When I started reading ebooks out of necessity, I was still conflicted about paying full price for a non-printed copy of a book. I developed the habit of looking for great finds that won't cost more than $5. I suppose that's how I ended up checking out novellas, because their shorter forms meant cheaper price tags.
What I didn't expect was finding a fantasy gem that immediately became a favorite, and one that I immediately thought of when I was looking for titles that I wanted to revisit before 2016 ended.
A Forger can change the appearance of things, their ability honed for many years starting with an understanding of the nature of things in order to rewrite their history. But the Empire considers Forgery to be a crime, especially when a Forger is charged for doing the unthinkable... when the forgery involves tampering with the human soul. Shai is renowned for her crimes using forgery, and when she is caught performing a theft in the Imperial Palace, she is sentenced to death. As she contemplates her death or her ability to forge her way out of her prison, she is informed of a stay in her execution. The Emperor Ashravan has survived an assassination but is left brain damaged, which could upset the balance of power in the Empire if a new Emperor has to be chosen. Thus, in order to save her life, Shai sets out to achieve the ultimate Forgery by creating an Emperor's Soul.
There are very few stories that one can consider to be perfect in their telling. Even among the great writers, you can find one or a few things to find fault in or not like in your reading experience. I remembered reading The Emperor's Soul for the first time and thought about how I ended up liking every bit of it. It stayed with me for days, and that's a huge thing, because I remembered reading The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman and Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card around the same time period. There's something inherently satisfying about reading The Emperor's Soul and it's not hard to recommend it to those who are looking for something short or for those who want to dip their toes in fantasy. Or for those who are simply looking for something good to read.
For such a short piece of fiction, The Emperor's Soul does so much. Sure, you can't expect much in terms of world building given the number of pages, but you won't ever feel that this was skimped on. You get a glimpse of the world that Shai moves in, of an Empire that is steeped in politics and the powers that move behind the title of the Emperor, but that glimpse is more than enough to give weight to the request that Shai receives to forge the soul of a practically dead Emperor. But what truly captivated was the intricacies of the magic system of Forgery. Brandon Sanderson has always been very good with creating magic systems in his writing, and he doesn't waste a single page of The Emperor's Soul in relating to readers how Forgery works. Through Arbiter Gaotana, we understand Forgery as he tries to understand the woman who can create so much beauty but chooses to perform crimes with her exceptional skills.
With a shorter form of fiction to work with, the author could be forgiven for giving a straightforward story. But Brandon Sanderson actually gave us so much more than the story of Shai attempting to forge a human soul out of journals and the memories of a man who watched him grow up. Shai learns of the power struggle in the Empire, one that is not just played by the factions that want the Heritage faction to finally end their rule, but also one that is played by the very arbiters that the Emperor relies on to help him run the Empire. Shai and Gaotana's conversations are always interesting, with Shai delving into the layers of the older man's strained relationship with the Emperor to further understand her subject, and Gaotana questioning Shai's methods and morality. Shai is an interesting narrative voice, an artist who is dedicated to her craft and proud of it... so proud that the forging of an Emperor's soul is no longer a matter of the survival of her life but the definition of what she can ultimately achieve as a Forger.
The Emperor's Soul is currently sold at $4.99 on Amazon, although I got mine at the bargain price of $1.99 a couple of years back. But had I known what I was ultimately going to end up reading, I would have gladly forked over the full price. It's worth every page and more.
Happy reading!!Labels: Books, Brandon Sanderson, Fantasy, Fiction, Hugo Award, Novella, Re-read, Reading List, The Emperor's Soul
