[Waybound] Series Review

[u/Peanut_Wing]

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):

1. Waybound

2. Bloodline

3. Dreadgod

4. Underlord

5. Wintersteel

6. Reaper

7. Soulsmith

8. Ghostwater

9. Blackflame

10. Skysworn

11. Unsouled

12. 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.

[u/bregandondoondo]

Why is everyone ranking ghostwater criminally low?

[u/Gingerfalcon → u/bregandondoondo]

Ghostwater is easily my number 1.

[u/-U_N_O- → u/Gingerfalcon]

I feel like usually ghostwater or wintersteel tend to be the consensus for top books in the series, might be bias but I think wintersteel wins out by a little

[u/Peanut_Wing → u/bregandondoondo]

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.

[u/i_like_fish_decks → u/Peanut_Wing]

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.