Cosmere – Bookstooge's Reviews on the Road

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Title: Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell

Series: Cosmere

Author: Brandon Sanderson

Rating: 4 of 5 Battle Axes

Genre: SFF

Pages: 65

Synopsis:

An innkeeper, who doubles as a secret bounty hunter, must make one last big score to save her inn, her daughter and her adopted granddaughter. Problem is, she’s got a gang to catch, a slimy traitor who is threatening to expose her and take her inn AND she has to deal with spirits who consume you if you run, draw blood or light a fire.

My Thoughts:

Enjoyed this little read. The main story takes place in one night, with desperation and determination coming from the main character in every word Sanderson writes. And it has a happy ending.

I love it when an author can write a concise, fully fleshed story, get me invested, leave me feeling like I had a good time and does it all under 75pages. It takes skill and I for one appreciate such skill, probably just as much as I appreciate the story itself.

Title: Sixth of the Dusk

Series: Cosmere

Author: Brandon Sanderson

Rating: 4 of 5 Battle Axes

Genre: SF

Pages: 65

Synopsis:

A low tech world has been contacted by a space faring race. But what can one anti-social trapper do, especially when his own people are against him?

My Thoughts:

A thoroughly enjoyable story [it is listed as novella, but to be honest, it doesn’t seem that long to me, more like a long “short story”. [Ha]

I could sympathize with the main character, in his attitude and his outlook on the passing of what he knew. I also think Sanderson did an excellent job of giving us a full story without falling into the trap of trying to tell us everything. This was an exercise in precision and he performed perfectly.

I think that the whole Cosmere thing [Sanderson has his own multi-uni-verse and every story takes place in it, even if they aren’t connected] is just a marketing ploy but since it doesn’t adversely affect anything, I don’t have any problems with it.

And getting a short dose of Sanderson is always a good thing. Sometimes one doesn’t want 500-900 pages, just a taste.