Princess Sarene was to marry Prince Raoden but he died and went to Elantris, the used-to-be glorified land of the gods. Sarene must now save the land of Arelon from the destruction of some religious fanatics while Raoden being only half dead, must save all the other half-deads from insanity and starvation.
World building: Excellent! Very original (like always).
Plot: Not too shabby. Very boring and hard to read when it came to Hrathen's POV because of all the weird words that Sanderson invented. I'm happy that Hrathen got a little bit of redemption in the end even though I kind of skipped every part of the book where his name came up however I loved how Elantris wasn't like all the other YA books nowadays where the girl instantly falls in love with the guy and they get into this "OMG I LOVE YOU SO MUCH EVEN THOUGH I JUST MET YOU YESTERDAY" phase. Instead, the romance was very subtle and endearing. It's that kind of book where the love feels real. I also didn't really get what was this "Reod" event and what really happened that made all the magic from Elantris go away. Either it wasn't explained or I was just way to bored because even though I usually like Sanderson's writing, I must say that this one was kind of slacking off now and then.
Character development: Well done! I loved Sarene. She would do anything to save her country and her people from tyranny. She's smart, brave and doesn't follow what her heart tells her but more like what her brain tells her. This shows that unlike many contemporary novels, Sarene has a conscience and I'm really glad that Sanderson made it show. Raoden, on the other hand, is kind and knows that his father is up to no good so he annoys him in every single way possible. He wants a society that isn't entirely based on wealth and fake titles and I guess what made me really fall for him was that fact that he respects and feels so much empathy for every single person he meets no matter who they are. He never treats anyone lesser than himself even though he is a prince. I love him!
4 stars
World building: Excellent! Very original (like always).
Plot: Not too shabby. Very boring and hard to read when it came to Hrathen's POV because of all the weird words that Sanderson invented. I'm happy that Hrathen got a little bit of redemption in the end even though I kind of skipped every part of the book where his name came up however I loved how Elantris wasn't like all the other YA books nowadays where the girl instantly falls in love with the guy and they get into this "OMG I LOVE YOU SO MUCH EVEN THOUGH I JUST MET YOU YESTERDAY" phase. Instead, the romance was very subtle and endearing. It's that kind of book where the love feels real. I also didn't really get what was this "Reod" event and what really happened that made all the magic from Elantris go away. Either it wasn't explained or I was just way to bored because even though I usually like Sanderson's writing, I must say that this one was kind of slacking off now and then.
Character development: Well done! I loved Sarene. She would do anything to save her country and her people from tyranny. She's smart, brave and doesn't follow what her heart tells her but more like what her brain tells her. This shows that unlike many contemporary novels, Sarene has a conscience and I'm really glad that Sanderson made it show. Raoden, on the other hand, is kind and knows that his father is up to no good so he annoys him in every single way possible. He wants a society that isn't entirely based on wealth and fake titles and I guess what made me really fall for him was that fact that he respects and feels so much empathy for every single person he meets no matter who they are. He never treats anyone lesser than himself even though he is a prince. I love him!
4 stars