Author Topic: Warbreaker: Free Ebook  (Read 234539 times)

Miyabi

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #705 on: August 26, 2008, 10:17:12 PM »
You would be surprised.  Also, many people don't use them, not because they can't afford them, but because they prefer to not use them, or don't use them frequently enough to purchase them.

This is off topic now though.
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UtopiaGreen01

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #706 on: August 26, 2008, 10:19:02 PM »
I dare you to go to the Kindle forums at amazon.com and say what you just said.

Miyabi

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #707 on: August 26, 2008, 10:25:49 PM »
DUH! Cause everyone uses them.  That's like going to a Trekky convention and trying to say Star Trek is lame.

BUT I'm done talking about this in this thread.  That is not what it's for.
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dawncawley

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #708 on: August 27, 2008, 11:18:19 PM »
Ok, first of all Utopia, I am one of those people who can't afford $359 for a Kindle....I don't get that much spare money, for frivolities, in a year, much less all at once. While it sounds interesting, I really don't have a problem reading a book, on paper, the way they began. You use what works for you, and the rest of us will use what works for us....and as was pointed out this is hopelessly off topic.

As for Brandon's book...I still haven't had a chance to finish the most recent version, with work and the kids getting ready for school. But, I have it on my computer and am more than happy with what I have read so far. I will be buying this book, and pretty much anything he puts out in the future.

Reaves

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #709 on: August 28, 2008, 01:07:13 AM »
I will be buying this book, and pretty much anything he puts out in the future.
ditto to that. I just can't wait for Way of Kings, from little snippets I've heard it is supposed to be the Epic Fantasy we all dream of.
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Peter Ahlstrom

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #710 on: August 28, 2008, 06:18:28 AM »
Have there been any snippets? I wouldn't go around hyping the book like that. "The Epic Fantasy we all dream of" is really hyperbolic.

Way of Kings (or the Oathshards series) is quite ambitious, and very epic—Brandon means to write it to become a classic of fantasy. But it can't be all things to all people and while most of Brandon's fans will like it, I'm not sure all of them will. He means it to be taken seriously. Oh, sure, it has fun parts, but it's not the fun that's meant to make it enjoyable. Warbreaker was meant to be fun. Mistborn was meant to be a cool good read. The Oathshards series is meant to be a classic. Bad things happen to good people and you don't find out why until the end of the series. I'm not talking George R. R. Martin brutality or anything like that, but injustice and an ending to the first book that is just plain not fair. You are meant to love these characters and hurt for them when their life sucks. Brandon wrote Mistborn (first 2 books) purposely not having anyone betray their friends. The Oathshards is founded on betrayal; it's right there in the name. And there's a bunch of magic and stuff...

Hm, I don't know that paragraph will have the enthusiasm-dampening effect I intend. Anyway, there's no use getting psyched up about it. There's no way the first book comes out before 2010 (which actually sounds like "the future" even though it's only 2 years away) and it could be 2011.
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Reaves

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #711 on: August 28, 2008, 10:20:47 AM »
um, yah to me it just sounds better and better. Betrayal? Injustice? Actually sounds rather poetic to me. However i absolutely understand I have some pretty unique tastes and other people may not agree.
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dawncawley

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #712 on: August 28, 2008, 06:13:20 PM »
I'm actually alright with bad things happening to good people if it grows the story in a way that makes sense. :)

UtopiaGreen01

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #713 on: August 30, 2008, 10:54:12 PM »
Why are people going to buy the book if they already read the earlier version for free?  I mean the plot is basically like the same, right?  I mean who reads the same book twice?

Reaves

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #714 on: August 30, 2008, 11:04:42 PM »
Seeing as it is the same book you can probably expect a similar plot. However there are plenty of people who read the same book twice or numerous times. There's a certain actor who reads the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy every year. I've read Mistborn at least twice. Give any good book 6-8 months of rest and I'll read it again if i liked it the first time.
Also the online version was really only a draft. It had inconsistencies, typos, spelling changes, etc. Things might happen differently, or even to different people. The printed version will be much more polished.
Also, many people would probably buy it merely to support the author. If they appreciate his work, his willingness to post his entire book for free, his effort into doing the mistborn annotations, etc. and would like him to continue doing that type of thing they would buy it. I'll likely buy it when it comes out.
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LeisureSuitLarry

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #715 on: September 02, 2008, 12:52:59 AM »
Why are people going to buy the book if they already read the earlier version for free?  I mean the plot is basically like the same, right?  I mean who reads the same book twice?

I guess the question is "do you want him to keep writing or to go out and get a job doing something else?" If you want him to keep writing, you have to support him by purchasing his books. Although I've read Warbreaker (version 4.2) I'm interested in what changes there have been since, and I vote with my wallet for him to continue writing instead of going to teach or something. It would be a shame if all the people who read Warbreaker for free didn't go out an purchase the final version.

Stemp

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #716 on: September 02, 2008, 04:49:50 PM »
Here's my feedback on Warbreaker.  I'm posting this because I got the notion that part of the purpose of posting Warbreaker online was to get reader feedback prior to print publication.  My apologies if this has all been said; I purposely didn't read previous posts on the topic yet because I wanted to give my uncontaminated impressions first.  It's been a while since I read the book, so these are the impressions that have stuck.  (Also I don't know if I'm months too late on this or if there is intention for another draft eventually, but here goes.)

The Good

Overall, great book as always.  I enjoyed the premise of living gods and their daily lives and roles in society and politics, and the various ways they do and do not fill the traditional role of gods, and the implication that humans pre-date them and may even have created them.  The plot in general, the system of Breaths, the Returned and contructs and statues, etc. all worked really well for me. 

I liked Lightsong, Siri, and the God-King best.  The relationships between Lightsong and Blushweaver, Lightsong and Llarimar, and Siri and BlueFingers were compelling relationships, and the relationship between Siri and the God-King was particularly memorable.  The banter among the mercs was fun too.

The Could-Be-Better

Vivenna's storyline didn't click with me, and I think I've pinpointed two main reasons why.

First, I didn't get a sense of the relationship between Vivenna and Siri, and that gap was prominent because Vivenna spent most of the book telling herself she was in the city to help Siri.  Their perspectives on one another were clearly stated, but I don't know how they interact with eachother, and I don't know the nature of their bond.  I'm left with the sense that they are distant, not really involved in eachother's lives - that they have loyalty to eachother due to the fact of sisterhood rather than any emotional bond.  That's valid and believable - I'd actually say that's a pretty good description of my own relationship with my eldest sister - but I didn't find it compelling.

I'd even say that there is a general shortage of well-developed, positive relationships between females in Sanderson's books.  As contrast, there are an abundance of great male / female relationships (which is always nice to see) - both romantic and otherwise - and of good male / male  relationships.

Second, Vivenna spends most of the book being reactive rather than (pardon the forthcoming buzzword) "pro-active".  Sanderson's protagonists tend to be movers and shakers, people in tough situations who have a vision for how their world ought to be and plans and determination to make it so.  To me that's key to making their stories absorbing.  Sarene, Raoden, Kelsier, Elend... even Siri develops an agenda and finds creative ways to manuever within the confines of a seemingly hopeless situation.  Vivenna has her initial pro-active action of going to the city to help Siri, and comes back around to being pro-active at the end, but in between she's a leaf on the wind.  I appreciate that this is probably by design... she's the dupe.  But as I was reading I found I didn't care about her part of the story much.  I didn't feel that way about Vin, though, who is also a reactionary character, and I'm not sure what the relevant difference is.  Maybe its because Vivenna does have the will of a leader and squanders it, whereas Vin doesn't have any expectations of the world or what it should be.  Or maybe its because Vin had the good grace to be impressive in her reactionary actions, and the fortune to not be duped.  In any case, Vivenna's fall from grace and subsequent epiphany felt a little over-done, a little heavy-handed.

The Ugly

In this book, a young woman is put in a situation where she believes she will be forced to have sex with a man not of her choosing.   Now, I know the author's work, so, as I was reading, I knew he must be going somewhere with this repugnant situation, and that it would be worth it to keep reading.  My trust was not misplaced.   However, if I had not already known the author's other works, I would have closed the book and never opened it again, and I would have avoided his other works too.   I can't be the only one who might have that reaction, so its something to keep in mind.  On the other hand, plenty of genre authors include rape or the threat of rape in their books and presumabley they wouldn't do so if it hurt sales, so maybe I'm in a small minority regarding my preference to avoid the subject in leisure reading.  That's a disheartening thought.

-Eva

SarahG

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #717 on: September 02, 2008, 05:36:19 PM »
Eva, I liked your comments and agreed with most of them.  Another reason I don't care for Vivenna is that sometimes I get the impression she only exists to be taught a lesson about being a self-righteous moral idealist.

Unfortunately, as I understand it, Brandon Sanderson has finished making major revisions to the text and is at the stage where the editors are proofreading for typos and such, so I'm guessing he won't be making a lot more changes based on your comments (or mine a few pages ago).  We came to the table a little too late, which is kind of sad for us.  But there are plenty of readers who loved Vivenna, so maybe it's just a matter of preference, and the book will be a good one even without our help. :)
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WriterDan

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #718 on: September 03, 2008, 05:41:39 PM »
Why are people going to buy the book if they already read the earlier version for free?  I mean the plot is basically like the same, right?  I mean who reads the same book twice?

Don't ask us.  Just look at the history books.  The premise had worked for other authors.  In fact, I'm pretty sure that Brandon took his inspiration for doing this book like this from one of the ones that has, and then took it one step further by not only releasing the book electronically, but letting readers be part of the creation process.  It works.  Need we ask why if we get to be in on something like this?

I'd say, no.  Just enjoy it, and thing will work out like they will.
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Miyabi

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Re: Warbreaker: Free Ebook
« Reply #719 on: September 03, 2008, 06:04:39 PM »
Why are people going to buy the book if they already read the earlier version for free?  I mean the plot is basically like the same, right?  I mean who reads the same book twice?
Because they want to support an author that they love.
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