Timewaster's Guide Archive

Yep, almost all of Brandon's books take place in the same universe, called the Cosmere (I think).  There was this thing/guy called Adonalsium that we almost nothing about, except that when he "shattered", various shards of him got distributed, each of which gives godlike powers.  Two of these shards were called Ruin and Preservation, held by Ati and Leras respectively, now both held by Sazed.  One shard is called Endowment, and it is the only shard on the Warbreaker world.  There were at least two shards on The Elantris world (the worlds name is Sel, by the way), but we don't know the names of these shards.  We do know that they were held by Aona and Skai, but thats about it. 

Hoid is a recurring character, and has shown up in every one of the Cosmere books so far (Harder to find in some than in others).  He apparently hops around planets doing stuff behind the scenes.  His full nature is currently unknown.

I thought "unite them" meant chells and axehounds.

/snarktheory.

Oh, I know who you need to put in spot number 5:  Brightlord Roshone, the bastard that conscripted Kaladin's brother, a little kid, just to be mean.

Is there any chance that "the almighty" isn't just a shard, but Adonalsium?

I'd recommend Jim Butcher's Codex Alera series.  The magic is the standard elemental type, but done in a way that makes it feel original.  There is a good deal of world-building, so that will feel good for Sanderson fans.  The characterization isn't quite as good as Sandersons, but still good.  The action and battle scenes are actually better written than Sanderson writes action (at least in my opinion).  The pacing is faster, which can feel weird after getting used to the pattern of build-up -> avalanche.

These chapters are great.  I'm already invested in Kalladan's (sp?) character.  Shallan is interesting too, I just haven't gotten into her part of the story yet.  I'm really much more interested in what makes that one woman a heretic than I am about Shallan's financial troubles.

That was a wonderful book.  I almost wanted to see Elend as the Hero in order to hear him try to beat Ruin in a scholarly debate (jk, sorta). 

Going off on a complete tangent, when Ruin's dead body shows up, my reaction was to think of one of the poets of Saffron Park.  I doubt there is any intended connection, but it was cool none the less.