King's road.
The archive of storms o The Stormlight Archive —Original title in English— is a fantasy literature saga created by American author Brandon Sanderson. The release of the first volume, King's road (in English: The way of kings), it was produced in August 2010. Then, they appeared Radiant words (Words of Radiance) in March 2014 and Certified/Sworn (oathbringer) during November 2017.
Sanderson has agreed by contract with the publisher Tor Books ten installments of this series, grouped in two story arcs of five books each. The publication of the fourth book, Rhythm of war (It translates as The rhythm of war), is scheduled for 2020. All the texts of the saga have been well received by critics and fans of the fantasy genre.
About the author, Brandon Sanderson
He was born on December 19, 1975, in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States. He graduated with a master's degree in creative literature from Brigham Young University. Gained fame as a fantasy writer after completing the last book in the series The wheel of timeby Robert Jordan. It was commissioned by Jordan's widow, Harriet McDougal, who was amazed by the reading of The Final Empire, written by Sanderson.
Currently, the Nebraska author is compared - apart from Jordan himself - with other great creators of the genre (Tolkien or RR Martin, for example). In addition, Sanderson has earned the right to be considered one of the renovators of fantasy. In particular, thanks to his study on the "Campbell Syndrome", related to the "path of the hero" proposed by J. Campbell as a narrative stagnation of epic literature.
Cosmere
It is the imaginary universe elaborated by Brandon Sanderson for most of his epic novels. Apparently, the organization of matter and physical laws are quite similar to those of the "real world." However, events in Cosmere take place in a small, more compact galaxy. Therefore, with fewer stars and solar systems (compared to the Milky Way).
In addition to the series The archive of storms, in Cosmere the following works by Sanderson take place:
- Elantris (2005)
- Elantris' Hope. Saga Elantris, II (2006).
- The Final Empire. Saga Mistborn (Born of the mist), I (2006).
- The Well of Ascension. Saga Mistborn, II (2007).
- The hero of the ages. Saga Mistborn, III (2008).
- The breath of the gods (2009)
- Law alloy. Saga Mistborn, IV (2011).
- The emperor's soul. Saga Elantris, III (2012).
- Shadows of identity. Saga Mistborn, V (2015).
- Bracers of Duel. Saga Mistborn, VI (2016).
- Unlimited Arcanum. Anthology (2016).
The universe of The archive of storms
Roshar and its inhabitants
It is the name of the world and the super-continent frequently hit by storms where the events of the saga unfold. The name of its inhabitants is "rosharans". It is also the second planet in your solar system and has three moons. One of its satellites increases and decreases in size independently of the other two.
Within the continental mass, the Shinovar region is the least affected by climate due to the protection of a large mountain range, the Misted Mountains. There, plants and animals have adapted to the constant thunderstorms. Additionally, the so-called storm guards are able to predict the intensity and occurrence of these meteorological phenomena using advanced mathematics.
Brandon Sandersson.
Political organization
In an ancient time known as the Heraldic Ages, the Silver Kingdoms ruled Roshar through a great alliance of ten nations. After that time was over, the orders of the Radiant Knights disappeared. So, the kingdoms were divided into 32 smaller states:
- Aimia.
- Alethkar.
- al.
- Azir.
- Babatharnam.
- Desh.
- emul.
- Frostlands.
- Greater Hexi.
- Herdaz.
- Iris.
- Jah Keved.
- liafor.
- marabethia.
- Marat.
- Reshi Isles.
- Laugh
- shinovar.
- Steen.
- Tashikk.
- Thaylenah.
- Triax.
- Your Bayla.
- Your Fallia.
- Tukar.
- yezier.
- Yulay.
The storytellers of The archive of storms
From King's road, the events are told from the point of view of the different most relevant characters that appear. Although there is no dominant protagonist of the narrative thread, nor a completely pure or morally faultless hero. For this reason, the reader becomes the true judge of the actions carried out by each of the races of Roshar.
In fact, the complementary characters contribute their subjective position to the narrative thread. It is a tonic maintained in the successive deliveries, Radiant words y Certified/Sworn. Therefore, Brandon Sanderson manages to place the reader in a position of permanent doubt, where nothing is absolute and nobody owns the truth.
Argument
The beginning counted in King's road
The book begins with a victory for the Heralds (leaders of the Radiant Knights), who for 400 years took it upon themselves to protect humanity. His greatest enemies were a race of monsters, the Voidbringers, who appeared in regular cycles called Desolations. But the Heralds were doomed to suffer a curse that caused them to die and be reborn in tortuous cycles of war and death.
After countless rebirths, the Heralds abandoned their doom and disappeared from history. Similarly, the rest of the Radiant Knights were consumed by corruption, only the Shardblades and Shardplate factions remained.
A thousand years later
A millennium after the disappearance of the Heralds, the small remnant kingdoms of Roshar live in confrontation. In particular, one of the most threatened nations is the most powerful: Alethkar, with the king of the Alethi, Gavilar Kholin. Because Szeth - a Shin man banished by his people until he kills himself or renounces his sword - is sent to kill him.
Szeth is a devotee of peace and non-violence. As the story progresses, he does his best to hide one of the Shardblades that he carries. This is a magic sword - another property of the Radiant Knights and believed lost - capable of piercing any material and ending any life with a simple cut. Szeth also has the ability to control gravity and attach objects for a certain amount of time.
Quote by Brandon Sanderson.
The start of a new war
When Szeth was sent to assassinate the king of Alethkar, the Parshmen (of the Parshmen nation) claimed the assassination. In retaliation, the Alethkar kingdom begins the War of Awakening. Although the murdered king's brother —Dalinar Kholin— hesitates to go to war, as he has received some visions from his ancestors and the teachings of the book King's road.
In the text, the known history of the Heralds is called into question, as is the role of the Voidbringers. For this reason, Adolin Kholin (crown prince and owner of another Shardblade) distrusts his father's judgment when he hesitates to unleash the warlike confrontation. From this point on, the story is a fairly intricate path of characters with mystical powers, ancient religions, atrocities, and violence.