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Bradley's Reviews > Skyward
Skyward (Skyward, #1)
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Okay, it's official, folks. Brandon Sanderson is a god.
He's not just a go-to guy for all things fantasy. I've read a few of his Cosmere SF stores but this is the first outright SF novel I've read from him and OMG he slams it out of the park. Or sky. :)
Let's put it this way. You remember how Armada should have been the glorious Last Starfighter? Let's just ignore that for a moment.
THIS is the quintessential Top Gun meets the Last Starfighter, complete with a girl pilot with a huge chip on her shoulder, a lot of growth to be had, a mysterious AI starship she's caring for while undergoing training, and KILLER dogfights.
Did I cry a little as the cadets started dying or being pulled from the classes by freaked out parents? Yes. Did I feel the urgency and the hopelessness and the absolute need for pilots at all costs? Yes.
Did I have an INSANE amount of fun reading this?
YES.
Hell, I'm already devoted to this man's fantasy.
I just never guessed, although I SHOULD HAVE GUESSED, that Sanderson's Law was always a great means to bring understandable science-like laws to the field of Fantasy, but COME ON... a man who does this already has a FANTASTIC grip on SF. The story is fantastic, fun, and jammed with action, pathos, and a LOT of cute. :)
I can't wait for the next one! It's a great blow out and an even better set-up! :)
He's not just a go-to guy for all things fantasy. I've read a few of his Cosmere SF stores but this is the first outright SF novel I've read from him and OMG he slams it out of the park. Or sky. :)
Let's put it this way. You remember how Armada should have been the glorious Last Starfighter? Let's just ignore that for a moment.
THIS is the quintessential Top Gun meets the Last Starfighter, complete with a girl pilot with a huge chip on her shoulder, a lot of growth to be had, a mysterious AI starship she's caring for while undergoing training, and KILLER dogfights.
Did I cry a little as the cadets started dying or being pulled from the classes by freaked out parents? Yes. Did I feel the urgency and the hopelessness and the absolute need for pilots at all costs? Yes.
Did I have an INSANE amount of fun reading this?
YES.
Hell, I'm already devoted to this man's fantasy.
I just never guessed, although I SHOULD HAVE GUESSED, that Sanderson's Law was always a great means to bring understandable science-like laws to the field of Fantasy, but COME ON... a man who does this already has a FANTASTIC grip on SF. The story is fantastic, fun, and jammed with action, pathos, and a LOT of cute. :)
I can't wait for the next one! It's a great blow out and an even better set-up! :)
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Reading Progress
November 8, 2018
–
Started Reading
November 8, 2018
– Shelved
November 8, 2018
– Shelved as:
to-read
November 24, 2018
– Shelved as:
2018-shelf
November 24, 2018
– Shelved as:
sci-fi
November 24, 2018
– Shelved as:
space-opera
November 24, 2018
– Shelved as:
ya
November 24, 2018
–
Finished Reading
Comments Showing 1-50 of 70 (70 new)
message 1:
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Trish
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Nov 25, 2018 02:47AM
Wow, you REALLY liked this, didn't you? *lol* The description does sound interesting, I'll admit.
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Damn right. I wholeheartedly agree. Brandon has finished the second draft of part 2...So hopefully we only have to wait a year at the most
Well, I've only read a short story by Brandon Sanderson ("Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell"), I liked it, but it seems he is far better in novel format, so I really should start reading his books in 2019!! What first book do you recommend to read? Some say The Mistborn Trilogy, others speak about Elantris or Warbreaker, what about you? :)
You really can't ask a more difficult question than this, Justine. *cry*What to read first? Okay. Here's the thing. Most of his best works are HUGE. Multiple volumes. Wordcounts that bring GRRM to his knees. So you want something short? Okay, lol, but they're all great. I started reading them all with skepticism but that kinda blew away.
I started with his finale of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series and LOVED it. But that requires 12 enormous books and three more by Sanderson. Tho I had to wait for books 13 and 14. :)
In the meantime, I jumped on his Mistborn Trilogy. Swore by it. Still think its all kinds of brilliant. Elantris started slow but ROCKED hard by the end. That's his first novel.
But if I'm going to be perfectly honest, his magnum opus is his fantasy epic... the Stormlight Archives. Three enormous books so far. Only getting stronger, too.
That's not to say some of his YA isn't charming as hell. I've enjoyed them all, oddly enough, and I do not enjoy every YA out there. But I do with his. :)
BUT... all of these books are fantasy. His SF is also a great place to start. :) He killed it. I'm also pretty sure he's aiming for a huge blowout that knocks this book out of the water. He pulled off some amazing things with his fantasy already. I see the marks on this one. :)
Bradley wrote: "You really can't ask a more difficult question than this, Justine. *cry*What to read first? Okay. Here's the thing. Most of his best works are HUGE. Multiple volumes. Wordcounts that bring GRRM t..."
Oh sorry x) *taps shoulder*
I don't really care if it's short or huge; I just read Dangerous Women, and there was something short by him, that's all :)
I have not started The Wheel of Time yet, so I won't start Brandon Sanderson with this series x) but I have the first book, The Eye of the World, and plan on reading it!
Everybody keeps recommending his Mistborn Trilogy, so I wanted to start with this one! But all of his books seem so great, I want to read them all at the same time ^^'
I thought I should read other books before The Stormlight Archives like the Mistborn Trilogy; haven't they linked? If not, well, I might start with The Way of Kings, because it seems so great!!
I'm not a super fan of YA because of some tropes I find in the genre; but I still read it when I see good reviews :) I think I added all of Brandon Sanderson's books in my wish-list, even his YA ^^'
Yes, I saw he wrote SF too! Steelheart is calling me!
Maybe I'll start all of the series and see which one I want to read the most (hoping it won't be all of them ;))
Thank you for your time!
I'm one of those uberfans of WoT, too, but yeah, starting there would be hard unless you have a lot of time on your hands. :) :)Okay, so. The fantasies are not linked except in a meta-cosmos kind of way, so start wherever you like. I started with Mistborn but only because Stormlight hadn't been out yet. :)
And yes about Steelheart! Although, I call that a superhero trilogy. Kinda SF, but more fantasy. More magic with the guns even tho there are godlike techs. It's a subgenre. Same with Legion. Multiple personalities help solve cases. :)
But really, no need to thank me lol even tho I complain, I love to talk about all this stuff.
I'll set a goal for 2019: at least, get started on The Wheel of Time! Okay! I didn't understand the way it worked, so I was afraid to start somewhere and get spoiled (I hate that, really x)) I might then read first The Stormlight Archive, it really seems great!! (but, it seems everything seems/is great with Brandon Sanderson!)
Yeah!! I saw the word "superhero" to speak about Steelheart, I was like: "This is for me!!" I love these kind of books!
I know you didn't really complain, but you took the time to answer anyway, so still! Thank you! :D
Oh, I always respond to everyone who talks to me. :) Feel free. This is called socialization. Reality has very little of it, so I indulge here. :)If you're interested in doing a WoT run, I've been looking for an excuse to re-read. :) However fast you like to read it, I wouldn't mind a BR. :) The last time I did it back in 2013 I did the full run in a month, but I think I might be able to do it faster now. :) lol Back then I read them at 1x speed in audio. Should be able to kill it in half a month. :)
(I'm joking about forcing you to do it that fast, btw. :) But the offer is still open. It's one of my favorite uber-stories. :)
It’s just not fair for one author to be able to write so many good books...
WoT in 1 month is no joke, so much awe. that intimidating reread is a huge roadblock, but it will happen!was seriously worried sanderson had started writing by committe since calamity didnt feel quite right, but wow, so happy with skyward, all the best parts of ender with just enough YA
ps, emperor's soul should top the intro to sanderson list
Bradley wrote: "Oh, I always respond to everyone who talks to me. :) Feel free. This is called socialization. Reality has very little of it, so I indulge here. :)If you're interested in doing a WoT run, I've bee..."
I do the same on my social medias: always respond to everyone, because I love to share my love for books :)
It would be great to do a BR with you for WoT! But, I only got the first book for the time being! I don't think I'll be able to read them all in a month :') I read fast, but not that fast! But we can start together, and see how it goes :) maybe next year, in spring?
(of course! ;))
Spring is fine! What I usually do is a book a month for folks but I'll be perfectly fine with a speedy schedule. If I recall right, each book is around 24-28 hours at regular speed. Maybe more. I could force a book a day, but I never ask ANY buddy to pull that. :)Eye of The World! Looking forward to it! Whenever you like. :)
We can start with a book a month; but we could also set the goal to finish the series in 2019, so we'd have to read more than one book a month from spring to winter! I don't know how it'll go, but it should be fun! It'll be a real challenge for me! (I tend to start series, but not to finish them� I must change that in 2019!) I won't be able to read a book a day unfortunately, I'll have to take part in two competitive exams from March to June, and reading will be an escape from that! But, during the summer, I can read more :)
Maybe, end of February or beginning of March?
Sounds fun to me! Just be forewarned, some of the middle novels seem rather... bloated with extraneous martial exercise. Don't let the lesser novels get you down, though. I promise by the time you get to Sanderson's final novels in the series, he redeems everything Jordan set up. :) I may have read the series 3-4 times depending on how late the books are, but that doesn't mean I can't be quite critical of them. :) Still, I'm VERY attached to the characters. *dances around* I'm so looking forward to this! Just say go when you're ready to start, and no worries about speed. I'm quite well booked with novels this upcoming year. I plan on killing the rest of my old To-Read list. :) Yay! This feels like coming home. :)
Great! I'm really excited to get started!! :D Okay, thanks for the warning!
*joins in the dance* almost want to say go now but I have some books to finish before that. That old TBR is calling me hard!
I hear you. I'm sitting at 283 right now. :) And I keep adding to it. :) *sigh*
Now I'm at 511... and keep adding to *desperate*
I feel happy. I DID have over 2000 at one point. I cleaned it up some, removing ones I knew I never would read and worked on the rest. :) Now I feel like I might kill them. Next Year. :)
WOW, 2000 on your TBR?!! Impressive!! I should stop adding to it and read all the ones I want to read, get rid of the others; it would be "cleaner", if I may say so!
Spring cleaning, reader style. :)
I'll do that� in spring then, not now ;)
LOLThose books are waiting like little dust bunnies tho! Rolling around, being cute, making you sneeze... :)
Hmm � You're right! The problem is, I live in a tiny appartment, and a large chunk of my books (TBR and read) are at my mother's, in boxes� I'm waiting for my exams to be finished to get a job, and move in a house, in which I'll be able to put ALL my books, and to spring-clean hard ;) really can't wait!!!!
I remember the days of carrying around 40+ boxes of books... oh wait... that was just a few months ago... *groan*
EPUBS RULE!
Well, my moving in a new house will be quite an expedition, but I'll be glad to have more space!! I don't read ebooks, I must admit! I'm a bit too old-fashioned :')
:) I know people like you. I'll just wait until unpacking yet another load of books makes you break down in tears rather than joy and then you'll be a convert. :)
We'll see, evil preacher of the cyber era ;)
I practically stopped buying physical books back in '06 because of the sheer weight. :) I haven't looked back except to collect my absolute absolute absolute favorites. :)Can you imagine lugging around 4 thousand books? lol
I started getting rid of my books this year: if I don't want to reread them, or I didn't like them, then, they go. So I don't keep them all :) I have a very bad eyesight, so I don't want to read too much with a computer or a phone. It'll make me blind in the end I fear ^^'
But everyone has its own way to enjoy books of course :)
Indeed, very true. I prefer audio. :) I did overcome my dyslexia, or at least find a path around it, but audiobooks and text-to-speech are my best friends. It saves on the headaches. :) Oh, and you can do it during every otherwise unoccupied moment in your life, too. :)It's the little things. :)
I tried audio: I can't focus on things told to me, I have to see them written it seems x) I already knew that for lessons, but thought it might be different for books read for my enjoyment; it's not! When I do other things, like driving, cleaning, I listen to music and sing along; no need to focus :D
lol, all I really know that reading was hard no matter how I did it. Way back when. :) Focus and attention were required no matter what the medium. :) I'm not saying that we don't all have our easier bits and harder bits tho. :) We all learn differently. :)
It must have been difficult for you; it's great that audiobooks developped so much! Of course, and there are different people with different ways to enjoy books :) I tried some experiences and discovered that I really can't focus when I don't see the person who's speaking ^^' but it doesn't matter :)
I'd be reading half of what I do now without them. :) Or less. :) But yeah, I get that, too.
I discovered I'm slower with audio than with books! (it amazed me because I thought it was a faster way to read!) P. S. : I can't stop looking at The Eye of the World since we spoke about it ^^'
Dennis: Great! :)Justine: Feel free to sneak a chapter or two in before we *start*. :) I feel like I can almost quote it now. :)
Btw, I experience the same difficulties with audiobooks as you, Justine. Well, almost. They work for me in the car, because I got nothing else to do there. Any other place, though, I always get distracted. Last week I tried to listen to one chapter of SK's The Stand five times before I finally gave up. I couldn't tell you a single thing that happened in that chapter.So now I have to drive for 54 hours to finish the damn book.
Try an easier book. :) The Stand has SO MANY DAMN CHARACTERS it's easy as hell to get lost with audiobooks. For me, too. Practically anything else would be easier. :)
Dennis wrote: "Btw, I experience the same difficulties with audiobooks as you, Justine. Well, almost. They work for me in the car, because I got nothing else to do there. Any other place, though, I always get dis..."Glad I'm not alone! I kept trying to listen to HP while I was cleaning; thank G I already knew the story, because I wasn't following the plot at all! Kept being distracted!
Good luck for your 54 hours :')
Bradley wrote: "Dennis: Great! :)Justine: Feel free to sneak a chapter or two in before we *start*. :) I feel like I can almost quote it now. :)"
I'll do that <3_<3
Bradley wrote: "Try an easier book. :) The Stand has SO MANY DAMN CHARACTERS it's easy as hell to get lost with audiobooks. For me, too. Practically anything else would be easier. :)"Of course you're right. It's not an easy book to listen to, in any case. But since I'm more than halfway through, I'll finish it now. It will only take another two months or so. Lol.
But I've got similar problems with other audiobooks as well. The mind does wander all the time. And since I don't commute by car anymore...
Justine wrote: "Glad I'm not alone! I kept trying to listen to HP while I was cleaning; thank G I already knew the story, because I wasn't following the plot at all! Kept being distracted!Good luck for your 54 hours :')"
Heh! Thanks! And definitely music for cleaning and stuff, as far as I'm concerned.
Dennis wrote: "Justine wrote: "Glad I'm not alone! I kept trying to listen to HP while I was cleaning; thank G I already knew the story, because I wasn't following the plot at all! Kept being distracted!Good luc..."
I'm the same ;)
Thanks for this thread. I won't feel like a serial killer when I tried down my TBR pile. Also, no one ever mentions Warbreaker when talking about Sanderson. I know it's not his best work, but remains my favorite... Fairytale. It may not actually be one in the truest sense, but that's what it feels like to me.
Jesslyn wrote: "Thanks for this thread. I won't feel like a serial killer when I tried down my TBR pile. Also, no one ever mentions Warbreaker when talking about Sanderson. I know it's not his best work, but remai..."I heard people talk about Warbreaker too as a first read for trying Brandon Sanderson; so many possibilities with this guy :O
I thought the tale for Warbreaker was interesting and worth reading but I kinda bounced a little when it came to the characters.I loved the magic system tho. :)
Was'nt it AMAZING??????
I See The Slow Burn Romance Coming with Jorgensa
I See The Slow Burn Romance Coming with Jorgensa
LOL I kinda hope not. Or maybe I do. Gaaaah! It might be okay. lol ;)
Bradley wrote: "LOL I kinda hope not. Or maybe I do. Gaaaah! It might be okay. lol ;)"
This is Going To Be a 4 Book Series
This is Going To Be a 4 Book Series
