Previous: Dawnshard

Wow. Completely floored that I was so captivated by this entry. I began as a book 4 hater; it felt like so much had been accomplished in the first three, what else could possibly happen to our cast of characters? Well, it turns out, a lot can happen and change, which is a recurring theme not only throughout this series, but especially in this one. Almost all of our main characters are going through internal and external factors that push them to make decisions, some life-altering, others not so much. What this installation does perfectly I think, is the pain and confusion that comes along with change.

Shallan is a character that’s been changing and evolving from page 1. We see her become a scholar, then a Radiant, then a thief, then to a real role as a military strategist (to some extent) into finally the amalgamation of all of that. Most clearly, Shallan is hurt. Especially when we come to our climax, where Shallan has to once again come to terms with the lies she’s been living with and the truths she’s been denying. Honestly one of the best arcs, even if I felt like the past two books have done her much more justice.

Venli appears as one of more affected by her past decisions, and has to challenge herself; was she forced to changed into what she was, or was she always like this? Both sides are crafted to be believable, and even with her slight redemption, it still feels totally up to the readers interpretation if you want to believe it or not. Still, seeing her clash between sides was even more engaging then our first experience with Shallan and the Ghostbloods. Even though I thought her chapters dragged on the most, she is still a great character to watch and gain information through.

One of the most surprising characters in this entry had to be Navani. Even though she had a decent amount of build up in the previous three, I wasn’t sure how they’d continue to develop her. I look like the fool now, since her story has to be if not my favorite, my runner up. Within the theme of change, Navani insisted on never claiming the title of Scholar, no matter how much she engaged with her scholarly side. Not feeling worthy of a title you exist in is incredibly relatable; and she’s a huge badass? When confronting Moash, the killer of her son, she didn’t mince words. Whenever given the opportunity, she’s setting up traps to rid herself of Rabionel. Their relationship alone was exciting; my constant thought of, “Is this Fused about to join the human side?” never came true, but we got the best taste we could’ve gotten when Rabionel grabs and distracts Moash. Truly, one of the most human characters is a space alien. So beautifully written.

Oh Kaladin. How badly I want you to be everything you don’t want. Coming to terms with this reality made me shudder; am I not so different than the light-eyes of early Alethkar? I so desperately want Kaladin to just “get over” having PTSD and fight. Not only fight, but fight and be better. How is he supposed to do both? Very realistically, it’s clear that he can’t. Not unless he changes his entire perspective, which culminates in the vision between him and Tien. I absolutely cried like a baby; it was everything he needed and more to be the best he could be. I think that was a vision from Honor, since Navani has been saying a few times throughout the book that Honor is not dead, but lives in the hearts of all humans.

I’m glad Dalinar was a bit more on the back-burner this time around; he has been center stage the last few books. I couldn’t stand how little importance Chiri-chiri and Rysn were, considering how massive of an implication the previous story left up in the air. Only one chapter with maybe3-4 pages in this about them?? Certainly not enough to consider it worth reading an entire novella. Considering how boring the novella was, I really do think it could’ve been condensed and brought into the interludes for this book.

I also found out midway through reading this that the next five aren’t supposed to come out for another 10 years??? If I die before then Sanderson, I’m haunting your bloodline for multiple generations. Otherwise, this was a fantastic book, 5 out of 5, and absolutely worth the months it took me to get to this point. I cannot wait for book five.