Arcanum Unbounded: The Cosmere Collection by Brandon SandersonMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Arcanum Unbounded (which I will call AU from here on) has been moldering on my to-read list for a long time waiting its turn. As a collection of short stories, it just didn't have the appeal that other full length works did. Short fiction reminds me of English classes where you spend more time discussing the story than you do reading it. After AU, I've decided that Brandon's experience in English class must have been wildly different than mine, because his version of short fiction is wildly different. For one, it isn't actually short. As I mentioned in my last post for the Emperors Soul, it was a full length, satisfying story that was the introductory piece for this book. I struggle to see that as short, especially with the full benefit of an existing world to build on.
In any case, my fears of unengaging and unsatisfying stories and characters was unfounded. This is a great read, but I do recommend leaving it until you have a good handle on other Cosmere books. This content isn't needed to understand or appreciate those stories, but there is extra value in this book if you have the background, and emotional investment, from the other Cosmere works, especially Mistborn and the Stormlight Archives.
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