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Loading... Warbreaker (edition 2009)by Brandon Sanderson
1   fyrefly98 | Jun 7, 2009 | 
Warbreaker was one of my birthday presents, and I was really excited to read it. It's interesting that I read this book right after Elantris, because they have a lot of the same concepts. Men undergoing a transformation and being deified, and a princess being promised to a royal of a neighbouring kingdom in a political move. I thought Brandon Sanderson was being a bit repetitive (although he takes the concepts in very different directions in both books), but it was deliberate; he wanted to explore concepts that came up in Elantris, but couldn't due to the direction of the story. Warbreaker follows two Idrian princesses, Siri and Vivenna. Vivenna has been promised to Susebron, the God King of neighbouring Hallendren, in the hopes that it would avert a war, and she has been studying and preparing for this all her life. However, at the last minute, her father cannot bear to part with her, and instead sends her sister Siri. Vivenna is outraged and goes on an unauthorised mission to rescue her younger sister from her fate. We also follow Lightsong, a Returned god of Hallendren who doesn't believe he is a god, and the mysterious Vasher and his sentient sword, Nightblood. As usual, there is a lot of political intrigue and sudden plot twists that make an amazing amount of sense in retrospect, but which I never saw coming. Siri and Vivenna are very different from each other (and from all the other Sanderson female protagonists), and both very likeable. Lightsong reminded me a bit of Oscar Wilde's lazy and frivolous protagonists, but of course he's curious underneath it all. (I loved the revelation of who he was before he Returned.) Vasher is gruff and mysterious, but definitely an interesting person to follow. I don't really have much to say about the book – I was too immersed in the world to think about why I loved it, but I definitely loved it. One cool thing about Warbreaker is that it is available for free on Brandon Sanderson's website, as well as all his previous drafts of the book. This is a really cool, especially for people who want to write books. He also has annotations for each chapter. All of this is available at his Warbreaker portal. Originally posted on my blog. (  ) kgodey | Jan 15, 2012 | I think I find myself the minority in liking Warbreaker better than Mistborn. I found that I enjoyed the characters better in Warbreaker. I wanted to read about everyone, though I did have my favorites and wish they had a bit more 'screen time' as it were, but that's true of any novel I've read. I liked the transformations that both the princesses went during the progression of the novel. With Vivenna learning a whole new skill set that she would have never learned if she'd had to followe her fate and Siri finding a maturity to balance her already strondg spirit. The magic system was vastly different than anything I have seen in my fantasy novels, but that seems to be a strong point with Sanderson. He is a genius when it comes to creating intricate and complex magic systems. Overall, I just found myself really enjoying reading Warbreaker and I hope Sanderson visits this world again with in future works. ( ) sukino | Nov 8, 2011 | I didn’t check the writing sequence, but this single volume fantasy reads like a rehearsal for the better Mistborn trilogy: elaborate magic system, contending forces who all have pretty decent, if self-regarding, reasons for their behaviors that put them in conflict with the other characters, sudden but inevitable betrayals and so on. I found aspects of the magic silly—BioChromatic Breath has, as a significant effect, enhancement of color sense so that at higher levels a possessor acquires “perfect color sense,” which is some kind of analogue to perfect pitch. And while the initial setup is good—in order to stave off war, a vulnerable kingdom sends the princess promised by treaty to its hostile neighbor to marry the God King, except the king sends the wrong princess since the treaty was written ambiguously—I didn’t have much sympathy for the resulting romance. On the other hand, the other princess has a very interesting journey, and when she suffers in obscurity it’s different from the ordinary sufferings of royals in obscurity in such narratives, and though she never quite gets over her hostility to “whores” even she seemed to recognize that this said a lot more about her than about the other women. Ultimately, a mix of neat ideas and hard-to-swallow ideas, likewise with characterization. (  ) rivkat | Oct 30, 2011 | Very interesting use of a different kind of magic ( ) Guide2 | Oct 3, 2011 | Not as good as Elantris or the Mistborn trilogy, but Sanderson does stick to his tried-and-true formula of worlds that work in ways that aren't known to any of the characters, with the reader slowly finding things out with the protaganists. The color-based magic system was a little strange. I found the character development to be, well, average. The book was enjoyable but nothing special. (  ) Phrim | Sep 8, 2011 | If there's one thing we can always expect from a book by Brandon Sanderson, it's a well thought out and interesting system of 'magic' for each world that he creates. With 'Elantris', it was with the usage of runes; with the 'Mistborn' series, it was the Allomancy of metals; and with 'Warbreaker', he introduces a system called BioChroma, or 'Breath'. Like with his previous books, he manages to incorporate a philosophy behind the system of magic that effectively ties in to the plot of the story, making it all the more believable and interesting. Overall, I would consider Warbreaker, to be his most engaging story so far to date and one of the most enjoyable books this year (2009). Highly recommended. ( ) timothyl33 | Jul 9, 2011 | Sanderson's world is quite distinctive and colorful (pun intended), and his political intrigue was inspired - I didn't see it at all. But the climax and resolution were so abrupt. It's like he realized that he had under 100 pages to end the book and rushed to fit in as much as he could. There are some lingering resolutions especially concerning the Hallandren gods, does Susebron continue to rule or is the other path mentioned in the book (no spoilers here) taken? Also, the ending open to a sequel with Vivenna and Vasher was a little cheesy. ( )1 Bodagirl | May 27, 2011 | Another interesting bit of storytelling and world-building... (  ) xavierroy | May 18, 2011 | Warbreaker is a large stand-alone fantasy novel with sequel potential. In it, Brandon Sanderson did what he does best: created a magic system that provides mystery and depth to character interactions. Having read the Mistborn trilogy, it was nice to see some twists on the themes he developed. In particular, the details about this world's Lord Ruler equivalent are quite unexpected. Like the Mistborn magic system, the Warbreaker mythos has one source of power that can be accessed in various ways which have been discovered by various cultures. This allows Sanderson to play with ideas about religion and multiple routes to the divine. While the mystery and the magic system were excellent, the political posturing felt a little too simplistic. Nations don't behave in such predictable fashions. That said, I'll still read the sequel. ( )1 StephenBarkley | Mar 17, 2011 | Although this one could have used some better editing, it showcases Sanderson's talent for imagination far beyond the vast majority of his peers. ( ) smitkevi | Mar 9, 2011 | A great fantasy full of humor and suspense. If you like politics then you'll enjoy this book that tells how this fantasy world does business. ( ) pagei | Mar 7, 2011 | This is a solid, well-crafted fantasy novel that will sate your desire for a unique, sensible magic system, and a good, action-driven story. And this review will sate your desire for too many commas in the first sentence and those following. Hmm. Well, nevertheless, I'm not going to edit them, and I do recommend this book. Sanderson has a gift for creating unique magic systems that are based around very specific rules -- namely, logic and order -- which is what makes them work within the framework of his story. Things can't just "happen" magically -- they have to make sense and follow the natural laws he created. In Warbreaker, he presents a magic system based around something called BioChromatic Breath. BioChroma relies on 'breaths' to function and are fueled by the use of color (draining it or enhancing it). None of this tells you about the story itself, I know, but I thought the magic system alone was interesting enough to make me want to read the book. As much as I love older works of epic fantasy, there does come a point when I get tired of magic happening for no reason other than the author wanted it to exist. Without rules, anything can happen, and that becomes unfair to the reader when at the climax of the book, some super-magic power can happen without warning because no rules to the system were previously established. Not so with Sanderson, which is why I really appreciate his writing and attention to detail with his worldbuilding. Er, all that said, the story itself is pretty good too. Not my favorite of his books, but a good solid fantasy with another couple of strong female characters (I love that Sanderson does this as well... no "rescue me!" princesses in his stories, that's for darn sure) and some great twists and turns along the way. My only real complaint was that the most interesting character (and object) didn't get enough face time. They didn't appear in a prominent way until more than halfway through the book, and I would have liked to see a lot more development in this area.... but my understanding is that Sanderson has plans to, one day (could be years from now, could be next week) develop this character and object a little bit more in a companion novel, so I can't fault him too much there. He obviously knows that there wasn't enough of him here, so we'll get to see him again someday. All told, a worthwhile fantasy read! ( )3 dk_phoenix | Feb 21, 2011 | Idris and Hallandren have teetered on the brink of war for decades, but all of the longstanding issues are finally coming to a head. Warbreaker is the story of two kingdoms, both believing war is inevitable, but neither side wanting any part of it. This is a book of intrigue and betrayal, self discovery, politics and religion. Will the long-arranged marriage of an Idrian princess to the Hallandren God King be enough to avert disaster? What happens when a God doesn’t believe his own religion, let alone believe in his own divinity? Warbreaker starts off a bit lightly (not at all a bad thing), with Sanderson’s dry humour, a la the Alcatraz Smedry YA series, coming through strongly. But as the plot develops things get more serious. The characters are believable, and all of the main ones undergo something of a transformation as the story unfolds. I particularly liked Lightsong, the contrary, irreverent god who actively and openly questions his own divinity, and gruff, mysterious Vasher. Sanderson consistently leaves me amazed at the creativity and originality of the magical systems he creates. Warbreaker is no exception. The magic of Hallandren and the surrounding kingdoms revolves around BioChromatic Breath and an individual’s ability to accumulate it. The build up of Breath in a person confers a variety of abilities, many relating to being able to distinguish between subtle shades of colour. However, Breath is primarily used to ‘awaken’, that is animate, inanimate objects. The only problem I had with Warbreaker is the pacing of the conclusion. The loose ends are tied up, there are twists, turns and surprises, but the ending seemed to call for a slightly more epic quality. It felt like it was all over just a little bit too quickly. But this is a minor complaint. The edition I read was an almost 600 page chunkster, and while plenty of detail and world-building explanations are given I never felt bogged down in detail. The pages almost turned themselves. Warbreaker adds to an already very impressive body of work that Sanderson has published. I have more of his books on my TBR pile, and I can't wait to dive into the next one. ( ) SouthernKiwi | Dec 28, 2010 | This is a solid fantasy book: some good world-building, a novel system of magic (though perhaps a bit hokey at times), colorful characters you can relate to, a bit of humor, and a decent plot line with a twist here and there. I won't call it great. I can't quite put my finger on it but there's something a bit awkward or ungainly about the book—almost like a teenager who hasn't quite gotten control of their new body—and there are some pacing issues. However, these aren't serious and don't really detract. I'd recommend this to a fantasy fan. Those not particularly into this genre probably won't find much here. ( ) TadAD | Oct 21, 2010 | Enjoyed this book very much. If I gave quarter stars, I might knock it down to 4.75 so rounded it up a bit. The plot was just simple enough that I figured out things a bit before the lead characters. What makes this a good book was I didn't hold that against them. "Epic" is a good description. Sort of like Neal Stephenson or Lois McMaster Bujold - good science fiction fun. ( ) mainrun | Oct 20, 2010 | My friend Jeff lent me this book to read, after discussing the Mistborn trilogy with him numerous times. I read this about 2 months ago and am now just writing a review about it. This was a very intriguing book. Once again Sanderson creates a system of magic thats really different from other stuff out there. In Warbreaker the magic users use BioChromatic Breath which they can make inanimate objects come to life for a limited amount of time. They then take the breath back. Everyone is born with one breath. The "gods" are kept god like by people giving up their breath to the "gods". Also regular people can hold more then 1 breath. There are also different levels of how much a person can hold. Very well written. The characters are memorable while reading. 2 months though with only 1 read and i'm struggling to remember their names but i can remember what each one did. The youngest daughter who was sent to marry the "God King". The older daughter that was supposed to marry him but did not. The "god" who wondered why he was a god. The group of 3 real funny bandit ruffians. Or the dude running around dropping a sword that is animated that sucks the life out of people at the swords own whim. A truly great book from Mr. Sanderson. He is definitely one for plot twists that you don't see coming, and can craft a story to last 500 pages with no filler. The way Mr. Sanderson is going he is soon to become a master of fantasy books. ( ) edstan76 | Oct 18, 2010 | Jul10: Another solid story from Brandon Sanderson. Plot: Acceptable. Just not super awesome. I still liked the world building though. Characters: Still likable. L-breaker something was easily the shining star. A god that couldn't care but had to care. The sisters were good enough. Vasher was good enough too. Not outstanding. Style: Just so real and exciting. He includes just the right number of details to keep me going. Seemed like parts of this one could use some more fleshing out still. ( ) Isamoor | Jul 16, 2010 | Warbreaker is a very unique story, where breath and color play a big part in the characters everyday lives. I found this strange and intriguing at the same time. This an epic tale, an intricate world. The story was filled with intrigue, mystery, danger and a splash of humor. Maybe it's just me but this is not a book to zip through if you want to truly enjoy and understand what is going on. I don't read many epic fantasies but I found this one enjoyable. The characters were wonderful to read. I especially liked Siri, Lightsong and Vasher. ( ) vampiregirl76 | Jul 6, 2010 | So far I am not an exhaustive Sanderson reader. I haven't read the latter books to the Mistborn trilogy (but I really mean to very soon, I promise). Yet I will admit that from what I have read, this book is my favorite of his that I have read so far (Gathering Storm was also incredible in my opinion, but I like to judge the author on his own unique works). The first thing this book sets up is a very interesting conundrum. What happens if a god (or god-like being at least) does not believe in his godhood? This leads to questions of faith and why people have the need to deify someone or something in order to make sense of their world and culture. Apparently Sanderson did not listen to the people who have said that fantasy novels do not delve into serious matters that clearly effect all of us, even today. Another outstanding part of this book is something that actually put me off initially. This is the magic system, or rather how the magic system is referenced by the characters. Like with the Mistborn trilogy, Sanderson provides us with a unique and very well detailed system of magic. It has clearly defined limitations and capabilities that while the magic users can do some incredible things they do not become invincible wielders of power. This magic power is based on number of "Breaths" which can be expended and then reclaimed and reused in many circumstances. What ends up being a little off-putting at first is how the characters refer to very specific numbers of "Breaths" to be able to do different tasks or gain different abilities. I am used to that sort of precision in science fiction novels, but it seemed out of place in a fantasy novel. We're so used to magic being indiscriminate mumbo-jumbo and hand-wavery (although it often has rules, these do little to explain the structure of the magic) that to have it clearly defined almost offends our fantasy reading sensibilities. About half way through the book I had a revelation though which completely converted me to absolutely loving how Sanderson portrays his magic system. It came to me that if we had magic in our world today, along with our systems of rational thought, experimentation, and scientific inquiry, it would be portrayed with a similar sense of precision. This is essentially what Sanderson has done, he has put a system of magic into a rational society and interpreted how they would explain and define it. The "Breaths" are merely units like we say watts or gallons and certain amounts of these units can perform certain tasks, just like a gallon of gas can propel a car thirty miles. Not everything about this book is great. At times the characters appear to be somewhat flat and simplistic. They all have clearly defined motives and personalities with little room for the messy ambiguity that I feel makes some of the most interesting characters. There are certain elements that resonate strongly with Sanderson's first Mistborn book, such as the rebellion against a strong established government and characters gaining incredible powers by accident or fate and needing to learn to use them effectively. Overall this was a very fun book to read that not only provided great entertainment, but challenges its readers to consider what they believe in and why. Like with the prior Mistborn series, Sanderson continues to push the envelope of epic fantasy by giving us new worlds and new challenges for his characters. He appears to be an extremely prodigious and prolific writer so he will be providing us with many great novels in the future. ( ) FSkornia | Jul 1, 2010 | This was a good fantasy. The magic system was well worked out. There were twists and turns and surprises aplenty. There is also politics and a great deal of action. The story is well written and has a lot of fast action. I recommend this book. xenchu | Jun 21, 2010 | This is an amazing book! What I love most about all of Brandon Sanderson's books is that they hook you from the very beginning. They don't spend a long time building up the history of a world which you aren't interested in until much later, instead they plunge right into the action and do the explaining and history as it goes along. This book is awesome in that regard. Also it's interesting to read fantasy where artistic elements like perfect pitch come into play, and the focus is less on swords and weaponry. Artistry as a major influence is a nice change from typical fantasy. And yet, it still is chock-full of political intrigue, it isn't merely a pretty story of magic; it makes you think too. (  ) Kira | Jun 17, 2010 | In a land where breath is magic, a young princess is sent in place of her older sister to marry a god and stop a war. Very good stand-alone epic fantasy, my first Sanderson. ( ) janepriceestrada | Jun 9, 2010 | Magic, politics, religion, love, trust and betrayal combine in a monumental scope in Brandon Sanderson's fantasy epic Warbreaker. The story is complex and exciting filled with unpredictable twists and turns and peppered with well-drawn characters. The heroes and villains were equally enchanting - and the distinction between them often blurred - and as the narrative switched between the multiple subplots a riveting story was woven together. Sanderson's world-building is phenomenal. The rich layers of detail about the neighboring kingdoms and the incredible theory of magic involved with BioChromatic breath, Awakening, and the Returned were seamlessly blended into the story. Each new facet of the setting was introduced subtly, leaving the reader with a sense of discovery rather than a displeasing "info-dump". From the opening chapters to the dramatic climax, Warbreaker was a spell-binding tale. The ending offered a satisfying conclusion with just enough of an open door to leave readers with their fingers crossed that perhaps a future book will return them to this marvelous world. Although this was the first book I have read by Brandon Sanderson, it most certainly will not be the last. ( ) elbakerone | Mar 19, 2010 | An epic fantasy novel with a whole new magic system that actually makes sense. There are no stereotypical elves, dwarves, and centaurs on a quest. Instead there is a wholly believable world of characters with real depth that struggle with religion, politics, and betrayal. ( ) AScheu | Feb 25, 2010 | Warbreaker is another excellent offering from Brandon Sanderson. I am constantly impressed with the mans ability to bring such diverse and interesting magical systems into play. This time the magic is based on the hoarding, buying and selling of 'Breath'. Everyone is born with one and only one, however they can be bought and sold. It cannot be stolen, only given freely. The Kingdom's of Idris and Hallandren have been on the brink of war for years and things seem to be finally coming to a head. The war will be devastating to both sides and no one really wants it to happen but no one seems to be able to stop it either. Two Princesses from Idris are doing everything they can to prevent this war, but will they be successful or just make matters worse? Overall, a great read and I enjoyed it immensely, lots of puzzles and hints to try to figure out, some were fairly easy and blatant while others were hidden well until actually reveled. Better than Elantris, but not quite up to the Mistborn trilogy. I think there was something weird about the pacing that just couldn't let this book be rated higher, but 4 stars is still pretty good. ( )2 readafew | Feb 5, 2010 | |
LibraryThing AuthorBrandon Sanderson is a LibraryThing Author, an author who lists their personal library on LibraryThing.
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RatingAverage: (4.16)
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In the tropical seaside city of Hallandren, color is everywhere, powerful Awakeners roam the streets, the city is guarded by armies of Lifeless (Awakened corpses), and the populace is ruled by the Returned - those who die nobly and are sent back to life as ageless, prophetic deities - and they, in turn, are ruled by the mysterious and powerful God King. In the neighboring kingdom of Idris, however, Hallandren is seen as harboring the worst kind of heresy - Idris's god teaches that Breath is part of one's soul, not something to be taken or given away. Idris and Hallandren have been hovering on the brink of war for decades, held at bay only by a treaty, in which the King of Idris must send one of the daughters of the Royal Line to wed the God King.
So, enter our main characters: There's Vivenna, the pious eldest Idrian princess, who has been training since birth to go to Hallandren, marry Susebron the God King, and fulfill the treaty... until her father decides to send Siri, her impetuous younger sister, in her place. There's Lightsong, the Returned god of bravery, who doesn't believe in his own divinity. And then there's the mysterious Vasher, whose sword is more deadly than any regular steel. Each of them is willing to do whatever it takes to ensure that their country wins the coming war... a war that seems all-but-inevitable.
Review: As you can tell from my exceptionally lengthy summary, there is a *lot* going on in this book. That should come as no surprise; Sanderson has proved himself excellent at juggling multiple storylines, detailed plot threads, well-developed characters, and viewpoints. Warbreaker is no different; Sanderson shifts through the four main voices with ease, never losing momentum and never losing my attention - I stayed glued to the story from the first few pages. And as good (and complex) as his stories are, his writing is more than matches up; complex, multi-dimensional characters, vivid settings, excellently written action sequences, a good ear for dialogue, and equal facility with both pathos and humor (and sometimes both simultaneously).
Another thing at which Sanderson excels is the Big Surprising Plot Twist that forces you to re-evaluate everything that had come before. At about halfway through Warbreaker, I thought I had figured out one of the pieces of the puzzle that Sanderson was hinting at (who Lightsong was before he was Returned, not that it matters). "Ha," I thought smugly to myself, "got one on you that time, Sanderson! You're so fond of yanking the rug out from under your readers, but I've got your number on this one! Who's clever now, huh?" And, while I was busy gloating about that, Sanderson went and yanked out two more rugs that I didn't even know I was standing on. (Plus, it turns out I was wrong about Lightsong's past, to boot. Hrmph.) It's so great when an author can pull off a surprising twist that you never saw coming but is so obvious in retrospect, and completely changes the direction of the story.
While the story was engaging and the characters were excellent, I didn't love Warbreaker quite as much as I did Mistborn. I am a sucker for an original and well-thought out system of magic, and Sanderson's got the best I've ever seen. The scheme of using Breath and colors to do magic, while cool, just wasn't as meticulously logical as the allomantic metal-based magic of Mistborn, and there were some elements that weren't ever explained to my satisfaction. Still, that's pretty minor, and even though it's a chunkster (almost 600 pages), I never felt it dragging, and as much as I wanted to read faster to know what happened, I was reluctant to get to the end and have to leave his world. 4.5 out of 5 stars.
Recommendation: If you like fantasy novels but haven't read any of Sanderson's books, Warbreaker would definitely be an excellent place to start, especially if you're not yet willing to commit to a trilogy. If you've already read Sanderson's other books, then you probably don't need me to tell you that this one is also great, and that you should hurry out and read it. (