Brandon Sanderson: White Sand (2016, Dynamic Forces)
Hardcover, 160 pages
Published June 21, 2016 by Dynamic Forces.
A brand new saga of magic and adventure by #1 New York Times best-selling author Brandon Sanderson.
On the planet of Taldain, the legendary Sand Masters harness arcane powers to manipulate sand in spectacular ways. But when they are slaughtered in a sinister conspiracy, the weakest of their number, Kenton, believes himself to be the only survivor. With enemies closing in on all sides, Kenton forges an unlikely partnership with Khriss -- a mysterious Darksider who hides secrets of her own.
White Sand brings to life a crucial, unpublished part of Brandon Sanderson’s sprawling Cosmere universe. The story has been adapted by Rik Hoskin (Mercy Thompson), with art by Julius Gopez and colors by Ross Campbell. Employing powerful imagery and Sanderson’s celebrated approach to magical systems, White Sand is a spectacular new saga for lovers of fantasy and adventure.
Underwhelming. I'm not sure a novelized version of this would have been much better but it would have avoided most of the characters being barely distinguishable from each other. Definitely doesn't deserve the extortionate price tag it seems to retail for most of the time. Think I'll be relying on Wikipedia for any plot details that are relevant to the wider cosmere story.
Great book, good plot, engaging and interesting characters. The writing style and dialogue seem a bit more funny and less serious than typical Sanderson writing. (Probably due to the graphic novel format)
Note: I don't do graphic novels, so I listened to the graphic audio version.
This is a comic adaptation of Sanderson's first novel, which was never published. If you've ever heard the Writing Excuses episode in which they critique the original, a lot has improved.
I am not sure I am fond of the drawing style. Too busy. But at least it and the characters are consistent. The actual writing in the comic ... is ok. I think one comic is not enough to form more than a preliminary opinion on this.
But even with only one installment to go on there is a giant amount of world building plus yet another Sanderson magic system. This time based on sand (big surprise that). And the plot has all the potential to be an epic ... but for now all we have is the exposition.
So here I am looking forward to seeing more of this. Until then it's a careful 4 with potential.
PS: …
This is a comic adaptation of Sanderson's first novel, which was never published. If you've ever heard the Writing Excuses episode in which they critique the original, a lot has improved.
I am not sure I am fond of the drawing style. Too busy. But at least it and the characters are consistent. The actual writing in the comic ... is ok. I think one comic is not enough to form more than a preliminary opinion on this.
But even with only one installment to go on there is a giant amount of world building plus yet another Sanderson magic system. This time based on sand (big surprise that). And the plot has all the potential to be an epic ... but for now all we have is the exposition.
So here I am looking forward to seeing more of this. Until then it's a careful 4 with potential.
PS: I am biased, if this wasn't Sanderson it would probably be a 3 for me ...
This is a good opening chapter to what feels like a promising series (with or without considering its ties to the greater Cosmere universe). The ending felt abrupt, very likely because I couldn't shake some general Sanderson/Cosmere/novel expectations. I've been spoiled by reading series opening novels that stand well on their own while also laying a foundation for follow-up stories. In this medium, that seems an unfair expectation.
Looking forward to volume 2!
This is a solid graphic novel. I really like the artwork and the representation of Sand Mastery. I also enjoyed the world, but the world building does seem to suffer from the shorter format. Granted, this is Volume 1, and I don't know how many there are supposed to be. There may yet be time for better world building.
