Review: Edgedancer by Brandon Sanderson

I don't often review novellas, but I'm trying to get in the entire series so far, and it felt a little unfair not to include the .5s, as it were.

Edgedancer is an out take novella, it starts with a scene from the main series, then continues, filling in a plot hole or two on its way. (Sanderson explains that the primary reason is, indeed, to fix...not exactly a plot hole, more a character hole).

Lift is a fun character...who really thinks she's stopped growing at 10, and who has the bizarre ability to produce her own stormlight. Something is going on with that, something related to the storms. And the Nightwatcher, because most strange things are apparently the Nightwatcher.

It's fun to see that there are Radiant concepts that are not tied to combat and conflict, but rather to healing and, in Lift's case, a form of justice.

Sanderson is a little bit more enjoyable when trying to write short. He still didn't entirely succeed, though ;).

Or maybe just less intimidating. Book three is even longer than book two...

Review: Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson

I'm really hoping each book doesn't get longer, as good as they are.

Sanderson deals, in this book, with a central theme of colonialism. What is the right thing to do for the descendants of colonists? Do they let the indigenous win at the price of their own innocents? (Brandon heightens this by having the colonists have forgotten they aren't indigenous). Do they keep fighting? Do they...

I suspect i know how this question will be answered in the series.

The ending of Oathbringer, book three, feels like a break point in the series. A romantic subplot is resolved with a HFN (nothing is EA in this kind of world). The fates of various characters are established. Even the war is taking a breath.

I know there are ten books planned in this series, but this feels like the end of part one...with enough loose ends to read on, but clearly Sanderson was thinking that if his publisher canceled the series, at least he could give people a wedding ;).

It's not canceled, of course, and I'm curious to see what happens next.

Short review for long book because, well, as usual, much of it is character development and worldbuilding. And stuff that would be reduced by spoilers, although the statute of limitations has probably passed on those.

I received these books free for award consideration purposes.