Elantris [Mass Market Paperback]

Brandon Sanderson (Author)

Book Description

Release date: May 30, 2006

Elantris was the capital of Arelon: gigantic, beautiful, literally radiant, filled with benevolent beings who used their powerful magical abilities for the benefit of all. Yet each of these demigods was once an ordinary person until touched by the mysterious transforming power of the Shaod. Ten years ago, without warning, the magic failed. Elantrians became wizened, leper-like, powerless creatures, and Elantris itself dark, filthy, and crumbling.

Arelon's new capital, Kae, crouches in the shadow of Elantris. Princess Sarene of Teod arrives for a marriage of state with Crown Prince Raoden, hoping -- based on their correspondence -- to also find love. She finds instead that Raoden has died and she is considered his widow. Both Teod and Arelon are under threat as the last remaining holdouts against the imperial ambitions of the ruthless religious fanatics of Fjordell. So Sarene decides to use her new status to counter the machinations of Hrathen, a Fjordell high priest who has come to Kae to convert Arelon and claim it for his emperor and his god.

But neither Sarene nor Hrathen suspect the truth about Prince Raoden. Stricken by the same curse that ruined Elantris, Raoden was secretly exiled by his father to the dark city. His struggle to help the wretches trapped there begins a series of events that will bring hope to Arelon, and perhaps reveal the secret of Elantris itself.

A rare epic fantasy that doesn't recycle the classics and that is a complete and satisfying story in one volume, Elantris is fleet and fun, full of surprises and characters to care about. It's also the wonderful debut of a welcome new star in the constellation of fantasy.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Sanderson's outstanding fantasy debut, refreshingly complete unto itself and free of the usual genre clichés, offers something for everyone: mystery, magic, romance, political wrangling, religious conflict, fights for equality, sharp writing and wonderful, robust characters. The godlike inhabitants of Elantris, once the capital of the land of Arelon, have degenerated into powerless, tortured souls, unable to die, after the city's magic inexplicably broke 10 years earlier. When the same curse strikes Prince Raoden of Arelon and he's imprisoned in Elantris, he refuses to surrender to his grim fate and instead strives to create a society out of the fallen and to unlock the secret that will restore the city's glory. Meanwhile, Princess Sarene of Kae (Arelon's new capital), who was betrothed to Raoden sight unseen, believes her intended has died. Officially declared his widow, she must use her political savvy and wit to protect Kae from malevolent forces without and within the city, chiefly Hrathen, a leader of the creepy Shu-Dereth faith, who aims to either convert Kae or destroy it within three months. The intrigue and excitement grow steadily in this smoothly written, perfectly balanced narrative; by the end readers won't want to put it down. As the blurb from Orson Scott Card suggests, Sanderson is a writer to watch.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

Until 10 years ago, Elantris was the capital of Arelon, inhabited by ordinary humans transformed into magic-using demigods by the Shaod. But the magic failed, Elantris started to rot, and its inhabitants turned into powerless wrecks. Princess Sarene of Teod arrives in Kae, the new capital, close enough to Elantris to constantly remind of faded glory, prepared for a marriage to ally Teod and Arelon against the religious imperialists of Fjordell. But, she is told, her fiance, Prince Raoden, is dead. She and a recently arrived high priest of Fjordell, Hrathen, clash. Sarene tries to retain the freedom of Teod and Arelon, Hrathen tries to incite the populace to convert so that Fjordell can take over. Neither suspects the truth about Raoden. Taken by the Shaod, he struggles to unite the crippled Elantrians and discover why the magic failed. The unrest comes to a head as governments topple, the Elantrians' secrets are revealed, and Fjordell's forces arrive. A surprisingly satisfying, single-volume epic fantasy that invokes a complex, vibrant world. Regina Schroeder
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 656 pages
• Publisher: Tor Fantasy (May 30, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765350378
• ISBN-13: 978-0765350374
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (379 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #15,734 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I'm Brandon Sanderson, and I write epic fantasy novels for Tor Books. The sixth novel I wrote, ELANTRIS, was my first published, and I followed this up with the Mistborn trilogy and WARBREAKER. I was also chosen to complete Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time series based on his notes, resulting in THE GATHERING STORM, TOWERS OF MIDNIGHT, and A MEMORY OF LIGHT. I'm now launching my own grand epic that I've wanted to tell for many years, starting with THE WAY OF KINGS.

Read an excerpt here: tor.com/wok

More sample chapters from all of my books are available at brandonsanderson.com/library -- and check out the rest of my site for chapter-by-chapter annotations, deleted scenes, and more.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#48 Overall (See top 100 authors)

#8 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Fantasy

#8 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy

#10 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy

#26 in Books > Teens

#48 in Books

#8 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Fantasy

#8 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy

#10 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy

#26 in Books > Teens

#48 in Books

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

149 of 164 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars a one volume fantasy? Yep, and it's great! June 17, 2005

By Joe Sherry

Format:Hardcover

"Elantris" is the debut novel from Brandon Sanderson. Blurbs on the cover from Orson Scott Card and David Farland say this book is "the finest novel of fantasy to be written in many years" and "one of the finest debuts I've seen in years." When I read a novel I generally do not pay attention to when it was written and I know that I haven't read all of the debut fantasy novels which have come out in the past several years. I do know when I've read a very good book, however, and "Elantris" is certainly that.

The prologue to the novel was all of five paragraphs but it gave all of the information needed to understand the background of what the story would be. It tells of a beautiful city named Elantris which glowed like magic and where amazing magics were possible and commonplace. Elantris was populated by godlike beings who could wield these powers as I might use a pen. But these beings were once regular humans, soldiers and serfs, princes and beggers and merchants. When something called the Shaod came upon them they were transformed into Elantrians and into a newer, greater existence. But ten years ago something happened.

That something is that the blessing turned into a curse and Elantris and its population started to rot away. The city now abandoned except for the poor souls still called by the Shaod is covered in slime and muck and the Elantrians are the cursed, neither dead nor truly alive.

This was a beautiful set up and pulled me right in from the start. Sanderson introduces Raoden, a prince and heir to the throne of Arelon. The city of Kae lies in the shadow of Elantris and the glory of Arelon has fallen with Elantris. Raoden is a man who gives his people hope, but when he is called by the Shaod he is doomed. His father, the king, does not reveal what happened to Raoden, but rather holds a funeral for his not beloved son. Meanwhile, Sarene, a princess from another country has arrived to marry Raoden not knowing what has happened. Her marriage contract considers her married upon the betrothal and even continues after Raoden's death, so she remains in Kae. But Raoden must find a way to survive, such as it is, in Elantris. Sarene is the only one who sees the coming doom from the religion of Darethi and an invasion from Fjordell.

Brandon Sanderson has done something remarkable here. He has created an incredibly original work and unlike so many other works of fantasy this novel is complete in itself. It is not, as I understand it, the first volume of a trilogy or larger series. It is an epic work of fantasy in one self contained novel. It's one of the better fantasies that I have read. Sanderson does a good job in making all of the primary characters understandable, and sympathetic...even the "bad guys". The motivations are explained well and the characters are well developed and revealed. Simply put, with one novel Sanderson has made a fan of me. I was surprised by just how good this book was. If Sanderson writes another, I will definitely read it.

-Joe Sherry

244 of 286 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Not a 5, but a good first novel June 23, 2006

By Dreamking47

Format:Mass Market Paperback

I think I may rate books differently than other readers. For me, a book starts out as a 3. That means solid writing, no major plot holes or characterization issues, and an overall satisfying experience: the basics we should expect from a published fiction. A lack of any of those facets means the book is a 2 or a 1; additions like social relevance, emotional resonance, memorable writing, or intellectual stimulation can drive the rating up to a 4 or (for those few books that have all or most of these) a 5. There are very few books I'd rate as a 5, which I think is as it should be.

Elantris on my scale is a 3. The writing is clear but rarely poetic. The main characters are well-defined but two of the three are a little too perfect to relate to and don't experience any inner growth, while the secondary characters almost universally seem to exist in order to provide some sort of surprise loop-back later in the book. The system of magic was interesting but the answer to the central question -- why it had stopped working -- turned out to be something I had a hard time believing wasn't commonly known and understood. The city of Elantris was a well-described setting, a character in itself, but other countries and races seemed rather stereotypical portrayals of Earthly analogues. Overall, while reading the book I never stopped in boredom but also I never paused in wonder, and when finished I was satisfied but it's not a book that I feel any great desire to re-read.

That being said, the author is someone that I plan to keep an eye on and hope to read more from in the future. It's my understanding that Elantris was written some 7 years ago, and much of the above is understandable as "young author/first publication" issues. Despite what I wrote above, the author clearly has a lot going for him: the novel was smartly structured; the inter-relationships between names, glyphs and magic, as well as the setting and basic plot, were all well imagined; genders and religions were dealt with even-handedly; and it was simply refreshing to read a fantasy that was not a multi-volume rehashing of the "orphan boy undertakes journey from one side of the map to the other with party of companions to save the princess/retrieve the object/kill the bad guy" story. I look forward to seeing what the author's intelligence and imagination can do when combined with the further refinement of his craft that only experience can bring. And by all means, pick up a copy of Elantris if the story sounds interesting to you, just don't expect it to be more than it is.

30 of 33 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Great work by first-time author May 21, 2005

By Graham Garner

Format:Hardcover

I was most impressed by this novel's combination of religion, politics, social strata and economics. These elements combine to create a more complex world than the typical good-versus-evil we see in so many other works of fiction. It's pleasing that this work relies on these complex systems and their products, rather than simply setting characters on some physical quest and exposing them to new lands and beings as the source of entertainment. Equally important is the concept of magic, called AonDor, in this novel. The idea is well-rooted in a spiritual construct, rather than simply granted as a source of power and wonder. Furthermore, there are secrets to using it that can only be discovered by study and practice. This is a well-thought out perception of how a magical force might work. There is a well-outfitted cast of characters, and it's satisfying to see that they each have combinations of faults as well as virtues. This makes the characters more engaging, since the protagonists are at-times flawed and make mistakes and the antagonists can still stir sympathy and understanding in the reader. The only detractions I found in this novel were some phrases and expressions that seemed overused by the author, perhaps in his zeal to remind you of the world and characters he created. Things like the princess tapping her cheek, or the Dula character who says "Kolo" in as many as a quarter of his phrases eventually become a distraction and almost come across as overly insistent attempts to make you perceive the characters as the author imagines them. This, however, is a minor distraction when the great value of the other elements are taken into account. All in all, the story is engaging and there are several unexpected events which take the story down paths not anticipated, yet are rewarding. Fantastic work, and I look forward to reading more from Brandon Sanderson.