwatcher fits me pretty well but if I had my pick and stuck to the theme with what I think really fits me the most, I'd probably choose Lightweaver, Elsecaller, or Willshaper. The Truths as Oaths part of Lightweaver would have me scared (I feel bad for Shallan) but I think I fit their more artsy side than I do the scientific part of Truthwatchers. I like the Elsecallers for always wanting to better themselves and reach their potential (something I cam currently working on in my personal life) and Willshapers for how much they value freedom. But if I threw out all of my inhibitions and ignored what I think "truly suits me" then I think I'd want to be an Edgedancer. I'm not a particularly religious person, more of a skeptic really, but I love how the Edgedancers focus on helping the common people, those who might otherwise slip through the cracks. I feel like one of those people sometimes and so I respect their desire to remember those people. Also, I'm not gonna lie, Lift makes it look like some damnation good fun.

It seems that this is a pretty old thread but its also the kind of general world-building topic that I love seeing explored (especially by sharper minds than my own). With the islands being at a higher (and moving, it would seem) altitude, this would change the sort of regular atmosphere the people are accustomed to. This could even change the potential location of resources such as pulling water vapor from the air. This also all depends on the specific limits of the transmutation being used. Playing off of @Hemalurgic Headshot's idea (that is such an awesome name), even if the surface world isn't habitable enough to sustain life, what about underground? Now there is potential for conflict between two drastically different societies vying for similar resources on the surface world. I wish I was more competent in certain subjects such as economics or environmental science. They're boring subjects (to me) but are a natural resource in the sort of in-depth world-building I love reading about.

I never knew this was even a thing. I don't think I'll be able to make it this year, especially if it is something you have to register for. But next year is in Canada and that's even closer to me than Utah. Granted, Writing Excuses likely won't be there but this is a cool convention with a lot of history and I've been wanting to attend events like this.

It was around the big holidays of 2010, October at the earliest, and I was getting ready to go on a rather long car ride with my girlfriend at the time. I think we were going with her family to visit her sister or something. I knew she was going to sleep most of the way and I can't sleep on car rides so I had her parents stop off at a bookstore (called BAM!) before we hit the road. My intention was to find some cheap paperback that I could (mostly) finish in a couple of hours. Maybe two since we were going to be staying there for a few days. There was a shelf dedicated to The Way of Kings and one of the hardcovers had what I recall was a 60% off sticker but that wasn't even what I noticed first. I immediately recognized Michael Whelan's art on the cover. I try not to judge a book by its cover but we've all done it at some point, right? I remember I had just finished Stephen King's Dark Tower series around this time and Whelan had also did the artwork for that and so seeing his work on this pretty new fantasy book felt like fate. I'm not gonna' lie, the mistaken discount played a pretty huge factor and I'm something of a sucker for a beefy hardcover (I just like the way they feel). I had only heard of Brandon as being the guy who was finishing the Wheel of Time but since I had never been interested in that particular series, I never gave him a second look. I hadn't heard of any of his other novels despite some of them being quite popular (Mistborn comes to mind) so it really came down to the marked down sticker, the beautiful cover art, and the synopsis that had me throwing caution to the wind and diving into an unfinished epic fantasy series by an author I had never read and I've been a fan ever since. Something that had struck me right away as I was reading it in the car was that we were introduced to our main character, Kaladin, from the perspective of someone else and I thought that was very well done, especially when you get to know him more and realize he is less (and yet somehow more) heroic than he was portrayed from the perspective of a young soldier. I kind of gave a shorter version of my Sanderson discovery in my introduction post since I didn't know this thread was here so I thought I'd regale you fine folks with the unedited version. Also, I have word vomit.

I believe celebrities and similar public figures have a right to speak on social issues (and use their personal platform to bring attention or rally support) the same as anyone else but they also reserve the same right to remain silent. We all have our own opinion and perspective concerning one issue or another but none of us, regardless of our social status, should ever be obligated to share those opinions. Personally, I think the advent of social media has created something of an entitled expectation of personal and private information, especially from celebrities and other entertainers. I also believe that this expectation has been perpetuated by the many people who use social media for just that purpose, sometimes even sharing thoughts that they likely wouldn't have expressed openly on any other format. In a lot of ways, I am a very private person and I like my privacy to be respected. I extend that same respect to other people. If Brandon (or any other artist or entertainer) were a politician or some similar public figure, then I would understand needing to know where they stand on certain issues. But I couldn't imagine going into work only to have the people around me demand that I share my opinion on any issue. I would feel like they only want to know so that they can (silently or otherwise) judge me when the hard truth of it is that it's just none of their business.

I remember picking up The Eye of the World multiple times when I was a teenager and I just couldn't get into it. I tried it again a couple of times when I was an adult and I had the same problem, though I did get further into it than when I was younger. I finally gave up on the series as a whole and decided that it just wasn't for me. Then I joined Audible and I listened to my first audio book (something I had been resistant to for a long time). I decided to start with something that I had already read and so I listened to The Way of Kings, narrated by Michael Kramer and Kate Reading. I quickly fell in love with audiobooks and now occasionally will switch between reading on my Kindle and listening to an audiobook. When I found out that the same narrators read the audio versions of Jordan's series, I decided to give it a try. This time, I managed to get through the entire book and even the next two (up to The Dragon Reborn, I believe). While listening to the narrative talents of Kramer and Reading made the story so much more enjoyable, I think I've finally resigned myself to the fact that the Wheel of Time just isn't for me. I'm a guy who really enjoys slow-paced plots filled with plenty of philosophical conundrums and political intrigue (probably another reason why I love Oathbringer so much), but I just find myself continually bored by Jordan's characters. That's not to say that I don't think there are any redeeming qualities to it, just not enough for me to want to stick around. I think my biggest beef with it is that I find myself most bored by the main character, Rand al'Thor. He feels like a hollow, insert-reader-here, cardboard character who, over the course of three rather lengthy novels, hasn't developed much past the boy we meet in the first novel. In fact, I've found that nearly every single character who accompanies him are by far more interesting to read about. It's certainly possible that I'll return to the series in the future (the narration is just so easy to listen to), but I just can't bring myself to recommend it to other people. With that being said, I'd recommend at least finishing the first novel before forming your own opinion of it. I finished the first three because I really wanted to like it and while I don't regret giving it that much of a chance, I'm just not captivated by it like so many others are. If you like classic fantasy, it will probably eventually hook you and if you are having a hard time actually reading the book, I'd recommend giving the audio book a try. I really should read the last few posts in a thread before I make a comment. I realized after writing my post above that you're now on the sixth book. I'm glad you're enjoying the series! It blows my mind that so many people consider Oathbringer to be the weakest of the Stormlight series so far but I understand why. Compared to the two that came before it, it does have a slower pace and focuses a bit more heavily on politicking. In a way, it reminds me a lot of The Well of Ascension in how it focuses more on character growth outside of dynamic action scenes. I just started on The Hero of Ages and quite honestly, I find myself less impressed with the action scenes in Mistborn than I am in Stormlight. Maybe that's just because I want my own Shardblade.

I only just joined and have already been pulled away for a couple of days by life events. Oh well. Since then, I've managed to finish the second Mistborn novel and have started on The Hero of Ages. Anyways, thank you for the warm welcome to all those who have commented.

Thanks! I just found out recently that Warbreaker can be read for free so that seems like an obvious next read. I'll probably end up buying the Audible copy, too. As for the content warning, meh. I'm not sensitive to most graphic content but I still appreciate the heads up. As for my favorite magic system... that would have to be Surgebinding. I love how the magic is obtained and kept and how even the same Ideals seem to be subjective depending on the character swearing them. But to be fair, I'm only familiar with the systems found in Stormlight and Mistborn and any question of my favorite anything concerning Brandon's work is likely to lead back to Stormlight as I have such a ridiculously high opinion of the books I've read so far. This is the first time I've ever started reading such a long series that wasn't already finished and I find it both thrilling to be a part of and frustrating in its anticipation.

Hi. I'm Shawn. I only just discovered this site and am excited to start exploring. I'm also a little hesitant as I'm going to try my best to avoid spoilers for the books I haven't read yet. I had considered waiting until I have a few more Sanderson novels on my shelf before joining but at the rate that the man writes, I'm afraid I'd never catch up. Not that, that's a bad thing. So with that said, here I am. I'm not sure how active I'll be on here as I am currently in a state of transition (for the better, I hope), but I'd still like to become a part of this community nevertheless. It's pretty cool that Brandon himself endorses this fan site which made me want to join all the more. My first Sanderson novel was The Way of Kings which I discovered entirely by mistake in some big chain bookstore. I recognized the cover art by one of my favorite artists, Michael Whelan, and the hardcover had been mistakenly priced down (by a lot) so I bought it as an impulse before a long car ride. I had never heard of Brandon before that but that was 10 years ago I've been a fan ever since. Seriously, the Stormlight books so far are the best fantasy novels I have ever read and I regularly refer to The Way of Kings as my favorite novel of all time. Despite having discovered his work so long ago, I still haven't read most of his other books. Other than the three Stormlight novels released so far and Edgedancer, I have only just recently started on the first Mistborn trilogy and even though I don't think it is nearly as good as Stormlight, I am still thoroughly enjoying the series so far (I'm on book 2). I would like to continue reading his Cosmere stories so feel free to share any recommendations on where I should explore next. I even find myself interested in his YA novels which is a genre that I've never had any interest in exploring before. Alright. That's enough out of me. Long-winded introduction coming to an abrupt end in 3, 2, 1...