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A review by cass1699
Shadows of Self by Brandon Sanderson
3.0
3.5 stars! ⭐️ didn’t enjoy this sequel as much as the first book in the series, but it was still a decent read nonetheless!
let’s dive into the good stuff first:
the characters in this series are so damn likeable. wax and wayne’s friendship is just chef’s kiss. the way they bounce off each other’s energy and their shared banter is a true highlight of the novel. wayne is so damn funny—there were parts of his dialogue that genuinely made me laugh out loud. i really love the way he’s been fleshed out; he’s this laid-back jokester, but he’s also insanely clever and can be somber and serious when necessary (i.e. during his visits to the university).
i also really grew to love steris in this novel—i wish we had seen more of her! it’s clear that she and wax are developing their own relationship at a slow pace, and i think we could safely call them “friends” right now. i wish we had gotten more of their dynamic in this book, but clearly sanderson had bigger fish to fry. hopefully we’ll be seeing more of them in the next two novels.
and lastly, i LOST! MY! SHIT! when we were reintroduced to several beloved characters from the original trilogy. SAZED!!!!! TENSOON!!!!!!! MELAAN!!!!!! their involvement in this book made my heart so damn happy. i missed my baby TenSoon (did i just call a thousand-year-old pile of mush my baby? yes, yes i did.) i’m so glad the kandra are still kickin’ it in this modernized version of Scadrial.
something that i didn’t enjoy about the story was the heavy emphasis on politics. this isn’t me saying that the emphasis made the book BAD, but it’s just something that i personally don’t love when it comes to reading fantasy/escapism (even though, yes, i know, politics usually play a big role in any type of fantasy book). i’m definitely NOT a poli sci girlie, so sometimes it gets overly confusing, which in turn makes it difficult to keep up!
but aside from those tidbits, i did enjoy the novel and its various twists—especially the one at the end with lessie. that was absolutely heartbreaking. however, like a true masochist, i’m looking forward to continuing with the rest of the series!
let’s dive into the good stuff first:
the characters in this series are so damn likeable. wax and wayne’s friendship is just chef’s kiss. the way they bounce off each other’s energy and their shared banter is a true highlight of the novel. wayne is so damn funny—there were parts of his dialogue that genuinely made me laugh out loud. i really love the way he’s been fleshed out; he’s this laid-back jokester, but he’s also insanely clever and can be somber and serious when necessary (i.e. during his visits to the university).
i also really grew to love steris in this novel—i wish we had seen more of her! it’s clear that she and wax are developing their own relationship at a slow pace, and i think we could safely call them “friends” right now. i wish we had gotten more of their dynamic in this book, but clearly sanderson had bigger fish to fry. hopefully we’ll be seeing more of them in the next two novels.
and lastly, i LOST! MY! SHIT! when we were reintroduced to several beloved characters from the original trilogy. SAZED!!!!! TENSOON!!!!!!! MELAAN!!!!!! their involvement in this book made my heart so damn happy. i missed my baby TenSoon (did i just call a thousand-year-old pile of mush my baby? yes, yes i did.) i’m so glad the kandra are still kickin’ it in this modernized version of Scadrial.
something that i didn’t enjoy about the story was the heavy emphasis on politics. this isn’t me saying that the emphasis made the book BAD, but it’s just something that i personally don’t love when it comes to reading fantasy/escapism (even though, yes, i know, politics usually play a big role in any type of fantasy book). i’m definitely NOT a poli sci girlie, so sometimes it gets overly confusing, which in turn makes it difficult to keep up!
but aside from those tidbits, i did enjoy the novel and its various twists—especially the one at the end with lessie. that was absolutely heartbreaking. however, like a true masochist, i’m looking forward to continuing with the rest of the series!