While this colossus of a book kept my attention the entire time, I find it to be my least favorite of the installments into the stormlight archive so far… my main reason is it felt as though Sanderson spent much of the last book setting Shallan up to adequately deal with her past traumas, and then we spent the entirety of this book with her having yet to come to grips with it. Despite this I still enjoyed her sections, but I think it was Pattern and Adolin that really made that plot point interesting. Adolin’s plot with Maya was good, but predictable which is not always the case for Sanderson. 

Kaladin’s plot was also a bit difficult for me to get through, while I appreciate Sanderson’s attention to mental health it fell a bit flat to me when it comes to Dabbid and how he writes about cognitive differences. It was a bit frustrating to wade through in all honesty. Kaladin’s father was also extremely annoying to read with the amount of self righteousness… I’m aware that was resolved but getting through it was simply annoying. 

Navani had the most interesting plot by FAR in this entire book, and I really enjoyed her POV. It was a different perspective and one that I believe pushes the book into a new and interesting direction with the work she did with the fused and singers. Venli’s perspective seems to be intermingled with Navani’s because of their fused counterparts, and I think it made for the most interesting and engaging parts of the book. 

Dalinar’s portions were fine, I didn’t find myself overly invested in what was happening on his end during this as the tower was much more interesting. Wit’s inclusion in Dalinar’s plot line was probably the most interesting and I am excited to see where it goes. 

And finally… ugh Taravangian is the worst, boo. 

All together I did enjoy the story and the stage it sets for the next book but I don’t think this is the strongest, nor the best, of the stormlight archive to date. But it leaves me eager to get the next one in my hands once it is out!