Brandon Sanderson has done it once again. He has written another great series, but this time it’s different. In his debut, the Mistborn trilogy he was cautious, but this time he is bold and strong. It starts off strong and never slows down. It is a masterpiece of writing and his best book yet. It looks like it will rival the Wheel of Time series and the Song of Ice and Fire series. Way of Kings is the first book in the Storm Light Archive. He has written a masterpiece of suspense and action. At 1256, pages it is a huge book but completely worth the time needed to read it. It is action packed and filled with suspense and intrigue. Way of Kings also is very intricate but it is not too hard to follow.
The book starts off with a prologue that takes place about 4000 years before the rest of the book. The prologue explains some of the language, slang and history that are used throughout the rest of the book. The main characters include Kaladin, Dalinar, Adolin, Navani, and Shallan. All of the characters are well developed but the best of them is Kaladin, with Dalinar as a close second. Kaladin was a surgeon who was originally part of the Alethi army but when they were defeated he got taken as a slave. Dalinar is a bright lord, a noble, and is one of the few people that still adhere to the way of kings, a set of rules that govern the way a man must act in the line of duty. Adolin and Navani are other nobles whose point of view the story is told from although they don’t play a major part in the story. Shallan is a noble that has lost a soulcaster, a magical device used to create goods and defend oneself. Her family must get another one or they will be killed by the people that loaned it to them. To do this she becomes a ward to one of the most powerful people in the country. She then begins her plan.
This book is one of the best reads I have had this year. It is extremely suspenseful and has a very intricate plot. It is also wonderful because unlike Robert Jordan he does not drag on and describe every single detail. He leaves some of the details to your imagination. It is a long read but fans of Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series or George martin’s Song of Ice and Fire series will love it. It promises to be a great series and he plans to publish one book a year starting when he finishes his other books and the Wheel of Time series.