Title: The Sunlit Man
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Genre: Fantasy
Pages: 447
Published: 2023, Tor Books
My Grade: 5 out of 5
Review Summary: Mad Max inspired setting expanding the Cosmere as well as your understanding of a beloved character from Stormlight Archive.
GOODREADS’ DESCRIPTION
Running. Putting distance between himself and the relentless Night Brigade has been Nomad’s strategy for years. Staying one or two steps ahead of his pursuers by skipping through the Cosmere from one world to the next.
But now, his powers too depleted to escape, Nomad finds himself trapped on Canticle, a planet that will kill anyone who doesn’t keep moving. Fleeing the fires of a sunrise that melts the very stones, he is instantly caught up in the struggle between a heartless tyrant and the brave rebels who defy him.
Failure means a quick death, incinerated by the sun… or a lifetime as a mindless slave. Tormented by the consequences of his past, Nomad must fight not only for his survival―but also for his very soul.
MY REVIEW
Easy to understand early that the main character is from Roshar. But it took me 40 pages to realise who Nomad actually is. As this book was released before Wind and Truth, I guess people initially had no idea. Having read WaT, I loved that plot twist.
These short stories from Brandon Sanderson are over so quickly and it is both awesome and frustrating because there aren’t many left now following the two Mistborn eras and the first massive arc of Stormlight. I am so glad I read everything else up until this point, however as there are just so many gems, easter eggs, and connections to the rest of the Cosmere.
First of all, as usual when picking up a new Sanderson book, I never read the blurbs, I have no idea about the plot and just gets thrown into the story. But I do know that anything produced by Sanderson is going to be epic. It was very clear early on that this story was revolving around a Rosharan character. But it took me around 40 pages to learn who it was! And when I did, my mind was blown. This character was so different from the Stormlight story which makes sense because I understand this book takes place the furthest into the future of all released books to date. I wonder how long it took for everyone else who read this when it was released to understand who it actually was, considering this was released before Wind and Truth.
The planet of Canticle is inhabited by people from Threnody back in the day, long before the short story which takes place in Shadows for Silence in the Forest of Hell. The shades play a fairly important part in this book but I still don’t quite understand them. The magic manifestation is also very different from the other planets and much more deadly and not as easily accessable as on other places. Even though Canticle is fairly separated, the Scadrians are still here and we get an understanding of the whole Cosmere and how the cosmic war eventually forms. The world just expands with every single book and I absolutely love it.
The story itself is very mad max inspired, which may not be my strongest go to genre. But that was my initial idea when I started Wax and Wayne, with the wild west setting, and that turned out to be amazing, which this did as well. And the fact that characters are familiar, you do get invested pretty quickly and before you know it, yet another Sanderson book is devoured.
Nomad still has a heart, after all these years, even if he is a bit cynical and trying not to get attached. He gets a five from me.
