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The Way of Kings

The Stormlight Archive, Book 1

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The Way of Kings

By: Brandon Sanderson
Narrated by: Kate Reading, Michael Kramer
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About this listen

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
©2010 Dragonsteel Entertaiment, LLC (P)2010 Macmillan Audio
Action & Adventure Epic Fantasy Military Royalty War
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Brandon is probably the best writer of Epic fantasy in the world! He creats and draw you in into an dark and wellconstructed world.

The story and characters are captivating and you cant stop listning. The Narrorator is also the King of dark Epic fantasy and suits Brandons books perfectly! Really makes you belive in the story and characters.

Fantastic

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The female reader has incredibly annoying inflection. No emotion, weird upswing on the end of the sentence.

Mixed narrator quality

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took a long while for it to make some sense. and for me to like the characters.

top notch performance by both narrators.

the story unfolds slowly. but it all becomes worth it in the end.

it doesn't resolve many .. if any of the conflicts in this book.

interested to see what happens next. It's a good start to an epic story.

huh?

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Dang. Been a while since I've enjoyed a book this much! It's just epic, can't get enough!

Obsessed

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It takes a good chunk to get into it, but it flowers out into an interesting and dynamic story, leaving you loving the characters.

The biggest downside here is both of the narrators, most of the male parts are a little monotonous, but luckily good writing prevails through. For the female narrator I agree with how robotic and impersonal she comes across. Making almost no distinction between male or female speakers in her parts.

Great opening work.

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