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A review by ericderoulet
Elantris by Brandon Sanderson
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
A retrospective update: Having read more of Sanderson's work, I generally agree with characterizations of his prose being "workmanlike" (i.e., merely serving to advance the plot/provide information and not being particularly artful). Also, his works with hard magic systems share a key flaw of other settings with hard magic systems in that magic, if over-systematized, spoils the wonder that I expect to experience from, well, reading fantasy. More on that in my Typebar Magazine article from early 2024: https://www.typebarmagazine.com/2024/03/24/finding-space-for-the-literary-in-fantasy-a-reflection-on-a-woman-of-the-sword/
That being said, Elantris doesn't share the issues I have with several other Sanderson works, nor is it excessively lengthy like his other work can be. More from my original review below, written a few years back:
Sanderson is probably best known (alright, best known to me) for his innovations in developing magic systems for his worlds. Elantris is no exception to this, but what stands out to me most about Elantris is that it is a hopeful piece of high fantasy that manages not to feel derivative. Sanderson makes good use of the book's length to build a setting and flesh out characters that readers can really be invested in, and he allows the main characters to enter dire straits and face some tragic losses without writing the sort of grim, fatalistic narrative which can be fun but we've probably seen too much of these days.
This book has plenty else going for it, too, enough that I think it can appeal to quite a few different tastes. The magic system is strongly grounded in the world Sanderson has built, and the visual descriptions of it are quite effective. The romance (of sorts) is nice without being too sappy. The storylines of the three main characters also weave together and diverge in enticing ways, such that even if you can safely assume the three will all meet at some point, you're still genuinely curious about what'll happen when that time comes. Lastly, while the world itself basically feels like European medieval fantasy with a few more original additions, the political tensions that drive parts of the plot are well-thought-out. For fantasy readers who are more concerned with stories' narrative qualities than the rigor of their "hard" magic systems, this is the work I'd most recommend by Sanderson.
My only critique, a small one, is that two of the protagonists are a bit too close to being flawless, a characterization problem that's fairly common in high fantasy literature with a moral message.
That being said, Elantris doesn't share the issues I have with several other Sanderson works, nor is it excessively lengthy like his other work can be. More from my original review below, written a few years back:
Sanderson is probably best known (alright, best known to me) for his innovations in developing magic systems for his worlds. Elantris is no exception to this, but what stands out to me most about Elantris is that it is a hopeful piece of high fantasy that manages not to feel derivative. Sanderson makes good use of the book's length to build a setting and flesh out characters that readers can really be invested in, and he allows the main characters to enter dire straits and face some tragic losses without writing the sort of grim, fatalistic narrative which can be fun but we've probably seen too much of these days.
This book has plenty else going for it, too, enough that I think it can appeal to quite a few different tastes. The magic system is strongly grounded in the world Sanderson has built, and the visual descriptions of it are quite effective. The romance (of sorts) is nice without being too sappy. The storylines of the three main characters also weave together and diverge in enticing ways, such that even if you can safely assume the three will all meet at some point, you're still genuinely curious about what'll happen when that time comes. Lastly, while the world itself basically feels like European medieval fantasy with a few more original additions, the political tensions that drive parts of the plot are well-thought-out. For fantasy readers who are more concerned with stories' narrative qualities than the rigor of their "hard" magic systems, this is the work I'd most recommend by Sanderson.
My only critique, a small one, is that two of the protagonists are a bit too close to being flawless, a characterization problem that's fairly common in high fantasy literature with a moral message.