A review by takarakei
Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson

adventurous lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

I hate to be a downer, but this was just a bit too whimsical for my taste... I think I'm just not a cozy fantasy person. The humor was trying a bit too hard and made me cringe. I also wasn't into the fourth wall breaks. Then the narration from Hoid really irked me at parts. Sanderson says he wanted to write a book from Hoid's pov before writing more from that character, but I don't understand why he had to be the narrator for Tress' story. I think the story overall would've been more impactful from a nameless narrator, a more traditional third person pov.

Unfortunately me knowing going into this that Sanderson was inspired by The Princess Bride was a detriment for me, because it's one of my all time fav movies, so I couldn't help compare too closely. I recognize that's unfair and my own issue. He says he wrote it as "if Buttercup had gone searching for Westley" - I personally read it as if Tress was Westley when he goes away and becomes the Dread Pirate Robert.

I did grow to love the cast of characters on the ship. There was great deaf representation! The world building is really interesting and unique. This is my first Sanderson book, and I've been assured it's very different from his other books. I plan to start the Stormlight series this year and look forward to what I'm hoping is a more straightforward epic high fantasy series.
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