The Way of Kings

The Stormlight Archive, Book 1

By: Brandon Sanderson

Narrated by: Kate Reading, Michael Kramer

Length: 45 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

From number one New York Times best-selling author Brandon Sanderson, The Way of Kings, book one of the Stormlight Archive, begins an incredible new saga of epic proportion.

Roshar is a world of stone and storms. Uncanny tempests of incredible power sweep across the rocky terrain so frequently that they have shaped ecology and civilization alike. Animals hide in shells, trees pull in branches, and grass retracts into the soilless ground. Cities are built only where the topography offers shelter.

It has been centuries since the fall of the 10 consecrated orders known as the Knights Radiant, but their Shardblades and Shardplate remain: mystical swords and suits of armor that transform ordinary men into near-invincible warriors. Men trade kingdoms for Shardblades. Wars were fought for them and won by them.

One such war rages on a ruined landscape called the Shattered Plains. There, Kaladin, who traded his medical apprenticeship for a spear to protect his little brother, has been reduced to slavery. In a war that makes no sense, where 10 armies fight separately against a single foe, he struggles to save his men and to fathom the leaders who consider them expendable.

Brightlord Dalinar Kholin commands one of those other armies. Like his brother, the late king, he is fascinated by an ancient text called The Way of Kings. Troubled by over-powering visions of ancient times and the Knights Radiant, he has begun to doubt his own sanity.

Across the ocean, an untried young woman named Shallan seeks to train under an eminent scholar and notorious heretic, Dalinar's niece, Jasnah. Though she genuinely loves learning, Shallan's motives are less than pure. As she plans a daring theft, her research for Jasnah hints at secrets of the Knights Radiant and the true cause of the war.

The result of more than 10 years of planning, writing, and world-building, The Way of Kings is but the opening movement of the Stormlight Archive, a bold masterpiece in the making.

Speak again the ancient oaths:

Life before death.

Strength before weakness.

Journey before destination.

And return to men the Shards they once bore.

The Knights Radiant must stand again.

Other Tor books by Brandon Sanderson:

The Cosmere

The Stormlight Archive:

• The Way of Kings
• Words of Radiance
• Edgedancer (Novella)
• Oathbringer

The Mistborn trilogy:

• Mistborn: The Final Empire
• The Well of Ascension
• The Hero of Ages

Mistborn: The Wax and Wayne series:

• Alloy of Law
• Shadows of Self
• Bands of Mourning

Collection:

• Arcanum Unbounded

Other Cosmere novels:

• Elantris
• Warbreaker

The Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians series:

• Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians
• The Scrivener's Bones
• The Knights of Crystallia
• The Shattered Lens
• The Dark Talent

The Rithmatist series:

• The Rithmatist

Other books by Brandon Sanderson:

• The Reckoners
• Steelheart
• Firefight
• Calamity

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2010 Dragonsteel Entertaiment, LLC (P)2010 Macmillan Audio

Awsome Book

What an excellent book. I am only halfway through and I don't need to make it to the end to recognize a quality story. Three dimensional characters, good pace, deep story. The fact that this story is set in a place filled with so much original flora and fawna is just icing on the cake. This could be my newest favorite author.

This is Brandon's best book ever!

This is epic and I don't know how I'm going to live waiting for the next book in this series. Amazing and beautiful work Brandon Sanderson! A must read for fantasy and fiction lovers! (f you can handle the wait for the next book). :P

Michael Kramer is great, Kate Reading not so much.

The story is excellent as always with Sanderson. However Kate Reading needs to improve in her narration. It is incredibly annoying to go through most of the book with Michael Kramers pronunciation of characters names only to have Kate come in and mispronounce those same names you have grown use to hearing throughout the book. It becomes very jarring and shows a lack of cohesion between the narrators. Granted the most egregious example comes near the end of the book, it is still no excuse as it make the mistake more obvious. I can only hope book two is an improvement.

Wow! Well Done

It took "me" a minute to get into this but - sticking around was worth it. "Kate & Michael" does it for me every time. Brandon, great job! Just please don't drag this out by volumes - this was great and I am anxiously awaiting the next read - especially more on Kate's characters... they were all so very interesting - just not enough...

Great Story though a bit windy at times

If you could sum up The Way of Kings in three words, what would they be?

Long Detailed and Epic

Who was your favorite character and why?

Caladin. He's obviously the focal point of this book and is made out to be extremely likable. He isn't really given any bad traits other than being a bit slow as to what is happening to him.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

The performance was good aside from the lack of communication between the readers. It would have been nice if they pronounced the words the same. Also Kate Reading seems to only possess one man voice that was a little bothersome. Michael Kramer did a great job with differentiating voices and accents.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I like the motto of the radiance:

Life before Death.
Strength before Weakness.
Journey before Destination.

Any additional comments?

The performance only got 3 stars because it was still good but had a few preventable flaws.

Overall it's a great book though it's a bit windy (see what I did there?) and overly long.

Awesome

I really enjoyed the book, I felt a little daunted by the 45hrs but they flew by and I couldn't believe the book was already over. I love Micheal Kramer's voice and really enjoyed his narration in this and in mistborn. I, on the other hand, really did not like the way Kate Reading read her portions of the book, she seems jerky and too fast a lot of the time, she doesn't read a lot of the chapters and I got used to it.
The story was very enthralling and delt with some really interesting concepts. It took me a bit to overcome the confusion of the book as it jumps around frequently to different timelines and people. Don't be daunted by the book though, it becomes clearer as you go, and I became attached to the characters quickly.

Mysterious, Apocalyptic Epic Requiring Commitment

I write this review having listened to the first three books of the Stormlight Archive, though not book "2.5", the novella. I'd like to advise potential listeners that this story takes some commitment; you aren't going to just be listening to a story, you are going to be delving into a relatively complex universe. The characters have extensive backgrounds, and these backgrounds are delivered as interludes within the story. Think of them as flashbacks. On top of those interludes, there are also interludes in between the book Parts. At times, the interludes can be a bit immersion-breaking; there are multiple occasions where I was really tempted to skip past them to get back to the main story, but the author discourages by making some (but not all) of the interludes really important. Given this, and the length of the story, it takes some commitment to experience this story.

That said, I listened to every minute of it and found that it was well worth it. The story is well-crafted, with a pretty good tension cycle and descriptions that make you really feel like you understand the world. There is enough mystery to keep things interesting, too. The characters, while sometimes acting a bit off from what one might expect from real people, still come through as generally likeable and interesting. There are well-described exciting moments as well, and a good dose of humor to make sure things don't get too dreary.

The narration is excellent, too. Those two narrators are very good at adding to the immersion of the story (especially Kate Reading, who is probably the most expressive narrator I have heard).

Overall, I have found very good value in this and the other books in the Stormlight series.

Fantastic Read!

The Way of Kings is a very long journey, and in all honesty this book is better suited as an audiobook than a real book.

In the beginning, it was very distracting trying to learn new names of the people, the lands, the characters, the history and the flora and fauna. But eventually over time, you become part of the culture and find yourself at the edge of your seat cheering for all three protagonists and completely understanding on the fantastic lore which Sanderson created.

The stories are unpredictable, taking twists and turns, always made so that you’re on your toes and not expecting what’s coming. The three main protagonists and occasional Szeth, all have unexpected twists to their stories at every turn, flipping the story on it’s head with each new discovery. The protagonists are diverse, each exploring a different aspect of the Lore, where it be the Artisans, the Assassin, the General or The soldier, it all has a twist to them that really brings out sublime character and pump-your-fist-into-the-air moments.


Never a story has made me grin a wide smile, never has it made me leap in joy, never has a story made me tear up at moments and never has a story made me want to read another 60 hour book for another five times except the stormlight archive. Brian Sanderson is a literary genius and he created more than just some DND world that escapes off the page when the game is over, he created a whole Nation, history and culture that EXISTS beyond the writings of his book.

A heavy recommendation for anyone looking for a story that is unique on it’s own, not inspired or derivative of some myth, legend or book, but a whole new world on it’s own.

Intriguing and entertaining

Entertaining. All the various flora and fauna quite creative. Complex plot and people. Sometimes story dragged with descriptions. A lot of jumping around, people, time line, etc. still enjoyable. Will try book 2.

Awesome Series

Would you consider the audio edition of The Way of Kings to be better than the print version?

Yes, The readers do a great job!

What other book might you compare The Way of Kings to and why?

Name of the wind
The Riyria Chronicles

Which character – as performed by Kate Reading and Michael Kramer – was your favorite?

Kaladin

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Did not want to stop reading it!