The Blinding Knife

The Blinding Knife is the 671 page sequel to The Black Prism. It is the second book in the fantasy Lightbringer four book series by Brent weeks. This story continues the narrative of the seven Satrapies and the Chromeria. For a fuller explanation of the government and magic system--chromaturgy--see my review of The Black Prism. The Blinding Knife (Lightbringer, #2)In this novel, the story focuses on developing relationships between Gavin, the Prism of the Chromeria, and the people closest to him--Kip Guile (son), Karris White Oak (ex-fiance), Andross Guile (father), and Dazen Guile (prisoner/brother). Brent Weeks really does some great characterization in this novel. I actually began to like Kip, who was really bullheaded in The Black Prism. Well, he's still bullheaded, but now he has goals and sticks up for himself. We also meet some new characters, like Teia, a small slave girl who has been sponsored to train and be tested as a Blackgaurd, and gain a deeper understanding of Chromaturgy and secret draftable colors thanks to Kip's training in the Blackgaurd. Also partially thanks to that training, the fighting and focus on battle in this novel was more intimate and more involved than in the first novel. Kip trains and plans to try out for the Blackgaurd, the elite force that guards the Prism's life and answers only to the White (basically the head of the Chromeria). While Kip is training, Gavin is attempting to defeat the bane -- a "god" of a certain color. Gavin first attempts to find and tackle the blue bane, which has been causing many oddities such as blue snowflakes around the world. While searching for the blue bane, he is also trying to stop war from happening. During his search, we see a lot more of his relationship with Karris, which was one of my favorite things to read about in both novels. Whispers of betrayal and regret make their interactions electric. While in The Black Prism there were whispers of color wights (drafters gone mad after they draft too much) answering to a higher calling, this novel actually presents the real threat. The Color Prince, known as Lord Omnichrome, is a polychrome wight--a drafter of many colors who has "broken the halo" on all of them, meaning he should have gone mad from drafting so much light. Instead of madness, he has taken to leading the wights and people who believe that wights can still be sane. This goes against everything the Chromeria teaches, so Gavin has to deal with both the wight banes and the Color Prince in order to attempt to stop a war. In The Blinding Knife, Weeks does some more amazing work with his light magic system, introducing a new draftable color and new concepts of drafting and alternate theories of wights. Along with those improvements, his fictional world grows even more; we are introduced to Seer Island, a remote location that houses a mystical Seer that sort of helps, in the vague way that Seers do, Gavin search for the blue bane. These aspects, and the excellent character building that Weeks does, make this an even more fantastic book than the first. I could hardly put it down. He even throws in a fascinating card game--Nine Kings--that I really hope he explores more in the next book. This series is one of the best that I have read in a long time, and if you haven't started reading it, I ask... Why not?!

The sequel to Black Prism, The Blinding Knife is a solid continuation of this mature fantasy series. The narrative expands and the stakes get even higher in this book. We get to see most of the characters develop in very interesting and compelling ways. We also learn a lot more about the world as a whole along with its history. The plot is intricate and unpredictable. You will not see things coming in this book and much of what the author does works really well. While I enjoyed this volume for the most part, I do have a bone to pick with the author for using far too many coincidences and deus ex machina to further his story. The use of luck or unbelievably bad luck to move the plot forward is not something you want to hang your hat on. When a character has something that they need to do that will only take a minute but they somehow can't get around to doing it for 2 whole books, that starts to get annoying. Relying on bad timing or perfect timing or an unlikely coincidence is something that you can do once or twice and it can work just fine but when you keep doing that over and over again, it starts to frustrate the reader. While this book was very clever and entertaining, it was also extremely frustrating at times.

This book was incredible! I am so glad I’m reading this series right now because it is everything I want and more. This review will be somewhat disjointed because I type my thoughts as I read so there’s usually little connection from one thought to the next. But I have SO much to say and speculate about this story so let’s jump right in. I think Kip is the Lightbringer. He fits all the descriptions. He even questioned it himself. Other people questioned it. When he was carrying Janus she said she knew who the Lightbringer was. All evidence is pointing to Kip; he’s the obvious choice. But because he’s the obvious choice it probably isn’t going to be him after all. I bet we’ll have to wait until The Burning White to find out who the Lightbringer really is, or if he even exists at all. Speaking of Janus Borig though, how cool is she? I’m very intrigued by her. She can see into the past and probably also the future and can depict whole life stories in her magical paintings. And she has singlehandedly created the game of Nine Kings and designed every card in that game. (How did literal fortune cards ever get turned into a casual card game though?) Her ability as a Mirror is my favorite in this series, even more than drafting. I’m so sad that she died. She had such a large store of secrets that I wanted to keep hearing, but at least some of her original cards were saved. What’s especially interesting about the Nine Kings cards that Kip was going through was that there was a card labeled Black Luxin. Kip didn’t pay any mind to this card and just kept going through the stack, but that is confirmation that black luxin does exist! Which means white luxin must also exist. It seems pretty obvious that the blinding knife is made of white luxin, but I’d like to know who drafted it and where it came from. When Gavin was stabbed with it, he lost blue. When Vox was stabbed with it, Gavin lost green. How did Gavin lose green if he wasn’t stabbed with the blade a second time? What happens when the blade has grown to maximum size and all the jewels on the blade are glowing and the blade has absorbed all the colors? I guess we’ll be finding out in The Broken Eye, seeing as this was the blade’s state at the end of this book. I have a theory: the blinding knife was originally used by the Prism in the Sun Day ceremony when he has to free the drafters who are close to breaking the halo. Instead of killing them, like what happens now, he would only take their colors from them so they couldn’t draft themselves into insanity. I hope we do find out more about how the blinding knife is used because it seems to be able to cause multiple effects on people. When Gavin was stabbed at the end of The Black Prism, he lost the ability to see and draft one color. When he was stabbed at the end of The Blinding Knife, he lost the ability to see and draft all colors. When Andross was stabbed, his broken halo receded and he gained more energy as if he had become a younger drafter again. Why didn’t the knife take Andross’s ability to draft colors also? Instead, it strengthened his drafting. Very peculiar. As much as I hate Andross, I think Weeks does a great job at crafting his character. I’m very curious to see what he will do in the next book now that he has essentially regained his ability to draft, especially since he even commented that this changes everything. And also now that he’s no longer a color wight, which I totally saw coming, by the way. After the chapter that featured the Nine Kings card called ~The Master~, I suspected he had probably become a color wight and no one knew because he was always in the dark and always covered his eyes when he wasn’t. But Andross went from being a color wight to being a normal drafter again, which means it is possible to affect the halo with the knife, or possibly with white luxin itself? What would the Color Prince do with this information, or with the knife? He is pro-wight, but only because he’s against killing drafters who are about to break the halo. Would he still let people break the halo and be free, or would he keep everyone within the safe limits of drafting because that’s still not something the Chromeria is willing to do? Ooh, I cannot wait to read more of this intricate narrative. I really want to know more about the legendary colors: black, white, and paryl (and chi, but that hasn’t come up in the story yet). Can paryl do more than see armor on people? How many paryl drafters are actually out there? Is solid paryl actually another form of luxin that’s a different color? Can the Prism see or draft paryl, or chi? He is the Prism, after all, and we already know he can draft the legendary white luxin. I think it’s interesting that real Gavin had just accepted that he is Dazen now, and when real Dazen visits him in the prison, the prisoner addresses him as Gavin even though he’s not. I would have thought that real Gavin would be headstrong in his identity, that real Dazen couldn’t take that away from him too, his last shred of freedom. But he was going insane and maybe started to believe that he was Dazen by this point. When the real Dazen killed the real Gavin, I did not expect that at all. What was the whole point of keeping him locked up for sixteen years then, just to kill him? At first, mercy meant keeping him alive, until mercy came to mean ending his life because of his insanity. And the last line of that chapter hit me so hard: “[Gavin] looked over at the wall, where the prisoner had been glancing repeatedly, but he saw nothing but the reflection of a dead man.” Oh wow. That’s heavy. Talk about foreshadowing. I was impressed by how smart Dazen was in breaking out of the prisons, and by Gavin for creating them in the first place. I was seriously scared a few times that Dazen was finally going to break free, but Gavin outsmarted us all. It is ironic though that the prison Gavin spent only a month constructing held Dazen for sixteen years, while the two prisons that he spent a year constructing barely held him for a month. I also finally saw the irony in this book of the connection between the definition of the word guile and the characters whose name is Guile. As was stated at one point to the question “Was he a good man?” was the answer, “He was a Guile,” as if that explained everything we needed to know. Weeks does such a good job of crafting his characters and their traits and personalities. One character who started out as an insignificant tertiary character but who grew into a substantial secondary character was Adrasteia. She really grew on me the longer I read the story, and I like her now. I hated her mistress though, so I was so glad when Kip won her through Nine Kings. I love Kip’s journey of learning to play Nine Kings and how much he dedicated to learning the cards and practicing the techniques. I mean I hated the scenes when he actually had to play against Andross because Andross is a piece of dirt, but I still liked Kip’s devotion to the game. Kip isn’t my favorite character but his story is the most interesting to read about. I love how Weeks is able to show how the Blackguard training aided in his character progression. He becomes physically stronger, a better drafter, and more disciplined of speech. His story is really one of him growing up and coming into himself. He used to be (and still sometimes is) very focused on himself, but now he is much more aware of how his actions matter and actually affect others, and he has matured so much since the beginning of book one. I’m looking forward to seeing him grow up more throughout each book in the series. I think it’s interesting that the Color Prince is trying to create his own Spectrum but is just using the gods instead because he wants to be more powerful than the Chromeria. I think some of his philosophies that the Chromeria is wrong, etc. make so much sense and I can totally see where he’s coming from and why he has supporters; however, he is going about enacting his ideas in the wrong way, which is why he’s a problem. I do think Liv was misguided when she chose to stay in the Color Prince’s army. I think she finally has her freedom, and just like a child on their own for the first time without anyone telling them what to do, she is asserting her freedom and making poor decisions. Obviously she still loves her dad and respects him, and she even teared up just seeing his handwriting. I think down the road she will realize that she has made a big mistake by trusting Koios and there will be a big ordeal when she tries to leave him. Honestly, the only thing I’m upset about is Liv sleeping with Zymun and letting herself get pushed around by him, which is when I lost all respect for her. I still don’t hate Liv but I do think she is making some bad decisions right now. But in her defense, she’s not directly killing anyone by her own hand. I’m curious if she will still support Lord Omnichrome when he makes her actually kill people, especially if it’s someone close to her, because right now she’s mostly just there on the political side. But she’s not really free. Anytime she is faced with the horrific actions of the Prince, she drafts superviolet and hides behind the ability to become emotionless so she can justify what he’s doing and not have to think about how she’s supporting him by staying, even if she’s not directly taking the same evil actions that he is. As for Zymun, I was happy to see him leave the Color Prince’s army, and I had hoped he was gone for good, but I was wrong. I was very surprised to learn that Zymun is Karris’s son that she left as a baby. I was wondering when that boy was going to show up, and it turns out it has been Zymun all along. He treated Kip like crap though even though he’s his “brother,” which really shows Zymun’s true nature and that he seeks only after power. One thing I am curious about was how Zymun found out that he was indeed Karris’s son, and I hope we discover these answers in the next book. Even though I still feel like I don’t know much about Karris, I do really like her. I am so so happy about what happened between real Dazen and Karris. I have been waiting for him to tell her the truth since the beginning of Black Prism, and they are so clearly meant to be together. Their scenes together just made me smile and giggle at their being in love. I love this subtle love story in this series and that it spanned all of books one and two and really built up the tension before anything actually happened. I actually think that Weeks does a good job of portraying the differences between men and women without degrading women. I think he has said a lot in these books that is actually quite empowering for women, and I respect that. He understands (or at least writes as if he understands) a woman’s perspective, and I find myself relating to that on many occasions. (That’s not to say all the characters were respectful of women, though.) The only thing I even slightly disliked about this book is that I had a hard time picturing the final battle scene, which is my own issue, not the book’s issue. For some reason, I just couldn’t play it out in my mind so I couldn’t follow along very well. I definitely liked the battle and fight scenes less than the other parts of the book when they’re learning about the properties of luxin or training to be Blackguards or having important conversations. I know the battles are cool because the characters get to show off their drafting abilities and use luxin to fight, but I am just way more interested in the plot of this book, so I felt like those fight scenes slowed me down from discovering more answers that I needed. I really like Weeks’s writing style though. I find it very easy to fall into the story. One thing I love that he does is create a slow burn and make me work for some of the details. For example, the blinding knife was introduced in book one, we learned more details about it in book two, but there’s so much that’s still a mystery that will be revealed in book three and possibly even book four. His story isn’t rushed at all, but it also isn’t slow by any means either, and I love that I just get to savor every word in that way. The Blinding Knife is better than The Black Prism in my opinion, and I bet the books will just keep getting better with each installment. I have never had such a visceral reaction to a book as with this one. Any book that gets that kind of reaction out of me is worth every star and rave review. Weeks is an excellent writer and this is an excellent and unique epic fantasy story that I can’t recommend enough. “He who looks through only one lens lives in darkness.”

I have been blown away by Brent Weeks ever since his Night Angel Trilogy. When I hear he was writing a new series with new characters I was concerned. However, when The Black Prism came out I was again floored. Not only can this author do amazing things with character developement and gripping storylines, but he can also shift gears completely, throw out all that gave him fame and fortune with his last trilogy, and still make novels that I am clamoring to buy the day they come out. I have read many fantasy books, by many authors (Such as Martin, Brooks, Goodkind, and Salvatore) and Mr. Weeks tops them all. The Blinding Knife has been the only book I have ever pre-ordered which says a lot since I'm pretty skeptical about new books from even the most famed authors. I for see Mr. Weeks having a long and healthy career if he continues the way he is going. The Blinding Knife (as so much as I have read...since I'm taking it slow to savor every moment, before the long, cold wait for the next book) delivers from page one. Wonderful magic system that continues to amaze and astound me, characters that you love and hate (and yes they can be both loved and hated), and back drop unlike any I have seen so far. (honestly, who puts flintlock pistols in a fantasy novel? The only one I have seen so far is Weeks, and it adds flavor to his newly created world). If you're looking for some good reads, then pick up all of Weeks' books, they are worth their cost!

Let talk books. More specifically, The Lightbringer Series by Brent Weeks. This is now officially my favorite book series of all time. Needless to say, this is my spoiler-free attempt at getting you to read them. The Dark Tower books by Stephen King have been my favorite books for 30 years. 30 years! I have a tattoo of it on my leg, which for some people may not be significant but I only have 3 tattoos: 1 celebrating survival, 1 depicting the struggles of mental illness and 1 dedicated to the Dark Tower. And The Lightbringer Series knocked the "King" off his throne. (See what I did there?) Each book is spectacular in its own right, but as a series, the build-up, the connections, watching it all come together like a perfectly choreographed dance? He's the author that other authors should try to be. Plot: There are multiple different plots that interplay together and weave such a tale as I've never read before. From the first chapter to the last page, the books are near impossible to put down as you wait to see what happens next. Characters: Whether you love them or hate them or they baffle you, there isn't a single main character in these books that doesn't evoke emotion. You don't just get to know them, you get to the point where you feel how they feel, you hurt when they hurt, you love when they love, you fear when they fear. Themes: You want political intrigue in a world where you never really know who your friends and enemies are? Where alliances and lifelong hatreds hang by threads? You want a perfectly imperfect mirror view of the true depths of political power struggles? How about an in-depth dive into the social conditioning and trappings of religious authority? These books hit every level of humanity through honest eyes, sometimes leaving me as a reader to question my own views in life. In a world of black and white, you learn to appreciate that the world exists best in shades of gray. These books made me laugh out loud, cheer quietly, cry and feel at times breathless in their beauty. In conclusion, if you want an action, romance, magic, horror, fantasy, comedy, drama that makes Game of Thrones feel like it was written by a high school student, read The Lightbringer Series by Brent Weeks

Let me tell you why this book is good and yet at the same time why deep down its so so wrong LOL. The main character if you want to call the main character the main character is living a life full of deceit and lies. The entire cast of minor characters have just as interesting or better story lines than the main character. The family relationships of the major and minor characters tend not to surface or are highly disfunctional. No character in this book is above some fear of retribution for each and everything they do. The two brothers are both all powerful and you can only have one all powerful brother which starts a war on a magnitude no one has ever seen...People believe that One powerful brother has killed the other powerful brother but secretly is keeping him prisoner for unknown reasons. The mother and father do not have any realtionship at all despite the mother secretly doing good things for the son while the father seems to work against the son at every turn. The son has a love of his life but can't marry her for plot complications I can't even explain here. The son has a bastard child who surfaces and the relationship between those two is unsual and cold. The bastard son acquires a slave unto himself as an act of kindness to save the slave from untold horror. Do you see the family tree now? Family relationships are disturbing to say the least but I suppose it plays into character development and plot points throughout the book. It is well written, exciting and very well thought out and paced. I have read two of three I will have to finish this series out.

For me, what makes me appreciate Mr. Weeks' writing the most is how much the characters are fully realized people with flaws and self-doubt, arrogance and pride, kindness and regret. Early on I really didn't care for the character of Kip at all, but as the books progressed he grows and develops as a person, and you are brought along on that journey of maturity, and by the end of the 2nd book he's someone you admire and have come to respect. It's a very rewarding experience as a reader as I don't just like him because he's the main protagonist (or one of them), but because on this journey I feel like I've come to know him and garnered a respect for him through his maturing self-awareness. I think if it were written any differently it would feel forced or 2-dimensional. Likewise Gavin changes from the haughty, arrogant "nothing can harm me" power monger, to someone very much facing vulnerability and learning how to accept help graciously when they've never needed it in the past. I also really love the family web and how they all interact with Andross Guile, the Father. I think we can all relate to how an overbearing parent can make even the most confident person vulnerable even if they don't let down that wall on the outside to people. So- great stuff if you like character development, which for me as a reader is completely key to my enjoyment of a novel. This series is right up there with the stuff of Scott Lynch and Patrick Rothfuss, and even George R.R. Martin. If you like those books, you'll like this one for the same reason(s).

As I mostly write on my book reviews what I value the most, is how much a book captivated me. Well, I devoured this book and it’s far from small. I just couldn’t stop reading The 2nd book of the series is significantly better than the first. Maybe it is natural since we know the characters and there is more happening that we can understand, but it is undeniable. A lot happens, secrets are spilled, kip gets some true development and to a big extend realistic. Kip is a big part of this book and no corners are cut. He doesn’t get super strong all of a sudden though it is clear the story deters him from blooming too early. Gavin is a very interesting character, with flaws and problems but admirable. A true protagonist who has to make rough calls, mistakes and has his own share of failures. What I also enjoy is that the “bad” guys have ideals and philosophy and goals which one could say have value -‘d reason - they are not just bad guys but more of a byproduct of a corrupt empire. I am curious to see how this will proceed since a lot of secrets were uncovered, but I frankly hope the 3rd book is as good as this !

Characters new and old bring the world to life. The magic system continues its growth. The story keeps moving forward at a good pace

I was eagerly awaiting this 2nd book in the trilogy, and I wasn't disappointed. The action is fast paced, and never gets boring - the book is over 600 pages long (in hard-back format) but you don't feel the length. The plot developments throughout were a mix of both surprising and expected (not in a bad way), and I have to say I was rooting for the real Gavin at one point. It is a great skill to be able to invoke pity for characters, even when you do not wholly like them, but Weeks is able to do this, and more (I wept with Ironfist near the end). The ending was a sucker-punch, and has left me desperate for more. Unfortunately the next part hasn't even been written yet - gutted!! The only criticism I have is that sometimes the prose jumped around between sentences, leaving you scrambling around for a moment trying to figure out where the author had gone, but not enough to demote from 5 stars. Brilliant read, couldn't put it down. The character list, glossary, and explanatory appendix about luxin and drafters included at the end was an absolute godsend as well - I wish every fantasy author did this!

This was perhaps brent weeks best work to date. I loved the previous trilogies of his and the first book in this one was just great. This second book brought more of the same great writing coupled with twists and turns that had me captured until the end. Cannot wait for the last book.

J'avais adoré le 1° de la série. Encore une fois une suite que j'ai beaucoup apprécié. L'histoire se tient et garde le lecteur en haleine. Le système de magie présenté est novateur et bien pensé. Les personnages sont attachants. Très bon livre ! Vivement la sortie du 3° volet :)

So good i don't know what to write but it's incredible as the previous book was, blew my mind good