Warbreaker

Warbreaker, like the other Sanderson novels, continues the tradition of a new setting, a new magic system, and new characters. It begins with a brief setup where we learn about our protagonists, then quickly moves onto the core plot and magical tie-ins. The magic system strikes a balance with earlier Cosmere novels, with (in hindsight) the perfect melding of plot impact, political intrigue, and character development. It's clear Sanderson has hit his stride by Warbreaker, yet at the same time elevates his craft with new surprises, twists, and strong (rotating!) contenders for your favorite character. I also found the annotations EXTREMELY worthwhile to read (skipping spoilers on my first read-through), as they provided even more draw towards the core plot, additional character back-stories, and an exploration of Sanderson's thorough/deliberate writing process. I found this the perfect step from earlier Cosmere novels to the wider Stormlight Archive series.

3.5/5 stars.

In Warbreaker Brandon Sanderson once again displays his talent of writing well thought out and original hard magic systems as well as acquainting us with a cast of memorable and interesting characters.

The magic in this world is called BioChromatic Breath which, simply put, harness the power of ones ‘Breath’, the colour of an object and a spoken Command to Awaken an object. Of course there is a lot more to this system, but this is the basic idea. Just as with other novels of Brandon Sanderson the reader learns about the magic through the experiences of the characters which works wonders for the immersion into this world.

Besides the magic, the characters in this novel are both unique and interesting. The overarching theme is their naivete, as they are of royal descent or a god who have been spared the ugliness of the world outside their court. They all are prisoners of their own prosperity and it very interesting to see each character unique and slow escape of ignorance.

Though, not (yet) as grand in scope and world building as Mistborn, it is a very entertaining tale and not every book needs to be a grand epic series. If the second book in this world ever comes out I will surely read it as fast a possible. Now it is time for me to start with The Stormlight Archive.

Sympa mais sans plus, probablement destiné à un public légèrement plus jeune que moi.

Vasher et Saignenuit ont une relation intrigante, Chanteflamme est souvent drôle, le reste des personnages m'a paru plus cliché, notamment les deux princesses qui m'ont paru fades car facile à prédire.

J'ai lu ce livre principalement pour connaître l'origine de Saignenuit.

I liked the theme of duty and hate, and pretty much all the characters. Lightsong is probably my favorite. His interactions and character conclusion are just so good. But Vivennia is also really good, seeing her go from being a mindless sheep that hates what she was always told to hate to going with vasher and becoming an "awakener" was cool. The worldbuilding and lore was cool as well. The magic system is interesting but I wonder about it's limitations because breathes as a concept are inherently extremely limited and the magic system can't even be abused to it's fullest without thousands of them.

Cool book. Not as good as final empire or emperor's soul but still solid. Maybe a little too long for the concepts it plays with.

Time to read: 13 hours 39 minutes

This was my first time reading Sanderson and it’s clear he is a great storyteller. It felt a little YA to me, which is not a bad thing, but sometimes it seemed like it didn't know if it was going to be an adult or YA story. Nice world-building: the author really takes time to develop the world and bring it to life, without making it boring. The high point of this book was the Magic System based on colors and Breaths. It's intricate and interesting. I like it when magic has rules, restrictions, and costs to the user. There are some good plot twists that caught me totally by surprise.

Easily the horniest Sanderson I've read so far, and also the one that has more substantial things to say about class and status. As I finish up the first phase of the cosmere, some of the complaints I've had about the other books are more than adequately accounted for in others, by having such a broad scope he is able to focus each story on the issues that are most relevant to it. This one might actually have my favorite set of characters in it, and it's a shame there hasn't been more of this world explored yet, but that just means there is plenty to look forward to.

What an enticing combination of genres:. There's a little bit of mystery/intrigue, a bit of espionage, a bitt of fantastical history, and, of course, sci-fi/fantasy. I read this book because my younger son really encouraged it, emphasizing that although it was fantasy (which is HIS genre), I would probably like the mystery and intrigue. He, of course, was right. I like fantasy, but it's usually not my go to in and of itself, although Levi and I do have a significant overlap, I really am primarily murder mystery and science. This had a consistent scientific basis of its own, not the Earth's, and there was a fair amount of intrigue. Most of the characters were likable, but there were definitely some surprises! And it's LONG – almost 25 hours recorded! But in the end, it's satisfying and, although there are some questions for the sequels, there are no hanging unanswered issues. Overall, a good investment of time and brainwork.

This is an other great Brandon Sanderson book, even if it isn't his best. I enjoyed the characters, especially Lightsong, and the mysterious magic of Breaths and BioChroma. The magic feels far more incomplete than, for example, Mistborn or Elantris, but it feels deliberate as I'm sure Sanderson will return to this world in the future. I reread this book because of two elements in it that appeared in Words of Radiance. It's interesting to see how Sanderson is starting to link the Cosmere books together. I look forward to reading from all his series and spotting the connections!

For a full review, check out my blog: strakul.blogspot.com/2014/04/book-review-warbreaker-by-brandon.html

2020 Reread

In advance of Rhythm of War releasing in November I wanted to revisit the larger Cosmere. Let's be honest though, I was here for Nightblood and any appearance with Vasher was excellent. I forgot about Hoid's appearance in the story and when the Cosmere tale has been woven his transition from world to world will be fun to map out.

It may be that the magic or world doesn't interest me but I didn't feel compelled to carve out additional time in my day to read the story. Ultimately this is probably my least favorite Sanderson/Cosmere story. True to any Sanderson story it finishes strong and the final 15% is a rollercoaster of a ride and with the hint of another story I'm like "sign me up, this was fun" because I'm quick to forget the days prior to that climax.

Original review from 2016

"I learned it many, many years ago from a man who didn't know who he was, Your Majesty. It was a distant place where two lands meet and gods have died. But that is unimportant."

A person knows when they're in darkness, Nightblood said. Even when they can't see.

In my quest to consume more Cosmere material (that wasn't Mistborn or Stormlight Archive) I turned my attention next to Warbreaker. The magic system was well executed and made for some interesting perspectives on power and deitiy. I liked the humor that some of the characters had and each POV was written with a very distinct style.

I would have rated this higher if more of the areas surrounding Hallandren were explored, or discussed, because when the end of the book was accelerating towards me I found the motives of some characters a bit surprising.

Vasher and Nightblood steal the story and it's a shame there wasn't more focus on them. Sanderson has a way of writing a character in the background and after the climax you realize how incredible they were and want to read more of their work, or even re-read the story a gain to pick up on details you missed the first time around.

Overall this was a good story from Sanderson. There were a few tidbits about the Cosmere mythology that Hoid shared, but overall an enjoyable standalone read that could offer new readers of Sanderson to his material.

Another good Sanderson novel, kept my interest more than some of the Stormlight Archive novels. Fell a bit into paranormal/fantasy romance territory which I usually can't stand, but Sanderson managed to steer through those treacherous waters gracefully.

My second Sanderson book after Way of Kings and didn't come away disappointed; I thought the magic system was particularly interesting as on paper it sounds very disparate and inconsistent like the rules were made by throwing darts at a board full of different arbitrary ideas (color-powered! transferable souls! magic power tiers! commanding inanimate things! people can come back from the dead!), but Sanderson takes those ideas and turns them into genuinely fascinating worlbuilding and magic systems. I also enjoyed the characters and their banter, specially Lightsong's.