Isaac's Reviews > Words of Radiance
Words of Radiance (The Stormlight Archive, #2)
by
by
3.5 stars.
What I liked: (a) Man... THAT swordfight. I seriously cheered out loud. That was sheer brilliance. The length of plot and steady building of characters took the climaxes to great heights; (b) Sanderson's plot is long and winding, but he also uses the space that that affords well to build deeper and more satisfying characters. I honestly moved from being really annoyed with Shallan to caring about her. I moved from respecting Kaladin to disliking him - though he somewhat redeemed himself.
What I didn't like: (a) For me at least, the plot was not always compelling - it took so long to move along. I don't mind a deep, winding plot, but everything has to contribute towards it in a seamless and compelling way. I felt Sanderson was not tight enough on this for it to be great. (b) Interludes were largely annoying - except maybe for the ones that took us "behind enemy lines." (c) Sanderson opens up various themes in genuine ways, but - from my perspective as a Christian - what is truly missing here is authentic redemption. These characters are flawed in some ways, admirable in others, but the problem of authentic redemption as a theme in the story is a deep one in my opinion.
What I liked: (a) Man... THAT swordfight. I seriously cheered out loud. That was sheer brilliance. The length of plot and steady building of characters took the climaxes to great heights; (b) Sanderson's plot is long and winding, but he also uses the space that that affords well to build deeper and more satisfying characters. I honestly moved from being really annoyed with Shallan to caring about her. I moved from respecting Kaladin to disliking him - though he somewhat redeemed himself.
What I didn't like: (a) For me at least, the plot was not always compelling - it took so long to move along. I don't mind a deep, winding plot, but everything has to contribute towards it in a seamless and compelling way. I felt Sanderson was not tight enough on this for it to be great. (b) Interludes were largely annoying - except maybe for the ones that took us "behind enemy lines." (c) Sanderson opens up various themes in genuine ways, but - from my perspective as a Christian - what is truly missing here is authentic redemption. These characters are flawed in some ways, admirable in others, but the problem of authentic redemption as a theme in the story is a deep one in my opinion.
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