Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson

I really enjoyed this! It had the same strengths of Sanderson's other books, of an interesting magic system the interactions and implications of which are important to the plot. But it was on a slightly less epic scale than many of his other books which worked better for me.

It dealt with a major country, famed for its richness and dye production and council of the magically-reborn worshipped as fairly decadent but well-meaning gods, and small neighbouring country. But it didn't attempt to describe a whole world completely different (covered with ash, or a city plated in steel with no crops, or devastated by endless magic-leaking highstorms... Sanderson writes a lot of depressing worlds).

It had several main characters, all of whom seemed more human than many of Sanderson's other characters, and not immediately saddled with world-breaking problems from the first page: Siri, pledged in marriage to the imposing God-King of the larger country; Vivenda, out of her element on the streets of the capital city, inadvertently learning about the magic system; Lightsong, one of the magically-reborn worshipped as gods, nice but lazy, self-deprecating and finding it hard to take anything seriously, but pulled into events despite himself.

It felt like it was lacking some of the sharp edges of some of Sanderson's other books. I wasn't sure if that because it was written earlier when he bit off less, or because it was written later when he'd become more practised at honing books and putting in character and humour and toning down the conflicting details about the magic system, but it seems to have been somewhere in the middle, after the first Mistborn, but before the latest epic series (possibly rewritten from earlier drafts).

It manages very well to have several interesting plot developments which are in retrospect extremely sensible, but were very much a surprise to me at the time: this is something Sanderson does well, but I like that here Sanderson manages it a few times throughout the book, not only on the last chapter.

I read it for free online, with the chapter-by-chapter annotations on choices he made, and things he tried to achieve, and things he improved from earlier drafts, which I enjoyed a lot. But (I think) it was also published in paper format.

Cambridge Shakespeare Festival -- Twelfth Night

I don't have much time this week, but I'd like to go to another of the Cambridge Shakespeare Festival plays today (Monday) if I have time, probably Twelfth Night (Kicking off at 7.30 at the back of John's College). Would anyone else like to come?

How I Met Your Mother finale

For nine seasons, HIMYM is the often INCREDIBLY, INCREDIBLY annoying, sometimes sweet, sometimes funny story of Ted and friends, and all the ways Ted messes up relationships, told as the story of Ted explaining to his children how he first met their mother.

I really liked most of the last season (with a few unfortunate exceptions) with all the little hints with other cast members meeting the children's mother, and Ted not quite doing so yet, but having flashforwards to things they did together.

I'd assumed that any ending would be a let down, assuming that Ted would meet the children's mother in the last episode, and there was no possible way that could be a surprise. But I was very pleasantly surprised that they built up a whole season showing Ted and the children's mother continually nearly meeting, and showing her meeting the other characters, and building her up as a character, it felt like if they just capped it off with the expected meeting at the end, it would have been perfect, much better than I expected for a show built around a premise that encapsulated its own ending, and dragged out for nine seasons.

( Thoughts and feels, including spoilers )