Oathbringer Book Review

by The Wanderer
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Tor Books
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Series: Stormlight Archive Book Three
Pages: 1,220

(Spoilers for Stormlight Archives 1-2 and Warbreaker are below).

With the Everstorm released, a new Desolation has begun. Dalinar Kholin and the Alethi armies now occupy the once lost great city of Urithiru. There he realizes he must not only unite the Alethi but all of Roshar if he is to defeat Odium and the Voidbringers. But the cause of the Voidbringers may not be unjust, as Kaladin tries to infiltrate their numbers and learn more about their mission. The murder of Brightlord Sadaes also stands to tear apart the Alethi, and Adolin and Shallan are tasked with investigating it, along with a string of other bizarrely occurring murders.

Arcanum Unbounded Book Review

by The Wanderer 

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Tor Books
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Series: Cosmere Short Story and Novella Collection
Pages: 673

Arcanum Unbounded is a compilation of all the Brandon Sanderson novellas and short stories that have been released up until 2016. Each set of stories comes with a brief introduction to the planetary system the world is taking part in. As a collection of stories, these are pretty essential to anyone who's deciding to read through the Cosmere.

In our review each short story is given a brief synopsis, analysis, and score.  The final score you see at the top of the review is an aggregate of all nine stories.

Aggregate Score: 7.7

Warbreaker Book Review

by The Wanderer 

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Tor Books
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Series: Cosmere
Pages: 669

In T'Telir the capital of the Hallandren The God King and the Returned rule over the people. All powerful and containing the magic of Breath, a magic that can sustain agelessness, and gives it's users the ability to create awakenings, he prepares to fight the Idrian's, the original family that ruled over Hallandren three centuries past. But looking to prevent war, The God King drafted an agreement to marry the Idrian king's daughter after she passed the age of twenty, and now that time has come.

The Idrian King doesn't want to send his oldest daughter Vivenna, who's been trained for this role since birth. So instead he sends his youngest, Siri, in her place. Vivenna, who now feels displaced in the world decides to travel to T'Telir to rescue her, while Siri must try to survive in a culture she was never prepared to survive in.

The Emperor's Soul Book Review

by The Wanderer

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Tachyon Publications
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Series: Cosmere (Elantris World - Sel) Standalone
Pages: 175

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It was boldness, it was contrast, it was subtlety

Shai is a master forger, a person who can rewrite the history of objects in the world of Sel. Getting caught stealing the moon scepter of the Rose Empire has landed Shai a death sentence, but she now has the chance to save her life. She must build a new soul for the Emperor Ashravan in ninety days.

Mistborn Secret History Book Review

by The Wanderer

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Tor Books
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Series: Mistborn Novella
Pages: 120

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A New People, Familiar Leader

(Contains spoilers for The Original Mistborn Trilogy and Wax and Wayne Books 1- 3) This Should Not Be Read Until You Read All Of Those Books

The Mistborn world is getting big. But never has a larger picture been clearly hinted at or expressed at until the release of this short novella. Nearly ten years in the making - and believe me that amount of time shows - Brandon Sanderson makes the most significant developments to this world since the conclusion of The Hero of Ages.

This is a must read for any Mistborn or Cosmere fan.

Calamity Book Review

by The Wanderer

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Delacorte
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Young Adult
Series: Reckoners Book Three
Pages: 420

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The sun peeked over the horizon like the head of a giant radioactive manatee

(Spoilers for Steelheart and Firefight are below).

Regalia has been defeated, but Prof the leader of the Reckoners has now embraced his epic powers and transformed into Limelight. David has discovered that Calamity, the cause of epics on Earth, is itself and epic. Regalia's plan to confront Calamity was passed on to Prof, so David leads the remaining Reckoners to Ildithia (formerly Atlanta) to try and bring Prof back to the light.

The Bands of Mourning Book Review

 by The Wanderer

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Tor Books
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Series: Wax and Wayne Book Three, Mistborn Book Six
Pages: 448

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It's A Bird, It's A Plane, It's ... A Box?

(Spoilers for the five previous Mistborn books are below).

Six months have passed since Wax put down the rogue kandra Paalm, who had not only been terrorizing the city of Elendel, but had previously been deceiving him as the love of his life, Lessie. It's time for Wax to finally fulfill his vows of marriage to his political ally, Steris. As with everything in Wax's life, things don't turn out the way they should, and soon he, Marasi, Wayne, and even Steris this time, find themselves on a train out of Elendel seeking the Bands of Mourning, the mystical metal minds that once empowered the Lord Ruler.

What's The Best Wheel of Time Book?

Ranking the Fourteen Books in the Wheel of Time Series

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(Spoilers for the fourteen Wheel of Time books are below…. you have been warned).

It may be fair to call the Wheel of Time series one long book, but the fact remains that it was published in fourteen different volumes.  Which single volume of the series is best?  That is what this article is about: a ranking of the fourteen books that make up the Wheel of Time (prequel not included).

Although this is an opinion article, ranking the individual books was largely based off of subtracting the flaws from the strengths.

It’s no secret to the people who have started reading this series, that the books themselves are flawed… and in some cases they are very flawed.  Despite issues with character development and dialogue, the Wheel of Time still features one of the best fantasy worlds that’s been created.  For better or worse, the Wheel of Time is here to stay, so here is our ranking of the individual books in the series.

The Best Wheel of Time Quotes

Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson’s Best Quotes from The Wheel of Time

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(Spoilers may be included in some of the quotes below, do not read if you do not want to potentially see spoilers for all fourteen Wheel of Time books).

Great writing has the ability to tattoo itself into a reader’s brain, enter the flow of a person’s blood, become a part of the essence of who they are.  Prose that is expertly crafted can gut a reader’s insides providing the most powerful moments in a story.

A great book can leave behind many memories for readers, memories that can last a lifetime.

Average writing is forgotten, but great writing lives forever in the recesses of a person’s mind.

The Wheel of Time is a series that is not without its flaws, but it did provide readers with many great instances of writing.  Looking back through the series there were some finely crafted scenes, dialogues, descriptions, and other great scenes in prose that were captured by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson.

I’ve put together a collection of some of my favorite and most striking quotes and scenes from The Wheel of Time.  With the series recently completed these were the moments that I found that I would never forget in this series.

Is the Wheel of Time Worth Your Time?

Should You Read The Wheel of Time?

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(There are plot overviews but no major spoilers for The Wheel of Time below).

Reading a book is a time consuming process.  When a person reads an enjoyable book, most people can ultimately say it was worth the time.  However, when a book turns out to be a complete piece of crap, then you never get your lost time back.  As far as first world problems go, there isn’t much more I can say that I hate than reading a shitty book, let alone a shitty series of books.

The fantasy genre is known for its larger than life plots and scenarios, and it’s also know for bringing that larger than life aspect to its page count, too.  Deciding to read a lengthy series has some serious implications in a person’s free time, hence this article is focused on helping people to decide if Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series is worth reading.

Below you will find the numbers behind The Wheel of Time’s notorious length, a plot overview of the entire series, and some analysis on the strengths and weaknesses of Jordan’s writing.

Words of Radiance Book Review

by The Wanderer

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Tor Books
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Series: Stormlight Archive Book One
Pages: 1,080

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Words of Radiance is nearly as good as Way of Kings … and it’s even longer.  Brandon Sanderson’s magnum opus turns its focus to Shallan Davar while still incorporating its other major characters: Kaladin, Szeth, Dalinar, etc., in interesting ways.

At this point I would expect people to have read Brandon Sanderson’s other books, or at least Way of Kings. So his strengths and flaws as a writer should be known to the reader. On the upside, there’s great worldbuilding, a great magic system, and an action fueled plot. On the downside, their are struggles with developing varied character personalities, dialogue, and prose. Nevertheless these negative issues, although irritating, don’t undermine the story.  Words of Radiance is an excellent sequel that should please fans of the series that had to wait four years for it.

The Way of Kings Book Review

by The Wanderer

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Tor Books
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Series: Stormlight Archive Book One
Pages: 1,252

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The Way of Kings is Brandon Sanderson’s first book in a planned ten book series called the Stormlight Archive.  Following in the footsteps of massive fantasy series’ like Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time and Steven Erikson’s Malazan Book of the Fallen there is no doubt that Sanderson intends this series to be his magnum opus

The Way of Kings is over 1,200 pages long in paperback and features four different major plots.  In scope, size, and page count this is one of the largest books’ in the genre.  People who are familiar with Brandon Sanderson’s work can expect excellent world building and magic systems, but they will find he still struggles with writing prose and developing secondary characters. Nevertheless, this is my favorite book by Brandon Sanderson thus far.

Mitosis Book Review

by The Wanderer


Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Delacorte
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Young Adult
Series: Reckoners Short Story
Pages: 35

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(Contains spoilers for Steelheart).

One of the few series’ outside of Brandon Sanderson’s Cosmere universe, the Reckoners is about a renegade group that brings down super powered individuals called epics.  Mitosis takes place shortly after the events in Steelheart, and acts as a lead in to its sequel Firefight. While this can be an entertaining story, it really doesn’t really feel special in any sort of capacity, and instead comes off as a decent, but flawed, filler in between Reckoner’s books.

Firefight Book Review

by The Wanderer

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Delacorte
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Young Adult
Series: Reckoners Book Two
Pages: 434

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(Spoilers for Steelheart and Mitosis are below).

I was surprised at how much I liked Steelheart when I first read it last year. There was a great setting, a tough villain, and a great concept – the epic concept – that really made it a lot of fun to read.  It ended with a lot of potential, especially regarding the future of the titular character of the sequel.  Firefight takes some time to get going, but it pulls itself together in the last half and turns out to be a fun read.

Steelheart Book Review

by The Wanderer

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Delacorte
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Young Adult
Series: Reckoners Book One
Pages: 386

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I learned a lot about how far a young adult novel could go while reading Steelheart.  It doesn’t matter how many dead bodies there are, or how violently someone is killed – just as long as there’s no graphic sex, a fast pace, and a romantic plot … it can be a young adult novel.

That being said, Brandon Sanderson’s foray into writing young adult books is a success, albeit a violent one.  The concept of this book – which is basically a bunch of rebellious citizens fighting and killing epics (the epic equivalent would be Marvel and D.C. heroes) – is one that turns the superhero formula on its head.

While Steelheart on the surface may look like it’s a traditional good vs evil story, it isn’t. Sanderson takes the time to explore the morality of the decisions being made by the protagonists, and to ask pertinent questions about the corrupting influence of power. It’s the depth of the themes, the haunting visual setting, and the breakneck pace that make Steelheart the great adventure that it is.

Shadows of Self Book Review

by The Wanderer

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Tor Books
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Series: Wax and Wayne Book Two, Mistborn Book Five
Pages: 384

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The original transcript of this review has been lost. Click here for more info.

Below is shortened rewrite of the original review.

The Alloy of Law originally intended to be a standalone, despite having an ending with openings for sequels, finally got its sequel, or rather it will be getting three of them.  Shadows of Self is the first of these sequels with the The Bands of Mourning scheduled to come out in early 2016, and the final novel yet to be written.

Mistborn: The Alloy of Law Book Review

by The Wanderer

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Tor Books
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Series: Wax and Wayne Book One, Mistborn Book Four
Pages: 416

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Set 300 years after the final book in the original Mistborn Trilogy, Brandon Sanderson returns to the world of Scadrial with a new cast of characters.  Readers won’t have to read the original Mistborn Trilogy in order to read Alloy of Law, although I would recommend they do, because it gives a lot of backstory, and was – generally speaking – a great read.

Compared to the original trilogy, Alloy of Law is a strong entrant into the Mistborn series, but it’s definitely not Sanderson’s best.  I would still recommend it to fans of the original trilogy.  If you haven’t read any of the Mistborn books, then I would recommend this to people who are into steampunk, westerns, and highly developed magic systems.

The Hero of Ages Book Review

by The Wanderer

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Tor Books
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Series: Mistborn Book Three
Pages: 760

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(Spoilers for the previous two books in the Mistborn Trilogy are below).


All things must come to an end, and that’s what the Mistborn protagonists are facing at the climax of Sanderson’s trilogy – the end of the world.  Although the first half of the book tends to drag, it doesn’t drag for nearly as long as beginning of The Well of Ascension.  It’s a lot easier to forgive the slow start once readers get to the concluding half of this book.   It’s in the final half of this book that Sanderson, who had previously established himself as a great creator of magic systems, now establishes himself as a great plot architect.

Subtly inter-weaved into the previous Mistborn books is the importance of religion and faith.  These themes are brought to the forefront for the conclusion of the Mistborn trilogy, and they will probably bother some people who are not religious.

At times Sanderson gets too preachy with his take on faith, and although he never condemns atheism verbatim, his stance on the importance of faith does so indirectly.  All religious connotations set aside, The Hero of Ages wraps up all the major plot-lines, rewards the readers who have been paying attention to the details, and climaxes in a fast paced, emotionally wrought ending.

The Well of Ascencion Book Review

by The Wanderer

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Tor Books
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Series: Mistborn Book Two
Pages: 797

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(Spoilers below for Mistborn: The Final Empire).

New writers have a tendency to fall into a sophomore slump, where the author has the beginning and ending figured out, but the plot that bridges the gap between the two is less certain.  With Mistborn being the first trilogy and/or the first fantasy series that was written by Brandon Sanderson; The Well of Ascension has a tendency to fall into the slump category.

After an excellent introduction with The Final Empire, the sequel largely struggles for the first three quarters of the book.  It isn’t until the final 100 pages that Sanderson feels like he’s in full stride with progressing his story.  The ending is strong enough to avert a potential disaster, and it is able to mostly make up for a lot of this installment’s deficits. Although The Well of Ascension is a solid book, it’s not as good as its predecessor.

Mistborn: The Final Empire Book Review

by The Wanderer

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Tor Books
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Series: Mistborn Book One
Pages: 657

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Brandon Sanderson is probably known to most people as the man who completed Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time.  Thus it’s no big surprise to see how big of an influence Jordan had on Sanderson’s craft.

Sanderson incorporates Jordan’s themes, like duality into his magic system, Jordan’s character developing devices, such as madness and hearing voices inside your head, and to a much lesser extent he explores Jordan’s idea of the hero destroying the world, while simultaneously saving it.

Mistborn: The Final Empire is the first part of a trilogy that explores what happens after the prophesied hero fails.  The setting is dark, hope is scarce, and the nights are covered in mysterious mists. It is a story about an oppressed people fighting for their freedom from a man who claims to be their God, hero, and savior.

Accompanying the central plot about fighting for freedom are some excellent subplots and strong primary characters; the only real weaknesses from the story come from simple secondary characters and some issues with dialogue. A lot of these issues are minor though, and they are overcome by this book’s greatest aspect: its magic system.

Complex, with lots of clear rules, Sanderson’s magic system, called Allomancy,  is one of the greatest and most original ever created for the genre.  It’s this system of magic that makes this book one of the fantasy genre’s best that utilizes a lot of magic in telling a story.