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mads_reads_books's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Genocide, Xenophobia, Religious bigotry, and War
kashby's review against another edition
2.0
it’s written very different from sanderson’s other books. instead of plot twists and surprises, elantris is more constantly suspenseful, where you’re watching as plans slowly crumble and plotlines cross over at the least convenient times. i was never truly shocked reading this, which is an emotion i feel a lot while reading sanderson, unless the plot twist is something that doesn’t make sense (no spoilers but some of the plot choices are not something that i think sanderson would write today). it’s also a lot darker than his current books. oathbringer is sanderson’s book that i would say is equally as intense but oathbringer feels very hopeful while elantris is much more despondent. it’s not frighting and i wouldn’t classify it as a horror book but it’s definitely very dark.
i think this book is written slightly like a dnd campaign in the sense that when we begin a scene, sometimes the vibes are “this is this person. this is who they’re related to and a quirk about them. this is the next person and who they’re related to and a quirk about them.” which honestly made the book drag a lot. i understand trying to give the side characters different personalities but i had a hard time telling them apart because they all had the same type of speaking tone. the graphic audio helped a lot because the different side characters have different voices but the actors did a lot of heavy lifting on that front. the plot was amazing and creative and interesting but i could tell it was his first published novel. i would be very interested in a rewrite of this book with sanderson’s current knowledge.
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual violence, Slavery, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation
Moderate: Medical content and Classism
Minor: Body horror, Blood, Cannibalism, and Fire/Fire injury
wickedgrumpy's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.25
Minor: Ableism, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Eating disorder, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, Dysphoria, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic
badbadwolf's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Moderate: Child death, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail
dionysius_miller's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body shaming, Confinement, Death, Violence, Religious bigotry, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Body horror, Child death, Chronic illness, and Blood
Minor: Racism, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Death of parent, and Alcohol
asearl's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I, personally, did not enjoy Elantris. I believe this opinion is more because of the order I chose to read Sanderson’s books, than the quality of this book itself. I read this book after already finishing Stormlight, Mistborn (Era 1 and Era 2), Frugal Wizard, and Tress. Because I started off knowing what he was capable of writing, I was underwhelmed. He has come a long way since 2009.
The Cons
- From the beginning to the last couple dozen pages, the plot is ploddingly slow.
- The characters are one dimensional (at least relative to someone like Shallan or Tress or Dalinar). They have their “trait” and stick to it.
- There is so much politicking. I normally don’t mind scheming over action, so much of the book focused on scheming for it to not pay off well in the end.
The Pros
- The magic system is, of course, wonderful and unique.
- The last dozen or so pages explode in your typical Sanderson-esque finale. I think this makes the plod through the rest of the book worth it.
All-in-all, I’d recommend Elantris to anyone willing to read his other books as well, or to those looking to understand this particular magic system. If this is going to be your only Sanderson book ever, maybe try Mistborn.
Graphic: Body horror and Chronic illness
Moderate: Xenophobia and Classism
navyredrose's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Death, Sexism, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Religious bigotry, and Murder
Moderate: Chronic illness, Genocide, Gore, Mental illness, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
giulianalb99's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Death, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Xenophobia, Blood, and War
Moderate: Death of parent and Injury/Injury detail
iono's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Sexism, Torture, Religious bigotry, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Genocide, Violence, Xenophobia, Colonisation, War, and Classism
Minor: Child death, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Slavery, and Blood
anelya's review against another edition
Elantris was the last straw. The sexist comments were every two pages, slowly grinding down the walls I put up against it. The internalised misogyny was so present and so unnecessary; it was repeatedly so heartbreaking to hear the few female characters in the novel tear each other down. The off-hand comments against psychologically-disabled characters made me want to rip up the E-Reader. But what really made me stop and made me finally give up was the racism and slavery.
What is it with Sanderson and slavery? Most importantly, what is it with Sanderson and entire groups of people who either choose to be enslaved or are happy to act as slaves? It already made me feel so gross in the other books, but at around page 200 in Elantris, there was a scene where a child tried to let the enslaved character free, and the character fought back and claimed it was free and just... *SIGH* Yada, yada, different very terrible arguments that don't hold up to a mite of scrutiny. Flawed arguments attempting to legitimise slavery in a novel that claims to be against it. I just couldn't handle it anymore.
I'm sick and tired of this man's writing. How many groups must he treat terribly before he's through? I am in so much disbelief that so many people support his writing and claim that his representation is even halfway decent. Either he cleared up his whole act for The Stormlight Archive, or people are making excuses for him for some reason. I tried long and hard to see what on earth is worth it in these novels to make the positive points of reading them outweigh all the bad, but it has evaded me.
I guess if you're a person who can excuse ableism, sexism, misogyny and many layers and types of racism, then this is for you.
Graphic: Chronic illness, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Religious bigotry, Colonisation, and Classism