#87 Elantris

Elantris by Brandon Sanderson 

Elantris is Brandon Sandersons first novel published in 2005. Ive been warned that its a bit slow and not his best work but i disagree, i thought the plot was interesting and unique. I listened to this on audiobook (27 and a half hours!) and i was entertained throughout! 

Elantris is the capital of Arelon and the prologue opens with a bit of history regarding Elantris (which i always enjoy and appreciate) it describes Elantris as a place of 'power, radiance and magic' in which the people that lived there had access to a wide range of magical abilities. Over time the city of Elantris falls and the people who reside there become sick and their skin and features mutated. The city became viewed by the outer regions as an exiled place for these sickly people, there were not allowed to leave the heavily guarded city gates at the risk of making others sick. 

The book follows multi perspectives, Raoden, Sarene and Hrathen: 

Raoden is the son of the king and set to inherit the throne. He is unruly and does not agree with his fathers ways and rebels against them at every opportunity. When a marriage is arranged for him to unite the cities of Kae and Teod, Raoden seems to have met his match in the politically minded Sarene. Raoden becomes sick at the beginning of the book and his father exiles him to Elantris whilst simultaneously lying and covering it up and telling the people that Raoden is dead.  

Sarene arrives in Kai to find that her betrothed is 'dead', due to a clause in her marriage contract she is still viewed as the new princess. She is far from home and now must learn how to live in such close proximity to her new father the king. She is instantly sceptical of him and the mysterious dead of his son and vows to get to the bottom of it. Sarene was my favourite character, she was so brave, intelligent and strong willed. 

Hrathen is a high priest from the expanding empire of Fjordell whos mission is to convince the population to convert in order for Fjordell to become the ruling empire. I didnt enjoy this perspective as much as the other two but did like the political intrigue.

The three perspectives are told so well that it doesnt feel like three separate storylines, they very much merge into one over arching story which really is a credit to Sandersons writing. The story and plot devices are so compelling and i must say i really enjoyed it. Throughout the book Raoden is stuck in Elantris trying to figure out what happened to the magic, trying to improve and clean the city whilst also trying to eliminate the peoples pain and constant hunger. Sarene is trying to figure out what the king is up to and what really happened to Raoden whilst Hrathen who is somewhat portrayed as the antagonist is trying to convert the people to his way of thinking. The world building was fantastic and the characters were fantastically developed. The magic system was really interesting also. 

I havent read too much epic fantasy but im really trying to get more into the genre. Im also trying to read one Brandon Sanderson book each month for 2020. I think that was my only downfall really, i had to work hard on whos who and what their motivation was.