Ranking the interludes in Words of Radiance

We are back to ranking interludes, this time with the Words of Radiance. In my last review, we looked at The Way of Kings interludes and ranked them based on three major categories:

1. Did we explore a new part of Roshar?
2. Did we learn more about something we already knew?
3. Was it good?

Check out the first article of this series to learn more about these ranking factors and the role of Interludes in general. Without further adieu, let’s get right into the Words of Radiance interludes.

The rankings

I-1: Narak

Words of Radiance starts off very strong with this interlude. Through Eshonai’s perspective, we get to see Narak and get a real sense of what the war is like for the Singers living on the Shattered Plains. We get to hear about the forms the Singers have discovered thus far, see their attempts to gain more and experience how their culture has formed around them. 

We also learn more about Eshonai's relationship with Venli, a power dynamic that has massive ramifications throughout the books.

This interlude does a great job of achieving everything it is supposed to do. It is also the beginning of Sanderson's use of interludes to convey significant plot points through these not-quite chapters. There is so much valuable context for the war that these interludes will start to deliver. If you are the type of reader who skips interludes (no judgment), I recommend reading through them on your next re-read. Uncovering the mysteries of the singers and the war on the Shattered Plains is one of the many reasons that makes Words of Radiance the banger it is.

These won't always qualify as great interludes, but with this first run, it makes the mark.

I-1: Narak is an S-Tier interlude.

I-2: Ym

Another solid interlude. In I-2, we meet Ym, an Irilai with a dark past who has started on their path to becoming a Truthwatcher. We get to see a little bit of the surge of progression, but the real draw of this chapter, lore-wise, is an exploration of the religion of the Irali and the Long Trail. The chapter ends with heavy foreshadowing as a “mysterious lawkeeper” shows up and executes Ym for his past misdeeds.

The real value of this interlude comes later on in Words of Radiance as you connect the dots between events and get a preview of a character who will become very important later on. In that sense, you might say Sanderson “Nale’d” it. 

In another sense, I can only give in this interlude an A. It is an excellent interlude among amazing ones.

I-2: Ym is an A-Tier interlude.

I-3: Rysn

Hello again, Rysn. I am at odds with this interlude. On the one hand, I would read an entire book about Rysn and Vstim roaming around Roshar, visiting rarely-mentioned lands, all while the major plot lines of the Stormlight Archive unfolding just “off-screen.” On the other, this interlude is a chore to get through. 

We get to see the Reshi Isles and learn about an incredibly unique and fairly cool culture on Roshar, but that journey is mired in Rysn struggling under the pressures of Vstim’s would-be test. This is intentional, of course—over the course of the Stormlight Archive, we see Rysn mature from the ignorant youth they start as to a SERIOUSLY big (and very spoiler-filled) role in future books. 

This is just one more step in the character development journey, but unfortunately, that doesn’t make it a good interlude.

I-3: Rysn is a C-Tier interlude.

I-4: Last Legion

Another challenging to rate interlude. Last Legion fails to meet a lot of hallmarks of a good interlude: we only get to meet a small handful of new characters, we get a few small bits about stormform, and we don’t see much more in the way of lore or exploration.

Where this interlude thrives, though, is on the “Is it good?” check. This interlude strikes an emotional chord with anyone who has ever had to deal with a friend or family member struggling with dementia. It is a shockingly human story cast by a race that plays in opposition to the actual humans in the Stormlight Archive. I started caring about the Singers during this interlude, and it is one of the most memorable parts of Words of Radiance.

Despite this, I can’t rank Last Legion too high, especially with how far I cast the last interlude down. That being said, I think Sanderson changes the role of interludes throughout the books, and with the spirit of that in mind, I will value the “Is it good?” factor a smidge higher than I usually would.

I-4: Last Legion is a B-Tier interlude.

I-5: The Rider of Storms

I won’t pull any punches for this one. At this point, we can see the trend of interludes forming alternative main-plot storytelling. Here, we see Eshonai take the plunge and take on stormform and act that will forever change the war on the Shattered Plains. This is a cool scene, but I would argue that it would have fit just as well within a shifting perspective chapter, maybe even at the end of Part 2.

The most exciting part of this short interlude is a conversation between Eshonai and the Stormfather, but it’s not enough to pull this interlude up from just below middling. We don’t get any new characters or explore new lands; it’s good, not great.

I-5: The Rider of Storms is a D-Teir interlude

I-6: Zahel

This an excellent interlude for fans of the greater Cosmere. I won’t go too deep into spoilers for those still playing catch up, but suffice it to say that those well invested in the Cosmere will have some potential theories all but confirmed through this interlude.

Taking our three considerations of a “good” interlude, we can find where this ought to rate, regardless of how deeply you’ve explored other works.

While we fail our first check (we aren’t exploring any new places), this chapter gives us a new perspective from a side character we rarely see. In terms of the “good” factor, even if you haven’t read many other books in the Cosmere, there is so much to Zahel hiding in the background that this interlude only teases out further. We aren’t precisely exploring a new place on Roshar, but we get a sense that the broader Cosmere is a much larger place than we’ve seen thus far.

Still, it takes a bit of reading between the lines for this interlude to reach its full potential, so I will knock down a few points for the general crowd.

I-6: Zahel is an A-Tier interlude

I-7: Taln

Another good, not great, interlude. After reading this chapter for the first time, I got hyped to push through the interludes and get back to the action. Reading from the perspective of a herald for the first time since The Way of Kings prologue is an exciting callback, and Taln's ominous last comments as he heads towards the Shattered Plains left me reeling. 

This interlude falls short in exploring Roshar: we don’t learn or see anything new. We get to see the setup for some events that will be significant later in the book, but it’s hard to rank an interlude by its own definition.

Giving I-7: Taln a B-tier feels terrible. My first Cosmere RPG player will be a Stoneward, and I feel like I need to represent my herald. 

I-8: A Form of Power

I have to be more critical than I want to be here. We’ve seen significant plot progressions in the past few interludes, and 1-8: A Form of Power is no exception. 

• Do we see new parts of Roshar? No.
• Do we experience a part of Roshar from a new perspective? No.
• Do we really learn something more about a thing we already know? No, not really.
• Was it good? Yeah.

We are barely saved by how ominous the interlude is. Remember: we’re ranking interludes not (exactly) by how much I enjoyed them but how well they serve as world-building chapters. I see no reason this couldn’t have been a chapter alongside a Shallan or Kalladin POV.

The tiny bit of lore we learn is that the Singers, at their core, won’t like what these new forms have to bring. This is the discovery that the powers of old have returned and the commitment that the Singers will adopt them anyway. 

Despite loving the chapter, as an interlude, I-8: A Form of Power is a D-tier interlude.

I-9: Lift

Some people don’t like Lift. It’s okay to be wrong. I won't judge you. Some people aren't even reading the interludes.

This interlude is so good Sanderson made it a spin-off novella, Edgedancer. It has it all:

• We’re in Azir for the first time.
• We get to see, firsthand, new surges.
• There are heralds! 
• We get a deep lore dump on the Azish government.
• We get exposed to mysteries around Lift’s ability to create light and what Nale is up to.
• We meet even more characters that will grow and develop in future books.

It’s just too damn good.

Lift’s perspective contrasts the desperate energy Words of Radiance can give off. For those cultured enough to enjoy the levity, it’s a fantastic departure to run off and explore a new part of Roshar. Given enough time and page real estate, I think Sanderson would make every interlude this rich in lore and deeply engrained in the plot at play in the Stormlight Archive. 

I must withhold my full judgment until Wind and Truth comes out, but this might be the best interlude the Stormlight Archive offers.

I-9: Lift is a S-tier interlude.

I-10: Szeth

Hi Szeth. We don’t get too much here. It’s a good reminder that Szeth is still kicking around, and it’s technically the first sight we have of Urithiru, but that’s about it.

I-10: Szeth is a D-tier interlude.

I-11: New Rhythms

If you haven’t caught up to Rythm of War by the time you are reading this, skip this review.

This is a tricky interlude to rank. We learn more about the internal conflicts that stormform places on the individual Singer and get an extreme example of how it can completely change the bearer's personality. We are learning exciting stuff, but we shouldn’t get distracted by the big foreshadowing that Sanderson is brewing

In humans, whenever they see a callout of spren being unnaturally drawn to an individual, it’s almost always a hint that they are close to swearing the oaths of the Knights Radiant. At the beginning of this interlude, we see this same foreshadowing, but with Eshonai. We don’t know enough at this stage to understand the implications of this event, but it plays a significant role in Rythm of War. I didn’t read into the implications the first time around, but I love using an interlude as this type of exploration in the same way that Zahel’s chapter expanded perspective.

It is very arcane in its approach to world-building, but it’s enough to save the interlude from being a good chapter but a bad interlude.

Wishing for half scores, I will place I-11: New Rhythms (is this a big brain connection to Rhythm of War!?) in the C-tier.

I-12: Lhan

Another example of a text-book interlude. In I-12: Lhan, we get to see what’s going on in Kholinar, we learn more about the ardents, and we get some general plot foreshadowing, all in a neat little package. 

While we are hitting all the hallmarks of a great interlude, something about it turns me off. I can’t quite put my finger on it. It might be dread. 

This chapter is incredibly foreboding, and with the rest of the main cast gearing up to fight the newly empowered Singers, I think it’s very easy to get wrapped up in the emotions mounting at this stage of the book. Does that mean it’s a great interlude!? I am not a literary scholar, nor do I have a wealth of reviewing experience to draw on. I must go with my gut.

My gut says that I-12: Lhan is an easy A-tier interlude.

I-13: A Part to Play

While this interlude does a lot to mount the tension for the coming chapters, it doesn’t do much as an interlude. We don’t learn new things or see new places; the little context and detail only reinforce what we’ve seen in previous interludes. Yawn.

I-13: A Part to Play is a D-tier interlude.

I-14: Taravangian

We end with a bang and a struggle. On the one hand, this interlude has a lot of what we want to see: we learn more about the diagram and its members, we get to see parts of Vedenar and its civil war in a way we haven’t experienced yet, we learn heaps more about Taravangian and his curse! It’s also a really good read, super entertaining and intriguing. Taravangian chapters always leave you with more questions and scrambling for more.

Here lies the issue: this interlude feels more like a chapter.

Whenever I talk to friends (who also are invested in the Cosmere) about interludes, we always discuss whether you “have” to read them. Some avoid them, others love them. You technically can skip interludes like I-14: Taravangian. Still, you’re robbing yourself of fantastic character development that pays off in such a big way the deeper you get into the books. Sanderson does a great job communicating who Taravangian is as the books go on, but these early chapters make every interaction Dalinar has leading up to “future events” (no spoilers) incredibly tense and thrilling. Which Taravangian are we getting today: the man who can topple a kingdom or the man who will weep for doing it?

Going out in a blaze of glory: I-14: Taravangian is an S-tier interlude.

Scoreboard

Now that Words of Radiance and The Way of King's interludes are under our belt let's see where we are now.

Compared to The Way of Kings, Words of Radiance's interludes are a lot more balanced. You certainly have far more on the bottom half of the rankings, but the other side of that coin is some of the best I think we'll see in the series.

Time will tell.

The journey

At the end of the Way of Kings interlude rankings, I said I would have this article done in a matter of weeks. That was in June, and here we are in November. I got too distracted (and delighted) by the Cosmere RPG, then Stormlight RPG, and put all of my creative juice into that content.

Despite my terrible track record, I will establish an aggressive timeline again. For those of you reading this close to the publish date, there are only a few more weeks before Wind and Truth comes out. I would like to see Oathbringer and Rythm of War’s interludes done before that gets published.

Ambitious, I know, but the only way you’ll find out if I make it is by sticking around and subscribing for free to the newsletter. That will drop each new article straight to your inbox! If you are as invested in the Cosmere as I am, you won’t be sad you did.