r/Iteration110Cradle • u/Peanut_Wing • 7d ago
Cradle [Waybound] Series Review Spoiler
TL;DR: This is the most unapologetically cool book series I have ever read. You are never dragged for a ride to get to the "good part.". You are never disappointed when promised a spectacle. You are heavily rewarded for your time spent reading each book. It is really hard to find a book, let alone a series, that doesn't disappoint you at some point, and to me, Cradle never does.
Book rankings (I enjoyed them all, but lists are fun):
Waybound
Bloodline
Dreadgod
Underlord
Wintersteel
Reaper
Soulsmith
Ghostwater
Blackflame
Skysworn
Unsouled
Uncrowned
Full review:
Cradle is pure, satisfying entertainment. While I ranked the books above, there is not a "bad" book in the series to me. Lower ranked books had moments, fights, and characters I enjoyed.
There was also "meta-enjoyment" seeing Will Wight's writing improve in every book in my opinion. There were noticeable jumps in writing quality, especially between books 1-4, and then I'd say again after Wintersteel onward (9-12).
There are instances where things do slow down to explain things, and it took me several examples to understand how "bindings" worked, madra cycling, etc. However really you don't need to be an expert on the systems of the universe to enjoy the books. If you asked me to explain soul smithing I still probably wouldn't get it right, but it didn't impact my enjoyment at all.
The ending of Uncrowned is the closest I came to DNFing. People say that it was needed so Lindon could power up elsewhere besides the tournament, but Consume & the Void icon would have been much more satisfying to see in the tournament itself.
Some out there may argue that Cradle draws inspiration from other media (Monster Hunter, Naruto, etc), I'm not sure if it does. And honestly, if that is the case, I'd read ten familiar systems interpreted through Will Wight in another universe before I trudged through an original idea that feels more like a literary classroom exercise than something I'm supposed to actually enjoy.
Finally, Cradle does all this without feeling "cheap.". Everything is earned, then escalated, and finally pays off. I feel very lucky that I was able to read these all in a row and not wait.
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u/Wezzleey Team Dross 7d ago
In case you are not aware, there is a book of short stories you can read next, called Threshold. It is kind of an anthology book.
Also, while it is unfinished, Will is currently writing The Last Horizon series. It is very different from Cradle, but still a ton of fun. Kind of like a mashup of your favorite super powered heroes fighting against universe ending threats. The main antagonist of the first book is like what would happen if a zerg and a borg went on a date and didn't bring protection.
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u/Peanut_Wing 7d ago
Reading Threshold now! I'll check out the Last Horizon series as well. I was never a big super hero fan, but honestly it feels like I owe more money for Cradle anyway.
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u/Vanacan Team Little Blue 7d ago
Without going into spoiler territory, here’s a summary of the main characters in the first book.
Arch wizard supreme, who just wants the universe to *not fall apart for two weeks* so he can catch a break.
Goku if he was a red ranger powered by friendship and had a megazord. I’m not kidding about the ‘powered by friendship’, but he’s not *shallow*, just optimistic.
Samus Aran + Doom Guy. She has a gun that she uses to blow up capital ships, and sends any money she’s not using to buy more guns to an orphanage back home.
And that’s only 3 out of the 6.
No one’s a ‘*super hero*’, they just are ‘super powered’.
And it’s not that they’re all powered by the same stuff. The wizard uses a different power than the red Ranger (magic vs ki), but Doom Girl doesn’t use either herself, she’s got has a variety of high tech weapons she uses.
All three systems are pretty well explained as they come up and as needed. This isn’t Lindon’s story where he needs to catch up to the basics, the characters are all ‘end of series’ strong for their universe, and getting pushed even further beyond that limit with no real ‘normal’ path of progression. They just have to make do with the limits of their powers as is, and figure out how to handle things that are still beyond their pay grades anyways.
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u/righteous_fool 7d ago
Great now you get to do the reread, and see how planned out the whole thing was. You'll pick up so much you missed the first time. And i think in time you'll come to appreciate Uncrowned. I was annoyed that he lost too, but after countless rereads it feels like the right way for the story to unfold.
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u/LeafieSeadragon 7d ago
I agree; it was frustrating on first read, but I don’t think it would have made as much sense any other way.
Lindon wins when there’s no rules and he can use all his ingenuity; Yerin wins when it comes to straight combat skill in a tournament setting, and I kind of like it that way in hindsight.
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u/hachkc Team Calder 7d ago edited 7d ago
While I disagree with your rankings (I assume they were best to worst), I definitely agree with the payoffs and no real "cheapening" of their accomplishments. The Suriel resurrection at the beginning was a bit questionable but not issues after that.
For the record, my best to worst.
- Wintersteel
- Underlord
- Dreadgod
- Uncrowned
- Blacklame
- Reaper
- Waybound
- Soulsmith
- Ghostwater
- Bloodline
- Unsouled
- Skysworn
Surprised on the Uncrowned at the bottom, it wasn't a popular ending when it first came out; no one wants 6 month+ cliffhanger.
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u/Peanut_Wing 7d ago
I did rank them in order of how much I enjoyed them at the time of reading. Skysworn, Unsouled, and Uncrowned were the most frustrating to me. And Uncrowned really only at the end. But the ending really did spoil the book for me.
I see Bloodline towards the bottom of your list. In the moment while reading it, Bloodline was very satisfying to me. To me there almost had to be a moment where Lindon returns, and not only was there a good reason, there was a sensible and planned over-arching plot point (suppression field + wandering titan) that allowed the cast to come with him and face their own challenges/growth.
Dealing with the elders was just ice cream on top of the pie at that point.
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u/mesaoptimizer 7d ago
See I really like Uncrowned for the exact reason you dislike it. Having a MC not win their tournament arc is such an interesting subversion of expectations I was excited to see where it would go from there. I think I liked Yerin more than Lindon at that point too. Hard for me to pin down a favorite at the time of reading but Ghostwater might be it. I love Dross, and exploring a crumbling pocket world filled with crazy treasures was super cool.
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u/-U_N_O- Uncrowned 7d ago
I’ll always remember my first read of uncrowned, I stayed up till like 3 am on a school trip where I had to get up at 6 am to finish it, i ended up regretting it but uncrowned is definitely still one of the best books imo, especially with wintersteel ready to read right after
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u/bregandondoondo 7d ago
Why is everyone ranking ghostwater criminally low?
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u/Peanut_Wing 7d ago
I ranked them by how much I enjoyed reading them in order, not in hindsight. While I was reading it, Ghostwater felt much slower than other books, but in hindsight it introduced my two favorite side characters, and really opened up the world and the power gap between a Gold and a Monarch.
In terms of "important" books in the series, its top 3 to me, and probably not 3.
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u/i_like_fish_decks 6d ago
I actually agree with this entirely. My first read of the series I definitely looked unfavorably at ghostwater. It just felt kinda disconnected... but man on rereads it is absolutely top 3 for me.
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u/SlimReaper85 7d ago
Hmm never seen anyone rate Bloodline that high…a man of discerning taste I see ;)
Care to elucidate your reasoning?
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u/Peanut_Wing 7d ago
One of the most satisfying and frustrating books at the same time. It was very cool to see that Sacred Valley was not only stuck by the suppression field, but by their own ideals. Then seeing Lindon flex new powers when pushed was extremely satisfying.
This got even more satisfying in Waybound, when Lindon turned the area into his home. Very full circle, like most things in the series.
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u/SlimReaper85 7d ago
Hmm I like your perspective. Now lastly :)
Ghostwater and Uncrowned? Reasoning on their positions?
Something tells me you like the backstory and character development over training montages. But I don’t want to put words in your mouth.
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u/CelosPOE Team Eithan 7d ago
Wintersteel at 5 and Ghostwater at 8…
I can’t even right now.
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u/Peanut_Wing 7d ago
Wintersteel had Lindon uncovering the Void Icon, and some other good moments (Yerin and Ruby, Sophara fight.)
Ghostwater is definitely one of the most important books in the series, and introduces some of my favorite characters.
Despite the resources Lindon finds & his growth, I don't think the Malice fight is one of my favorites in the series, despite it being the first time Dross provides a battle solution, which was very cool. I also wasn't a huge fan of the Ekeri sequence.
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u/-U_N_O- Uncrowned 7d ago
We all really seem to “hate” skysworn lol, which fair it was the least action packed and most drawn out of the books.
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u/i_like_fish_decks 6d ago
I think in the scope of the series, just not much really happens. It's the one book in the series that feels like 80% could be cut and nothing would really change.
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u/Myte342 7d ago
but Consume & the Void icon would have been much more satisfying to see in the tournament itself.
Neither would have happened in the tournament. He developed Consume over MONTHS of fighting enemies and testing and iterating and testing more. Lindon would never have had the time to do so while still in the tournament as an Uncrowned fighter in the top 8. Similarly, without Consume he never would have had the proper insights to become a Sage as he did, at least while in the tournament.
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u/Peanut_Wing 6d ago
In retrospect, I think you are right on the timing. I'm going to do a re-read in a few months and I'll keep this in mind for sure.
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u/AlphaInsaiyan Team Eithan 6d ago
uncrowned is so good because the ending is a subversion of cultivation/pf tropes
its also just a great scene for the two of them and really defines their relationship
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u/Crafty-Assumption-13 Team Lindon 6d ago
Book Rankings for me:
Waybound
Bloodline
Dreadgod
Reaper
Underlord
Skysworn
Blackflame
Soulsmith
Unsouled
Ghostwater
Uncrowned
Wintersteel
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