"Edgedancer" review

Overview

Title: Edgedancer, published as a part of Arcanum Unbounded

Author: Brandon Sanderson

Subgenre: High fantasy

Stars: 5/5

Review

The Slow Regard of Silent Things meets the Marvel Cinematic Universe embedded into the Cosmere in this absolutely delightful novella. Lift showed up for one interlude chapter in Words of Radience and now gets her own almost 300-page-long spotlight in the most adorable story ever, as she and Wyndle travel from Azimir to Tashikk.

Lift’s Nightwatcher request gives her an almost Auri-from-Kingkiller-Chronicles-like quality: She sees the world differently from those around her, and only her small slice of the world, and her goals (steal everyone’s lunch) aren’t quite understandable to everyone else. Her narrative voice is quite attuned to her goals, and this voice combined with her detachment from adult concerns turn life-or-death danger into a game, even for the reader.

If you read the Cosmere, of course you’re going to read Edgedancer, and without question this novella should be read in between Words of Radiance and Oathbringer, as there are strong spoilers on both sides. But I actually do believe this novella can stand on its own; if you’re willing to be a bit bemused by some terms like “Stormlight” and “awesomeness” and “Voidbringer,” the sheer joy of Lift’s story is worth it, even if you don’t want to commit to the entirety of Stormlight Archive - and maybe this novella can convince you to dive in all the way!