For being a person who was never much of a fantasy fan, my top 3 favorite authors now are fantasy authors. Of course Terry Goodkind and Patrick Rothfuss are the first two (thanks in part to our trip to SD). However, as I've just finished his novel Mistborn, I can't help but be intrigued by this Brandon Sanderson fellow, probably most famous now as the guy who stepped in to close out the late Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series.
Of the three, Sanderson's style feels the most... well, I'm not sure how to put it. I guess the word I'm looking for is "precise". There isn't a single wasted word from beginning to end. I honestly can't say that of Terry, as much as it pains me to admit it. The slowest part of Mistborn for me was the beginning. However, what Sanderson does quite exquisitely after introducing us to the world is moving the plot forward, like sawing wood. There are no lulls once it finally gets underway.
Terry does a nice job of building up to climaxes, and there are always several climaxes in each of his books. However, between each climax there is a lull that are dangerous for a storyteller. Lulls lead to boredom and it's easy to lose a reader's interest if you aren't careful. I also admit that Terry has a tendency to get repetitive from time to time; in some circumstances, that's a good thing, but more often than not, it tends to be a waste of words for most readers. Not necessarily for me, of course, but for many. There are quite a few painstakingly obvious fantasy clichés, at least in WFR (though as Terry matured as a writer his world became more and more genuine with each book). To date no book is more important to me than Faith of the Fallen, which I'm pretty sure is his greatest literary achievement to date. Of course, with all this you might think Terry wasn’t my favorite author on the list. He is, of course. What Terry has that no other author has ever had is Richard and Kahlan… my favorite fictional couple not created by myself. A heaping serving of Zedd on the side, and you have my favorite fictional family. Doesn't hurt that Terry's ideals ring true for me, as well.
Patrick is a different breed altogether. The manner in which he tells his story is something that is relatively unique (your Inception comment previously is actually fairly accurate). While his writing style is very similar to Terry's, his methods are pretty unique (at least compared to my personal experience). Of the three, he's the one that strikes me as the most... I suppose the best way to put it is "real". Never does anything truly spectacular happen in his story, yet at the same time there is never a lack of intrigue. The story tends to remain genuine and earnest throughout, and it always feels like the narrator is actually sitting down and having a chat with the reader. If Terry is the hearty stew, and Brandon the spice, Patrick is the mug of ale to wash it all down, and of course, even when the meal is done, you don’t just stop drinking! Help yourself to another round! While there are highs and lows within the The Name of the Wind, but there is no real emotional buildup toward the climax. If I were to describe the novel, I suppose I would say it’s the "ordinary day-to-day life of an extraordinary man". The danger in this particular story… if Patrick loses the intrigue going forward… the story falls apart. I hope this never happens, because as it stands, the Kingkiller Chronicles has an opportunity to become one of the unique series in all of fantasy. We step away from the "ordinary person accomplishes extraordinary feats" aspect of fantasy to a trilogy that seems designed to focus on the development on an extraordinary character. Funny enough, as we look through the hero’s eyes, it feels as though the very intent of the hero is to downplay those extraordinary feats… something I don’t think I’ve ever seen in storytelling… ever.
Ah… and then there is Brandon. What can I say about Brandon Sanderson? To put it mildly, Brandon is the rock star of the group, and the complete opposite of Patrick. His Mistborn novel is much like his character Kelsier: larger than life. From my first impressions, his writing jumps right off the page. There are no wasted words, no wasted moments, no wasted existences. Brandon is always pushing the story forward. He also has a knack for characters. It seems that every writer out there has their fair share of "turd" characters (those that bring nothing to the story except to serve as a springboard from point A to point B). From top to bottom, there are really no characters that have any significant time on the pages of a Sanderson novel that don’t simply come to life (with the exception of one, though I suspect that Brandon has cloaked this particular character in shadows for a reason*). His pacing is excellent and the plot filled with twists and turns. He has a charming wit about him that exudes from the pages. This wit breeds another knack that I myself like to think I possess: dialogue. Mistborn has some of the best dialogue of any book I have ever read, and that is the primary reason Brandon is so good at characters. If the dialogue isn’t up to par, characters will always falter. The banter of Kelsier’s band of "merry men" is the highlight of the entire book, always good for a laugh. The events and magic are a bit more fantastical than the other two authors, but like I’ve said, Brandon is the rock star here. It’s supposed to be sparkly! Mistborn, more so than any fantasy I have ever read, feels word-for-word like a novel meant for the cinema. If it was possible to read a movie, that’s what reading Mistborn is like... even if it took weeks to complete. I don’t want to say the writing or plot is simplistic, because it is a deep and thought-provoking story, but above all, Brandon writes "crowd-pleasers". To be honest, I suppose that is as good a description as any.
If the casual reader came up to me and asked me to suggest a fantasy novel that is sure to please, while my heart would first turn to Terry, I would have to suggest Brandon Sanderson. Terry’s content requires a more mature reader, IMHO, a more patient reader. Rothfuss is a great read but patience is a must for him as well. Two of the three authors won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but Brandon is a brew that I think most anyone who loves larger-than-life, crowd-pleasing stories will enjoy. Most importantly, like a good whiskey it goes down real smooth.
* After completing Mistborn, my suspicion proved accurate.
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Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass... it's about getting out there and dancing in the rain.
We should create a loop. That way when he gets back he can feel jealous that he's been out of it.
