The best modern work of fantasy I've ever readTaking Tolkien out of the equation, as someone who read all of wheel of time and all of the current 5 game of thrones( my with a clash of kings in game of thrones ranking as my favorite), I understand this to be a bold claim.This book is a payout on the investment of the prior 3 books and reveals that no detail no character in the first 3 books was wasted. All of the characters, the events are leading up to something-an epic world, with a story worth re-reading.Warning, this book starts off slow. It took 300 to 400 pages for it to get going. When I arrived at the thought " the pacing is too slow in this one", the narrative takes off and doesn't slow till the end.Brandon Sanderson does such a great job of writing characters as humans, addressing depression, trauma, and dementia in his characters in a human and compassionate way. He ties up almost every lose end in this book whole still keeping the reader invested in what happens next. This book made me consider rereading the first 3 because it points to how the events in the first book continues to have echoes in this expansive rich universe Brandon Sanderson has created.In fantasy, its a book that made me feel all of the emotions, exuberance, despair, sadness, and hope. There's a scene in the book that made me tear up, something I never expected a book would make me do. He treats the characters with amazing tenderness and provides closure to many character arches..If you want action, complex characters, fantasy, and rich story telling, this book has it and this series is for you.6