Elantris by Brandon Sanderson

"Elantris was beautiful, once.  It was called the city of the gods: a place of power, radiance, and magic.  Visitors say that the very stones glowed with an inner light, and that the city contained wondrous arcane marvels.  At night, Elantris shone like a great silvery fire, visible even from a great distance.
Yet, as magnificent as Elantris had been,its inhabitants had been more so.  Their hair a brilliant white, their skin an almost metallic silver, the Elantrians seemed to shine like the city itself.  Legend claimed that they were immortal, or at least nearly so.  Their bodies healed quickly, and they were blessed with great strength, insight, and speed.  They could perform magics with a bare wave of the hand; men visited Elantris from all across Opelon to receive Elantrian healings, food, or wisdom.  They were divinities.
And anyone could become one.
The Shaod, it was called. The Transformation.  It struck randomly - usually at night, during the mysterious hours when life slowed to rest.  The Shaod could take beggar, craftsman, nobleman, or warrior.  When it came, the fortunate person's life ended and began anew; he would discard his old, mundane existence and move to Elantris.  Elantris, where he could live in bliss, rule in wisdom, and be worshipped for eternity.
Eternity ended ten years ago."  ~Back of Book

Yes.  I finally did it.  I'm commenting about a book by Brandon Sanderson, currently my favorite author.  He found his way into my hands through a different book several years ago but this was his debut.  This book allowed readers and critics a glimpse into the skilled and delightful storyteller he is.  It's an interesting concept, humans becoming gods then those same gods becoming...repulsive, detested, reviled.  They become a sort of undead creature.  As humans they could be anything from a beggar on the street to royalty then suddenly they were gods and those humans left behind came to seek their help.  Can you imagine it?  I can't but some how Sanderson created the possibility and I believed him.  What if that great blessing became a curse?

Suddenly, for no apparent reason, those who are hit with the Shaod (The Transformation) are "half done".  They are undead with no need to eat but the hunger remains.  They do not heal so a stubbed toe or paper cut could cause increasing agony to the point of madness.  They are not longer beautiful but repulsive, their skin blotchy and blackish.  Someone else who had read this book referred to them as zombies, at first I disagreed but upon reflection I can see the correlation.  Undead creatures wandering a dead city.  Horrifying.

Imaging being engaged to a normal person and then when you arrive for the wedding (you are from somewhere else, it's an arranged marriage but your excited about it) and to meet him for the first time you find out he's dead.  What you don't realize is he's not dead but his parents would rather he was because he's been taken by the Shaod and deposited into Elantris where all those creatures are held, imprisoned.

Sanderson doesn't stop there.  He also incorporates a holy war.  Just as in our day and our world religions dot the earth and just like always each believes that theirs is the only one that is incorruptible.  Throughout our history countries have gone to war in the name of God.  Sanderson's world is exactly the same but determining who are the good guys and who are the bad guys is a full-time job.  Throughout the novel you are given a glimpse into three main characters:  Raoden (the crown prince), Sarene (his betrothed), and Hrathen (Fjordell high priest).  Each looks at the world and at each other in a vastly unique way.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book and it gave me a lot to think about.  It wasn't my favorite book by Sanderson as I found a few pieces of information that left me confused or wondering about.  He has a knack for tieing up loose ends, but in this debut I was left wondering on a few minor things...a minor complaint given my experiences with other famous authors.  This book begins a major theme seen in all of his books (minus his children books...which I haven't read yet) and while the theme is similar the way it is presented is different.  I'll definitely be reading it again.  A fun read for sure!