The Darkness That Comes Before vs Trail of lightning: Which Should You Read?

Both live on shelves: Fantasy fiction, Science Fiction, Fiction

The Darkness That Comes Before

The Darkness That Comes Before R. Scott Bakker · 2003 ★★★★☆ 4.0 589 pages · ≈ 10 h 54 m · Moderate Find on Amazon

Trail of lightning Rebecca Roanhorse · 2018 ★★★★☆ 4.0 287 pages · ≈ 5 h 19 m · Light Find on Amazon

The verdict

Ratings are close: 4.0 vs 4.0 — either is a safe pick by score.
Trail of lightning is the quicker read — about 5 hours vs 10 for The Darkness That Comes Before.
Trail of lightning is the easier read (Light), The Darkness That Comes Before more demanding (Moderate).