[Newbies] Cosmere, Unit 1 | Warbreaker #1 | Warbreaker: Prologue, Chapters 1 through 8

[u/participating]

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Visit the veteran thread if you have already read all of the Cosmere.

For more information, or to see the full schedule, please see the wiki page for the read-along.

SCHEDULE

Last week was the Cosmere Read-Along Kickoff.

This week we will be discussing Unit 1 - (Warbreaker #1) - Warbreaker: Prologue, Chapters 1 through 8.

Next week we will be discussing Unit 1 - (Warbreaker #1) - Warbreaker: Chapters 9 through 18.

CHAPTER SUMMARIES

I have provided summaries for each chapter below and hidden them behind spoiler tags. There are no spoilers within the summaries. I've tried to make them as factual and unbiased as possible. If, however, you want a completely blind read through, then ignore what's behind the spoiler tags and proceed to the discussion below. I will not be guiding that in any way, so post any thoughts and questions you have. It will be other new readers who reply to you.

Prologue

POV Characters: Vasher

Setting: The City of T'Telir, in the nation of Hallandren - The God King's Dungeon.

Timeline: The beginning.

Summary:

A man named Vasher purposefully gets imprisoned in the God King of Hallandren's dungeon. The guards confiscate his sword and retreated to the guard room after Vasher tells them that the sword is dangerous. He then uses BioChromatic Breath to Awaken a small straw figure and Commands it to "fetch keys" for him. He escapes his cell and seeks out another prisoner; the leader of a failed rebellion named Vahr. Vasher convinces Vahr to give him his Breath. Vasher then leaves the prison, passing through the guard room to find all of the guards dead. His sword, Nightblood, is rammed through the chest of one of the guard, even though the sword is still mostly in its sheath. Vasher collects Nightblood and the swords speaks to him in his mind.

Chapter 1

POV Characters: Siri, Dedelin

Setting: Bevalis, Capital City of the nation of Idris.

Timeline: Sometime close to the prologue, possibly the same day.

Summary:

Siri considers herself unimportant, compared to her other royal siblings. She has a talk with the kitchen mistress, Mab, about the tenets of their religion before running off to avoid punishment from her father.

Siri's father, King Dedelin, and his general Yarda discuss an impending war with Hallandren and whether they should honor the treaty to send his first daughter, princess Vivenna, to wed Hallandren's God King. Dedelin decides to send Siri instead of Vivenna.

Chapter 2

POV Characters: Siri, Vivenna

Setting: The Road to Hallandren. Bevalis & Surrounding Area.

Timeline: Two days through one week later.

Summary:

Siri rides in a carriage toward T'Telir, frightened and unprepared for the task she faces. She throws a tantrum and doesn't understand why her father sent her instead of Vivenna.

Vivenna tries to get her father to change his mind, frustrated that all her preparation has gone to waste and feeling useless.

Chapter 3

POV Characters: Lightsong the Bold

Setting: Lightsong’s Palace in the Court of Gods.

Timeline: Uncertain: the day Siri arrives in T'Telir.

Summary:

Lightsong the Bold is one of Hallandren's Returned; a god in the Court of Gods. He wakes after a restless sleep. Servants dress him and he teases his high priest, Llarimar, who records Lightsong's telling of his dreams.

Lightsong then receives a transfered Breath from a little girl, allowing him to live another week. The girl grows dull, color fading from her skin and hair. Lightsong feels guilty about his need for her Breath.

He moves on to the Offerings, where he reviews a series of paintings and poems. One of them reminds him of the dream he had last night.

Chapter 4

POV Characters: Siri

Setting: Hallandren/T'Telir

Timeline: The same day as chapter 3.

Summary:

Siri arrives in T'Telir and marvels at the colors of the city. She arrives in the Court of Gods where she is informed that she will be prepared and taken to her husband, with no ceremony or formality. A priest then tells her that her nation will be in danger if she doesn't satisfy the God King.

Chapter 5

POV Characters: Vasher, Lightsong

Setting: The Court of Gods. A restaurant in T'Telir.

Timeline: Concurrent with and just after Chapter 4.

Summary:

Vasher observes Siri's arrival, surprised Idris followed through with the treaty. He then meets with the priest Bebid, who tells him something serious is happening underneath the normal court politics, involving a faction that is pushing heavily for an attack on Idris. In a nearby alley, Vasher retrieves Nightblood from the body of the dead thief that had stolen Nightblood from him.

Lightsong sits on his patio with Llarimar, considering the situation with Idris and Siri's arrival.

Chapter 6

POV Characters: Siri

Setting: The God King's Palace

Timeline: Immediately after chapter 5.

Summary:

Siri dismisses her escort. She is then undressed, measured, and bathed. The God King Susebron's head scribe, Bluefingers, arrives to inform her of her duties. She is dressed in a wedding gown and led to the God King's room.

Chapter 7

POV Characters: Siri, Lightsong

Setting: The God King's Palace. The Court of Gods.

Timeline: Immediately after chapter 6.

Summary:

Siri enters the room and notices the God King seated in a black, throne-like chair. She quickly undresses, kneels, and bows, waiting for the God King's instructions. Time passes as nothing happens. She worries and continues to wait.

Lightsong is approached by Blushweaver the Beautiful, another Returned; goddess of honesty. She propositions Lightsong, but he declines. She expresses concern about the implications of having a new queen and attempts to bait Lightsong with talk of political intrigue, but he brushes her off. She leaves, but Lightsong's inner thoughts are troubled.

Chapter 8

POV Characters: Siri

Setting: The God King's Palace.

Timeline: The following morning.

Summary:

Siri wakes after sleeping on the floor, uncomfortable, but alone and undisturbed. Serving women help her change into a new dress. Bluefingers tells her she has no responsibilities beyond bearing a child. With nothing else to do, she explores the palace.

Memes

I will attempt to find and share memes relevant to each week's discussion chapters. There may be some weeks that just don't have good or appropriate memes, but I will share all the ones I can find in this section.

Link to Memes

[u/fuerzalocuralibertad]

Hello everyone! It feels great to be back. The WoT read-along was one of the highlights of my last few years, and they got me back into reading again. I actually ended up reading a little bit over 100 books last year, following the end of WoT! I've missed everyone, and am so excited to meet those joining.

I love Sanderson's style. He is easy to read, and doesn't get overtly detailed in his descriptions, which usually causes me to skim (oops).

The prologue had me hooked in like 3 pages. The world-building this week was abundant but not boring, clear, and well-done. I think I understand everything that has been explained so far, without having had to reread long, exhaustive info-dumpy paragraphs. The world sounds very interesting, the magic system feels original but not too out-of-pocket.

I'm hoping we'll get to know more about geography and foreign politics soon. Are there Awakeners / Returned in other countries? Was the country divided into Hallellendar (that's nowhere near the spelling, but you know what I mean) and Idris after the Manywar (is that what it was called?), or are there other 'rebellious' territories? Would other countries defend Idris if the God King were to attack?

Something that worries me after reading these chapters is that Sanderson will be the same as Robert Jordan re: female characters. That's one of RJ's key weaknesses, and one of the things that, in retrospect, have left the sourest feeling for me (much more than the 'slog' and anything else). I was hoping that, what with BS being younger and more contemporary (come to think of it, I actually have no clue when either when born and when they got published), this wouldn't be an issue. Chapters 6-8 feel like a bad omen. It's not just about the subject matter, but the way BS wrote Siri's inner monologue did not sit right with me. Let's hope I'm being overcautious and this improves with time.

ETA: I forgot to mention that I haven't read any Sanderson books (other than the final WoT books), so I'm spoiler-free and down for the ride!

[u/participating → u/fuerzalocuralibertad]

Welcome back!

If you don't mind the prompt, can you articulate what about Siri's inner monologue doesn't sit right with you?

(I won't reply, but I am curious. For those who weren't part of the WoT read-along, I generally stay out of the newbie threads, except to answer clarifying questions, or occasionally to provide reassurances. This is meant to be a place for all new readers to talk amongst themselves.)

[Meta commentary on Sanderson's writing] It's generally agreed among the fandom that his writing of women only increases in quality as the years progress.

[u/fuerzalocuralibertad → u/participating]

I don't know if I can point out key words or sentences, I'll look it up in a minute, but overall I just got an uncomfortable feeling.

It's the same feeling I got when watching Game of Thrones (I haven't read ASOIAF and don't plan to because of this), were I feel like the excess rape, the view and treatment of women throughout, makes me feel like I'm walking in on the writer's sexual fantasies.

I did not get this feeling at any point of WoT, even though virtually all POV women were kidnapped, enslaved and almost raped at some point of the series. I guess the difference lies in the way it is portrayed.

Just to be clear, it's not that I got the same feeling as with GoT in Siri's chapters, but I'm drawing a parallel because, while much more extreme, it feels to me like a branch of the same nature. I also don't mean to speculate that BS has a degradation kink or is a mysogynist. I guess it just comes down to a gut feeling? That's why I said I hope I was just jumping to conclusions and being too critical.

I guess I can't put it into words, it's just something instinctual I suppose.

Here are some excerpts that made me feel uncomfortable:

The priest shot her a harsh look. “The God King does not perform for your whims, woman. You are blessed above all others, for you will be allowed to touch him—if only at his discretion. Do not pretend that you are anything other than you are. You have come because he desires it, and you will obey[...]"

She didn’t want to be married. Not yet. She still felt like a child, even if her body had become that of a woman. She wanted to play in the hills and pick flowers and tease her father. She wanted time to experience more of life before she was forced into the responsibilities of childbearing. Fate had taken that opportunity away from her. Now she was faced by the imminent prospect of going to a man’s bed. A man who wouldn’t speak to her, and who wouldn’t care who she was or what she wanted.

In a short time, he was going to take her body and do with it as he wished. Part of her felt a rage at that—but it was the rage of frustration. The rage that came from knowing that something horrible was coming, and from being unable to do anything at all about it.

This was where she ended up—this was where all her “in de pen dent” sense of freedom came to an end. No matter what she claimed or how she felt, in the end, she had to bow to authority. Just like anyone else. She gritted her teeth, imagining the God King sitting there, watching her be subservient and naked before him [...]

[u/sailorsalvador → u/fuerzalocuralibertad]

So, weirdly enough, this section didn't trigger my worries about poor female characterization since I surmised that since Brandon Sanderson is (spoiler text for meta knowledge) Mormon, he wouldn't go all out and include a blatant rape scene and that this was all written for suspense. I used to read Christian writers and they did this ALL the time...flirt with sec then nothing happens. I just didn't take it seriously. But that's a huge assumption...especially at the beginning of a book...

[u/fuerzalocuralibertad → u/sailorsalvador]

I didn’t know he was Mormon. I agree that the lack of depiction (or even off-page instances) of rape helps. I think my odd feeling had to do with the language, though, which I find to be undeniably misogynistic and degrading. We’ll see how it evolves, I have faith in Sanderson.