Oathbringer

DURING:
I’m about 1/3 through this behemoth and on the plus side it’s certainly good for my biceps! On the downside I’m not totally enthralled. Some of the things that I love about GoT books–a zillion characters! 1,200 pages! complex plots!–are not pulling me into Oathbringer as much. But the illustrations are incredible, and I’m interested enough for now (on a frigid Sunday with little else happening…) to keep at it.

AFTER:
Took me 3 weeks but last night I finished Oathbringer and really enjoyed it. The back half was better than the first half. Spoiler-free thoughts on characters:
✅ Jasnah: literal queen 👑
✅ Renarin: damaged cinnamon roll to be protected
✅ Shallan: get yourself together sweetheart
✅ Adolin: basically a golden retriever with a sword
✅ Kaladin: that’s a LOT of brooding boo but I still love you
✅ Dalinar: …I have very few feelings about Dalinar 🤷🏻‍♀️
✅ Szeth’s sword-nimi: murderous, sassy, and #relatable
✅ Rock: will def be played by Dwayne Johnson in the movie
✅ Syl: unproblematic fave 💕💫😍

WILD, SPECULATIVE THEORY:

This is about the shash (slave) brand on Kal’s forehead. Stormlight heals everything, but not that scar. The fan wiki reports that the order number of the Lightweavers is “shash” and their symbol is a woman with a large jewel on her forehead.

My theory is that Kal could be both a Windrunner and a Lightweaver. A wise friend pointed out that spirited little Syl would likely NOT appreciate sharing him with another bonded friend. I have no idea what it could mean, but I’ll be back here shouting in 3 years if I’m proven correct in the next book!