Everyone, eventually, learns from their mistakes and grows-sometimes ending on far different paths than they anticipated. Hrathen is a passionate priest who does not always believe in his faith. Sarene is a strong-willed woman who does not always believe in herself. Raoden is a pretty straightforward hero, but the rest have multiple facets that will be a pleasure for readers to explore. The characters, however, are just as complex as their plots. Elantris is billed as a fantasy, and it does feature magic, but it is just as much a book of political intrigue. The result is a complex web of politics, as alliances are made, secrets revealed, and murders committed. Princess Sarene, Raoden’s intended fiancée, attempts to take his place in the capital as the people’s savior, facing off against high priest Hrathen and Roaden’s father. The stories of Prince Raoden, quarantined in the city of Elantris, and Arelon at large run parallel in Elantris. Unless he can find uncover the secrets of the once-beautiful Elantrian magic. He has become an Elantrian and is standing on his own precipice, doomed to a life of eternal suffering that will eventually drive him insane. Arelon is ruled by an inadequate king, is being subtly invaded by a destructive religion, and has just lost its crown prince-the only man the people believed could save them all. Reviewīrandon Sanderson crafts an intricate fantasy world in Elantris, dumping readers straight into a land teetering on the brink of ruin and war. His struggle to help the wretches trapped there begins a series of events that will bring hope to Arelon, and perhaps reveal the secret of Elantris itself. Stricken by the same curse that ruined Elantris, Raoden was secretly exiled by his father to the dark city. So Sarene decides to use her new status to counter the machinations of Hrathen, a Fjordell high priest who has come to Kae to convert Arelon and claim it for his emperor and his god.īut neither Sarene nor Hrathen suspect the truth about Prince Raoden. Both Teod and Arelon are under threat as the last remaining holdouts against the imperial ambitions of the ruthless religious fanatics of Fjordell. She finds instead that Raoden has died and she is considered his widow. Princess Sarene of Teod arrives for a marriage of state with Crown Prince Raoden, hoping - based on their correspondence - to also find love.

Elantrians became wizened, leper-like, powerless creatures, and Elantris itself dark, filthy, and crumbling.Īrelon’s new capital, Kae, crouches in the shadow of Elantris. Ten years ago, without warning, the magic failed. Yet each of these demigods was once an ordinary person until touched by the mysterious transforming power of the Shaod. Elantris was the capital of Arelon: gigantic, beautiful, literally radiant, filled with benevolent beings who used their powerful magical abilities for the benefit of all.

Brandon sanderson elantris series