Which stories grew on you slowly?

[Necessary Eagle]

I didn't really like Sixth of the Dusk at first, because I fundamentally misunderstood its premise. Based on references I came across on TV Tropes, I thought it was going to be a First Contact story. People encountering new weird cultures is my jam, so I was all excited to see how the typical sci-fi tropes would play out in a Cosmere setting... and was tremendously disappointed to see that the Ones Above never even appeared on page! There wasn't a super-exciting plot to distract me from this lack, either: guy rows a boat, guy is walks through the jungle... sure, it's an everything's-trying-to-kill-you jungle, but most of the story is Sixth being careful and avoiding danger. My overall impression was "okay story, I guess" .

On subsequent reads, without the burden of expectations, I started to appreciate SotD more. Particularly the nuanced critique of cultural imperialism. Sixth avoids being a Symbol of anything; he bemoans the death of his people's traditions while noting that his modern boots don't look like the pictures, but they protect his feet better. What the Homeislanders do to the Eelekin, and what the Ones Above are trying to do to the planet, is ultimately wrong, but in the short term, his feet are warm. Both things are true, because the human condition is messy and contradictory. (I don't know if I'm managing to say what I'm trying to say right; this is the best I can do on my phone and before dinner).

I'll stop before this turns into an essay, but SotD is now one of my Cosmere favourites. 

 

What books or series or short stories did it take you a while to appreciate?

[Chinkoln]

I actually didn’t like The Stormlight Archive at first. Now, I can fully appreciate and can answer any questions that are deeply Invested in the plot line. I haven’t read White Sands and never will, because of a prejudice against against comic books.

[Use the Falchion]

Well of Ascension read far better the second time than the first, and Warbreaker read a lot better when I read the annotations along with it and found some songs that meshed well with story. 

[Flying]

Mistborn was my first Sanderson book, and for the majority of the book I was pretty confused and didn't like it. However, I read it for the first time when I was 12 and the only other fantasy I'd read at that point was Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, and Lord of the Rings. I'd never really read a complex magic system, and Allomancy was probably not the first one I should've started out with. I think I eventually kind of understood what was going on towards the end of the first book, and I remember Well of Ascension and Hero of Ages made a lot more sense to me. In this case, it grew on me over time because I was 12 and it was a lot more difficult than anything else I'd read at that point.

On the contrary, I read The Way of Kings for the first time that same year and somehow I understood that so much more. You'd think that I'd find it more confusing than Mistborn because of all the changing viewpoints, but I don't remember being confused by the overall plot at all. It's kind of fun rereading the cosmere with the perspective that I was 12 when I first read all of them. There's always things I didn't catch on to the first time because I was a lot younger and didn't fully understand what was going on. Especially with all the romances. I basically completely missed that Navani was flirting with Dalinar. I also don't think I really understood the Honor Chasm scene, but rereading that felt like a punch to the gut because I'd gotten older and better understood those emotions. So in a way I've kind of felt like I've grown up with the cosmere. I'm still only 16, but I feel like literally every story has grown on me a lot more because when I was 12 I was there for the cool magic and fight scenes, but as I grew up I also understood the characters. 

[Honorless]

Mistborn era 2 was difficult to get into after the original Mistborn trilogy. I just slogged through Alloy of Law and Shadows of Self but then kind of liked Bands of Mourning, so I decided to put that series on hold and begin anew later. Now Mistborn era 2 books are my most reread Sanderson books (they're very light and rereadable!)

I also got bored with Warbreaker midway. I loved the beginning of the book but it becomes a slog in the middle with snooty Vivenna, annoying I'm-so-funny Lightsong, and much-ado-about-nothing Siri then Denth & Tonk Fah happened and I was hooked again.

I also didn't fall in love with Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell at first sight, like I did with Sixth of the Dusk, Secret History or Emperor's Soul but it grew on me upon rereads.

It's probably time to give Elantris a second chance too.

[Kingsdaughter613]

8 hours ago, Chinkoln said:

I actually didn’t like The Stormlight Archive at first. Now, I can fully appreciate and can answer any questions that are deeply Invested in the plot line. I haven’t read White Sands and never will, because of a prejudice against against comic books.

Read the prose. It’s better anyway. They weren’t great comics.

You shouldn’t be prejudiced against an entire genre though. Why don’t you like comics? (And if you say it’s because they’re childish, then I have just one word for you: MAUS. I may have issues with people claiming comics are for kids and/or not real literature. MAUS is better than a whole lot of regular books out there, and it’s definitely not for kids.)

My least favorite Sanderson book is WoA, but it’s definitely better on reread.

Edited November 12, 2020 by Kingsdaughter613

[Koloss17]

Oh I like this!

I was excited about warbreaker and Elantris when I first read them, but when I read the more ambitious works of the cosmere, they seemed meh. I now have a growing appreciation for them ever since I reread them. They are pretty darn good, they just need some rereading.

[Use the Falchion]

Warbreaker 100% for me. I didn't really care for it the first time I read it (post-WoR, so I had a reverse effect to the WoR reveal). But I read it leading up to Oathbringer in 2017, and that time away from the book - along with the annotations and a soundtrack that really made everything pop for me - helped the book grow on me. (Coldrain's songs "UNIVITED," "AFTERMATH," and "A DECADE IN THE RAIN" are my songs of choice. "UNINVITED" works as the "trailer song" in my head as well.) Now I always say that it's not Sanderson's best book, but it's the most Sanderson book of his works. 

Elantris may also be on this list, as I haven't reread it since my first read in about 2015 or 2016. But I remember liking the book and think back on it fondly, so I'm not sure it counts. 

Oh! Shadows of Self! Again, I didn't dislike SoS, but it didn't shine as bright to me compared to AoL and BoM. But again, with the right music, everything reads better. (Hans Zimmer's "Submarine" is the "trailer" song and the theme song.)

 

In terms of Non-Sanderson stuff...maybe Calamity? I still don't like it as much as Steelheart (my first Sanderson book) or Firefight (the best in the series IMO), but I don't dislike it as much as I did when it came out. 

Or maybe The Rithmatist. I liked it when I read it, but I didn't love it. I wasn't sure why people wanted a sequel to it as passionately as they did. But after a reread this year, I can see it.

[Philomath]

I have generally really enjoyed all of Brandon’s books even in first read throughs. But for me, Warbreaker and Oathbringer get better and better each time. The first time I read Warbreaker it was probably the most “adult” book I had read (now I realize that isn’t actually saying much...) but some of the heavy themes made me a little uncomfortable. But now it feels less shocking and the world/characters/growth in that book feel fantastic. Oathbringer was kind of similar for me. Some of those Dalinar flashbacks are brutal. But seeing his arc from start to finish and being able to truly enjoy that on rereads instead of just being shocked a first time through is so good. I just finished a reread of OB in prep for RoW and I found myself in tears during parts of the Battle of Theylen City. Definitely more meaningful and powerful on rereads to me. 

[+Ookla the Leafy]

I think I’m similar to a lot of people here...Warbreaker for me. I read it once, and didn’t appreciate it at all. I slogged through it, but didn’t really “get” it. I actually JUST finished it right before Dawnshard came out, and now I can confidently say thy Warbreaker is a favorite. I also have similar feelings about Elantra’s, but it’s time to give that a re-read. I think part of the problem with that one is, I did the audio book, and I’m not a fan of the voice actors. 

[Tesh]

Warbreaker. I've only read it twice, though. The first time I read it, I was in seventh grade, so maybe 12 or 13 years old. I was only reading it because I'd loved Stormlight (which were my first Sanderson books) and Mistborn (I think only era one at this point), and it was another hefty tome of some more Sanderson awesomeness.

I remember loving the first chapter. It's still one of my favorite scenes in the whole book. But seventh grade me had some issues with the rest of the story. One: we really don't get much Awakening within the first bit. Which was disappointing. Two: I had very little idea what was going on. I was following the plot, but I didn't understand why everything that was happening was happening, and wasn't picking up on a lot. Three: I was a seventh grader, and some of the content made me uncomfortable. At that point in my life, it might have been the most mature book I'd ever read. (I didn't understand all of that stuff that was going on in that regard either).

Now, I know so much more about the book and the Cosmere and Awakening that when I reread it, I was able to pick up on a lot of cool and important stuff earlier on in the book. I also was able to follow the plot and it was really engaging. It really is a fast paced book. I also loved the complexity of it all. And I was able to really appreciate the characters. (I love Vasher and Lightsong. Those two are my favorites). And now I'm much more accustomed to the level of "mature content" that is present in Warbreaker, so that didn't pull me out of the story. 

I reread it in under 24 hours. It was also during the first round of Covid, so I had plenty of time to read. I then went through and read all the annotations, which was a ton of fun.

Elantris has never really been a favorite of mine either, but I reread it about a year ago and I definitely liked it more the second time through. 

The Way of Kings will always be my favorite book, though.

[Rushu42]

I would say Warbreaker, myself. When I first started reading it, I didn't immediately connect with any of the characters, so I wasn't as invested from the start as I've been with some of his other books. And then when it got to the first bedroom scene, I was worried that it was about to get more explicit than I was comfortable, so I stopped reading there.

A few months later, I was in the ER with stomach pain (which thankfully wasn't appendicitis), and my mother offered to read Warbreaker to distract me. I enjoyed it more this time, and finished it on my own later. And the subsequent rereads just deepened my enjoyment.

For example, I didn't like Vivenna much the first time, but I appreciated her arc so much more when I reread it. The magic system is also more interesting than I immediately gave it credit for being. The book still places after Stormlight and Mistborn for me, but I still quite like it now.