Paperback, 175 pages
English language
Published Nov. 7, 2012 by Tachyon.
When Shai is caught replacing the Moon Scepter with her nearly flawless forgery, she must bargain for her life and create--to Forge--a new soul for the emperor in less than one hundred days.
An efficient & parsimonious story without a gram of unnecessary fluff. A few characters, a few concepts, smoothly executed with delightful color, tone, & tidiness.
I love all of Brandon's work I've read so far, and my biggest complaint about this one is that I want to read more of these characters and this part of this world (same world setting as Elantris as I recall )
I love all of Brandon's work I've read so far, and my biggest complaint about this one is that I want to read more of these characters and this part of this world (same world setting as Elantris as I recall )
In such a short book Brandon Sanderson somehow seems to have effortlessly written a wonderful story with a complex and intriguing magic system and compelling characters. A true work of art just like the Emperor's Soul. (I only gave it four stars because of brevity.)
In such a short book Brandon Sanderson somehow seems to have effortlessly written a wonderful story with a complex and intriguing magic system and compelling characters. A true work of art just like the Emperor's Soul. (I only gave it four stars because of brevity.)
I really enjoyed the concepts and characters presented here. Thats all.
Time to read: 2 hours 23 minutes
Short sharp and smart - a good tease to try more
2020 Reread
If you were the wall, what would you rather be? Dreary and dull, or alive with paint?
Bumping the ratings up from 4 to 5 stars because this story hits all the marks. In so few pages Sanderson is able to craft a deep and full story, provide some hints to the Cosmere and have a loose connection to Elantris itself.
Original 2016 Read
Her ancestors had worshiped rocks that fell from the sky at night. The souls of broken gods, those chunks had been called. Master craftsmen would carve them to bring out the shape.
"Mistborn: Secret History" changed my opinion of novella's Sanderson has done and "The Emperor's Soul" was an incredible read and glad to have given it the attention it deserved. Interesting characters, political deception, and a complicated process known as Forging was expertly crafted and executed in very few pages.
My interest in …
2020 Reread
If you were the wall, what would you rather be? Dreary and dull, or alive with paint?
Bumping the ratings up from 4 to 5 stars because this story hits all the marks. In so few pages Sanderson is able to craft a deep and full story, provide some hints to the Cosmere and have a loose connection to Elantris itself.
Original 2016 Read
Her ancestors had worshiped rocks that fell from the sky at night. The souls of broken gods, those chunks had been called. Master craftsmen would carve them to bring out the shape.
"Mistborn: Secret History" changed my opinion of novella's Sanderson has done and "The Emperor's Soul" was an incredible read and glad to have given it the attention it deserved. Interesting characters, political deception, and a complicated process known as Forging was expertly crafted and executed in very few pages.
My interest in the Cosmere is growing and there are some subtle references to that universe here, it was nice to be taken back to the Elantris world, albeit very indirectly (Shai running in to the red armored prince Hrathin in the halls). Sanderson says you don't need to read all his books to enjoy them individually but I am enjoying seeing Cosmere references placed in each.
"The Emperor's Soul" was a fast and fun read and I'm glad that I took a few hours to read this fun story.
Really packed with good characters, especially given how short the book is.
It's a good story in an interesting world. It's also a good meditation on creativity and on defining ourselves. A lot of the pages are filled with less exciting details though. It's a good and short read anyway. But perhaps it could have been made even better if all the details that are revealed fit together into something more than the sum of their parts. Some great conspiracy, an ancient secret, a grave betrayal...
It's a good story in an interesting world. It's also a good meditation on creativity and on defining ourselves. A lot of the pages are filled with less exciting details though. It's a good and short read anyway. But perhaps it could have been made even better if all the details that are revealed fit together into something more than the sum of their parts. Some great conspiracy, an ancient secret, a grave betrayal...
This book is my favorite of Sanderson's works, and possibly my favorite story of all time. It is a story of creation, and the people in it feel incredibly real. Also, it's a short story that can be read in an afternoon, which makes it a prime target for rereads.
This book is my favorite of Sanderson's works, and possibly my favorite story of all time. It is a story of creation, and the people in it feel incredibly real. Also, it's a short story that can be read in an afternoon, which makes it a prime target for rereads.
This is my favorite of the (at least half dozen) Brandon Sanderson books I've read so far. It's got a great heroine, a fascinating magic system, a surprisingly interesting setting, considering that almost the entire thing takes place in one room where the heroine is being held captive, and I was horribly disappointed when I got to the end and realized it was over already. My only complaint is that this is only a novella, because I WANT MORE!
Apparently this is set in the same world as Elantris, but although I've read that I would never have noticed and this is completely stand alone, no need to have ever read anything else by him. Sanderson is really into detailed systemic worldbuilding and magic systems that have rules so clearly defined that they could easily be translated into computer or board game systems. In his full length novels I sometimes …
This is my favorite of the (at least half dozen) Brandon Sanderson books I've read so far. It's got a great heroine, a fascinating magic system, a surprisingly interesting setting, considering that almost the entire thing takes place in one room where the heroine is being held captive, and I was horribly disappointed when I got to the end and realized it was over already. My only complaint is that this is only a novella, because I WANT MORE!
Apparently this is set in the same world as Elantris, but although I've read that I would never have noticed and this is completely stand alone, no need to have ever read anything else by him. Sanderson is really into detailed systemic worldbuilding and magic systems that have rules so clearly defined that they could easily be translated into computer or board game systems. In his full length novels I sometimes find this a little TOO much, in all honesty - while it's nice to know the system is there and balanced, I don't necessarily need all the detail in the middle of the plot. This novella strikes the perfect balance of not going into TOO much detail, and tying the details that are given into the very center of the plot so that learning how it all works IS unravelling the plot and not just exposition for the sake of it.
I would snap up a sequel to this story in a heartbeat, and, although they're good, I wouldn't say that for any of Sanderson's other books that I've read. (Also, if you enjoy the heist-like suspense aspects of this book, you may also enjoy the Rogue's Republic series by Patrick Weekes, which I found myself thinking about throughout this book.) Anyway, if you're on the fence, definitely pick up this novella!
This was a perfect little segway read. In it housed a moment in time, a magic unseen, a regional culture within the Elantris world and a good sprinkling of humanity.
It fit my weekend just right.
Entirely untypical in one respect: far less verbose than the Sanderson style I am used to since starting on the Stormlight archive. This novella was a quick and delightful read with a typical Sanderson magic system inspired by Chinese art. It was written in a single sitting during a flight back from Taiwan. This kind of novella makes me envious of Sanderson's skill and craft. If you want to know whether his style is your thing this is the perfect starting point.
Entirely untypical in one respect: far less verbose than the Sanderson style I am used to since starting on the Stormlight archive. This novella was a quick and delightful read with a typical Sanderson magic system inspired by Chinese art. It was written in a single sitting during a flight back from Taiwan. This kind of novella makes me envious of Sanderson's skill and craft. If you want to know whether his style is your thing this is the perfect starting point.
A good book, that while based in the same world as "Elantris", you truly don't need to have read that book first to appreciate this one. In fact, you have to look REALLY hard to find anything that ties the two books together at all.
A lot of things in this book remind me of Sanderson's Stormlight Archive series. Particularly "Words of Radiance". And honestly, even those books are loosely related to this one.
A good book, that while based in the same world as "Elantris", you truly don't need to have read that book first to appreciate this one. In fact, you have to look REALLY hard to find anything that ties the two books together at all.
A lot of things in this book remind me of Sanderson's Stormlight Archive series. Particularly "Words of Radiance". And honestly, even those books are loosely related to this one.
This shorter work reminded me so much of why Sanderson is way up there on my list of favorite authors currently living and writing. He manages to capture the essence of what makes a person do what they do so well that it just draws you into the story that much more. He captures the thrill of the artist as their works reach completion, the charismatic pull of the leader, and he puts them there on the page in a way that just works. He really is an amazing writer.
