Week 26 Reviews: Elantris, The Hope of Elantris

From Goodreads:
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.

From Goodreads:
The following is a short story I wrote in the Elantris world back in January of 2006. At that point, Elantris had only been out in stores for about seven or eight months, but I actually hadn't written anything new on the story or world since 2000, when I'd finished the first draft of the original book. This story was originally posted for sale on Amazon.com; once the contract with them ran out, I posted it on my website.

There were always a few holes in the manuscript where I decided not to include viewpoints or sections of explanation in the name of streamlining, particularly at the end. In the back of my mind, I knew what happened. This story talks about one of those holes; it is meant to be read after you've finished the novel and takes place during the events of the climax. In the annotation, I've written a further explanation of why I wrote this piece. Some of you may find it interesting to read this ahead of time; I put it in the annotation, however, as I know others would rather enjoy the story without bias beforehand, then read my thoughts afterward.

Either way, if you haven't read the novel Elantris, this contains major spoilers. Might I suggest reading the book first? This story won't work at all for you if you haven't.

As always, thanks for reading! 

My Review:
Yes, wow, I really enjoyed reading these stories! This is the first book that Goodreads and Brandon Sandersons 2019 State of the Author says is in the Cosmere world. I honestly can't wait to dive in and learn how all of the worlds are connected, because of the synopsis and what I've heard of the Mistborn series, there's a different magic system, so I can't want to see how they're all connected!

Reading these were so freaking great, this world of Elantris, where people were once transformed basically into gods, with so much power, and then 10 years ago, it fell, well, I just couldn't put it down! And that we were going between 3 POV's, Raoden who is taken by the Shaod, Sarene who was going to marry Raoden to ally their countries, and Hrathen who wants to convert Arelon and Teol to his religion. I really enjoyed seeing all the sides, though it was hard reading Hrathen's perspective, because he was Sarene and Raoden's enemy.

I loved Sarene and Raoden, and their interactions. They balance each other very well, they're both really great politicians, but she's doesn't fit the mold of a high born woman, and he's easy to get along with. And given that she doesn't know who he is, since she thinks he's dead, but he knows who she is, well, yeah, there was a lot of friction there!

Also, her political sparring with Hrathen was interesting to watch, and I really enjoyed watching her best him, though not so much the other way around. And both did happen, because they were both really political people. They had conflicting religions (which stemmed from the same main source, but from two different students of the teacher) and yeah, I really enjoyed the clash!

Just wanted to add that I'm slowly reading the Annotations that Brandon Sanderson has on his website (here's the introductory one.) And in chapter 2, he says that Sarene is the least favourite main character. She's my most favourite, then Raoden, then Hrathen. Maybe because I could see myself in her, that she doesn't fit, but also because I admired her for what I don't have, the keen political mind, she's well learned and has a biting tongue when need be. I loved having her perspective!

While this was going on, the whole thing Raoden was dealing with was bringing hope to the people of Elantris, and figuring out what caused the fall, and how to fix it. It was just so fascinating, and yeah, I read this book in one day, barely, while also working an 8 hour shift (I started at 6, so there was time to read, because I finished just before midnight.) Yeah. That's how much I couldn't put down this book!

The Hope of Elantris, it was really great to read, telling us where Ashe was during the big battle. The fact that it's name fits with the different parts of the book Elantris, that was really great. And yeah, seeing the adventure that Ashe had, protecting the kids and the one who was protecting them, that was really great!

There's three questions I have, and I hope it's answered in a sequel, since there are going to be 2 more books in this series, though not for years off right now. And that's what went down with the fall. Like, what caused the Chasm? Because it caused a lot of damage outside of the gaping hole in the country. I'm wondering if it was caused by nefarious means...

And the 2nd is, the Seons. It was said that Elantris and the Aon's made them. But they didn't find out how in the end. And in chapter 12's annotation, Brandon Sanderson talks about how that's going to be a focus in book 2. I can't wait to explore that!

The 3rd is how this world of the Cosmere is linked, and I can't wait to find out! I really enjoyed reading these, they were both so excellent, and I can't wait to read more of this world!

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Series: Elantris #1, 1.5, The Cosmere
Read: June 24th, 25th, 2020
Source: Ebook.bike
Reason Why: Sounded really great, and they're Prequel & Sequel Challenge 2020 Books!
Publisher: Tor Books
Published: May 1st 2005, January 2006

Elantris:

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars

The Hope of Elantris:

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars