Denver Science Fiction & Fantasy Book Club

ELANTRIS
by
BRANDON SANDERSON
Elantris paperback cover Elantris (2005)

Cover art by Stephan Martiniere
2006 Chesley Award Winner for Best Cover Illustration - hardcover

Tor fantasy paperback
615 pages + glossary + preview of Mistborn (left)

Tor fantasy hardback
496 pages (right)

 Elantris hardback cover
From the hardback back cover:
       Elantris was beautiful, once.  It was called the city of the gods: a place of power, radiance, and magic.  Visitors say that the very stones glowed with an inner light, and that the city contained wondrous arcane marvels.  At night Elantris shone like a great silvery fire, visible even from a great distance.
       Yet, as magnificent as Elantris had been, its inhabitants had been more so.  Their hair a brilliant white, their skin an almost metallic silver, the Elantrians seemed to shine like the city itself.  Legend claimed that they were immortal, or at least nearly so.  Their bodies healed quickly, and they were blessed with great strength, insight, and speed.  They could perform magics with a bare wave of the hand; men visited Elantris from all across Opelon to receive Elantrian healings, food, or wisdom.  They were divinities.
       And anyone could become one.
       The Shaod, it was called.  The Transformation.  It struck randomly -- usually at night, during the mysterious hours when life slowed to rest.  The Shaod could take beggar, craftsman, nobleman, or warrior.  When it came, the fortunate person's life ended and began anew; he would discard his old, mundane existence and move to Elantris.  Elantris, where he could live in bliss, rule in wisdom, and be worshipped for eternity.
       Eternity ended ten years ago.

From the paperback back cover:
       Elantris was the city of the gods.  What power could have cursed it?
       RAODEN, prince of Arelon, was loved by all, including the princess he'd never met.  Where has he gone?
       HRATHEN, high priest of Fjordell, will convert the people of Arelon or kill them.  How will he decide?
       SARENE, princess of Teod, was a widow before she was ever married.  Who can stand against her?

Read for group discussion on August 23, 2006
RATINGS:
How we each rated this book
Dan - Amy 7 stack of books 10   Wow! Don't miss it
8-9  Highly recommended
7    Recommended
5-6  Mild recommendation
3-4  Take your chances
1-2  Below average; skip it
0    Get out the flamethrower!
U    Unfinishable or unreadable
-    Skipped or no rating given
Cheri 6.5 Barb 9
Aaron - Cynthia -
Jackie - Ron 7
Christine - Deb -
Mike - Stephanie -
Patty - Shannon -
Bibliography:
Brandon Sanderson (1975-    ) is a US fantasy writer. He currently lives in Utah.

-- Elantris (2005), his first novel

Mistborn fantasy trilogy:
-- Mistborn: The Final Empire (2006)
-- Mistborn: The Well of Ascension (2007)
-- Mistborn: The Hero of Ages (2008)

Wheel of Time posthumous collaborations:
Sanderson was selected to complete Robert Jordan's unfinished final book, A Memory of Light, the conclusion The Wheel of Time series.  The book will be split into three volumes.
-- The Gathering Storm (2009, with Robert Jordan), Wheel of Time book 12
-- Towers of Midnight (forthcoming possibly in 2010, with Robert Jordan), Wheel of Time book 13
-- A Memory of Light (forthcoming possibly in 2011, with Robert Jordan), Wheel of Time book 14

Alcatraz young adult books:
-- Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians (2007)
-- Alcatraz Versus the Scrivener's Bones (2008)
-- Alcatraz Versus the Knights of Crystallia (2009)
-- Alcatraz Versus the Shattered Lens (forthcoming 2010)

Other books:
-- Warbreaker (2009), a stand alone book

Links:
Brandon Sanderson's website
Brandon Sanderson - Wikipedia
sffworld.com - Brandon Sanderson Interview (2006)
Emerald City: book review of Elantris

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 This page was last updated December 14, 2009