Words of Radiance Review (2024)

Here we go, please understand spoilers ahead.

I'm just going to say everything that I loved about this book.

200 Pages to Go

At the time of writing this review, I am on page 800 so I have about 200 more pages to go and wow oh wow. I’m going to try not to spoil this book but this book if you’ve read the first book, you’ll know this book is going through the story of Kaladin, Shallan, Dalinar, and so many more characters. I will say the back of the book really tells a great synopsis of the book. It talks about the light weavers, and the surge binders, and the wind runners. Incredible.

The way, Brandon tells the stories make you cry make you shout for joy make you want to read more.

After spending so much time with these characters you really understand them more, and feel for them when things go poorly for them. Every turn of this book, you may expect, but Brandon has a way of turning every turn on its head. You’ll never be able to know exactly what is going to happen. You may get small drips of, “oh yeah I remember that character, but oh wow I didn’t expect that!” Also, Hoid is amazing and I love every second of page time he gets. He is a joy to read.

Kaladin’s powers are increasing, we got more Szeth which is always a win, Syl is revealing more, T’aln?! AMARAM, Sadeas?! What is going to happen next?

Again, I’m only 800 pages in. I’ll update when I have more.

I have completed the book, last night..

Shallan

Shallan actually has a Shardblade, and it's Pattern, and she finds the Oatgate, and the Oathgate requires and Honorblade, and I have so many more questions about Honor Blades now. Shallan's backstory is crazy!

The Battle of Narak

What an absolute insane battle, also the Everstorm?! I didn't expect that to be a continuous thing. I expected the Everstorm to start and stop just for the battle; but I'm not realizing.. Everstorm means forever.. I hadn't thought about that until now. So, disregard?

Renarin

I'm excited to learn more about Renarin, he is fascinating to me. Truthwatcher, hmm, I haven't heard anything about that before. I've also not been spoiled on what that means just yet either. So that's great!

Kaladin

Oh boy, here we go! Kaladin and Amaram, and Heleran, and Dalinar, and Elhokar, and Adolin, and Shallan, oh and WIT; I love Wit! Okay, so that Third Ideal had me jumping out of my chair, what an amazing moment. I can't believe Moash, what is he going to do?! Kaladin definitely has a thing for Shallan, and she might have a little thing for him as well. I also really appreciate the Adolin comradery, those boys are great friends now. After the first battle of Szeth, and wow the Kaladin and Szeth fight in Part Five WOW WOW WOW. This is a great book.

Dalinar

Bondsmith, I'm so excited to learn more about this. Dalinar is always been a great character, and I think he might be my favorite. I'm interested to see what is to happen with the Oathbringer book (book three)!

Emotional Impact 5

Oh yeah, this is great!

Characters 5

Again, CHARACTERS!

Plot 5

AHHHHHH! WE ARE GETTING A HUGE STORY NOW!

Prose 5

This is great!

World-Building 5

GIVE ME MORE!

As we learned in the first novel, the Parshendi send Szeth to kill the king of Alethi, Gavilar Kholin. The Alethi are not sure why this happened, but it resulted in the treaty called the Vengeance Pact. In it, the leaders declared the War of Reckoning and tried to destroy the Parshendi. The King of Kharbranth sends Szeth to assassinate high prince Dalinar, Gavilar Kholin’s brother.

Kaladin and his former bridge crew have been recruited by Dalinar to serve as bodyguards for himself, the king, and the rest of their family. In secret, Kaladin’s crew tests him to discover the strength of his Windrunner powers.

Jasnah and Shallan travel by ship toward the Shattered Plains. Jasnah hopes to stop the Voidbringers from returning. Jasnah arranges a marriage for Shallan to her cousin Adolin Kholin. Before they arrive at the Shattered Plains, their ship is attacked. A bandit stabs Jasnah, but Shallan uses her powers to sink the ship. Shallan believes that Jasnah is dead. She eventually makes land and persuades traveling merchants to escort her to the Shattered Plains.

The Parshendi discover a power called Stormform. They will be able to conjure storms for their war against the humans.

Dalinar, the new Highprince of War, attempts to unite the Highprinces. His recent visions have focused on a countdown to the Final Desolation. The Assassin in White tries to kill Dalinar, but Kaladin and his men are just able to fend him off.

Shallan and Adolin meet and seem to like each other well enough.

Adolin, Dalinar’s son, duels other Shardbearers, taking their Shards and disrupting Sadeas’ allies. Adolin ultimately wants to ensure that he can ask a boon of the king to duel Sadeas himself. Unfortunately, Adolin finds himself tricked into dueling four men at once. Kaladin steps in to help him win.

After this, Adolin gives Kaladin a full set of Shards. His spren Syl doesn’t like the armor, so Kaladin gives it to Moash, a man Kaladin knows is plotting to kill the king. Kaladin believes that the king should be removed, but his dishonorable act of conspiring against the man severs his bond with Syl.

Shallan is a Lightweaver and can disguise as someone else. She creates a dark-eyed version of herself and works with the Ghostbloods to find out more about them.

Dalinar and Shallan lead an expedition to the center of the Shattered Plains. Shallan and Kaladin fall into the chasms, and everyone is surprised when they both live. Not only through the fall and a chasmfiend, but also through a high storm.

While Kaladin is injured, Dalinar leads everyone from his camp—and any others who will join—across the shattered plains to confront the Parshendi. Shallan hopes to find the center of the plains and the entrance to Urithiru. When they arrive, they find that the Parshendi, in their Stormform, have bonded with evil spren to summon the Everstorm. Shallan locates the Oathgate.

Moash attacks the king while everyone is away. Kaladin finally realizes that he has broken his oath to protect the king, speaks his third Ideal, and rebonds with Syl, who happens to be a Shardblade. Kal saves the king and then flies off to save the army from the Assassin in White.

Kaladin defeats the Assassin and takes the Windrunner Honorblade from him. The highstorm and the Everstorm come together, and the army escapes to Urithiru through the Oathgate.

Dalinar bonds the Stormfather. Shallan, Kaladin, and Renarin finally admit that they are Radiants.

Once safe in Urithiru, Adolin kills Sadeas in a rage. The Shardblade Oathbringer appears, so Adolin drops it out a window to hide it.

Nalan, Herald of Justice, revives Szeth and gives him a sword called Nightblood. The Assassin in White begins an apprenticeship under Nalan as a Skybreaker.

Jasnah Kholin exits Shadesmar, alive and well.