A thief. A slave. A prince. An assassin. None of which are whom they seem, nor is the first entry into author Brandon Sanderson's The Stormlight Archive.

The Way Of Kings is massive in scale, evoking Robert Jordan's epic world building in The Wheel Of Time. The pace is drastically slower than that of the world of Mistborn, but we the reader develop a true understanding of the world created before our very eyes.

An enormous cast of characters offers not only a massive narrative, but also paints a picture of the land from multiple drastically varying points of views. Sanderson creates not only a likable cast of principal characters you can't help but root for, but also an endearing and charming collection of supporting characters. However, after 1,001 pages, characters can tend to feel a bit safe and static; at times, it feels as if the story flows around the characters rather than the characters experiencing the events of the story. 

Sanderson once again crafts a new, inventive magic system in a world filled with magical creatures and a unique, yet frustrating hierarchy, but these ideas seem half-baked at times. I salivate at the thought of The Stormlight Archive receiving the same technical nuance and care that Mistborn received.

The Way Of Kings is a great start to The Stormlight Archive, setting up a fascinating, yet incompletely explored new world.