Elantris

One of the best standalone novels I've read in a long time. Even for his first book Sanderson was brilliant. The political intrigue is very well written and planned out, the world building and character building are wonderfully immersing, and the magic system is unique and captivating. Great read!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

Yes, it's very obviously Sanderson's first book, though. Parts of it are trite and pat. He signals a few things too frequently and others too lightly, which makes some of the pacing feel a little jerky.

But overall, it's so youthful, fun, and bright. I love the way he conceives of his worlds and this book is no exception.

I'll admit it. I didn't like this book until I was a little moe than half way through it. The characters captured my imagination, but the setting and plot were difficult - almost as if the story started in the wrong place. Only knowledge than Sanderson is s masterful story teller kept me reading onward.

I do look forward to following these characters in the rest of the series. I must know what will become of them!

The kindle version of this book was absolutely full of typos. With very similar names for things that were quite different - Arleth, Arteth...that contributed to the difficulty I had following the story.

I read this book while I was snowed in, and it made the time fly by. I genuinely can hardly find words for how amazing this novel was. I can't believe it was Brandon Sanderson's first! The plot was complex and unpredictable. The magic system was original and interesting. But the best part was the characters he crafted. Each of the three main view point characters are incredibly well thought out. No matter whether you agree with their choices or not, the reader can easily see where they are coming from. This book is very important. I was moved by these characters in so many ways.
I also loved that it was a relentlessly optimistic book. No matter what happened, it didn't wallow in grit, but showed the power of continual hope and the influence a hopeful leader can have.
I loved this book so much. It was an instant favorite.

Llevaba tiempo queriendo leer a este autor, hasta que me decidí y leí El Imperio Final, libro que me encanto y esta en mis favoritos de este año. Así que antes de seguir con Mistborn, tenía que leer ésta que es su primera novela publicada, y no me ha decepcionado.

El libro está narrado siguiendo a tres personajes principales: Raoden, Sarene y Hraten. En un principio estaba más enganchada a los capítulos de Raoden, era muy interesante toda la parte de la vida en Elantris. Ya después las historias se van entrelazando y empezamos a ver otros personajes importantes que tendrán peso en la historia.

Me ha gustado mucho la historia, los personajes y todo el mundo creado en este libro por Sanderson. Pero tiene algunos detalles que hacen que no sea perfecto. Aun con estos detalles me encanto y sigo en la tarea de leerme todo lo que encuentre de Brando Sanderson, y pronto, ya tengo varios libros suyos en mi estantería esperando.

Executive Summary: For a debut novel, this is decent, but Mr. Sanderson's writing ability has definitely come a long way since then.Audio book: Jack Garrett does a pretty good job. He does a few voices and overall his reading style was enjoyable. I'd listen to another book he narrates.Full ReviewWell this is it, the last published Sanderson novel I haven't read. At least of the Cosmere books. I probably shouldn't have saved it for last, since it was his his first novel.That certainly shows here. It has the elements of a Sanderson novel that I love: interesting world building and a cool magic system. The pacing however, leaves much to be desired. The first two-thirds of this book or so are far too slow. There is just too much going on. I think some of the this could have been edited out into a tighter, better story.The characters were decent, but some of them were a bit too black and white. Then again, that's still common in Mr. Sanderson's later novels. I liked both Raoden and Sarene as protagonists. But while Radoen's story mostly moved at a decent pace, it was Sarene's whose parts seemed to really bog things down.The last third was very enjoyable though. I'd definitely like to read another book about Elantris, especially now that Mr. Sanderson has refined his craft.I am eager to check out the novella [b:The Emperor's Soul 13578175 The Emperor's Soul Brandon Sanderson https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1343059311s/13578175.jpg 19161502], which I've owned for some time, but didn't want to read until doing this first. Overall I'm glad I finally read this, but it's not something I'd really recommend except for the Sanderson die-hards such as myself.

I was hesitant to read this, as so many reviewers gave it less than glowing reviews, although liking most of Sanderson's other work, but my hesitancy was misplaced. It's his first novel and there are certainly some issues with it, that Sanderson has obviously improved upon in his later works, but overall I still really enjoyed Elantris. All of the hallmarks of Brandon Sanderson's writing are there, including an amazing world, magic and characters that always seem to surprise me, even the so-called ‘bad guys' have me second guessing myself and my own prejudices. I appreciate that in his writing and how much more its grown over the course of his writing career. I also enjoyed the fact that this was a single one off story and not a series. Some secondary characters may suffer a bit for it, but it was refreshing to know that it was all going to come to an end on the last page and not keep me hanging for years to come. Although I wouldn't put this as my favourite of Sanderson's work, it is still well worth the read and better than 75% of other fantasy out there. Ignore some of those first novel follies and sit back and enjoy a novel that was the start of an amazing author's career!

Brandon Sanderson is becoming one of my favorite authors, this is one of his early works.

A little rough and slow in places, but overall interesting.

Even though this is Sandersons first book, it hits many of the same chords. The magic system isn't as well developed as in his following works, leading to revelation moments which had me scratching my head a little. The story itself was a bit long for how little happened. The overall story ended up leaving me wishing some of the mysteries were revealed sooner, giving more time for elaboration.

Even though this is Sandersons first book, it hits many of the same chords. The magic system isn't as well developed as in his following works, leading to revelation moments which had me scratching my head a little. The story itself was a bit long for how little happened. The overall story ended up leaving me wishing some of the mysteries were revealed sooner, giving more time for elaboration.

I've enjoyed every Brandon Sanderson book I've read, and Elantris was certainly no exception. This was a beautiful mix of religious and political intrigue, magical mystery, and just a touch of romance. The ultimate answer to the mystery was so elegantly simple, but discovered so late, that consequences still had to be faced even when the main problem was fixed. (I'm trying to be vague so I don't spoil it!) I loved both Raoden and Sarene, and in a way, Hrathen too. He was a wonderfully written villain – one of those villains whose motivations you get to see and understand, so you end up sympathizing with him even as you don't want to see him succeed. Sanderson definitely has a talent for unusual fantasy novels, with elaborate plots and complex, well thought-out worlds.

In short, yet another amazing book from Brandon Sanderson.

You can find all my reviews at Goddess in the Stacks.

I have mixed feelings on this book, but overall I enjoyed reading it. Some of the plot holes and obvious devices made me cringe a bit, but I thought the story stood well enough on the grounds of character and theme.

I really enjoy fantasy books that deal with religion in unique ways, and this one definitely qualifies. We are given a look at multiple religions from multiple perspectives and find out that in the end, a religion is exactly as good as those who follow it. Raoden's message to the fallen Elantrians, once gods in their own right, is to find their worth as humans again. It is through production and effort that they are able to forget the myriad pains of their very existence, which I viewed as the million emotional scars that never quite heal in the real word. They find something greater than pain in their own humanity, and that's a message I think the world needs.Sarene's story is probably the least engaging, and she feels a little bit like a man's desperate attempt at a Strong Female Character. I like her, and I identify with her on a number of levels, but in the end she is still kind of a well-meaning damsel whose efforts tend to hurt more than they help because she doesn't think things through. I like her political savvy and her willingness to barter her marriage for the greater good (something I don't think we get to see the female perspective on enough) but her primary role is to motivate the male characters, and that's... a bit disappointing. Same goes for the wedding at the end. That whole scene was a cringer.The book still gets four stars though because of Hrathen's story. Honestly, I would have been just as happy to read Hrathen's story alone. He is the only character who truly grows (Raoden and Sarene are pretty much perfect people from the get go) and his transformation is astonishing. My opinion of him changed every chapter, and he always kept on guessing. He is the character who really exemplifies the religious themes of this story, striking the balance between logic and passion, mind and heart. He's the only one that I really wish hadn't died. The ironic ending was fitting, but I feel like his was a story that could have continued and I would've wanted to read about it.

I guess I would summarize by saying this book is an okay story with some really amazing themes. The setting is original and the characters are intriguing. I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys classic fantasy settings with some original twists and a heavy dose of religious criticism.

Loved this book. There wasn't a single time I was looking ahead. The characters feel real and the setting is original. Really hope Brandon does complete the next book.

Brandon sets such high standards that you have to wonder how he lives up to them. Elantris is yet another leaf in his laurel wreath. It has all the usual Brandon fare. A fantastic magic system, an interestingly created world and of course the critical ingredients, a host of memorable protagonists. Even the villians have such shades that their POV is truly additive to the plot. But in the case of Elantris, its the magic system that creates the biggest and brightest impression. To create a magic system is one thing. To make a magic system on this scale is another. Time to get to the next book.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel by Brandon Sanderson! I've been meaning to read it for some time now, after finishing the Mistborn trilogy and Way of Kings. I knew right off that this was Sanderson's first novel. I felt like the characters and plot were less complex than his later novels. As a writer, I enjoyed the simplicity of the story structure. The plot felt like a lot of concentric circles of ideas. This one simple event occurred, which struck off a ripple of complication, which created another ripple. These ripples collided with ripples from another set of complications, creating new ripples. The characters worked backward through the complications to determine what caused the big overlying issues of the story. I think I could use this technique in my own writing. I really appreciate Sanderson's writing for this reason alone. He uses simple techniques to create complex worlds and characters, and builds idea upon idea for a logical story structure.

SPOILERS

As I mentioned previously, I did feel that this novel's characters were less developed, or maybe just less complex than his later characters. Their motivations and masks were two-dimensional. The most complex character was Hrathen, who was the only character to go through a significant transformation by the end of the novel. His history, personality, and motivations were hidden further beneath the surface than the rest of the characters. I had trouble deciding whether I liked him or not, throughout the novel, and I'm not sure if that is because of Sanderson's writing, or because his character seemed wishy-washy. Was the character insecure and undecided, or was Sanderson undecided about the character? At times, I felt that I should hate Hrathen. But at the end, he came through for the characters I was rooting for when the real villain came to light. I kept mistaking Hrathen for the cold-hearted conqueror, and then getting thrown every time he showed remorse or regret for his actions.

Elantris is the first novel by Brandon Sanderson. It is a very good first novel, but it does feel a little raw as compared to his later work. The concept is interesting and the characters well fleshed out.

However, I actually felt the characters were too well fleshed out. The majority of the book feels like character development with very little movement of the ultimate conflict of the story. The story sort of meanders back and forth between the three main characters until the last 1/4th or even 1/5 of the book. At that point, suddenly it kicks it into overdrive and begins to tell a very interesting and compelling story.

My biggest complaint is that once the story was over, I finally really wanted there to be more. The book ends with the potential for much more. While the novel resolved, it felt to me that there was much more that could have been told. It really feels like the first book in the series, where the majority of the time was spent establishing a world and characters so that a larger, epic story could be told in the follow up books (that don't, at least at this time, exist). Worth reading, no question, but not my favorite of the author's.

I like this book a lot! It's cliche in a lot of ways but when you consider that this is a debut, it's a really good one.

I picked up Sanderson's books because he's taking over the Wheel of Time. Naturally, I started with the first book he wrote. I found myself enjoying it very much. The pacing starts off slow, in the form of three separate storylines, that slowly converges and builds into a fast-paced and satisfying finale.

The style of prose seems similar enough for me to the Wheel of Time, with sometimes lengthy descriptions and portrayals. But someow I feel that it's nicely woven into the story as a way to pull you into that world and care about the characters.

Granted, the protagonists (prince and princess) were a little too good to be true, with events conveniently favouring them. I can't help liking them though - like fairy tale heroes. The antagonists were rather interesting, with clear and strong motivations.

The setting in particular deserves applause. The magical city itself, the magic system, and the way they're slowly unraveled and shown to the reader - it was brilliant! And just an aside, the religions of world rather reminded me of real-world religons, so i guess that's where the inspiration came from.

Elantris is like a nice tale of good vs evil with politics and religion thrown in and then served with rich prose.

3 1/2 stars

Full review:
http://fantasycafe.blogspot.com/2008/06/review-of-elantris.html

Sanderson has become one of my new favorite authors. I started this book a little wary, thinking there was no way he would be able to keep my attention for the thickness of this book (496 pgs hardcover). Not only did he keep my attention, I was riveted. Sanderson's characters are the main motivation behind that: these are true heroes we are reading about. People who are certain they don't have the strength to deal with what's been laid before them, and yet, finding themselves facing tragedy, horrors, and more.

Elantris is one of those few books where, as you're reading it, you can see it happening. You believe the magic, the science, and the internal struggle between politics, religion, love, and morality. Yes, there is love in this story, but its presence is something needed between the characters, and a great plot device. If anything, it's natural and takes nothing away from the story. The writing is tight and concise; nothing is lacking and nothing is oversaid. And, though this book is close to 500pgs, it doesn't have a dull moment: beauty and atrocity are tackled with the same deft hand. And get this! A fantasy/sci-fi that isn't volume one of twenty! I find that incredibly refreshing.

Give it a try. Especially if your preferred genre is historical fiction. There is nothing better than reading something outside your comfort zone to bring an edge to your writing. And Brandon Sanderson, you get props and snaps for this. I'm really looking forward to your next book, Mistborn.