Bliev

You probably know plenty of people who do so--it is a fairly common psychological phenomenon, particularly associated with PTSD. Besides, because it's an internal process, you probably wouldn't be privy to their coping mechanisms or what is going on in their head. Shallan is so dissociative with her pain that she literally creates new personas. That's an incredibly severe coping mechanism, so it doesn't surprise me at all that she would compartmentalize her feelings about a man she grew to trust being the very person who has caused her such pain. I think it's completely reasonable to not care for Shallan's perspective (just like I could do without Kaladin much of the time). But I do know that without each of them, the story suffers. I think that's the key. I find components of the story that I like and attach to in every character, even the ones who aren't my favorites.

MAYBE HE DOES. It would explain a lot. (I kid I kid)

The man’s a machine. (or, er, a fabrial rather?)

@Jenet *enter all of the applause memes here* I concur. With all of this. It’s beautiful.

@The traveller I totally agree on the WoT. :-) in terms of Shallan, I’ll have to say that I think she has progressed, although not because of her magic. Her magic gave her the tools to regress, yes, to escape. Her order values the subtleties and nuances between truth and lies and one can get lost in there if that’s what you want. In many ways, Kal is boring to me for this reason. He’s your typical fantasy path...linear growth and goodness leads to increased access to magic, so he can selflessly save other people. (His stagnation in OB was welcome to me for that reason!) Ilike Shallan’s struggle. I like the distinction between her public and private selves and how she seeks to pretend nothing is wrong. I’ve been her so many times (though never hiding something as deep as she is), and if I had the ability to create an alter ego to give me confidence? What a dangerous gift. And yet, she fights it. At the end, when it threatens to consume her, she recognizes the danger in it and stops it. She takes responsibility for trying to escape. She’s not better or fixed. But she recognizes the danger in her gift. It’s why I like so much that she chooses Adolin, who has always accepted her—from their first discussion. When she tried to pretend she was a flirt and demure, she asked him about pooping. Lol and he loves her for it. I think that’s because Adolin has his own experiences trying to pretend all is well for the benefit of other people... i think mine is a rare opinion, but I’d read 10 Shallan chapters before I’d enjoy a Bridge 4 chapter. And that’s why Brando Sando is so awesome—he provides for us all. ;-)

I could see being a bit judgmental or snobbish—as if being Dalinar’s man is better than being a soldier for someone else?

I totally agree with this--I want Adolin to be all he can be too. My aversion to him become "Radiant" isn't that I don't want more radiants (I think it'd be cool if almost everyone bonded a spren, tbh--I want Navani to be radiant too) but it's because I want him to stick by Maya and I don't think that will result in powers as we've seen them thus far. I disagree with this. Sapient spren have a choice of who they bond, and they have different reasons for choosing people. They are attracted to certain things, sure, and Brandon has said that they start paying attention when other spren have bonded people who are adjacent to someone, but so long as there are "broken" parts of a spirit web and the spren is attracted, a bond can form. Seems to me that there are plenty of spren who wouldn't have a problem with Adolin's choice or his reason for taking responsibility for it. Maybe not someone like Syl, but following your own code, staying true to yourself, realizing that you shouldn't be King because you're not the best suited for it? Adolin didn't blame someone else--he didn't Moash it. He just didn't act as Kal would have. To be honest, I think Jasnah and her spren will find both his choice and his reason to be quite logical.

I totally understand. My argument isn’t against your opinions on what you think he should or shouldn’t feel about his choice, but rather against your contention that he doesn’t “deserve” to be a Radiant because of that choice. He took responsibility for it. He doesn’t regret it. And Brandon has made it clear that there are people in world and out (including himself!) and spren who do not have a problem with his choice. I still maintain that I don’t want him to become a Radiant as per my prior posts, but it’s not about what he “deserves”.

Brandon has made it clear that this is way more a gray area—both in terms of societal morals and spren opinions—than you’re presenting it here. I remember a WOB saying “sure, Honor wouldn’t have liked it, but Honor’s dead.” And not all spren are honorspren. I believe there’s a WOB that some other spren orders would not have been bothered at all by his actions. ETA a WOB from March 2015: And from the same March 2014 signing: And:

I disagree completely that he "deserves" it. What does it mean to deserve to be a Radiant anyways? Radiant =/= "good" or "deserving", imho. It just means a radiant spren has taken a liking to you and you can progress through the oaths at their discretion. Adolin "deserves" it as much as anyone. With that said, I completely agree that I would like him to remain not Radiant. I would like to see, as I mentioned before, Adolin rejecting Radiance in order to remain bonded to Maya. Knowing that if he chooses to bond a Radiant spren, he has to give her up--and choosing not to do that. I would like to think it would be that Connection to her that might revive her to sapience once again, but not healed enough to grant surges.

Yes—although re-written like this I’m not *entirely* sold that this is exactly what I think. But I think the truth may lie somewhere in the middle.

@Bearer of Agonies I like this theory! Also, since the "individual's consciousness" is an interesting thing for them, I wonder if sometimes they don't separate back out again--that this "merging" and "separating" can happen in waves and does not necessarily result in a new "being" per se. If they don't feel quite the same compulsion toward individuality or autonomy, maybe they merge when necessary and separate when necessary, thus it's less 1+1=>3 and more 1+1+1-1=3-1 etc.? The "whose hordelings do these belong to" question may be a question that Dysian Aimians would not even consider asking because their sense of individuality differs from ours? (Forgive me if this doesn't make sense, I'm taking a break from grading and my brain is somewhat fried. lol)

I love the theories above! We know that deadeyes have broken spirit webs, but aren't "dead" like we think of humans being "dead". They still scream, they move, they obviously respond. I think they're much more like the slaveform Parsh than anything else--their connection was broken, they move through the world as if in a fog--vaguely remembering that something is very wrong and very broken within them. Restoring that connection is what WOB has mentioned would "heal" them (which is, as of yet, impossible because the original breakers of the bond/oath are dead), and we also know that stormlight is not enough. I do, however, like the idea of Adolin filling in the broken spirit web for Maya similar to how the spren are seen as filling in the the broken spirit web of humans to grant them surges. I also like the idea of Dalinar's connection greasing the path for Adolin to do this. I also wonder if there isn't more to this as well. For millennia, humans have used Shardblades without caring or knowing who or what they really are. Adolin is listening and learning to love this blade and its spren, just as she is--he doesn't think, "wow, if I only she would change and make me a Radiant"; he bonds with her and listens to her--just as she is. It would be ironic if the humans could have "healed" the deadeyes all along, all while the current spren sought to keep them "safe" from humans and the current humans had no idea. I also wouldn't be surprised if Adolin has the chance to form a Radiant bond--maybe a spren becomes attracted to him--but he forgoes it out of his connection to Maya. And that might actually be the intention that awakens her. Relatedly, I actually don't think there is any way that Adolin "heals" Maya back into her original Cultivation spren state. What is broken will always have scars. Rather, I think healing a deadeye will look very different--that a bond will indeed be forged, connection and spirit web restored in some way, but that a Radiant bond will be impossible. And I think it is through this healing process that we will learn what really happened at the Recreance.

My favorite order is bondsmith because I think the idea of bringing people together and bonding such a powerful spren is so interesting. Heavy burden, yes, but also impactful. I'll be interested to see if the bondsmith order has high variance based on the nature of the other two spren involved... The order I'd likely be in? Probably Edgedancer. I do a lot of listening, both as a mom and as a professor. My most rewarding moments are when I help my little ones see the world differently or help my not-so-little ones (my students) be the best version of themselves (although, maybe that's more a Lightweaver thing...that I help people see their best selves?) I also feel like I'm kind of Adolin-like in a lot of ways, and since he seems to be on that path, it fits.

I remember @Calderis having a theory about this once? A few years back. I think it's mostly around Szeth possibly being a respected Stone Shaman before his exile and thus he's bonded to the Honorblade until his death or until it's removed from him by the leader of the Shamanate.

I don't know if I could match them, but I think I could do the main Radiants' Zodiac signs more easily. lol Like: Leo: leader + confident + arrogant/bossy ==> Jasnah (although maybe she's more a Capricorn...Practical, ambitious, fatalistic lol...while Dalinar is a Leo?) Cancer: protective + moody ==> Kal

OK. This was too good. Bravo.

@Fractalfire @Calderis this is also why I don’t do audio books. I started the audiobooks for my 7yo daughter and I for Harry Potter on a recent car ride and we hated it for this same reason. So now I’m reading the HP books aloud to her (and she reads to herself at school in between) so I can make the voices as I want them to be. I’m a professor so I don’t get to do acting/drama stuff much, so this has been a fun opportunity to be creative. :-) OP, I have friends who swear by audio books, so YMMV! You’ll definitely be able to move through them at a quicker pace.

I love that interlude! I always felt it was more a Kaladin/Laral/Roshone parallel (except the young Brightlady does not choose the strapping young soldier but rather the "safe" rich Lord)...but the addition of the "King's Wit" on the last page was brilliant. How fun would it be if it's actually based on Hoid's past philandering about Roshar? Love those little tidbits.

Yeah, there was a recent WOB that the whole "non compete pact" was not an actual pact because they didn't make an actual oath that would have bound them. So seems like oaths are binding for all the shards, not just "of Honor".

I had completely forgotten. The Thaylen guy, right? I knew Jasnah had good...taste. badabing

If she doesn't, the she's not the logical woman I thought she was. Every smart woman should have a cheap and easy way to access good pastry.

Is Whelan doing the cover art again? I hope so! Jasnah on the OB cover was stunning and I love his full scene prints. the last two have been battle scenes, highlighting a central Radiant. Maybe we will see Venli on this cover or Navani with her Fabrials?

I am quite literally L-O-Ling. My dog is concerned.

Brandon, on Reddit a few hours ago: Edit: my guess is that he's not quite ready to put the title in stone yet, but the marketing machine must be sated so rev it up, title or no!