Words of Radiance Book Review

Major Spoilers are included in this book review. Please read with caution.

For those who hadn’t read my The Way of Kings book review, the link is here.

Unlike reading The Way of Kings, Words of Radiance was a way more enjoyable reading experience and took me less time to finish despite the sequel being 300 pages longer. Initially, I believed it was going to take me another four to five months to finish reading this novel based on my experience with The Way of Kings, but luckily, I was proven wrong.

Published in 2014, Words of Radiance—the second novel out of a ten-book saga called Stormlight Archive—had vastly improved the issues that plagued The Way of Kings. The major improvement was Shallan’s characterization. This novel had a flashback story that fleshed her out more similar to what The Way of Kings had done for Kaladin. In my personal opinion, Shallan’s backstory was emotionally raw, and her dialogue / narration was weaved with hints of a past she was too afraid to face in the present. I enjoyed learning her backstory more than Kaladin’s backstory, who really needed to stop blaming himself for things he couldn’t control.

Shallan earned becoming one of my favorite characters in this series. While Shallan still delivered clever quips and annoyed the other characters—maybe even the readers—with them, her interactions and winning arguments with the other POV characters—Kaladin, Adolin, Navani, and Dalinar—boosted her likeability to greater heights.

Yes, unlike its predecessor, Words of Radiance had all the main characters interacting with each other more often. Kaladin was no longer a slave, but a Captain of Dalinar’s Guard alongside Bridge Four. Dalinar was still haunted by visions from The Almighty; and he was playing a risky political game to force the other Highprinces into uniting the Alethi kingdom against the Parshendi, which involved his son Adolin’s dueling skills.

Adolin’s role in Words of Radiance was really interesting. He was kind of annoying in The Way of Kings because he didn’t believe in his father’s supernatural visions, but this novel took the time to explore and develop his character further through his interactions with Kaladin and Shallan, which challenged his shallow upbringing. As a professional reader, I thought Shallan and Adolin’s romance was well-handled and light-hearted. Surprisingly, they fit well together.

Sanderson’s world-building was astounding as always. The Interludes carried bigger weight in this novel because Eshonai—an Interlude POV character—was a Parshendi Shardbearer that had clashed with Dalinar, Adolin, and Kaladin in The Way of Kings. The Parshendi society was explored and developed through the Interludes, establishing their valid reasons for wanting to wage this war against our main protagonists. Sanderson also connected the Parshendi lifestyle to specific “Rhythms”, which was fascinating because writing fictional music into a novel didn’t seem doable.

The fight scenes were intriguing to read. Adolin’s fierce dueling in the arena, the epic battle against Szeth—Assassin in White—and the action pieces set at the Shattered Plains had me on the edge of my seat. While Kaladin was the main force behind most of the fight scenes, Szeth, Adolin, Dalinar, and surprisingly Shallan, had their moments too.

The magic system was structured better in this novel because Shallan and Kaladin were training themselves how to be Surgebinders. Neither had proper mentors to instruct them, so they each had their own journey and personal struggles while developing their magic abilities. This also connected to the mythology of Shardblades, Shardplates, and their original wielders—the Knights Radiant.

Overall, Words of Radiance was superior over The Way of Kings in every perceivable way. The characters were better, the plot was better, and the pacing was much better. The huge novel was a real page-turner. I hadn’t felt excitement like that since last year, when I had first started reading the Mistborn trilogy. I would highly recommend Stormlight Archive. Onward to the short novella, Edgedancer! After I finish that, I’m coming for Oathbringer, the third and most recent book in the Stormlight Archive. The fourth book—Rhythm of War—will be released in November 2020. I’m getting ready for it.