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Brandon Sanderson - The Cosmere |OT| there's always another secret...

F

Faiz

Member
I know I was on the train with the early release chapters for Oathbringer but not sure I'm enjoying the experience. The formatting of the web page hosting it feels weird. We'll see how badly I want to read more next week I guess.
 
D

DieH@rd

Banned
I'm waiting for a full book.

Anyhow, I just finished my re-reading of WoK. How should I proceed with WoR re-read, I seem to remember that Sanderson recently changed some events at the end of it...
 
F

Faiz

Member
DieH@rd said:
I'm waiting for a full book.

Anyhow, I just finished my re-reading of WoK. How should I proceed with WoR re-read, I seem to remember that Sanderson recently changed some events at the end of it...
Click to expand...

Yeah, like i mentioned up thread, I usually am too and personal circumstances ATM led me to give it a try. But the overall experience may be just reinforcing my SOP on things like this.

As far as WOR, read whatever copy you have imo. If you have a kindle copy you can update it. If not, just google th change he made.
basically he made it so Kaladin doesn't kill Szeth, he is killed by the storm, because he didn't want Kaladin to be about vengeance.
 
J

Johan Liebert

Member
Wow, I recently reread WoR and had no idea about the changes in the new editions. Thanks for the links.


One change is weird. Did Nale use Surgebinding to heal Szeth or was it a Regrowth fabrial?
 
8

88random

Member
Johan Liebert said:
Wow, I recently reread WoR and had no idea about the changes in the new editions. Thanks for the links.


One change is weird. Did Nale use Surgebinding to heal Szeth or was it a Regrowth fabrial?
Click to expand...

My interpretation is that he used a fabrial that can do Regrowth, but for some reason didn't want to reveal that such a fabrial exists, while Surgebinding Regrowth is already known of.
 
D

Deleted member 98878

Unconfirmed Member
Faiz said:
Yeah, like i mentioned up thread, I usually am too and personal circumstances ATM led me to give it a try. But the overall experience may be just reinforcing my SOP on things like this.

As far as WOR, read whatever copy you have imo. If you have a kindle copy you can update it. If not, just google th change he made.
basically he made it so Kaladin doesn't kill Szeth, he is killed by the storm, because he didn't want Kaladin to be about vengeance.
Click to expand...

wrong tags? you may want to edit your post and change to
. haven't read WoR yet :/
 
F

Faiz

Member
Flips360 said:
wrong tags? you may want to edit your post and change to
. haven't read WoR yet :/
Click to expand...
Sigh... yes... wrong tags. Saw it as soon as I came back to the thread. The button on mobile is right next to bold. Hurried posting on break.

Bleh. Sorry if that fucked anyone over.
 
D

Dandy Lyin

Member
I finished WoR this morning and enjoyed it quite a bit more than WoK. I feel like there was less repetition and glumness in this one. It was more engaging, with a lot more excitement.
Once Shallan and Kaladin fell in the chasm I found it pretty hard to put the book down
. I had no idea that Sanderson had retconned stuff(the version I read was older I guess), but I like the major change he made... It makes sense to me.

One thing about Sanderson's books I feel I miss out on are all the little callbacks that occur. My brain rarely picks up on them unless they are blatantly pointed out in the story. I think it's because the books are so long that I only retain what I consider important at the time.

I'm definitely not going to read Oathbringer week-by-week... That seems way too drawn out for me... I'm not sure what I will read now though. I may dive into Warbreaker(apparently I was supposed to read it before WoR -- oops!)... but I think I'll read a few non-Sanderson books first.
 
Z

zroid

Banned
Oh man, I've been under the delusion that The Lost Metal was a fall 2018 release, but apparently it's planned for fall 2019? Noooooo...

2018 is gonna be a lean year indeed
 
F

Faiz

Member
zroid said:
Oh man, I've been under the delusion that The Lost Metal was a fall 2018 release, but apparently it's planned for fall 2019? Noooooo...

2018 is gonna be a lean year indeed
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As of last year last December, that was indeed the plan. :/

The Lost Metal, Wax and Wayne Four, will be my next non-YA novel project. I still intend to write it so that it can come out in 2018. You should see a progress bar for it pop up sometime in the fall of 2017.
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I'm glad he's enjoying the work he's doing on Apocalypse Guard but putting off Wax and Wayne for another year is killing me.
 
M

MartyStu

Member
So just finished re-reading The Bands of Mourning and I have come to two conclusions:

1) - Wayne is a shitbag. The fact that Sanderson does not realize this is extremely depressing.

2) - Sterris is awesome. The books need more of her. Really pulling for her to be a Mistborn (one has to show up eventually I think)

Also, I think Sanderson's character writing may actually be getting a bit worse. Can't quite put my finger on what it is.
 
Z

zroid

Banned
MartyStu said:
2) - Sterris is awesome. The books need more of her. Really pulling for her to be a Mistborn (one has to show up eventually I think)
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Yes! She's so good!

what bugged me the most about Alloy of Law was how much it glossed over character development. Luckily for me I read all three Era 2 books consecutively so it was more like a minor irritant, but I can see how a lot of readers might have gotten turned off otherwise. Steris was definitely a victim of the first book.
 
M

MartyStu

Member
zroid said:
Yes! She's so good!

what bugged me the most about Alloy of Law was how much it glossed over character development. Luckily for me I read all three Era 2 books consecutively so it was more like a minor irritant, but I can see how a lot of readers might have gotten turned off otherwise. Steris was definitely a victim of the first book.
Click to expand...

The third book has the opposite issue:

Sterris is written as a flanderized version of the character in book one. Her quirks essentially became her character.

Sanderson has always struggled with solid characterizations, and the novella format seems to exacerbate this.
 
Z

zroid

Banned
There were some promotions at indigo so I decided to pre-order Oathbringer finally

...oddly, I noticed the signed edition actually costs less than the normal edition. Sure, why not.

edit: okay I just checked the price of the regular edition on amazon and it's way less. indigo must have effed up.
 
K

kevin1025

Banned
zroid said:
There were some promotions at indigo so I decided to pre-order Oathbringer finally

...oddly, I noticed the signed edition actually costs less than the normal edition. Sure, why not.

edit: okay I just checked the price of the regular edition on amazon and it's way less. indigo must have effed up.
Click to expand...

Yeah, Chapters/Indigo have been a little wonky with their discounts lately. Some are 10-11%, and then there's others at 40%. I miss the olden days when it was a guaranteed 40%!
 
Z

zroid

Banned
kevin1025 said:
Yeah, Chapters/Indigo have been a little wonky with their discounts lately. Some are 10-11%, and then there's others at 40%. I miss the olden days when it was a guaranteed 40%!
Click to expand...
Heh I ended up placing an order for each version.... I'm sure that they will eventually make the price more competitive with amazon as they usually do. it's a major release so they have to I think. I'll get 'em to adjust it later. Signed copy order is just insurance. :p (technically after the promos I was using the price was almost the same as Amazon anyway so)
 
M

mid83

Member
Is there a good place to get a summary of the first two Mistborn books? It's been a few years since I read them and I mostly forget what happened. I don't really feel like rereading so summaries would work before I read book 3 at some point this year.
 
E

exYle

Member
mid83 said:
Is there a good place to get a summary of the first two Mistborn books? It's been a few years since I read them and I mostly forget what happened. I don't really feel like rereading so summaries would work before I read book 3 at some point this year.
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Honestly, the Mistborn books themselves have great recaps at the start, before the actual story begins

Edit: nvm, they're at the back in the appendices
 
K

kevin1025

Banned
Close now!

"Oathbringer advance reader copies just arrived. (Very limited supply, probably all spoken for already.) The book comes out November 14th."

DKmc4W7V4AAthh8.jpg
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https://twitter.com/BrandSanderson/status/912432899340746752
 
C

Celegus

Member
Guess it's getting to be that time to find a refresher for the first two books! Have a terrible memory when it comes to a giant series like this.
 
T

TrutaS

Member
Any youtube / read-up recommendations to catch up to the first two books in a fun way? I read them both when Book of Radiance came out, but I've forgotten a lot and really don't want to re-read 2000+ pages.
 
Q

Quonny

Member
About 9 hours into Words of Radiance Graphic Audio.

Pace is way, way better that WoK. To be expected, but man I can't wait to go to the gym every day to listen.
 
W

weemaster

Member
Just started reading Way of Kings few weeks ago, my first book in the cosmere. I like what i am reading (400 pages in) but the book does indeed take its sweet time with things.
 
Z

zroid

Banned
Thanks to those annotations for TWOK I'm really feeling like re-reading it, along with WOR. Wasn't planning on doing this because it's so time consuming but I'm not sure I'll be satisfied with reading Oathbringer until I do a full re-read now. D:
 
Q

Quonny

Member
Two chapters of dealing with Tyn has lead me to two conclusions: Tyn is annoying, and she brings out Shallan's annoying side.

Double annoying.
 
M

Mifec

Member
These Oathbringer chapters have been so good. I'm glad to see Branderson's writing has not declined. Wax and Wayne are pretty meh compared to how well he writes Stormlight.
 
W

Wafflecakes

Member
Mifec said:
These Oathbringer chapters have been so good. I'm glad to see Branderson's writing has not declined. Wax and Wayne are pretty meh compared to how well he writes Stormlight.
Click to expand...

If by pretty meh you mean boring as fuck, I agree.

I quit the Wax/Wayne books half way through... and I never stop books/series without finishing.
 
P

Poodlestrike

Banned
Mistborn Trilogy 2: Electric Boogaloo suffers from the classic fantasy problem where the protagonists are easily the least interesting characters in their books.
 
D

Dandy Lyin

Member
I like the most recent Wax and Wayne book, but found the first two a bit of a chore to get through. I also found TWoK a bit of a slog though, and loved WoR.
 
V

Vincent Alexander

Member
I keep hearing this author's name, and really want some new Fantasy books to read once I complete Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrel. Question for everyone! While I like A Song of Fire and Ice, and the Book of Malazan or whatever was well-written...I don't like the amount of characters. How is Sanderson with the amount of characters in his books? Will I go batty trying to remember them all, or is it a manageable amount? Actually, my biggest critique of those two books I mentioned isn't JUST because they have so many characters...it is that they have so many characters that the POV shifts between. It makes it unbearable when I have to spend a lot of time with characters I don't care about. I enjoy books where I mostly hang with the same crew.
 
Z

zroid

Banned
Vincent Alexander said:
I keep hearing this author's name, and really want some new Fantasy books to read once I complete Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrel. Question for everyone! While I like A Song of Fire and Ice, and the Book of Malazan or whatever was well-written...I don't like the amount of characters. How is Sanderson with the amount of characters in his books? Will I go batty trying to remember them all, or is it a manageable amount? Actually, my biggest critique of those two books I mentioned isn't JUST because they have so many characters...it is that they have so many characters that the POV shifts between. It makes it unbearable when I have to spend a lot of time with characters I don't care about. I enjoy books where I mostly hang with the same crew.
Click to expand...

From the sound of it, I think you will definitely enjoy the Mistborn series.

Stormlight Archives is a bit more expansive, but the story mostly provides the viewpoints of a small handful of characters, with each book focusing on one in particular, so you may find that to your liking. There certainly are dozens of supporting characters, though.
 
J

Jest Chillin

Member
Vincent Alexander said:
I keep hearing this author's name, and really want some new Fantasy books to read once I complete Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrel. Question for everyone! While I like A Song of Fire and Ice, and the Book of Malazan or whatever was well-written...I don't like the amount of characters. How is Sanderson with the amount of characters in his books? Will I go batty trying to remember them all, or is it a manageable amount? Actually, my biggest critique of those two books I mentioned isn't JUST because they have so many characters...it is that they have so many characters that the POV shifts between. It makes it unbearable when I have to spend a lot of time with characters I don't care about. I enjoy books where I mostly hang with the same crew.
Click to expand...

Sanderson typically has a much smaller cast comparatively to your examples. The only exception is probably Stormlight Archives books but that's more of an expectation over time as more books are made.

Though I will also mention that a lot of people who enjoy books such as your examples have trouble with Sanderson's writing style. "Bad prose" gets said a lot. I personally don't find it bad, but it is far from floral or poetic.
 
V

Vincent Alexander

Member
=
zroid said:
From the sound of it, I think you will definitely enjoy the Mistborn series.

Stormlight Archives is a bit more expansive, but the story mostly provides the viewpoints of a small handful of characters, with each book focusing on one in particular, so you may find that to your liking. There certainly are dozens of supporting characters, though.
Click to expand...
Jest Chillin said:
Sanderson typically has a much smaller cast comparatively to your examples. The only exception is probably Stormlight Archives books but that's more of an expectation over time as more books are made.

Though I will also mention that a lot of people who enjoy books such as your examples have trouble with Sanderson's writing style. "Bad prose" gets said a lot. I personally don't find it bad, but it is far from floral or poetic.
Click to expand...
Awesome. Thank you both. While a friend recommended me Malazan, I couldn't get past book 1 because of the sheer amount of characters that I did not like. Made it really bad when we hit their POV. And as for the writing style, I remember thinking it was well-written...but not my cup of tea. If you're going to have floral or poetic writing then it better have some wit and snazz mixed like I'm currently getting with Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. There were actually a few times in Malazan where I had to go back and re-read a paragraph because I wasn't getting a proper visual picture of what the heck was going on (maybe I just suck at reading). Sanderson's "bad prose" might be right up my alley.
 
J

Jest Chillin

Member
Vincent Alexander said:
=

Awesome. Thank you both. While a friend recommended me Malazan, I couldn't get past book 1 because of the sheer amount of characters that I did not like. Made it really bad when we hit their POV. And as for the writing style, I remember thinking it was well-written...but not my cup of tea. If you're going to have floral or poetic writing then it better have some wit and snazz mixed like I'm currently getting with Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. There were actually a few times in Malazan where I had to go back and re-read a paragraph because I wasn't getting a proper visual picture of what the heck was going on (maybe I just suck at reading). Sanderson's "bad prose" might be right up my alley.
Click to expand...

Then it sounds like you may find Sanderson interesting. I'd say you can start with either The Mistborn trilogy (The Final Empire, The Well of Acension, and The Hero of Ages) or with The Stormlight Archives (The Way of Kings, Words of Radiance, and the upcoming Oathbringer).

The Mistborn trilogy is the first set of books in a planned 13-14 book series that covers 4 different ages of the same planet. The second age is probably my favorite from Sanderson personally (Allow of Law, Shadows of Self, The Bands of Mourning, and upcoming The Lost Metal) but you should read that first age listed above first.

The Stormlight Archives is his big series though. It's planned to be the most epic in scale of all his series. Two sets of 5 books that are basically his Wheel of Time/The Dark Tower.

He has a massive bibliography already and is an extremely fast writer as well so there's quite a bit to dig into if you find you like his style.
 
P

PantherLotus

Professional Schmuck
1. I DIDN'T KNOW THERE WAS AN OT!!!!

2. I hadn't read any Sanderson at all, knowing full well he finished off Jordan's WoT but never bothering.

3. I accidentally read the available Stormlight Archive books because someone said one of them was the only fantasy book recommended by Goodreads. And since I already love fantasy, I gave it a shot. AMAZING.

4. I didn't know it was part of a larger universe.

5. So I'm reaching back and starting Mistborn. I'm halfway through the first book and I haven't loved a beginning this much since I read Robin Hobb's Assassin series. This thing checks all my boxes.

6. I'M NOT ASKING AND DO NOT WANT SPOILERS ... but I am excited to figure out how the Stormlight books connects with this series. So far there seems to be no connection at all. Please don't tell me and only enjoy my ignorance. I can't WAIT to find out how these things tie together, even tangentially.

7. Sanderson really is a fantastic writer.
 
J

Jest Chillin

Member
PantherLotus said:
1. I DIDN'T KNOW THERE WAS AN OT!!!!

2. I hadn't read any Sanderson at all, knowing full well he finished off Jordan's WoT but never bothering.

3. I accidentally read the available Stormlight Archive books because someone said one of them was the only fantasy book recommended by Goodreads. And since I already love fantasy, I gave it a shot. AMAZING.

4. I didn't know it was part of a larger universe.

5. So I'm reaching back and starting Mistborn. I'm halfway through the first book and I haven't loved a beginning this much since I read Robin Hobb's Assassin series. This thing checks all my boxes.

6. I'M NOT ASKING AND DO NOT WANT SPOILERS ... but I am excited to figure out how the Stormlight books connects with this series. So far there seems to be no connection at all. Please don't tell me and only enjoy my ignorance. I can't WAIT to find out how these things tie together, even tangentially.

7. Sanderson really is a fantastic writer.
Click to expand...

Enjoy the ride!
 
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