Scan barcode
sydneyfwhite's review against another edition
5.0
**4.5/5**
Holy heck this was great.
Not only did I find out a BUNCH of information about certain characters within the Cosmere, but I also can't begin to explain my love of the Cosmere, and what Sanderson has managed to create within this universe. It is so intricate and I love feeling a bit like a detective when I read a new book of his. So fun.
Warbreaker tells the story of two kingdoms, on the verge of war with one another over claims to Hallandren, the kingdom which Idris claims was stolen from them. In order to stave off a war, an Idrian princess is betrothed to the Hallandren God-King, in order to produce a royal heir. In Hallanden, living Gods are sequestered within palaces and given Breath each week, a life force that keeps them youthful and god-like. At the same time, a talented Awakener with a sword that can speak to him will do everything he can to stop a war from happening.
This was a really great read, another excellent example of Sanderson's world-weaving ability and awesome grade-A magic systems. Colours and Breaths???? How unique and cool to base a magic system on. I thought the visuals within this book were incredible and it was a truly enjoyable experience reading this.
I know a lot of people prefer Mistborn over Warbreaker, but honestly... I think I enjoyed the general storyline and characters more in Warbreaker. Though Mistborn is still incredible. There was something so authentic about Siri, and while Vivenna took a minute to grow on me, I found that the further along in the story I went, the more I understood and appreciated her.
I personally enjoyed the politicking and slow burn of the beginning of this book, tbh I think it was probably due to this book being released at a similar time to when Sanderson was finishing writing the Wheel of Time series, and anyone who has ever read any of WoT knows that Robert Jordan was the KING of slow burns. Regardless, I enjoyed getting to know the political happenings and important players during the beginning of the book. So, prepare for a bit of a slow start, but rewarding nonetheless.
All in all, another winner from Sanderson. Who I shall state again, is a favourite author of mine. Writes like nobody's business. I can't wait for the sequel of this book. I'm definitely curious to see what's in store for our lovely princess and our immortal friend.
Holy heck this was great.
Not only did I find out a BUNCH of information about certain characters within the Cosmere, but I also can't begin to explain my love of the Cosmere, and what Sanderson has managed to create within this universe. It is so intricate and I love feeling a bit like a detective when I read a new book of his. So fun.
Warbreaker tells the story of two kingdoms, on the verge of war with one another over claims to Hallandren, the kingdom which Idris claims was stolen from them. In order to stave off a war, an Idrian princess is betrothed to the Hallandren God-King, in order to produce a royal heir. In Hallanden, living Gods are sequestered within palaces and given Breath each week, a life force that keeps them youthful and god-like. At the same time, a talented Awakener with a sword that can speak to him will do everything he can to stop a war from happening.
This was a really great read, another excellent example of Sanderson's world-weaving ability and awesome grade-A magic systems. Colours and Breaths???? How unique and cool to base a magic system on. I thought the visuals within this book were incredible and it was a truly enjoyable experience reading this.
I know a lot of people prefer Mistborn over Warbreaker, but honestly... I think I enjoyed the general storyline and characters more in Warbreaker. Though Mistborn is still incredible. There was something so authentic about Siri, and while Vivenna took a minute to grow on me, I found that the further along in the story I went, the more I understood and appreciated her.
I personally enjoyed the politicking and slow burn of the beginning of this book, tbh I think it was probably due to this book being released at a similar time to when Sanderson was finishing writing the Wheel of Time series, and anyone who has ever read any of WoT knows that Robert Jordan was the KING of slow burns. Regardless, I enjoyed getting to know the political happenings and important players during the beginning of the book. So, prepare for a bit of a slow start, but rewarding nonetheless.
All in all, another winner from Sanderson. Who I shall state again, is a favourite author of mine. Writes like nobody's business. I can't wait for the sequel of this book. I'm definitely curious to see what's in store for our lovely princess and our immortal friend.
whatisjacobreading's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed the world building and magic system but the magic system was kind of absent for most of the book and half the characters weren’t interesting or likable. There were too many snarky characters and cheesy lines for me to take anything seriously. The ending wasn’t very satisfying and was just more of an info dump for why it ended like it did. Not Sanderson’s worst book but it feels like a marvel movie you have to watch to understand another marvel movie you want to watch later.
tatiskow's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
affyfe's review against another edition
4.0
This book is long, and took me over a year to read. I would get very into it and then put it down for months because there was too much left and I would feel overwhelmed. This was my first Sanderson novel, and I really enjoyed his character development and his world depiction. He doesn't get too over the top with names and places and magical abilities, it's easy to follow. Sometimes maybe a bit too easy as I would consider the writing at times to feel young or simple. I did enjoy the story as a whole but while I felt like it was really ramping up, it just ended, a bit out of nowhere. For such a long, developing book it really could've used like 30 more pages. I felt like the end was very abrupt. I've heard so much about him that I will most likely be reading more by him.
writeralicia's review against another edition
4.0
Most of this book gets three stars from me, but the ending gets a solid five.
I found the magic system creative and fascinating. Essentially, each normal person is born with a single Breath, which is like a life force, that be given away at will. With many Breaths, a person can invest Breaths into inanimate objects to give those objects a usually-temporary life guided by given commands. Transferring Breath requires drawing some sort of power out of colors in the world. Thus, magic requires a command, color, and Breath. I would have liked the author to explain WHY the magic system works, i.e., how color and Breath are intrinsically related to each other so as to awaken otherwise inanimate objects. But despite this omission, I was easily able to suspend disbelief and see the beauty and creativity of the magic system.
The perspective of the book switched between that of four different characters, Siri, Vivenna, Vasher, and Lightsong. I connected with Siri immediately, and I always wanted to know what would happen to her next. Vasher was immediately interesting, but his character's motivations were not explained until the end of the book. As a result, I did not really connect with him. I wish that the author had given me more hints as to Vasher's motivations. He was too much of a mystery, to such a degree that it was difficult to relate to him. Lightsong was entertaining from the beginning, but his purpose in the book (understandably) was not revealed until the end. So as with Vasher, it was difficult for me to connect with Lightsong and to care about his goings-on, however amusing those goings-on were. Vivenna was just boring for most of the book. I understood her from the beginning, and I found it pretty easy to predict how her character would develop throughout the book. She never surprised me, and, were it not for her interactions with Vasher, I might have preferred to see her perspective eliminated from the book altogether.
At the end of the book, I understood the usage of the shifting-perspective, but throughout the book, I just wanted to read more about Siri. I found myself repeatedly flipping forward to determine when I would see Siri again. At many times, it was a chore to wade through the other characters' stories to get back to Siri. Thankfully, Vasher and Lightsong were entertaining enough to make the waiting somewhat enjoyable, even though I was not truly invested in their stories.
The bulk of the book dragged for me occasionally, as I waited to return to Siri's story. It was clear that the four main characters were involved in the same issues, and I assumed that they would all affect one another directly eventually. In the end, the story and characters came together beautifully. To avoid spoilers, I will not discuss the details of the ending in this review (and if I did, I likely wouldn't do it justice), but it was certainly worth the wait. The ending was truly masterful.
I found the magic system creative and fascinating. Essentially, each normal person is born with a single Breath, which is like a life force, that be given away at will. With many Breaths, a person can invest Breaths into inanimate objects to give those objects a usually-temporary life guided by given commands. Transferring Breath requires drawing some sort of power out of colors in the world. Thus, magic requires a command, color, and Breath. I would have liked the author to explain WHY the magic system works, i.e., how color and Breath are intrinsically related to each other so as to awaken otherwise inanimate objects. But despite this omission, I was easily able to suspend disbelief and see the beauty and creativity of the magic system.
The perspective of the book switched between that of four different characters, Siri, Vivenna, Vasher, and Lightsong. I connected with Siri immediately, and I always wanted to know what would happen to her next. Vasher was immediately interesting, but his character's motivations were not explained until the end of the book. As a result, I did not really connect with him. I wish that the author had given me more hints as to Vasher's motivations. He was too much of a mystery, to such a degree that it was difficult to relate to him. Lightsong was entertaining from the beginning, but his purpose in the book (understandably) was not revealed until the end. So as with Vasher, it was difficult for me to connect with Lightsong and to care about his goings-on, however amusing those goings-on were. Vivenna was just boring for most of the book. I understood her from the beginning, and I found it pretty easy to predict how her character would develop throughout the book. She never surprised me, and, were it not for her interactions with Vasher, I might have preferred to see her perspective eliminated from the book altogether.
At the end of the book, I understood the usage of the shifting-perspective, but throughout the book, I just wanted to read more about Siri. I found myself repeatedly flipping forward to determine when I would see Siri again. At many times, it was a chore to wade through the other characters' stories to get back to Siri. Thankfully, Vasher and Lightsong were entertaining enough to make the waiting somewhat enjoyable, even though I was not truly invested in their stories.
The bulk of the book dragged for me occasionally, as I waited to return to Siri's story. It was clear that the four main characters were involved in the same issues, and I assumed that they would all affect one another directly eventually. In the end, the story and characters came together beautifully. To avoid spoilers, I will not discuss the details of the ending in this review (and if I did, I likely wouldn't do it justice), but it was certainly worth the wait. The ending was truly masterful.
8yalan8's review against another edition
4.0
I started reading B.Sanderson’s books with “Elantris”. I loved the world building, politics, religion, characters, but I needed some determination in order to keep reading the book, to make a reading progress. It’s amazing to see how much B.S. has developed as a writer, it seems with every book he’s getting better and better. As always, there are a lot different ideas creatively meshed into the story, but here it’s more refined.
Two very different sisters, each going differently about life (I sympathized with Siri more, but I appreciated Vivenna’s growth as well), a God who doesn’t believe he is one, a God King, politics, religion and interesting plot with twists. This story has it all. Romance is just a subplot, and I wouldn’t call it fantasy romance (even in YA category).
I simply loved the magic system. Colors, breaths, oh that was very nice. In Prologue B.S. sets a story promise and woos us with this magic system, and he delivers. The world building is sufficient and characters are very well done. The pacing is very much B.S. , slow build up, getting to know the characters, world, magic system, getting invested, things start to simmer more and more, plot lines connect with a culmination in the end.
The story was wrapped up nicely in the end, but there is a foundation for upcoming book in the series. I hope he’s going to write it, I would definitely read it.
Two very different sisters, each going differently about life (I sympathized with Siri more, but I appreciated Vivenna’s growth as well), a God who doesn’t believe he is one, a God King, politics, religion and interesting plot with twists. This story has it all. Romance is just a subplot, and I wouldn’t call it fantasy romance (even in YA category).
I simply loved the magic system. Colors, breaths, oh that was very nice. In Prologue B.S. sets a story promise and woos us with this magic system, and he delivers. The world building is sufficient and characters are very well done. The pacing is very much B.S. , slow build up, getting to know the characters, world, magic system, getting invested, things start to simmer more and more, plot lines connect with a culmination in the end.
The story was wrapped up nicely in the end, but there is a foundation for upcoming book in the series. I hope he’s going to write it, I would definitely read it.
blodeuedd's review against another edition
4.0
Brandon Sanderson is a master world builder, but here it is the magic system that he builds with thought and precision. The world is of course still well built, but the magic, oh the magic just blows you away. I will not even try to explain it, he does it much better. But to simplify, everyone has got breaths, if you got more then you can use those for magic. There is also this thing about colors and how some have returned to life. But yes just read the book. Or else I will spend the rest of this review on the magical system in this world.
It's a world where the Returned and the Godking with his priests rules the kingdom we see most of. They are terrible and worships people who have come back to life. At least that is what our heroines from Idris think. Siri, is young and out of control, but in any other country she would just be filled with life. I liked her because she was real, human. While her sister Vivienne is collected and does her duty well. One of them will marry the terrible Godking to save their country from war.
The story is about these two sisters who are trying to survive and do what is best. It's also about a mysterious stranger called Vasher whom I do not know if I should trust or not when he is skulking about. And it is about Lifesong, one of the Returned. He died, he came back, and he is a God with doubts. My favorite character was Siri because just of the way her story went, which I will tell you no more about. I also liked the Lifesong bits since the whole concept about these Gods was so interesting. But then Viv's story took me for a few surprises too. All in all making all the characters so much more than I would have thought. It is a book about changes, freedom, doubt, misconceptions and more.
This book is it, yes there are no trilogy or 10 books to wait for. You will get a conclusion in it so that is a big plus for me. It's nice with a one book fantasy "series" once in a while.
Conclusion:
It was good and the magic, oh he creates it so well. Where does he come up with these ideas? I do love Brandon Sanderson's books.
It's a world where the Returned and the Godking with his priests rules the kingdom we see most of. They are terrible and worships people who have come back to life. At least that is what our heroines from Idris think. Siri, is young and out of control, but in any other country she would just be filled with life. I liked her because she was real, human. While her sister Vivienne is collected and does her duty well. One of them will marry the terrible Godking to save their country from war.
The story is about these two sisters who are trying to survive and do what is best. It's also about a mysterious stranger called Vasher whom I do not know if I should trust or not when he is skulking about. And it is about Lifesong, one of the Returned. He died, he came back, and he is a God with doubts. My favorite character was Siri because just of the way her story went, which I will tell you no more about. I also liked the Lifesong bits since the whole concept about these Gods was so interesting. But then Viv's story took me for a few surprises too. All in all making all the characters so much more than I would have thought. It is a book about changes, freedom, doubt, misconceptions and more.
This book is it, yes there are no trilogy or 10 books to wait for. You will get a conclusion in it so that is a big plus for me. It's nice with a one book fantasy "series" once in a while.
Conclusion:
It was good and the magic, oh he creates it so well. Where does he come up with these ideas? I do love Brandon Sanderson's books.
lauraslibraryy's review against another edition
5.0
My jaw dropped twice while reading this... so good. SO good.
throneofbooks7's review against another edition
5.0
What an amazing book. The world building was fascinating and most of the characters (cough blushweaver) were the type of characters you instantly love and root for......even vivene.