Words of Radiance: Book Two of the Stormlight Archive

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson, Words of Radiance, Book Two of the Stormlight Archive, continues the immersive fantasy epic that The Way of Kings began.

Expected by his enemies to die the miserable death of a military slave, Kaladin survived to be given command of the royal bodyguards, a controversial first for a low-status "darkeyes." Now he must protect the king and Dalinar from every common peril as well as the distinctly uncommon threat of the Assassin, all while secretly struggling to master remarkable new powers that are somehow linked to his honorspren, Syl.

The Assassin, Szeth, is active again, murdering rulers all over the world of Roshar, using his baffling powers to thwart every bodyguard and elude all pursuers. Among his prime targets is Highprince Dalinar, widely considered the power behind the Alethi throne. His leading role in the war would seem reason enough, but the Assassin's master has much deeper motives.

Brilliant but troubled Shallan strives along a parallel path. Despite being broken in ways she refuses to acknowledge, she bears a terrible burden: to somehow prevent the return of the legendary Voidbringers and the civilization-ending Desolation that will follow. The secrets she needs can be found at the Shattered Plains, but just arriving there proves more difficult than she could have imagined.

Meanwhile, at the heart of the Shattered Plains, the Parshendi are making an epochal decision. Hard pressed by years of Alethi attacks, their numbers ever shrinking, they are convinced by their war leader, Eshonai, to risk everything on a desperate gamble with the very supernatural forces they once fled. The possible consequences for Parshendi and humans alike, indeed, for Roshar itself, are as dangerous as they are incalculable.

Other Tor books by Brandon Sanderson

The Cosmere
The Stormlight Archive
● The Way of Kings
● Words of Radiance
● Edgedancer (novella)
● Oathbringer
● Dawnshard (novella)
● Rhythm of War

The Mistborn Saga
The Original Trilogy
● Mistborn
● The Well of Ascension
● The Hero of Ages

Wax and Wayne
● The Alloy of Law
● Shadows of Self
● The Bands of Mourning
● The Lost Metal

Other Cosmere novels
● Elantris
● Warbreaker
● Tress of the Emerald Sea
● Yumi and the Nightmare Painter
● The Sunlit Man

Brandon Sanderson grew up in Lincoln, Nebraska. He lives in Utah with his wife and children and teaches creative writing at Brigham Young University. His bestsellers have sold 50 million copies worldwide and include the Mistborn saga; the Stormlight Archive novels; and other novels, including Tress of the Emerald Sea, The Rithmatist, Steelheart, and Skyward. He won a Hugo Award for The Emperor's Soul, a novella set in the world of his acclaimed first novel, Elantris. Additionally, he completed Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time®. Visit his website for behind-the-scenes information on all his books.

Praise for Brandon Sanderson and the Stormlight Archive

Over 15 million Stormlight Archive books sold!

“One of the genre’s most beloved authors.”―TIME

“Sanderson raises the genre stakes… A fan favorite.”―The New York Times

“[Sanderson] is not a brilliant writer of epic fantasy, he’s simply a brilliant writer. Period.”―Patrick Rothfuss, #1 New York Times bestselling author

“The genre’s most popular writer… easily one of the most successful and prolific fantasy writers of the century so far.”―Esquire

“Epic in every sense.”―The Guardian on The Way of Kings

“Sanderson is a master of many aspects of the fantasy genre: epic world-building, coherent systems of magic and unforgettable character development. All those are in peak form in his masterwork, The Way of Kings.”―Paste Magazine, “The 50 Best Fantasy Books of the 21st Century (So Far)”

“Absolutely revels in its fantasy world, one of actual gods, bizarre magic, knights with superpowers, spirits and sorcery, monsters, demons, and magic sword[s] called Shardblades. It embraces the fantastic, and does so with an astonishing amount of creativity . . . Words of Radiance is a must-read.”―io9on Words of Radiance

“Excellent . . . cranks up the level of intrigue to dizzying extremes…Sanderson’s experiment is working, and he gets better with every book. The journey will be worth it. Yes, you should buy this book. Yes, this is a series worth following to the end.”―Reactoron Words of Radiance

Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson is the second book in The Stormlight Archive and picks up soon after the events of “The Way of Kings,” expanding the world, deepening the characters, and pushing the story toward open war and the rebirth of the Knights Radiant. The novel continues to follow multiple main characters, but it especially focuses on Shallan Davar’s backstory and growth, Kaladin’s struggle with leadership and prejudice, and Dalinar’s efforts to unite the Alethi highprinces. The overarching threat of the Voidbringers and the coming of the Everstorm hangs over everything, while politics, personal trauma, and ancient secrets collide in a long, steadily building narrative that ends in a dramatic, world-changing climax.

The Alethi armies remain on the Shattered Plains, still locked in a years-long war with the Parshendi, but the nature of the conflict is shifting. Dalinar Kholin, haunted by visions from the mysterious Stormfather, is certain that the true enemy is not other human kingdoms but the ancient forces warned of in the visions—Voidbringers and a new Desolation. He pushes for unity among the proud, selfish highprinces, trying to transform the pointless gemheart hunts into a real campaign with strategy and purpose. Dalinar seeks support from his son Adolin and the bridgeman-turned-soldier Kaladin, while also negotiating with foreign powers and dealing with the scheming King Elhokar and the ambitious Brightlord Sadeas. Dalinar’s attempts are constantly undermined by politics, suspicion, and old grudges, but he persists, driven by guilt over his bloody past and a desire to do something truly honorable before it is too late.

Kaladin, now captain of Dalinar’s personal guard and responsible for protecting the king and the Kholin family, struggles to adapt to his new role among lighteyes after a lifetime of injustice and slavery. He is no longer a bridge slave, but he still carries bitterness, trauma, and a strong sense that lighteyes are inherently untrustworthy. This inner conflict sits at the heart of his arc. He wants to protect, to live by the ideals of a Windrunner, but he also wants revenge on those who wronged him—especially Sadeas, the highprince who sacrificed bridge crews like disposable tools. Kaladin’s bond with Syl, the spren who grants him Surgebinding powers, grows stronger, granting him more control over abilities like Lashings and healing. Yet that bond is fragile, tied to his adherence to the Windrunner oaths, which are centered on protection and doing what is right. As Kaladin begins to nurse dark thoughts of assassination and vengeance, his inner turmoil threatens to damage his connection to Syl and his growing Radiant powers.

Meanwhile, Shallan Davar travels toward the Shattered Plains with Jasnah Kholin, continuing her training as a scholar and Soulcaster. Early in the book, their journey is shattered by a shocking attack: their ship is ambushed by assassins using strange powers. Jasnah is apparently killed, and Shallan barely survives, using her own emerging Surgebinding abilities almost instinctively to save herself and some of the crew. This event thrusts her into independence far earlier than she is ready for. Without Jasnah’s guidance, Shallan must decide whether to continue Jasnah’s secret mission—to uncover the truth about the Voidbringers, the Parshendi, and the nature of the Desolation—or to retreat into the safer role others expect of her, like marrying Adolin to secure a powerful alliance. She chooses to move forward, joining a caravan and eventually making her way to the Shattered Plains, hiding the depth of her powers while honing them in secret. Shallan can create illusions by Lightweaving and also Soulcast, but she is deeply afraid of what those abilities mean, and of the secrets from her past that are tied to them.

As Shallan draws closer to the Alethi warcamp, the book gradually reveals the truth about her childhood through flashbacks. We learn that her father was violent and unstable, that her home life was poisoned by fear and manipulation, and that her mother attempted something terrible involving Shallan’s latent powers. In a traumatic confrontation, Shallan killed her mother and her mother’s lover using the Shardblade she inexplicably manifested—evidence that she was already forming a Nahel bond as a child. Later, she also killed her father in self-defense and to protect her brothers. These deeply buried memories explain her intense guilt, her need to pretend everything is fine, and her habit of hiding behind masks and lies. Her spren, Pattern, who appears as a cryptic figure on surfaces, helps her understand that facing truth—about herself and the world—is central to becoming a true Lightweaver. The more Shallan acknowledges what really happened, the more her powers grow, but the emotional cost is huge.

When Shallan finally reaches the Shattered Plains, she meets Dalinar’s family and enters their political and social world. She is officially there as a scholar and potential bride for Adolin, but secretly her aim is to continue Jasnah’s research and investigate the Parshendi. Her interactions with Kaladin are prickly and often humorous: they clash in personality, status, and worldviews, yet also mirror each other as people carrying heavy burdens and hidden truths. Adolin, meanwhile, genuinely likes Shallan and gradually falls for her wit, intelligence, and eccentric charm. A love triangle begins to form, but it stays mostly in the background, overshadowed by larger threats. Shallan uses her illusions to infiltrate places, gather information, and create alternate personas—like “Veil,” a mysterious woman who moves among the lower classes and spies on enemies. She uncovers hints that the Parshendi and the strange spren around them are connected to ancient secrets about the Voidbringers, and that humans may not be as innocent in the world’s history as they believe.

In the capital city of Kharbranth and beyond, another threat is moving: Szeth, the Shin assassin in white, continues his series of high-profile killings using powers similar to Kaladin’s. He has been declared Truthless by his people and is bound to serve whoever holds his Oathstone, forced to commit murders he finds morally repugnant. Now he works for new masters who send him after important leaders, including Dalinar. His presence in the story brings a constant sense of danger, and his battles showcase the terrifying potential of Surgebinding when used purely as a weapon. Szeth’s growing unease with his own actions and his confusion about other Surgebinders appearing in the world foreshadow bigger changes coming from Shinovar and from the nature of his “truthlessness.” He is both villain and victim, a killer driven by orders he believes he cannot break.

As all these threads develop, Dalinar moves closer to his goal of binding the highprinces together, especially after Sadeas’ treachery in the previous book is fully exposed. Tension between Dalinar’s camp and Sadeas escalates, with Kaladin caught in the middle, longing to protect Dalinar but tempted to kill Sadeas and end his threat permanently. Kaladin’s struggle with his oaths reaches a breaking point when he considers assassinating Elhokar, whom he sees as weak and complicit, and when he and Moash plot against the king. This nearly destroys his bond with Syl, who fades as he betrays the Windrunner ideals. It is only when he chooses protection over revenge, risking himself to save those he once thought of as enemies, that his powers return in full force.

The climax comes when the Alethi launch a major assault on the Parshendi, planning a decisive battle to end the war. But the Parshendi have changed: many of them have taken on a new form, “stormform,” by bonding dangerous spren, and they are preparing to summon something unprecedented—the Everstorm, a new kind of storm that will transform the world. During the chaos of the battle, Szeth attacks, aiming to kill Dalinar, and the battlefield fractures into multiple deadly confrontations. Shallan uses her powers to navigate the Shattered Plains, discovering the legendary city of Urithiru’s location and proving that the tales of the ancient Radiants were real. Dalinar nearly dies, but Kaladin, having fully reclaimed his oaths—“I will protect even those I hate, so long as it is right”—unleashes the full strength of a Windrunner, dueling Szeth in a spectacular airborne fight and ultimately defeating him. Dalinar, at the brink of death, bonds the Stormfather himself, stepping fully into the role of a Bondsmith and rejecting the ancient Recreance that shattered the Radiants.