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A review by frootlupo
Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
The third book in the Stormlight Archive series drastically increases the size and scope of the universe, while also keeping the story grounded and character-focused.
Oathbringer almost feels like it’s the first time the series really starts to answer questions that have been asked since the very first pages of the series. In that sense it’s immensely satisfying. The Stormlight Archive and Cosmere as a whole is such an enormous world, and the tales within are so grand that it’s taken three books just to begin to explore the depths it has to offer. In a very real way, I feel like the implications Oathbringer has on the larger narrative is stronger than the story itself. There are some truly great (and horrible) moments in this epic, but it did feel like a middle book at times. At the end I feel like the things I am most excited about are implications about the universe and not specific narrative moments. At times I felt like Oathbringer didn’t quite have the same momentum as some of the other books in the series, and I think all the information we got about the universe was why. It didn’t feel like an exposition dump, but there were still moments that felt like they were included more to explain things about the universe vs a natural progression in the story.
Now by no means does this mean Oathbringer was unenjoyable or a bad story. I still very much enjoyed it and was 100% along for the ride. I also think that all of the world building it contained was absolutely necessary for the series as a whole. The weaknesses of Oathbringer are almost only seen in comparison to some of his other works in the series rather than glaring issues in themselves. But I guess that’s part of the curse of writing truly exceptional books like Words of Radiance (Stormlight 2), it’s kinda hard to top it with the next instalment.
In the end, if you’ve made it this far in the Stormlight Archive, you’re gonna love this book just as much as I loved it.
Oathbringer almost feels like it’s the first time the series really starts to answer questions that have been asked since the very first pages of the series. In that sense it’s immensely satisfying. The Stormlight Archive and Cosmere as a whole is such an enormous world, and the tales within are so grand that it’s taken three books just to begin to explore the depths it has to offer. In a very real way, I feel like the implications Oathbringer has on the larger narrative is stronger than the story itself. There are some truly great (and horrible) moments in this epic, but it did feel like a middle book at times. At the end I feel like the things I am most excited about are implications about the universe and not specific narrative moments. At times I felt like Oathbringer didn’t quite have the same momentum as some of the other books in the series, and I think all the information we got about the universe was why. It didn’t feel like an exposition dump, but there were still moments that felt like they were included more to explain things about the universe vs a natural progression in the story.
Now by no means does this mean Oathbringer was unenjoyable or a bad story. I still very much enjoyed it and was 100% along for the ride. I also think that all of the world building it contained was absolutely necessary for the series as a whole. The weaknesses of Oathbringer are almost only seen in comparison to some of his other works in the series rather than glaring issues in themselves. But I guess that’s part of the curse of writing truly exceptional books like Words of Radiance (Stormlight 2), it’s kinda hard to top it with the next instalment.
In the end, if you’ve made it this far in the Stormlight Archive, you’re gonna love this book just as much as I loved it.