The Way of Kings
Book One of the Stormlight Archive
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- $7.99
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson, The Way of Kings, Book One of the Stormlight Archive, begins an incredible new saga of epic proportion. Roshar is a world of stone and storms. Uncanny tempests of incredible power sweep across the rocky terrain so frequently that they have shaped ecology and civilization alike. Animals hide in shells, trees pull in branches, and grass retracts into the soilless ground. Cities are built only where the topography offers shelter. It has been centuries since the fall of the ten consecrated orders known as the Knights Radiant, but their Shardblades and Shardplate remain: mystical swords and suits of armor that transform ordinary men into near-invincible warriors. Men trade kingdoms for Shardblades. Wars were fought for them, and won by them. One such war rages on a ruined landscape called the Shattered Plains. There, Kaladin, who traded his medical apprenticeship for a spear to protect his little brother, has been reduced to slavery. In a war that makes no sense, where ten armies fight separately against a single foe, he struggles to save his men and to fathom the leaders who consider them expendable. Brightlord Dalinar Kholin commands one of those other armies. Like his brother, the late king, he is fascinated by an ancient text called The Way of Kings. Troubled by over-powering visions of ancient times and the Knights Radiant, he has begun to doubt his own sanity. Across the ocean, an untried young woman named Shallan seeks to train under an eminent scholar and notorious heretic, Dalinar's niece, Jasnah. Though she genuinely loves learning, Shallan's motives are less than pure. As she plans a daring theft, her research for Jasnah hints at secrets of the Knights Radiant and the true cause of the war. The result of over ten years of planning, writing, and world-building, The Way of Kings is but the opening movement of the Stormlight Archive, a bold masterpiece in the making. Speak again the ancient oaths: Life before death. Strength before weakness. Journey before Destination. and return to men the Shards they once bore. The Knights Radiant must stand again. Other Tor books by Brandon Sanderson The Cosmere The Stormlight Archive ● The Way of Kings ● Words of Radiance ● Edgedancer (novella) ● Oathbringer ● Dawnshard (novella) ● Rhythm of War The Mistborn Saga The Original Trilogy ● Mistborn ● The Well of Ascension ● The Hero of Ages Wax and Wayne ● The Alloy of Law ● Shadows of Self ● The Bands of Mourning ● The Lost Metal Other Cosmere novels ● Elantris ● Warbreaker ● Tress of the Emerald Sea ● Yumi and the Nightmare Painter ● The Sunlit Man Collection ● Arcanum Unbounded: The Cosmere Collection The Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians series ● Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians ● The Scrivener's Bones ● The Knights of Crystallia ● The Shattered Lens ● The Dark Talent ● Bastille vs. the Evil Librarians (with Janci Patterson) Other novels ● The Rithmatist ● Legion: The Many Lives of Stephen Leeds ● The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England Other books by Brandon Sanderson The Reckoners ● Steelheart ● Firefight ● Calamity Skyward ● Skyward ● Starsight ● Cytonic ● Skyward Flight (with Janci Patterson) ● Defiant At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Imagine a place that’s regularly ravaged by storms of such fearsome power that plants quake in fear and cities are few and far between. This is Roshar. In The Way of Kings, book one of the Stormlight Archive series, author Brandon Sanderson builds a world of stone, swords, soldiers, and magical devices. Amid deeply complex political machinations and a raging war between kingdoms, we meet a handful of seemingly unconnected characters: a skilled but reluctant assassin, a hardened fighter with a hatred for nobles, and a noblewoman with hidden powers. The ensemble’s distinct first-person voices engrossed us in their stories and left us wondering when their paths might cross. We loved exploring a world as gloriously multifaceted as those created by J. R. R. Tolkien and George R. R. Martin, and with three more books in the series (and counting), this gripping tale is just the beginning.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This massive tome is the first of a 10-part epic fantasy series from relative newcomer Sanderson (Mistborn), best known for his efforts to complete the late Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series. In a storm-swept world where history has dwindled into myth, self-serving aristocrats squabble over mystical weapons that render their bearers immune to mundane attacks. The ambitious scholar Shallan learns unexpected truths about the present, the virtuous aristocrat Dalinar reclaims the lost past, and the bitter and broken slave Kaladin gains unwanted power. Race-related plot themes may raise some eyebrows, and there's no hope for anything resembling a conclusion in this introductory volume, but Sanderson's fondness for misleading the reader and his talent for feeding out revelations and action scenes at just the right pace will keep epic fantasy fans intrigued and hoping for redemptive future installments.
Customer Reviews
Taking over
Brandon Sanderson is quickly taking over and breathing new life into the fantasy genre. Robert Jordan's greatest skill as a writer was his ability to create new worlds on a grand scope. Sanderson not only has created a world that you will continually want to return to, but he has also developed complex and interesting characters. Sanderson is sure to continue to build his fan base with what appears to be the next major epic fantasy series.
Amazing piece of fantasy!
This is the first Brandon Sanderson work I have read and I could hardly put it down. His imagery is extensive, the world he creates is extremely imaginative and immersive. I can hardly wait for the next book to see the story continue. In the mean time I will read some of his other works, it seems he is quite the literary gem.
The only downside to this book is apparent in the digitized copy. The illustrations are small and when I try to zoom in to read the notes the pixelation becomes readily visible and the notes are illegible. This comes as a shock since the author himself praises his artist both in the book and online, yet in his digital copy the illustrations are ignored. There are also several typos in the digital copy, almost all after double f's (effort becomes eff ort). These are easily overlooked since the writing and story are so engrossing.
I highly recommend this book and I await the rest of the series!
Wow
I can't wait for the next installment--just a fantastic read. The overarching storyline was interesting whilst the direct intentions/goals of the main characters was gripping enough to keep you wanting more. The combined result is a story set in an incredibly new and fresh world that the reader is easily immersed in. I downloaded the sample and found myself interested but also confused. The book takes a while to understand and enjoy, but it is definitely work a place on your iShelfs.