Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

What Happens After We Win?

The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson

by Leave a Comment

I’ve come to love reading the author’s pages in books. If ever a new writer felt that they were the only one struggling with their manuscript, all they have to do is read the author’s note of their current favorite book to find out everyone struggles from the same issues. Sanderson, for all his prolific publishing, is not immune from writing troubles, as he plainly says in his author’s note from The Well of Ascension. The Mistborn books were his first series, and the issues […]

“I am the one thing you can never kill. I am hope.”

Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson

by 5 Comments

I’m taking a break from my Diana Wynne Jones challenge to read different fantasy. Thanks to my wonderful Book Exchange partner, I was gifted the full Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson and have been chomping at the bit to dig into it. I lost a lot of sleep over this book, it was just too good to only read for a half hour before bed, and as dense and heavy as Sanderson often is, this book blew by. Mistborn introduces us to the Final Empire, a pseudo […]

Listener, Singer, Human

Rhythm of War: Book 4 of the Stormlight Archives by Brandon Sanderson

by 1 Comment

Continuing in the Stormlight Archives, Rhythm of War focuses on Venli, the Listener turned Voidbringer, whose mostly at fault for causing all the calamities befalling our heroes. As always, we hear from all the characters as the book progresses, but Venili is front and center. While it was awesome to finally have the perspective of the non-human characters, and to understand the full weight of human destruction on Roshar’s native peoples, going back through Venli’s past retreads a lot of material already covered in the previous […]

The Evolution of the Soldier

Oathbringer: Book 3 of the Stormlight Archives by Brandon Sanderson

by Leave a Comment

Oathbringer continues Sanderson’s epic tale, and while we hear from all the characters,  Dalinar Kholin takes center stage and much of the backstory that’s been hinted in books 1 and 2 comes to light. We are able to understand the depth of Dalinar’s past and how the Blackthorn became the legend he’s purported to be in the first two installments. Even though Sanderson uses this plot formula for both Kaladin in book 1 (who’s been my favorite character throughout the series), and Shallan in book […]

“But How Do You Poop?”

Words of Radiance: Book 2 of the Stormlight Archives by Brandon Sanderson

by 1 Comment

While a book titled Words of Radiance feels like its review title should be something much more lofty, “But how do you poop?” was one of my favorite lines in this book because it was so awesome and unexpected. Sanderson’s greatest feat in a series like this is that he and the characters don’t take themselves too seriously. Yes, there are gut-wrenching, serious, dark moments, but Sanderson balances that with a bouncy levity that’s borderline Pratchett in its honesty. At one point, Shallan asks one of the […]

Getting Back in the High Fantasy Game

The Way of Kings: Book One of the Stormlight Archives by Brandon Sanderson

by 7 Comments

I will preface this review by saying this kind of writing used to be my jam. I inhaled massive high fantasy series in high school and college, exclusively reading Robert Jordan, Terry Goodkind, Mark Lawrence, Patrick Rothfuss,  and GRR Martin. But then I joined CBR and started reading more widely. I fell out of love with the war-heavy, white male centric doorstops and found a new home in magical realism and the glory of a one-book wonder. Aside from rereading Tolkien, I’ve had a hard […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo