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jamofilston 's review for:
Oathbringer
by Brandon Sanderson
After waiting three years for this book, I was nervous that it would not perform to the level of writing I had come to expect from Brandon Sanderson. after reading the first two books in his Masterwork "Stormlight Archives," I thought that I had given Sanderson a reputation in my head that he could not overcome. It speaks a lot to Sanderson's work that I was not surprised when he exceeded my overblown expectations manyfold.
The first third of the book was released in serial form every Tuesday from August 22 to its publishing date on Nov. 14. I waited eagerly for my weekly dose of Oathbringer, which came three chapters at a time on Tor's website. These first 32 chapters are still available for free on their website. This added a new dynamic to the series. I am a fan of web serials, so I am used to the way they promote online discussion, but it was cool to see how it changed many reader's view of reading as they were able to discuss each section on forums each week. It turned the first part of the book into an adventure that many readers got to experience together. The releases in no way diminished the hype leading up to the full release, and I would say they made it stronger. Many chose to opt out of the serial additions, waiting for the full book, but I believe they missed out on a cool opportunity that a novel fandom doesn't often get to experience. I would love to see Sanderson do this in the future and expand the practice to his other series.
Release methods aside, the story was phenomenal. Sanderson describes the book as the culmination of two decades of work, and the book certainly demonstrates the time he and his team spent making it polished and impactful. As I have come to expect, his worldbuilding is phenomenal and immersive, bringing the reader deep into the world. The societies that he continues to develop are realistic and intriguing, and he continues to do an amazing job illustrating how the magic system affects science, culture, and technology of Roshar. He did these even better than previous books, but these are just the standard features of any of his books. This book really shone in character development.
The characters of the “Stormlight Archives” are extremely realistic and relatable in how they act and were they struggle. The whole concept of the magic system revolves around the characters being broken, and many struggle with mental illness, addiction, or other baggage. Sanderson portrays these issues in a relatable and accurate way, and shows them making progress throughout this book. However, the characters have setbacks, and there are no magic answers to their problems, at least not those problems. The action scenes involve a lot of magic to solve large problems.
The action is very engaging in in “Oathbringer.” The whole world is at stake, and Sanderson makes the reader feel the stakes. During my first reading of the book, I laughed, cried, and shouted more times than I can count. Many of the scenes caused me to sit for a while after reading and reflect on everything that happened before moving on. This book grabbed my emotions in a way few books are able, and I became heavily invested in the story very quickly. Each character has moments of fear, grief, broken3ess, and triumph, and I was able to share those moments with them.
This book also offers great commentary on modern issues such as gender roles, class roles, and race relations. Roshar is a diverse place with many cultures, and this gives Sanderson platform he needs to address all of these issues. The book involves a race that has been enslaved for thousands of years getting an uprising, strict gender roles being overturned. In the dominant society of the book, men are not allowed to read and women are not allowed to fight, and this book addresses what happens when people begin to challenge these strictures. It also addresses what happens when oppressors are forced to confront those they have oppressed their whole lives without a second thought.
I could go on all day about how this book covers every area that a book needs to cover flawlessly or how it adds so much to the Cosmere, but it really comes down to this. No book is perfect, but this book makes its flaws extremely difficult to find. This book is more than worth the money and reading the two previous books. It is amazing how much goodness Sanderson was able to cram into his epic, which is just over 1,200pages. This novel was worth the wait.
The first third of the book was released in serial form every Tuesday from August 22 to its publishing date on Nov. 14. I waited eagerly for my weekly dose of Oathbringer, which came three chapters at a time on Tor's website. These first 32 chapters are still available for free on their website. This added a new dynamic to the series. I am a fan of web serials, so I am used to the way they promote online discussion, but it was cool to see how it changed many reader's view of reading as they were able to discuss each section on forums each week. It turned the first part of the book into an adventure that many readers got to experience together. The releases in no way diminished the hype leading up to the full release, and I would say they made it stronger. Many chose to opt out of the serial additions, waiting for the full book, but I believe they missed out on a cool opportunity that a novel fandom doesn't often get to experience. I would love to see Sanderson do this in the future and expand the practice to his other series.
Release methods aside, the story was phenomenal. Sanderson describes the book as the culmination of two decades of work, and the book certainly demonstrates the time he and his team spent making it polished and impactful. As I have come to expect, his worldbuilding is phenomenal and immersive, bringing the reader deep into the world. The societies that he continues to develop are realistic and intriguing, and he continues to do an amazing job illustrating how the magic system affects science, culture, and technology of Roshar. He did these even better than previous books, but these are just the standard features of any of his books. This book really shone in character development.
The characters of the “Stormlight Archives” are extremely realistic and relatable in how they act and were they struggle. The whole concept of the magic system revolves around the characters being broken, and many struggle with mental illness, addiction, or other baggage. Sanderson portrays these issues in a relatable and accurate way, and shows them making progress throughout this book. However, the characters have setbacks, and there are no magic answers to their problems, at least not those problems. The action scenes involve a lot of magic to solve large problems.
The action is very engaging in in “Oathbringer.” The whole world is at stake, and Sanderson makes the reader feel the stakes. During my first reading of the book, I laughed, cried, and shouted more times than I can count. Many of the scenes caused me to sit for a while after reading and reflect on everything that happened before moving on. This book grabbed my emotions in a way few books are able, and I became heavily invested in the story very quickly. Each character has moments of fear, grief, broken3ess, and triumph, and I was able to share those moments with them.
This book also offers great commentary on modern issues such as gender roles, class roles, and race relations. Roshar is a diverse place with many cultures, and this gives Sanderson platform he needs to address all of these issues. The book involves a race that has been enslaved for thousands of years getting an uprising, strict gender roles being overturned. In the dominant society of the book, men are not allowed to read and women are not allowed to fight, and this book addresses what happens when people begin to challenge these strictures. It also addresses what happens when oppressors are forced to confront those they have oppressed their whole lives without a second thought.
I could go on all day about how this book covers every area that a book needs to cover flawlessly or how it adds so much to the Cosmere, but it really comes down to this. No book is perfect, but this book makes its flaws extremely difficult to find. This book is more than worth the money and reading the two previous books. It is amazing how much goodness Sanderson was able to cram into his epic, which is just over 1,200pages. This novel was worth the wait.