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Review: What can Warbreaker tell us about Wheel of Time?
Fans of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series are no doubt well aware that young author Brandon Sanderson has been tapped to complete the series. His conclusion, reported to weigh in at three quarters of a million words, has been divided into three books, the first of which will appear in the autumn of 2009.
But before that milestone comes Sanderson's own newest, a standalone volume titled Warbreaker. What can Jordan-ophiles discern from a reading of this entertaining new fantasy? Not much with regard to their beloved series, other than a general sense that Sanderson is talented, competent and a deft manipulator of fantasy tropes.
My own familiarity with Jordan's work is minimal, but I derive the impression that it's an epic work featuring many characters and much warfare. For all its size, and for all its surface theme of martial strife, Warbreaker does not fit that mold. Its cast is limited (though rich), its inter-kingdom war only mooted. And the tone of the novel is decidedly humorous in spots, a trait I do not sense in Jordan's books.
The tale here concerns two polities, Idris and Hallandren. The latter is big, powerful and bellicose, home to much magic and to the Living Gods, the Returned. The former is small and weaker, but crafty. The King of Idris sends his two daughters to T'Telir, the capitol of Hallandren. One, Siri, goes officially, to become the wife of Hallandren's leader, Susenbron. The other, Vivenna, goes secretly, to run the Idrian spy network hidden within T'Telir. While Siri unravels the mysteries of court--and discovers where the real power lies--Vivenna gets an education in magic and the rigors of a commoner's life.
The two princesses are well drawn, but it's a shame their paths never really intersect on the page. The unique system of magic envisioned by Sanderson acquires a plausible palpability. The main action concerns court machinations, and actual physical conflicts are sparse. A good supporting cast helps, with a mysterious rogue agent named Vasher and his sentient sword Nightblood among the highlights.
But the fellow who steals the show is the feyest member of the Returned, Lightsong. If you can picture P.G. Wodehouse's Bertie Wooster as a spoiled deity, you can imagine how much fun Lightsong makes all his scenes.
In the end, I suspect that while this book will deliver much pleasure, it holds few clues to Sanderson's work on Wheel of Time.
By shroudedwolf at 9:18 AM ON 07/08/09
Get another hopeless writing assignment Mr. article writer? Really? "I don't know anything about Robert Jordan, but here's a review of how I think another author will write him..." Wow. Just wow.
Hire me. I'll write about RJ for free. And I know a lot about his work. Just for the record, tWOT series has a lot of humor, from wit to sarcasm. There are also plenty of clues about what to expect for the WOT books from Warbreaker.
Tip: If you want to review Warbreaker, then just review it, don't try to make it a dual article when you don't know anything about one half of it.
By ksredsoxfan88 at 9:35 AM ON 07/08/09
"Get another hopeless writing assignment Mr. article writer? Really? "I don't know anything about Robert Jordan, but here's a review of how I think another author will write him..." Wow. Just wow.
Hire me. I'll write about RJ for free. And I know a lot about his work. Just for the record, tWOT series has a lot of humor, from wit to sarcasm. There are also plenty of clues about what to expect for the WOT books from Warbreaker.
Tip: If you want to review Warbreaker, then just review it, don't try to make it a dual article when you don't know anything about one half of it."
Quoted for emphasis.
By Uwaine at 10:09 AM ON 07/08/09
Come on guys, lighten up a bit.
The reviewer was making a very relevant reference to the series most Fantasy fans are looking forward to, AND giving us necessary news about Wheel of Time. (The last book will be split into 3 volumes? eep!)
Many had never even HEARD of Brandon Sanderson before he was tapped to complete Wheel of Time from Jordan's notes. Having someone review his own solo work and find it a good omen for the upcoming series ending is VERY much a necessary part of such a review.
So many people are so intent on slamming this feed that they are starting to throw the baby out with the bathwater.
By Ukato at 10:42 AM ON 07/08/09
I haven't read warbreaker yet. But having read Elantris, his other stand alone novel, I know he can work with a minimal cast.
However, if you go back and compare his Mistborn series, which had a much larger cast, you can see how he indeed can juggle the larger cast and still tell a good story.
I'm not the fan of tWOT I was in the 90s but I instantly approved of Sanderson as the person to finish the series when I read about it.
By OrokuSaki at 11:27 AM ON 07/08/09
I've read everything mentioned so far: Warbreaker, WoT, Elantris, Mistborn. I've liked all of them, certainly, each in their own way. Brandon Sanderson is an excellent choice to finish WoT, since he is a fan of WoT and cognizant of both writing styles. I'm excited to see how he does, since I enjoy his other works so much.
Regarding Warbreaker, I enjoyed it quite a bit, but found the magic system to be inferior to the Mistborn series in how I enjoyed its use by the characters. Warbreaker's magic just seems too... limited.
I think Lightsong is hilarious, and probably my favorite viewpoint, with Vasher and his conversations with Nightblood coming in second.
@Uwaine, they're referring to the article writer's lack of comprehensive knowledge of WoT, not the review of Warbreaker itself or the news given regarding WoT, which is plastered all over every WoT site you can find. Giving a "very relevent reference" to WoT and providing a proper comparison to WoT are quite different. The article writer fails to properly compare the books (which is half of the article according to the article title) beyond "they're similar" or "they're not similar." Not much of a comparison. No baby is being tossed out here. The article writer should have let someone who is familiar with Robert Jordan's works make the comparison or just review Warbreaker on its own as a standalone fantasy novel. The "good omen for the upcoming series" becomes irrelevent due to the article writer's lack of familiarity.
By ZhaneEndrick at 11:39 AM ON 07/08/09
'Warbreaker' was another phenomenal read from Sanderson. I believe the absolutely can handle the WoT series, and I look forward to the conclusion knowing that it is in good hands.
Side note here: in 'Warbreaker', the King of Idris did not 'send' Vivenna, she went without even her father's knowledge, who in fact sent Siri in her place.
By bigalosu at 12:40 PM ON 07/08/09
This is old news. Go to www.dragonmount.com for updates on tWOT series.
By Heather J. at 1:28 PM ON 07/08/09
"If you can picture P.G. Wodehouse's Bertie Wooster as a spoiled deity" - I would read this book for that alone - you gotta love Wodehouse!
By kdkdksksk at 1:58 PM ON 07/08/09
This review is ridiculous. Warbreaker was written long before Sanderson knew he was going to be writing the last WOT book. It should be reviewed on its own, and not in the WOT context. Especially by someone who doesn't seem to even know Robert Jordan's books...
By Erica Naone at 2:16 PM ON 07/08/09
I've got to say that I, too, am stunned at the choice of angle considering that the article writer isn't familiar with Jordan. The question of how Sanderson will write Jordan is certainly fascinating, but this article promised much more than it delivered. A standalone review of Warbreaker by this author would have worked better. I'd still love to read the story the headline promises, but it isn't here.
By TMR013 at 2:18 PM ON 07/08/09
I can't believe they are going to drag the WOT books out to 3 more massive tomes. I stopped reading it a couple books ago becuase it stopped advancing the story was nothing but fill to sell more books. Quite honestly I'm mad about that because RJ should have ended it about 4 books ago died before he could finish it. All to make a few more bucks.
By Daumier at 3:54 PM ON 07/08/09
Warbreaker was a fantastic read, but I just only wished there was more of it. It just seemed like the magic system wasn't used as often as it ought to have been and the various storylines were tied off too abruptly and neatly. It just seemed like more ought to have been there all around. I attributed it to his work on WoT, and I can't really fault him for that. I look forward to his WoT cap, but I also hope that eventually he'll write more in the Warbreaker world.
By misteredj at 1:09 AM ON 07/09/09
I for one, am not surprised that the "last book" turns out to be 3 books. I mean, come on! The series was originally supposed to be 5 books then 10, then supposedly 13. After reading book 12, I was like, "no way is this series ending with book 13!" and then the news came out about the additional books. I would agree that with the working title of this article the writer should at least have a working knowledge of tWOT series to make a working comparison as you know the fans of Jordan probably already know more than you do.
By rtavi at 1:36 PM ON 07/16/09
I enjoyed this series in the beginning but after a while I realized that it was being extended beyond all reason just to sell more books. The idea that the last one will be dragged out to cover 3 volumes is ridiculous. foll me once shame on you I wont bite again. Most of the recent books are nothing but filler.
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rtavi:
I enjoyed this series in the beginning but after a while I realized that it was being extended beyond all reason ju...More »