Arcanum Unbounded: The Cosmere Collection by Brandon Sanderson
This is a collection of novellas and short stories from Brandon Sanderson’s Cosmere universe. Each world has an illustration of its solar system and a description by one of the mysterious beings who travel the Cosmere. This gives us a better look at all the worlds. All of it is great writing and amazing storytelling and even pretty good editing.
There is also a spoilers warning with each story if necessary. The book (at least the mass market paperback) also comes with the beginning of The Final Empire. But if you haven’t read The Final Empire yet, you shouldn’t be reading Arcanum Unbounded.
The Emperor’s Soul ☆☆☆☆☆
The magic system for this novella is amazing! The story is smart and overall just fascinating.
The Hope of Elantris ☆☆☆☆
This short story shows the climax of Elantris from a different POV. Man, I’ve forgotten a lot of details from that book. It’s a very sweet story.
The Eleventh Metal ☆☆☆☆
This short story is a prequel to Mistborn and contains no spoilers. It’s a quick look at allomancy in action.
Allomancer Jak and the Pits of Eltania, Episodes 28-30 ☆☆☆☆☆
This is the Mistborn (Wax and Wayne) equivalent of an overly dramatic, pulp of the Lone Ranger and Tonto. In this case, the idiotic Allomancer Jak is out having swashbuckling adventures with narrow escapes. His Terris sidekick annotates the narrative with footnotes, which are ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS. Fun story, creative execution.
Mistborn: Secret History ☆☆☆☆☆
Wow. This was amazing. I don’t want to say much because it has tons of spoilers, but we learn a lot about the Cosmere in general here. I need to go back and read all of Mistborn again with this new perspective.
White Sand ☆☆☆☆
I guess this is the beginning of the White Sand story, portrayed as a graphic novel. The book contains the first segment of the graphic novel followed by the novel version. I liked the novel version much better. Not only do you get Sanderson’s great ideas but also his great storytelling.
I don’t really get graphic novels. I don’t know why random words are bolded and italicized, and I never tell what’s going on. While reading the graphic novel, I had tons of questions: Did those kids pass the test or not? Did he fall of the cliff, or did he jump? Are the spheres natural, or were they placed there? Is that a rock or sand or a monster? With the novelization, I had none of these questions.
Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell ☆☆☆☆1/2
This takes place in a world that’s plagued by dangerous ghosts. I’d like to see more in this world. The main character here is a middle-aged mom (like me!), and it was awesome to see the strength that kind of character can have.
Sixth of the Dusk ☆☆☆☆
This is basically a journey through a dangerous jungle island. It’s full of nasty things. It had some very interesting ideas.
Edgedancer ☆☆☆☆
This is a story of Lift, a character introduced in one of the Interludes of Words of Radiance. (She reminds me of Dido in Joan Aiken’s Wolves Chronicles.) I believe it bridges WofR and Oathbringer. With this story, we see other parts of Roshar but the same fascinating magic and storms. It starts off light but gradually gets serious.
Average rating = 4.4
* * *
Recommended for Brandon Sanderson fans, fantasy fans, and fans of good writing.
