Stormlight Archive’s biggest criticism is actually what makes it so good

There is a criticism that is continually followed The Stormlight Archivebut it’s actually the book series’ greatest virtue. Commonly considered the best of Brandon Sanderson’s books, The Stormlight Archive series is a gargantuan undertaking of epic fantasy, surpassing even the likes of A Song of Ice and Fire or The Wheel of Time in average novel length. It’s a huge series to commit to, but the ultimate payoff crucially overshadows the intimidation of those page counts.

Probably due to the density of each volume, The Stormlight Archive It is not Sanderson’s most read work. This title goes to Born from the mistshis other long-running series, which appealed to a wider audience with its shorter, easier-to-follow story. But for fans of Sanderson’s Cosmere fantasy universe, the novels set in Roshar are required reading material, and there are reasons to ignore the drastic extension. For example, book 2, Bright wordsis the highest-rated book of all time on Goodreads. While such a score should be treated with caution, it is still a notable achievement.

Stormlight Archive’s slow pace allows for great endings

Brandon Sanderson Mastered Slow Narrative

The most common criticism The Stormlight Archive It’s your rhythm. The Way of Kings is the shortest chapter in the series, at just over 1,000 pages, but even so it can be slow at first, as Sanderson spends a significant number of pages setting up the world and characters. Later in the series, the books Oath and Rhythm of War received some criticism for its redundancy and general problems with pacing. While these criticisms are not entirely unwarranted, there is a distinct reason why Sanderson’s books are crafted this way.

Brandon Sanderson isn’t just writing books with a large word count to dissuade potential readers. From him Storm Archive novels are purposely written to be slow narratives. After all, they are epic. There is a long build-up period in each novel, which ultimately allows for a more forceful and impactful climax. Consider The Way of Kings and how much time readers spend familiarizing themselves with Kaladin. By the end of the novel, there is a deep emotional connection between the reader and the character, and this makes the final battle on the Shattered Plains and the subsequent events incredibly moving.

Wind and Truth will be Brandon Sanderson’s longest book to date

Wind and Truth is supposed to be almost 500,000 words long

Sanderson’s next book is Wind and Truthwhich will be the final part of the first arc of The Stormlight Archive series. It is considered his longest book, which coincides perfectly with the idea of ​​having a powerful ending. This may not be the last book in the saga, but it will conclude the arc that began in 2010. The Way of Kings, readers should expect a long, drawn-out process that is guaranteed to hit all the emotional beats, wrapping up the arcs of characters like Kaladin, Shallan, and Dalinar.