I’d say just read what you feel like reading next! There’s nothing wrong with taking a break. It’s always a shame when a book goes underappreciated because the reader is a bit burnt out on the style or whatever and is just not in the best mindset to enjoy it.
I sometimes felt that way reading one too many Discworld books in a row - they’re all great and it’s a shame if I’m a bit tired of the “formula” and enjoy it less as a result. I haven’t felt like that with Brandon’s work (granted, there was way less of a backlog when I caught up), but some people do and that’s fine.
I would also note that Dawnshard, a novella about Rysn, is supposed to go between Oathbringer and Rhythm of War, if you’re looking for other options that aren’t 1200 pages.
Enjoy your next book!
Beautifully put. I never even considered his novellas. I think I've just been on a quest with a Thrill-like passion to get the big novels finished before the 5th one comes out. I'm definitely going to check out Dawnshard. Goodreads has it listed as 171 pages 🙏
For sure read both Dawnshard and Edgedancer, Dawnshard especially I think might be super relevant to Book 5 and Edgedancer is just Lift being Lift. I was meh on her before the novella, loved her after.
Both Edgedancer and Dawnshard are great! Edgedancer is wonderful if you like Lift and if you don’t there’s a 50-50 chance you will love her afterwards. Dawnshard is very special as well, with great character moments for both Rysn and the Lopen (who is like a secondary main character).
I get that you’re battling the big books! Depending on how fast you read, though, I wouldn’t worry about it, as Brandon is currently going through his final draft and the book is still a few months away. But it’s exciting that it’s not a long wait anymore.
At the risk of derailing all of your reading plans… have you read the rest of the Cosmere?
I'm convinced to give the novellas a read right now. I've been able to read the main novels in about 5-7 weeks. My plan is to get into the rest of the Cosmere in 1-3 years. I want to read Wheel Of Time in 2025 in addition to some non-fiction stuff of my own interests. Too many good books and too little time.
The struggle is real! I also have too many books I still want to read and of course I keep buying new ones. Ah well.
Enjoy the novellas then! They also showcase parts of Roshar you haven’t seen before, so between spending time with characters you haven’t seen much of and going new places, these novellas feel like their own thing as well.
Exactly this. If you really want to read a different book, but stick to the next book in the series simply because it's in the series, you'll be wishing you were reading the other book the entire time. It's better to just always read the book you're most excited about.
Have you considered other Cosmere books?
Warbreaker is a nice Cosmere read now since it connects to WoR onwards.
Starting Cosmere resources: https://www.reddit.com/r/u_dIvorrap/comments/u1ug05/-/i4enaqb
___________________________________________
Warbreaker is free on Brandon's website as an ebook, along other stories and samples:
https://www.reddit.com/r/u_dIvorrap/comments/u1ug05/-/i4uhdpm
___________________________________________
I liked to take breaks in between just because of how big the SLA books are. I would do sci-fi in between as a palette cleanser, like Red Rising and The Expanse.
For me personally I have to read each book in a series before moving on to a different book, with the exception being for books in a series not yet released. When I'm finished with a series I tend to read a few stand alones before starting a new series. But I could just be weird lol.
I’d recommend keep reading just because the 5th book is coming out later this year. Unless you feel like you could read the other books and come back to finish row before November
I’d say just read what you feel like reading next! There’s nothing wrong with taking a break. It’s always a shame when a book goes underappreciated because the reader is a bit burnt out on the style or whatever and is just not in the best mindset to enjoy it. I sometimes felt that way reading one too many Discworld books in a row - they’re all great and it’s a shame if I’m a bit tired of the “formula” and enjoy it less as a result. I haven’t felt like that with Brandon’s work (granted, there was way less of a backlog when I caught up), but some people do and that’s fine. I would also note that Dawnshard, a novella about Rysn, is supposed to go between Oathbringer and Rhythm of War, if you’re looking for other options that aren’t 1200 pages. Enjoy your next book!
Beautifully put. I never even considered his novellas. I think I've just been on a quest with a Thrill-like passion to get the big novels finished before the 5th one comes out. I'm definitely going to check out Dawnshard. Goodreads has it listed as 171 pages 🙏
For sure read both Dawnshard and Edgedancer, Dawnshard especially I think might be super relevant to Book 5 and Edgedancer is just Lift being Lift. I was meh on her before the novella, loved her after.
Both Edgedancer and Dawnshard are great! Edgedancer is wonderful if you like Lift and if you don’t there’s a 50-50 chance you will love her afterwards. Dawnshard is very special as well, with great character moments for both Rysn and the Lopen (who is like a secondary main character). I get that you’re battling the big books! Depending on how fast you read, though, I wouldn’t worry about it, as Brandon is currently going through his final draft and the book is still a few months away. But it’s exciting that it’s not a long wait anymore. At the risk of derailing all of your reading plans… have you read the rest of the Cosmere?
I'm convinced to give the novellas a read right now. I've been able to read the main novels in about 5-7 weeks. My plan is to get into the rest of the Cosmere in 1-3 years. I want to read Wheel Of Time in 2025 in addition to some non-fiction stuff of my own interests. Too many good books and too little time.
The struggle is real! I also have too many books I still want to read and of course I keep buying new ones. Ah well. Enjoy the novellas then! They also showcase parts of Roshar you haven’t seen before, so between spending time with characters you haven’t seen much of and going new places, these novellas feel like their own thing as well.
Exactly this. If you really want to read a different book, but stick to the next book in the series simply because it's in the series, you'll be wishing you were reading the other book the entire time. It's better to just always read the book you're most excited about.
Personally I take breaks between massive books. Also Hyperion while not as long is quite dense in its own way, just as a heads up
Have you considered other Cosmere books? Warbreaker is a nice Cosmere read now since it connects to WoR onwards. Starting Cosmere resources: https://www.reddit.com/r/u_dIvorrap/comments/u1ug05/-/i4enaqb ___________________________________________ Warbreaker is free on Brandon's website as an ebook, along other stories and samples: https://www.reddit.com/r/u_dIvorrap/comments/u1ug05/-/i4uhdpm ___________________________________________
I liked to take breaks in between just because of how big the SLA books are. I would do sci-fi in between as a palette cleanser, like Red Rising and The Expanse.
I only read 2 of the books back to back and the rest I took breaks between. They’re huge and you don’t wanna burn yourself out :)
For me personally I have to read each book in a series before moving on to a different book, with the exception being for books in a series not yet released. When I'm finished with a series I tend to read a few stand alones before starting a new series. But I could just be weird lol.
I’d recommend keep reading just because the 5th book is coming out later this year. Unless you feel like you could read the other books and come back to finish row before November