Book Review--The Stormlight Archives 1-2 by Brandon Sanderson

While reading the prelude and the prologue, I turned to my brother and said, "I can literally feel my writing becoming better."

Brandon Sanderson has a way of doing that to you.

Prepare for a very long, rambling review. These books are over 1000 pages each. It is necessary. Ready? Go.

Ohhhhh, Shardblades. :)

Characters

Kaladin.

Oh my word. He is one of the most realistic NOBLE characters I've ever encountered. Because the cost of being noble in a brutal war has the consequence of tearing you apart. Forcing you to ask the big theological questions.

Thus Kaladin is also one of the most BROKEN characters I've ever encountered. He so seeks to protect the people he loves--and despite his bitter heart, he actually loves quite easily, for he recognizes life as precious. And he is crushed. Again and again and again. He cannot protect those he loves. People die and they are reduced to rotting bodies. If life is precious, how can it be squandered so easily? Despite all his best efforts, he fails to protect.

But.

He keeps trying.

There are so many times when he is on the verge of giving up. When he considers suicide or at least despair. Because apathy is a release from this ravaging pain of guilt and failure. Luckily for Kaladin and the reader, there is Syl. I dare not say too much about Syl for spoiling things, but may I just say she is one of the cutest, sweetest sidekicks ever. And one of the most deadly awesome.

Ohhhhh, Kaladin. <3

Shallan is also broken. We may not know it from the first book (until the end). After all, she seems to be an innocent, if desperate, young woman. A talented artist (yay!) and a determined student. But her past is revealed in the second book, and it is horrible. And yet and yet, she is beautiful, clinging to her sweetness, her cleverness, and her heart, despite the fact it should have been destroyed long ago. 

Dalinar is another man striving for the nobility of old, a man seeking high ideals. He is truly an inspiring man, someone who totally won my heart despite being years older than me. There is also Adolin, his son, a courageous, but hot-headed young man who wants to do the right thing, though distracted by vanity and all the other consequences of being one of the greatest duelists.

Szeth. Driven to the storms of insanity from a job of violence forced upon him. Jasneh, an atheistic philosopher with a far better chance to discover the truth of the supernatural than most of the "religious" figures.

There are far, far more. There are so many characters, it will make your head swim. They come from all different walks of life and points-of-view. They often contradict one another. And the author presents them all with respect, even the ones you hate. Several are very witty, and humor abounds throughout the book, which helps lighten the mood. Each person, even the random ones, are important in their own way. It takes a genius to accomplish that.

World

Like the works of Tolkien, it will take several years to truly understand this world. I'm sure you could take history, geography, literary, spiritual, and language courses. You get a sample of all this throughout the books, but there is always more to learn. Boggling, truly boggling. That is really all there is to say.

Magic

Or is it science? Or *gasp* could it be both?

Brandon Sanderson is a master of magic, writing-wise. Inventive, effective, and understandable. No spells, no sorcery. Not all the powers his characters have are original, but the reasons behind them are. His writing has totally given me a new perspective on different ways powers can work. If you want to see what I mean, read his three laws of magic, which can be found here.

Violence

War and death. A constant theme in these books. Appropriately, it can get downright depressing, which might be one of the reasons why it took me so long to read these books. Had to take a break sometimes.

There is a lot of battle in here, and Brandon Sanderson does not sugar coat or ignore the horror of it. People are constantly dying brutally. Happily, I don't think the descriptions are as violent as they could be. There were really only a few times that I felt a little squeamish. Besides ruthless slaughter, there is also desperate surgery. Kaladin is a surgeon and he has to deal with very messy stuff. Again, I don't think think it's as gruesome as it could be, at least not very often. But if you're very sensitive to violence and death, you probably won't want to read these books.

Sexual

One thing I really, really appreciate about Brandon Sanderson is that he keeps his books clean. There are a few kisses, a few flirtations, but its all kept to a level lower than some of YA books I've read, despite having more real situations.

A truly witty character cracks a few crude or innuendo jokes, which even he acknowledges as beneath him.

Language

A common insult of choice is B-----d.There is a also a smattering of h---, a--, and d---m. But, for what it's worth, the characters don't use language flippantly, only when they're very upset (granted, they're often upset).

Message

My own Fan Art of Kaladin Stormblessed

Let me sum it up for you in a sentence.

This is a cosmic battle between good and evil, the cosmic good is losing, and it's up to men to turn the tide.

So, yep. BAD position to be in. And one that I'm SO glad isn't real.

The spiritual framework of this world is rather confusing, between all the Heralds, the spren, the Stormfather, the Voidbringers, and such. So far, the actual head god is a bit of a mystery to the reader. And these supernatural beings, whether divinities or not, suffer from the same weaknesses as mortals, albeit on a cosmic level. However, the world does stand on a belief of the ultimate truth of right and wrong, lending it a stronger foundation than other secular fantasies that would prefer to just do away with the divine altogether. Still, many characters flounder through the difficulties of what makes right right and wrong wrong.

On an another interesting note, the faultiness of the gods in here gave me a greater appreciation for my faith in Christ and also gave me a chance to remember just how EPIC it is for God to go through the ultimate suffering to restore a world that rejected him.

For the most part, I seek fantasy that reflects my belief in Christ. And this series doesn't. Mr. Sanderson is a Mormon, and while he doesn't seek to write an allegory, his belief does come through. I suspect that many of these characters, though they don't know it, are working their way to divine status, more or less. As such, this puts the heat on for very noble characters. They're working so hard here to do the right thing, so hard.

It's sad for me, because the beauty of undeserved grace from an all-loving and powerful God doesn't exist here in this story. And it causes me to consider my own life. I have just as powerful a reason to be noble. I'm not working for my own self-righteousness, constantly uncertain about the outcome of the cosmos.  I am already guaranteed a victory; I have been redeemed. So in light of this incredible gift, I should be living up to it harder than ever. I'm going to have plenty of doubts, oh yes. Plenty of failures. There may come times when I feel as broken as Kaladin or as awful as Shallan.

But, by the glory of God, I will rise again.