Wind and Truth NON-SPOILER review | Stormlight Archive 5 by Brandon Sanderson

[@Bookborn]

In fairness to the instagram people who panicked about the 4.5 (since I see a lot of people commenting on that): I think everyone wants this book to be "perfect". It's been highly anticipated. It's a favorite series. A large part of the fandom didn't love RoW: they want this to be THE BOOK. So that's where it's coming from - I've never had people worry about a 4.5 before :)

[@joshuanowlin443]

ROW really grew on me with the reread. I think many in the fandom will have the same reaction as time goes one.

[@Bookborn]

@@joshuanowlin443 I gave RoW 5 stars ☠ I loved it haha

[@numbolnor5806]

@@joshuanowlin443 same

[@davidjaramillo7187]

My personal best rated book ever is like 4,7. some people give 5s so easyly that anything less feels like "she hate it".

[@Bookborn]

@@davidjaramillo7187 I'm known for not giving out 5's easily though, actually!

[@Collosus05]

Thanks for the spoiler free. I have started my audiobook. Listening, not reading. Like a good Vorin man should.

[@Bookborn]

So devout, I applaud you

[@burkhartlaw1]

Kate Reading and Michael Kramer are like old friends of mine at this point. 😊

[@jaredadams8069]

​​@@burkhartlaw1We go way back to a little place called Emond's Field.

[@sixtofive]

Same here lol

[@johnpaul5316]

😂 perfect comment

[@NerdoftheRings]

It was great to meet you and being on the reading order panel alongside you all at DSNX!

[@Bookborn]

It was great meeting you too! I hope you enjoy Wind and Truth now that you finished RoW 👀 You still gotta drop your friend's official/most correct reading order

[@EllenSmyth]

I didn't realize you were there, Nerd of the Rings! I am so sorry.

[@DartonAndorc-rj2yq]

To @bookborn I have been following you on KZbin for a little over A month and @nerd of the rings I have been following you since 500,000 subscribers

[@istuilhos]

Your non-spoiler review is what I've been looking forward to, and my copy just arrived 30 minutes ago. Excellent timing!

[@Bookborn]

GOOD LUCK RADIANT!!

[@k-8397]

Book community freaking out at a 4.5 star rating is insane. If people only want to accept 5 stars for a book they like then star ratings are utterly pointless.

[@Bookborn]

haha I think it's only for this book, i've never had that reaction before. Everyone wants this book to be "perfect" because we aren't getting another stormlight book for such a long time.

[@SaveEurope]

ratings for sanderson books are outlandish and nonsensical. there's a horde of fanboys who give 5 stars to everything he puts out. don't take those scores serious (not speaking about single scores like here on this channel)

[@CombativeRoboGuy]

Whoever is complaining about that is insane. First off, it’s someone’s opinion but more importantly, it’s BOOKBORN. I feel like she gives out 5 stars on a much rarer basis than other people. I think 4.5 stars is crazy good.

[@CombativeRoboGuy]

@SaveEuropeI think it’s awesome that some people can give 5 stars to all his books, I personally wouldn’t, but if they enjoy all his stuff that much I think that’s great.

[@Duncdunc2377]

It’s a Sanderson fan thing. Doesn’t happen often with other series

[@libraryofaviking]

Great review and huge respect for getting this review out this early!

[@iamthejolson]

Them: “It’s ONLY a 4.5 stars!?? Why did you hate it!?” Me: “Oh crap it’s a 9/10? Awesome can’t wait to finish it”

[@Bookborn]

This is the way

[@Lilo_D._Boom]

I think it's because most people are used to every booktuber rating EVERY SINGLE book a five star.

[@Archonsx]

that rating is pretty bad in review terms tho, because reviewers try to pump the rating more to be nice, so that they dont lose viewers and possible partnership with authors.

[@rudyh721]

I’m about a third of the way, so far I feel it’s accurate. And most of the other stormlight books were the same for me. Nothing wrong with 9/10 The first 2 I would give a 10/10 but even those had a few imperfect moments, just not enough to tick it down. This whole series is amazing

[@iamthejolson]

@@Archonsx you really think that’s the case with her?

[@flemingstephen16]

It is encouraging to hear that you believe one can read only the Stormlight series and understand everything still. I don’t have the time to read an entire universe of books (and maybe one day, I’d like to or could) and I own the first two Stormlight books, but haven’t started yet. This definitely reassures me that I could read them with no issue. I’ll have to check it out.

[@Hadybiggs]

I would really recommend listening to the books! Very easy to get into that way

[@Iluvatar196]

​​@@Hadybiggs Either this or get the shorter, more digestible books : Mistborn, Warbreaker, Elantris, etc

[@Baked_beans9]

Definitely, though make sure you include the novellas. Edgedancer is book 2.5, Dawnshard is book 3.5 and both are pretty mandatory for 2 of the major interlude characters you meet in books 1-3

[@bhargavapothakamuri4218]

Damn I have been refreshing the KZbin for reviews for more than 12 hours!! Your’s is the first. Grabbing popcorn.

[@Natey1216]

Did not expect adolin to become my favorite character by the end of wind and truth with kal

[@Liam......]

I totally agree on the rating, and can confirm as someone who has only read the Stormlight archive books, you absolutely don't need any other info for the book to make sense/ be impactful

[@genghisgalahad8465]

that's fascinating! I've gotten to make a modified list that includes Mistborn first, Warbreaker, then Way of Kings, Words of Radiance*, Elantris, and Edgedancer, then Oathbringer, then Dawnshard, then Rhythm of War, Mistborn era 2, then SA5:WaT, and then perhaps the three secret projects in a row....hopefully that gets me to read a ton! Heck, I admire the headlong full-bore direct approach! Will you incorporate Edgedancer and Dawnshard?

[@Bookborn]

SAY IT LOUDER. So glad to have you here to confirm. I know I've been ~in~ the fandom for a long time, but I just truly feel like Sanderson explains everything you need to know.

[@Liam......]

@Bookborn Absolutely, he does. I hadn't read any Sanderson prior but decided to catch up for this release, and even without the recommended tangential read (Warbreaker etc.) everything was perfectly clear and felt relevant. Excited to go back and read other works now, though!

[@stevejenkins8580]

I was at Nexus Thursday evening and saw you, but didn't stop to say hi! You were in the middle of conversations and I had limited time to do everything I wanted to. I'm only 100 pages into WaT so far but it feels so...kinetic. The plot is moving forward so quickly that I feel like I need a minute to remind myself of things that have happened in previous books so I'm fully on board with where the characters are.

[@Bookborn]

I hope you had fun! I thought it was a great year! Yes, it's so fast paced! That's part of why I needed some time to process when I finished!

[@zamboozled322]

I have also finished the book!! I finshed in 2.5 days, although I had a 300 page head start due to chapter previews. The events are fresh in my mind and my thoughts are all fuzzy. I will need videos to sort through this mess. But oh my god I know exactly which interludes you are talking about, and the destination for the journey of a particular character. I agree. Can’t wait for the full spoiler review!!

[@Coffeekeepsmerolling]

I finished it in five days, and agree, I want to go back and savor the book. I also, really want to know your specific thoughts on the character arcs you alluded to! On another note, as an academic writer, I do think his explicit mental health explanations were worth those descriptions. Thanks for getting this out so fast!!

[@emosongsandreadalongs]

I agree about the over explaining. I'm only in chapter 13 and I already feel like certain scenes are being dragged out longer than necessary

[@Morfeusm]

It’s really weird but those 33 chapters that were previewed and available before the release feel a bit different than the rest of the book. You will see when you get there.

[@LordPerrin]

Buckle in for 1000 more pages of that then. This one could have been a good 200 pages shorter if every character didnt need to overexplain their reaction to every event even if theyd already done it a page ago. Brandon needs a new editor. Hes got what i call anime style writing where its like he doesnt trust his audience to remember anything or be able to draw the logical narrative implications of any event.

[@BooksWithBenghisKahn]

Great review! I’m in the middle chapters right now and having a good time with it (especially loving the interludes and flashbacks!). 100% agree on the overexplaining of feelings and the unusually high degree of telling rather than showing in this one. It’s noticeably hindering my enjoyment and immersion compared with basically all previous Cosmere books. Still so invested in this story though and can’t wait for the Sanderlanche!!!

[@Bookborn]

Did I just get a Ben comment with the word IMMERSION in it?? truly peaked JK I totally get what you mean, those moments actually did take me out of it as well. It gets lesser though as the book goes on.

[@BooksWithBenghisKahn]

@ ☺️💪

[@Chewie_Games]

Great review. Thank you for focusing on the parts you enjoyed rather than losing yourself to the parts they you didn't like most channels.

[@user-ly2ll5od1r]

yeah she basically gave the same critiques about over explanations and prose just like everyone else, yet it's weird how for some it barely mattered, and for others it ruined the entire book completely, which is even more weird because prose and overexplanations have always been the 2 major drawbacks of ALL sanderson's books.

[@Chewie_Games]

@@user-ly2ll5od1r Exactly. Saw one guy talk about how slow paced the start felt for 10 minutes and I was wondering if this was their first Sanderson Novel.

[@thomasranney8913]

Great overview! I am forcing myself to work through this slowly. My tendency with an anticipated book is to plow through, but after the mind-blowing Prologue (at least for me!) I am pausing to come up for breath and take some notes.

[@Bookborn]

This is smart tbh. I think I might reread the entire thing soon because I was so eager to get through that I probably missed some of the finer details.

[@esmayrosalyne]

Sounds like we literally had the exact same experience. I just finished it this morning and I am kicking myself for devouring it so fast but I really just couldn't stop myself lol. The story was SO addictive and I absolutely adored all the bold and unexpected twists, turns and revelations. Sanderson outdid himself! I am glad you had such a phenomenal time at Dragonsteel btw, loved seeing you have so much fun in your IG stories updates 🥰🥰

[@nathantowns1999]

I’m quite a bit behind you-but wanted to comment and say how cool it was to run into you at Dragonsteel. I was the awkward guy who sat at your lunch table. You talked to my brother and sister-in-law about that Dragonsteel card game

[@Bookborn]

I didn't feel like you were awkward at all lol I'm so glad you said hi! And I'm not surprised I was talking to them about the card game ☠ I think everyone who ran into me that weekend suffered the same fate unfortunately

[@readbykyle3082]

Hey you're the guy who doesn't know Tech N9ne! 🤪 I agree you weren't awkward!

[@nathantowns1999]

@ that was me! To be fair, I know *of* techn9ne lol

[@nathantowns1999]

@@Bookborn oh and trust me-my brother and sister-in-law did not *suffer* their conversation with you about the cards. They were fully on board that train

[@crumblyburgers]

The shirt. Oh, gosh. Killing me all over again.

[@IanKernohan]

I'm so sorry I missed you at DSN! Maybe next year, it would be great to give you a high five for all the great work you do here.

[@Bookborn]

I hope you enjoyed yourself! I thought it was crazy fun

[@deathbyliche1745]

Love the Collectible Book Vault shoutout! Their coverage of fine press books is great!

[@Bookborn]

The truly have such an artistic eye

[@jordanashcroft796]

Thanks for the great review! I completely agree on your quibbles. I'm only through day 3 so far, but had already felt like I've seen more than I want of characters thinking of their faults or mental health issues. I just want to read the story!

[@JacobNichols24]

I couldn't remember what the second interlude was that you mentioned, but I just read 12 and figured that had to be it and had to come back to this video to confirm. That was incredible.

[@di3s3l44]

DANG IT BOOKBORN! I’m only 300 pages into The Way of Kings but wanted to watch through. Well at least you put in a spoiler warning, thank you!

[@Bookborn]

I think what I said wouldn't have had meaning tbh, since it was vague, but I think it's better safe than sorry personally. It also spoils who stays alive, ya know?

[@micahlarimer155]

you are in for a wonderful journey.

[@joshbrown4489]

​@@micahlarimer155journey before destination

[@newketolady1859]

Thanks for this non-spoiler review. I have my copy already, but due to other commitments, I can't start reading yet, because I know I'll be hard-pressed to put the book down and get reasonable hours of sleep. So I need to wait a few days more. Anyway, in the meantime I'm torturing myself with intermittent Stormlight content, and your video has both put my heart at ease and ratcheted up my anxiety/anticipation for this read. Thanks again.☺

[@Bookborn]

I totally know how you feel. I knew once I started the book it would take over my life.

[@Shelleyskane]

I loved it but wayyy too much modern language and concepts made its way into the book. I hope this is cleaned up in arc 2.

[@Fifmut]

Unfortunately, it only seems to be getting worse. Which is a shame, because aside from that, I think his prose is getting better. So it ends up being very mixed and it will hurt his books in the long term. I don't understand why nobody told him to stop using modern internet slang in a fantasy series.

[@Shelleyskane]

@ exactly, at this stage in someone’s writing career you’d expect them to have improved on their prose and it’s coming across like Sanderson doesn’t want to try cause he’s gotten away with mediocre prose for so long. I’ve seen that this feedback has reached him so I hope it’s taken on board cause the modern language was just too jarring for me.

[@mrnemoid]

Just finished it a couple days ago and I loved it. If I had to identify flaws/quibbles I would pick the same as you (mainly the over explaining, a couple repetitive mental health ideas, and a couple things feeling a bit rushed), but I think because I’m not a reviewer/critic and because I loved the book so much as a whole I would still give it 5 stars personally. As far as I’ve seen in the community as reviews have come out, I think the most divisive thing is the writing style, with a lot of people saying they think it’s his worst written book in a while. I didn’t see that coming when I’d finished because I loved the writing, and generally I’ve felt the writing has worked progressively better and better for me with each Stormlight book. But different things work for different people. I’m just glad I haven’t seen too many people upset about the things I think you were saying some people might be upset about, which is a credit to the fan base imo.

[@Bookborn]

SPOILERS AHEAD I was worried people would be divided on Kaladin’s journey! If you’re attached to him being a crazy cool fighter, seeing him NOT so that this entire book might be difficult. I haven’t seen a ton of it though so I’m glad to be wrong!

[@mrnemoid]

@@Bookbornahhhhh okay. Yeah without spoiling anything I was thinking you meant Renarin’s development. But I haven’t seen anything negative about Kaladin’s journey either!

[@cenedra20]

Now i need to hear your spoiler review!!

[@NormFields]

I've barely gotten started and you're absolutely right about the moving scenes. Already hit a few in just the first few chapters.

[@andrewgarlach1011]

About 150 pages in, normally an audiobook guy but i always try to read a physical for the 1st time with Sanderson for all the artwork. So much less time to actually sit down with a book though so its slow going. Thanks for the review!

[@hefeweiz3n]

I just started Day 1, will probably tackle the whole book while vacationing in the maledives next week :). Thanks for the review, good to hear that Sanderson managed to tie up everything neatly (like he usually does :))

[@billa7266]

Wish there was a version of this video where you were more specific. Finished the audiobook earlier this week and thoroughly enjoyed it. I was really hoping for more resolution to the story than there was. I’m a fan but not hardcore enough to have followed every Sanderson utterance, so I knew it was the end of the first arc, but only recently learned that there’s only a 10ish year break between 5&6. I was expecting more of a Mistborn era 1 -> 2 kind of thing, so I’m left hanging a little more than I wanted.

[@tylerschnabel1743]

I absolutely loved this book as a conclusion to the first arc. I agree that it will be a different brand of divisive. I did not have trouble with the character arc you are referring to-if I have the correct one in mind-I thought it was a beautiful way of wrapping it up. Thank you for the review, I have been waiting for someone to finish it so I can hear another’s thoughts on it, no one so know reads Sanderson so I am on my own here.

[@Bookborn]

SPOILERS**** --- --- --- I was speaking of Kaladin's arc. I personally loved it too

[@Mnfst011-e2o]

We need more people like this telling us truth! Just finished reading Hidden Signs of the Universe by Olivia Cooper. Its fascinating what they hide from society

[@WhitneyStokes-z2c]

Great review. Thanks so much for keeping it spoiler free. Looking forward to your next book review.

[@pohnprayin]

“I love being a Vorin man! Having my wife read and write everything for me is awesome” Undertext: my husband is a dum dum, here’s a ketek to prove it: fooling the storm, awaiting my fate, except my fate is to wait on a storming fool

[@Cooldito1111]

I finished W&T Sunday (Started Thursday with the preview chapters so I had a head start) and I agree, I need another read to fully process and appreciate all these great moments. I'm still at a loss for words to describe most of this book!

[@Flammewar]

I just finished it and am satisfied with how many character arcs were concluded. I also liked the second half of the book much better than the first half. I don't know it felt like two different books. Did he take a big break from writing between the two halves? Overall, I would give the first half a 3.0 and the second half a 4.5 with a 4.0 for the entire book.

[@Morfeusm]

I am still reading but yeah this book has couple of these shifts, I think it’s editing fault. I had issues with Oathbringer where I didn’t like most of the book… until that Sanderlanche happened. But yayks some super cringy paragraphs and sentences in this one. However I love it so far and I am only at 50 percent mark.

[@user-ez9ng2rw9c]

As someone who thinks its a 10/10 and the best cosmere book, i think your 4.5/5 is entirely valid. No book can ever be perfect to all people and honestly if it tries to be, it'll probably fail at pleasing anybody. In general people who are getting angry about someone else's ratings missed kinda the point of a couple of character arcs. I'm really liked the pacing and while the overexplanation was there, i didn't really mind it since it felt pretty genuine and real to healthy interactions in real life. The improvements in overall pacing made up for it a lot to me, I found no plotlines to be really annoying, which is something i really have struggled with in every book of the series, and honestly all epic fantasy in general.

[@Bookborn]

I will totally agree with your last point that this is probably the first of the Stormlight Books where each perspective felt as exciting as any other! Glad you loved it

[@mohdtalha6882]

SA is my absolute favourite book series of all time and Daniel Greenes review of Wind and Truth made me really sad. Reading your comment has given me hope again 😤.

[@calebmauer1751]

Yeah, the editing could have been tighter, but like, people focusing on that are missing the forest for the trees. This book was a roller coaster and I feel like it's really Brandon at his best, while balancing the need for payoff with the need for setting us up for the next 5 books. Like if people just take time and think it over for a while, their minds will be churning with all the possibilities ahead of us. Unfortunately, there are tradeoffs with a series this big, while he's also working on the much larger overall Cosmere series, we can't have our cake and eat it too: Do we want him to spend an extra year cutting out 150 pages that won't change the substance of the story, or do we want to get the next book a year sooner? If he spends an extra year on every book, the Cosmere as a whole could end with Brandon DNFing it.

[@thomasdelaney4898]

it's* when you want to say "it is". Remember to capitalise "I" in the middle of sentences too.

[@samrambo6976]

Just finished it the other day. Was absolutely fantastic! Thought it wrapped up every arc and added so much to the worldbuilding. So much character depth for other characters (like the heralds and shards) as well so excited

[@NormFields]

Three days! That's almost 500 pages per day! Wow! Impressive!

[@Bookborn]

I didn't do anything else besides read for those days for the most part lol

[@TC-by3il]

That's just crazy.

[@jax426nd]

Thanks for the spoiler free review! I'm currently just starting Day 2. I'm enjoying it so far and am excited to see where everyone goes. Especially Adolin as he is one of my favorites! I'm with you on Rhythm of War. I loved the science behind it and learning all of the mechanics of light!

[@N.A.Summur]

I’m glad it worked so well for you! I’m excited to see how it hits for me!

[@mosiah9205]

I’m going to make a prediction about the divisive point you made around 14:30 and thereabouts. I’m predicting Sanderson makes Adolin a Radiant. I know many people have been hoping he doesn’t become one to have a “normal” person to root for and be on the protagonist side. I happen to fall into that camp, but if I’m right, it won’t be the end of the world.

[@Echinder]

I'm only 4 chapters in and loving it. Looking forward to catching up. Great review and thanks for avoiding spoilers

[@fullmetalathlete]

Really wishing you had a full spoiler section cause some of these topics are broad enough that it could have been any character or situation...

[@Bookborn]

I will eventually have a spoiler chat when there’s been time for people to read the book :)

[@RedFuryBooks]

So glad to see you are very positive on this one! I was nervous as I thought Rhythm of War had some major problems for me. Thanks for the review!

[@Bookborn]

I probably should’ve mentioned that I loved rhythm of war… so people who disliked that one might not want to trust my review 😂

[@RedFuryBooks]

@@Bookborn you had mentioned the science/experiments with stormlight being something a lot of readers didn't like (me included) but that it wasn't a big factor in this one definitely is something positive for me. Jake also just published an extremely flattering review too, so I need to try to fit this in soon!

[@henrytortor2530]

Been waiting for this review 😭😭

[@Aldric524]

Hey Bookborn! Great to hear you liked the book. The humor, while not my total favorite, never bothers me as much as it does you, so no worries (for me) there. I'm 42 percent done, and not hurrying my way through. Enjoying it quite a bit so far!

[@useroaygrech2927]

Thank you for this review!! But also, where can I get your shirt omg

[@Bookborn]

I made it 😁😁

[@ColtA34]

Thank you for the spoiler free review!! It made me excited to finish my re read and get to Wind and Truth.

[@ZachHeller-p7r]

I'm about 200-300 pages from the ending, but I can already say that this book will *probably* be better on a re-read. It's like a movie that I have been so hyped for; I have to contend with the fact that it isn't what I had in my head. On the re-read will be where I met the book on its own footing and appreciate it better.

[@belis6349]

Will you do a spoiler review as well? I would like to know what you actually mean when you talk in abstract about "the amazing new pov" or that "special moment for a character".

[@sierravaldivia-clemen1513]

Yay! Thanks for the pic at Dragonsteel! I was the gal in the Aragon shirt 😊

[@clever_trevor_forever]

It was fun meeting you at Dragonsteel nexus in line at the Silverlight mercantile! My wife was the one who rolled the nat 20. :D

[@Bookborn]

Yes hi!! I was so jealous of her 😂 did you guys end up completing your story deck?

[@alawishus44]

Excellent warning @6:10 with saying you're going to spoil books 1-4!!! Haha I haven't yet read Rhythm, but was wanting to just hear your general reaction of Winds of Truth Thank you for that

[@Transformers217]

That’s awesome! I’m so happy you gave it a high rating! I can’t wait to read the whole book! 😊

[@munen-muso]

Thanks for the spoiler warning about books 1-4 because I'm still waiting to see a little more about how this series shakes out before I begin.

[@SoulRemedyOrg]

nice shirt! one of my favorite lines in the book!

[@vanichka89]

Just finished the book. I loved it. I was not expecting some of the twists and reveals, but they were so satisfying. I agree with your estimation that the flashbacks are maybe the best. Szeth was always interesting, but after this book he may be my favorite. Thank you for the review. Now the theorizing for the second part begins..

[@seankirby8892]

Brandon does a great job of making each book/series stand alone whilr being connected to the rest of the cosemere

[@istuilhos]

Are you saying Sanderson is to feelings as Jordan was to clothing?

[@Bookborn]

Don't disrespect the smoothing of the skirts here

[@shumandaniele]

Valid comparison

[@josephreusch]

I just finished last night and agree that the journey led to a satisfying destination. I gave it a 9/10 it’s not my favourite of the series so far but it did have some of the best moments and in usual Sanderson fashion most of it occurs near the end.

[@NormFields]

Loved the review! Thanks. Now back to reading 🤓

[@TheArtfulBrittani]

Jasnah has been my favorite too! (I also have pronounced it the same and mad the audiobooks have corrected me because I always thought of Princess Jasmine from Aladdin.)

[@Bookborn]

Jasnah stans RISE!

[@s.r.dragonreads4915]

Great review! I agree with like everything you mentioned in this video. There definitely were things that felt rushed because of the 10 day structure. But I walk away feeling I got what I wanted from this book, though not in the way I exoected.

[@eusociality]

Absolutely the craziest book I’ve ever read, for both better and worse. I read it (minus days 1 and 2) in a single day, so there was probably a lot I missed. Overall, I’m still deciding what I think of it in comparison to the rest of the series, but like all Stormlight, I did love it very much.

[@Bookborn]

Yes yes yes to all of this haha. People keep asking for my ranking of the books but I need time and distance I think. And a reread 😂

[@charliekippen8210]

I got it at Dragonsteel Nexus and had finished it by 4:30 on Friday morning (I did read the preview chapters). I just couldn’t bring myself to put it down!

[@Chandrakumar_N]

Great content as always . Please do a spoiler review as well. Would love to get your thoughts and how you processed the book.

[@officerpiles4374]

Would love a review with spoilers if you have time to make this too! Trying to infer your thoughts back to the events of the book post-read is tricky 😅

[@Chloes_World_of_Books]

Cannot wait for Wednesday's video, even having read all of the Cosmere I know I miss a lot of references! Hopefully by then I can also finish WaT.

[@felicisrex8281]

I agree with a 4.5 I think overall it was a great journey however there also was an issue where since there were so many perspectives going on that it would take a while to get back to any individuals story.

[@Bookborn]

YES. I think this hurt the beginning more than the ending, though, for me personally. It took a while for any story to feel like it was getting anywhere becasue there were so many moving pieces.

[@LastHumanRD]

My favourite 'part' of the book was Brandon taking the time to let us sit with some of the characters in the small moments and breathe. Not every character arc hit it for me, and I feel two of my favourite were sold a little short, but overall I think he stuck the (midway!) landing. A difficult task considering all the threads that needed to be tied up.

[@tct8284]

Not sure if I am thinking about the same Jasnah chapter but I did love how it ended in ways. I liked the tie back to some of my issues with Jasnah from Way of Kings. I get frustrated with people siding with Odium.

[@TheHiggybaby]

I met your husband at DSNX but I'm sorry that I missed bumping into you! Glad you could hang out with my friend Matt over at Nerd of the Rings, though! Wish I could have attended the reading order panel to make sure y'all agreed with the reading order I set out for him (which he mostly ignored lol)

[@Bookborn]

Lmao you’re the famous friend! He told us about your reading order but never sent it to me. I want to know what it was 😂

[@TheHiggybaby]

@Bookborn Haha indeed! Though I'm almost too scared to share it given how much hype he seems to have given it lol The long short of it is order of publication with the exception of reading Mistborn Era 1 first before Elantris. The big ones I emphasized, however, was reading Warbreaker before WoR and Secret History after Bands of Mourning. He stuck with those, fortunately!

[@Clintosaurus]

As a reader who’s reading the Stormlight Archive for the first time and rabidly trying to get current with the books to be a part of the WaT conversation, 3:28 thank you for saying this. I’m reading through Oathbringer right now but I’ve been so intimidated by how much everyone is telling me I have read before I can even pick up WaT!

[@Morfeusm]

@@Clintosaurus absolutely nothing. You can just read Stormlight Archive. There are some let’s say eastern eggs from time to time but nothing major. It helps you to understand some things better but don’t worry, there’s nothing you HAVE TO read before WaT.

[@6ixpoint5ive]

Goodreads/Uber/etc have ruined the 5*. 5* is supposed to be saved for the best in absolutely everything, pure perfection, and is often achieved over time upon reflection (it's also completley subjective, as is all rating systems.) A 4.5 is still amazing, nay incredible, nay fantastic! Most books I read or movies I watch I rate a 4.5 and these are movies/books I absolutely adore and love, and even moved me to tears. To the book people who rate everything a 5, thats fine, you do you, but 4.5 is fantastic and let's not press the panic button about it, please and thank-you.

[@QLIES]

👏👏👏

[@jadencasto]

I’m only about 10 hours in (Audiobook) and so far I have been really pleased with the pacing! I have felt that a lot of the Stormlight Archive books can take a while to get going, but this one has felt perfect to me

[@andrewoliver6650]

A thoughtful review as can be expected from your channel. Watched your recap up to Words of Radiance... now reading Edgedancer which I never read, then onto Dawnshard. I will probably be able to start Wind and Truth soon, but it'll take some study for me to remember. Anyway, I find Lift... tedious 😅 "Pancake awesomeness." What is this character from a picture book doing in an adult fantasy series?

[@StuartWeir]

Can you make a spoiler-filled version of this as well, at some point? It would be helpful to understand which parts you did or didn’t like in more detail. As someone who doesn’t read a ton, I don’t know I’d I would have caught some of the nuances you might as a reviewer, and I’d love to hear your more in depth thoughts! Thanks for putting this together though! I loved this book for so many reasons (I _also_ loved RoW), and I also felt somewhat frustrated in at times. I’ll leave it at that to respect your audience reading the comments, however 😊

[@newbiesama]

4:05 Which it had been in every stormlight book. As someone who started with Stormlight and reread it this last year, I noticed how many points to other cosmere works were in there. BUT it never deducted from the story itself. Every Sanderson fan by now should know that he is very capable at this.

[@JennHernes]

Your dancing around spoilers is killing me! 😂 Curious if you can elaborate about the Jasnah chapter you didn't like? Wondering if it was the section in the sample chapters or later in the book? OMG I can't wait to watch the connections video. This book had so many things. I've finished it already too and definitely need to reread at a slower pace

[@Bookborn]

Chapters 114/116! It was SO HARD to dance around spoilers, but I don't want to spoil things for anyone 😂

[@mathemagician26]

Interlude 7!!! (Cosmere-wide spoiler) It actually makes me reconsider a line from Tress which fans jumped on as referring to Marsh. Maybe it’s Moash instead/also? Coincidence that their names are also so similar?

[@Q0T0J]

4.5? That seems to generous imo. For me WaT was the weakest of the 5 books in Stormlight Archive. All the issues Sanderson have with pros, structure and pacing was brought to a peak in WaT. It's the most structurally caotic book he's written to date imo.

[@RobbieD213]

On day 5, loving the pace and the way this is setting up.

[@lalalaurenlibby]

I was hoping this would be posted on Wednesday but here it is even earlier! About to start day 8 and this review has so me so excited/anxious for what is to come! Will you be sharing more spoiler thoughts eventually? And after reading this book so fast I know I’m going to need your Cosmere connections video for all the things I missed Also I totally agree with you on characters over explaining themselves but I’m having so much fun with everything else I’ve already gotten over it

[@Bookborn]

Yes I will! I'm lightly planning on having the same crew come back that did a live with me on RoW so we can go over the predictions we got right and wrong, and then talk spoilers. But that probably won't be until January - we want to give time for people to read the book!

[@Mightyjordy]

Ok I just finished the book and I can see what you mean by being divisive, despite really loving it myself. A small note on your review with potential spoilers... . . . I couldn't think of what scene you didn't like with Jasnah, was it the part where she talks about her sex life? Because that felt kind of weird but I didn't think all the much of it at the time. Also im very curious if the shirt was made before or after reading this one...

[@Bookborn]

*spoilers* --- --- --- haha no, I thought that was pretty normal for an adult book? It was the discussion/debate with Tarvangian. I found the chapter pretty frustrating, and not quite good enough for how I think Jasnah could've overcome things in that conversation. IDK, it just wasn't written strongly for me. However, the end result was really fantastic. Shirt was made BEFORE lmao I literally DIED when I read everything that went down.

[@Mightyjordy]

@ ohhh got it. Yeah I actually loved that chapter but I agree there were some pretty obvious arguments against him that weren’t used. I assumed her failure here is probably a launching point for her character growth in the back half of the series, and I was reading it at like 3am while sick in bed so maybe I was just absorbing it all

[@crylorenzo]

Loved this! Please do a spoiler review some time too! I just finished and want to hear others talk details!

[@chayanika8155]

Ok heres the thing. Don't kill me, but I was a little bit apprehensive about Wind and Truth. So I've found many of Brandon's recent books to be a bit disappointing except Tress if I am truthful starting from Rhythm of War (OB had been amazing). Kind of for the same thing that you mentioned, telling more than showing. And yeah I too found Venli's flashbacks annoying, though I did love the Navani and science parts. But you've certainly intrigued me. Worried about the fan theories you've mentioned. Still, your high rating does make me hopeful. But let's see!!

[@rockargen9591]

I finished WaT a few days ago and I gotta say it was amazing, the pace was really fast but not to the point that it felt like it was all crammed and should have been longer, more like the characters had to rush to reach their goals since they had just 10 days so they were constantly moving. I didn't find a single chapter to be boring, I always wanted to keep reading no matter who the pov changed to wich hadn't happened to me in the previous books where there was always at least five chapters were I had to force myself to read them so I could get to the next one, but not this one. I just went "Kaladin, yes I wanna keep reading this, oh Adolin? Sure let's go! Shallan? Heck yeah..." and on and on, I had to force myself to stop reading so I could do other stuff like eat or sleep lol. And I Love the destination of all the characters, I don't think there is a resolution I didn't like and they were all super surprising as well, I barely read the communitys theories so I just thought about some myself and despite the fact that none of mine came true I just thought "this probably couldn't have ended better". I do agree though that it's objectively around a 4-4.5 since the dialogue felt repetitive sometimes, but I never found it to be a big problem since (like all of his books) it's really easy and quick to read so a few thousand extra words didn't really matter to me in this 1500 page beast (and I think people greatly exagerate when saying a whole 200 pages could have been cut out, that's just false imo, 50 at most). Regardless, it's probably my favourite book in the series and I'm just so hype about Mistborn era 3 and the last arc of the Stormlight Archive, I may not know where I'll be in life by the time they come out, but if I'm still breathing I'll definetly read them all.

[@jasonbailey9139]

What I got from your review: Bookborn the Reviewer -- 4.5 Bookborn the Cosmer Fan --5.0 ~~~~~ Spoiler ~~~~~ I'm only 1/2 way through. I'm loving it and trying to drag it our as I know he's going back to Scadriel which is my least favorite Cosmere planet. Don't get me wrong--it's good...but I like every other planet that gets a book (not just a short story) better. I'm guessing Renarin/R'Lain is going to ruffle some feathers, but I feel like this topic was already broached when the Bridge 4 guy (whose name escapes me, but Lift was admiring in the preview chapters) got married a book or two ago. Looks like Shallan's mom is about to be verified where I am in the book and was verified at her wedding at the Worldhopper Ball. I'm really hoping baby champion is disproved, but if it isn't, I'm trusing you and Sanderson that it will be satisfying if it happens.I really wasn't expecting Gav to end up in the spiritual realm with his grandparents. That was a great twist...and I love that he presented as a spren so anything weird that he said could be glossed over as a quirk of the spren.

[@PhineasPlauche]

1400 pages in 3.5 days is insane; I can't wait to read it!

[@akellerhouse83]

Man. I was wondering how you finished it already. I got mine at Dragonsteel, and I've only read 200 pages, most of which was done in the Salt Lake City airport yesterday. Lol. It's really good so far. I watched your Lightweavers and Willshapers panel on Sat. You guys all did a really good job. I wanted to come up and meet you, but it's awkward for me to do that.

[@pandaboy76]

Is there going to be a spoilers included review? Im really curious about your opinion

[@dmears7782]

Great series will always spark your imagination to the point that you will be always a little bit disappointed in the ending, but if it satisfies you, that is a great win.

[@BookishDrummer]

I just finished! 🎉 5 stars! I’ve given all of the books 5 stars and I’m so glad he stuck the landing! I’ll be filming my review tomorrow and post it on Wednesday! My review will be spoiler filled haha I can’t talk about this book without diving deep hah

[@b_olson542]

Just picked up my hardcover and the audiobook. Super excited!

[@loredanadeblasio]

Just finished the book, I would really like if you could make a spoiler filled video so we can hear all the specifics of your thoughts

[@LewsTherinWasRight]

Thanks for the review, I’ll probably end up reading this eventually despite how bad book 4 was. To any commenters that have already read this tome, do Shallan and Kaladin’s chapters improve in this one? Because if they’re arcs are the same static ones we’ve gotten in books 2/3/4 I’ll likely drop the series.

[@Bookborn]

I understand why people didn't like RoW even though it worked for me, but I'm surprised you find Kaladin and Shallan's characters arcs static. Kaladin in particular made a very large breakthrough in book 4, as did Shallan!

[@LewsTherinWasRight]

@ I agree they did, but I also thought they made significant breakthroughs in the previous two books as well. Only for the next to start up with Kaladin struggling with a slightly different iteration of his depression and Shallan has another dark secret from her childhood creating a new personality. These arcs aren’t so much as static I suppose but they certainly feel rehashed. And with the length of these books it makes every internal or introspective Kaladin/Shallan chapter feel like a repetitive slog.

[@Bookborn]

@@LewsTherinWasRight I def understand the Shallan part - I also feel it's hard when you have to keep seeing more trauma from her past - but Kaladin's arc felt very realistic to me when considering depression. It's never cured. So for me personally, Kaladin's arc feels unique in fantasy because it isn't solved.