Brandon Sanderson's White Sand Vol. 1

I enjoyed the story, though it had quite a different feel than Sanderson's usual works. This may be because it's a graphic novel, so only the dialog and narration are visible. You can read my full review over on MySF Reviews.

Sanderson is a wonderful author, and the story in this book COULD be amazing - if only he'd just bite the bullet and make it into a true novel. The graphic novel approach may have saved time, but at the expense of Sanderson's storytelling ability. A picture may be worth a thousand words, but they aren't necessarily the RIGHT words. While knowing EXACTLY what sand mastery looks like, the color of the desert, or how a character's emotions contort their face may be interesting - but such details fail to put the "meat on the bones" of the story that one senses is hiding behind the graphics in this work. This suspicion is confirmed in Sanderson's Arcanum Unbounded, wherein we get a sample chapter (text) of what this story COULD be. As it is, this book is but a frustrating taste of something that could be - even should be - much much more. The end result is so dissatisfying that I actually wish I'd never read it. A first for me comming from Sanderson. Come on Brandon, give us the whole story.

Different Media for a Brandon Sanderdon narrative and an excellent Story as usual ... This time are not the colors or the eyes colors, or the capacity to use metals but a world with one side of it sunny and the other one 'dark' ... with people's capable of 'magically' managing the sand!!!
Grate STORY and grate Book!!!
Recommended to everybody that do not find disturbing read a Graphic Novel as Media for the Story

Great comic! I have read numerous Brandon Sanderson works. One of my favorite others and this graphic novel definitely did not disappoint!! The artwork was beautiful and definitely brought additional life to the story. The worst part is having to wait a year or so for each volume. I liked the story so much I emailed Brandon in hopes of obtaining the corresponding unpublished novel so that I can complete this adventure!

I am a huge fan of Brandon Sanderson and i have read all of his cosmere works and the majority of his other books. If you are already a fan of graphic novels and Brandon Sanderson this novel will be perfect for you. However, from the point of view of someone who greatly enjoys the narrative depth of Brandon Sanderson's Novels and has much less appreciation for art in general i found this extremely unsatisfying. On the plus side we do learn more about Khriss.

Not very good. First and foremost, this is NOT a graphic novel. It is A CHAPTER of a graphic novel. More books to buy if you want to finish the story, and no hint that's the case until you get to the "end" and it's not done. Also, almost everyone looks the same. Hard to tell who is who in each scene. I loved mistborn, wax and Wayne, and the storm light saga so far. This is easily his worst work I've seen. And it isn't even complete. Pass on this one.

First Copy came with a bent corner, second copy I received wasn't signed. Both came with an annoying security sticker inside on a random page. This sticker is about 1.5" x 1.5" and is slapped carelessly over the artwork, this really annoys me and I don't feel comfortable trying to remove it.

I'm a pretty big Sanderson fan, and this was very interesting, but I also felt it was a little short/the dialogue seemed a little rushed. For example, the characters seemed to outright just state all their feelings and motives, instead of using the graphical medium to illustrate it, or just using the dialogue to foreshadow, etc. Overall a good read, but just a bit rushed.

I was so excited...huge B Sanderson fan, Cosmere addict, etc. I'm glad this story is finally making it to press, but the art is distracting and the mode minimizes the storyline so far. I'll still read them, but I'm not looking forward in the way I am to the next Stormlight book...

I would really rather read this as a book. Much rather. And it's not that I don't like graphic novels because I have quite a collection of them. The artwork doesn't make sense and is hard to follow. The the normal depth and richness I expect from a Sanderson world is missing from this and not effectively conveyed by the artwork. And why are the people on the side of the planet with constant sun pale skinned and the "Darksiders" dark skinned? Thoroughly confused and throughly disappointed.

I hadn't read a graphic novel for a long time, but I'm glad I picked this up! The artwork is nice and really brings the world to life. I've read all of Sanderson's cosmere work and I didn't notice any ties into anything else beyond the basic principles of the magic system. It took about an hour and a half to read, so it's not super long, but it's certainly enjoyable. I'm looking forward to volume 2!

Brandon Sanderson tops a very short list of authors that I enjoy reading. His turn of phrase, his similes and metaphors, pull me in, inviting me to experience the dynamic worlds and characters he has created. It is an experience that, unfortunately, can not be adequately captured in the medium of a graphic novel. Rather than inviting the reader to experience the vistas of Brandon's imagination, we are given a flat picture of that world with characters who become equally flat as imagination falls away and we watch it from entirely outside the creation. It is my sincere hope that at some future time, Brandon will take these graphic novels and turn them into a standard novel.

I love Brandon Sanderson's works. That being said, I was a little disappointed by this one. The story was fine and the art was good as well, but I paid $13 for this and only got about 2 hours of reading before it abruptly ended. I dont believe this should cost $12.99. The price of this book should be closer to the $3- $4 range due to its brevity.

This is the first time I'll say this about a Sanderson work: This book is not worth the asking price.

The story, what there is anyway, is interesting. There's another one of Sanderson's characteristically cool magic systems, interesting cultures, and potentially interesting characters. The problem is that the story is incredibly short. The whole thing can be read in a couple of hours and feels like you're just getting started. The entire book could have almost been a prologue in one of Sanderson's larger novels.

It was a fun read, but in the end I was disappointed to have paid so much for so little. I'll hold off on the rest of this series until they're released as a collection, hopefully for around the cost of this first entry.

White Sand is an unpublished manuscript by author Brandon Sanderson, and this graphic novel is an adaptation of the first part of that unreleased novel, with two more planned volumes to follow. I had hoped that by authorizing this production Sanderson would have overhauled the text, but the whole thing comes off feeling rather half-baked despite the usual fun cosmere worldbuilding. Having not read the source material I can't say for certain how much of this is adapter Rik Hoskin's fault, but the characters, plot, and setting all lag far behind a typical Sanderson production. And although Julius Gopez's art is great for showcasing the diversity of the story's cast, it struggles to bring the magic to life -- as is quite clear by comparing the opening chapter to the written version of the same material in Sanderson's short story collection Arcanum Unbounded. Unless you're a total cosmere completionist, I'd recommend just waiting until the full novel is released in prose.

I received an eGalley of White Sand in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

First of all, I'm a huge Brandon Sanderson fan. I loved the Mistborn trilogy and Way of Kings. I also own pretty much every other book he's written, even if I haven't read it yet, and most of them I got signed when I got the chance to go to a book signing two years ago. But I still tried to approach this graphic novel from an unbiased place.

White Sand is billed as a missing piece of Sanderson's Cosmere (aka that grand plan he has for all his epic fantasy novels- go google it, it's awesome!) finally being released. Sanderson himself said it works great as a graphic novel since the magic system is better seen than read and it also helped trim down the story. It follows several characters, but most notably Kenton, a young, and rather talentless, sand mage who is trying to impress his father. Tragedy strikes and sends him, and his world, into a tail spin. He ends up traveling with a Duchess, Khrissella (better known as Khriss- and if you follow the Cosmere this probably means A LOT to you) from Darkside as she searches for answers.

Brandon Sanderson is the king of twists, at least for me. I don't know how many times, when reading his books, where I just have to put it down and go "Did that really just happen?" in such a wonderful way. Part of that is his fast-paced writing and exciting characters that don't give me the room to sit back and try to guess at what might happen, and part of it has to do with how good he is at timing and hiding things in plain sight. Even knowing a little bit about what this was before starting, at the end of each chapter I ended up getting blown away and I couldn't stop reading. The first chapter was a little rough for me, if only because I didn't care for any of the side characters and there were a lot of them, so it got a little distracting. But then I read chapter two and I didn't put it down.

My favorite thing, beyond the amazing and unique magic system (do you expect anything else from Sanderson, though?) and crazy awesome world building (I really, really hope we get to explore this world more!), were the characters. Kenton immediately draws the readers attention, but all the major players, revealed by the end of the book, are ones I'd love to read about even if it was just them. Particularly Khriss. I didn't know how I would feel about her when she was first introduced, but within two lines she has made herself a favorite of mine.

I can't wait to pick up a final copy of this one. It's already released, so the only thing holding me back really is cost (and how much money I've been spending on books lately is getting ridiculous). If you're a fan of Sanderson, or epic fantasy, or graphic novels, or just good stories, pick this one up! The wait between them might kill you, but it will also give you the perfect opportunity to read the other books in the Cosmere (or reread them, whatever the case may be).

"White Sand" has the distinction of being the first proper book that Brandon Sanderson ever wrote -- twenty years ago, he penned the original draft while doing missionary work abroad, then rewrote it into a more unique form several years later. But it somehow never got published... until Dynamite asked for an original work to turn into a graphic novel series.

And this brings us "Brandon Sanderson's White Sand Volume 1," set on a planet suspended between two stars, which leaves one side super-bright and the other relatively dim. Most of Sanderson's staples are here and accounted for -- lots of complicated different cultures, languages, varying levels of technology -- mixed with an earthy combination of politics, magic and adventure.

Kenton is the son of the Lord Mastrell of the Sand Mages, and for eight years, he has struggled against his father's scorn to prove that he can become a mastrell himself. Never mind that he has almost no skill or aptitude. But when he finally uncovers a way to become a mastrell despite his lack of ability... the Diem is practically wiped out by the barbaric Kerztians, who haven't attacked for countless years. The only one left alive is Kenton.

He's found by a scientific expedition from the darkside of Taldain, including the Duchess Khrissalla and a handful of bickering professors, who are on an expedition to find the Sand Mages. But accompanying them is only the first part of Kenton's journey, as he discovers that hatred of the Sand Mages and their arrogance has not only led to a religious uprising against them... but that political winds are blowing against him as well.

Since it was originally conceived and written as a novel (which we'll hopefully get in text form someday), "White Sand Volume 1" quickly establishes itself as being wildly creative and much more complex than your average graphic novel -- different flora and fauna (including riding animals that burrow under the sand when frightened), cultures, languages, a complex political system and a sense of general history that permeates the story (the arrogance and insulation of the sand mages).

Furthermore, Sanderson weaves together at least three subplots through the first volume. One is obviously Kenton's, since he is the underdog hero of the tale and has to somehow save the Diem from treachery, fanaticism AND local politics. But we also follow Khrissalla and her professors, since the duchess clearly has some motives for being in Lossand that she hasn't told anyone about. And there is a smaller subplot about a lady cop in search of a master criminal, who is being reassigned to handle Kenton -- we'll see where THAT part goes.

And though the story is told through pictures, Sanderson's distinct style comes through in the dialogue and the narration/thought boxes -- slightly tongue-in-cheek and fairly realistic ("Well, if they WANT to fight a mastrell -- then they'll... uh oh, this isn't good"). And the art itself is quite good -- realistic and detailed, with lots of sharp lines and detailing to make sure the neutrally-clothed characters don't just fade into the sand.

The characters are also fairly likable -- Kenton is one of those classic Sanderson protagonists who let force of stubborn will push him through his problems, but who still has enough obstacles that brains and athleticism are needed for him to actually get things done. Khrissalla is a pretty good counterpoint, as a smart and learned woman who nevertheless isn't too familiar with the dayside of Taldain, and her bickering professors are an absolute riot... but a riot with big splodey GUNS. The only character who feels underfleshed is Ais, who will presumably get more characterization later.

It's a little frustrating to have to wait for the next part of such an engrossing story, but "Brandon Sanderson's White Sand Volume 1" is a robust, intricate look at yet another one of Sanderson's complex fantasy worlds. Bring on the next part!

Kenton has defied his father, the highest ranking Sand Master, his whole life in pursuit of becoming a manipulator of the sands. The problem is that he can barely perform the smallest function a Sand Master is expected to grasp. Political intrigue, magic, and murder cap this Brandon Sanderson story off to delve deeper into his Cosmere.

-I really enjoy Brandon Sanderson's works. This graphic novel is reminiscent of a blend of Warbreaker and Mistborn. The magic system is consistent and Sanderson-esque.

-The characters were great. Kenton's struggles bring you into a place where water is easily gained, if you know where to get it, and money and secrets are equal currency in a sandy world where there is no night.

-Although I wasn't a big fan of the art style the story still sucked me in. I think I was a little disappointed in the color choices. After looking through the back of the book there are many gorgeous renderings, it's a shame more of a subtle style wasn't taken in the design.

-Overall, I would recommend this for fans of Sanderson that enjoy comics or graphic novels. It may be a bit of an adjustment for people who have never read a graphic novel before.

​~I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review~

I am just reading my first Sanderson novel, so I had to get this when I saw it on NetGalley.

The artwork is disappointingly grainy and blurred, which does not make it very enjoyable to read. I had a look at a preview on the store, where it was better. So I am guessing it is not the fault of the comic as such, but rather of NetGalley offering a not very good ARC.

The story is intricate, there is a lot of world building, explaining and introducing of various characters and settings. So it's pretty complex for a comic/graphic novel. If that is your kind of thing and you are a fantasy fan, this is a pretty great offering. If you are a Sanderson fan, you will probbaly end up missing the detail and depth of his writing.

Later chapters alternate between different POVs, which makes it pretty lively and a little confusing at times. I had a hard time to take the main character Kenton seriously though. I was not sold on the petulant teenager morphing into a responsible adult.

But the story definitely has a lot of potential. And if the artwork in the published comic has a better resolution, it should be very nice.

I received this free e-copy from the publisher/author via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review, thank you!

Whenever I get graphic novels, I'm looking for three features: (1) an awesome cover, (2) images that captivate me, and (3) a story that will hold from beginning to end. Graphic novels are superior than the average novel we read. They're the closest things to movies of a story as we can get, so they have to reign darn near supreme! White Sand is almost there. Brandon Sanderson and Rik Hoskin made this a graphic novel worth the read.

Kenton is the son of a Sand Master, but unlike his father, he struggles to manipulate the sand. Neither he nor his siblings are able to advance the way others can; it's been blamed on his mother, who's supposedly tainted the bloodline. So Kenton has to fight to prove himself worthy.

With limited powers, but a cleverness that allows him to be just as strong, he has to work harder to be the best. But when Kenton finds his people slaughtered, he fears he may be the only one. He ends up going out, working against a conspiracy that will affect everyone!

This is my first Sanderson read, and I have to admit it was pretty cool. The cover photo looks like something out of a Japanime flick. It shows a lot of action, almost too busy. I liked it, but I was looking for a bit more clarity on the inside. The inner photos were a match to the outside. I'm used to inner photos being more bright, deep and vivid. And since the words were small and scattered about the pages, It was really hard on my degenerating eyes. The pics weren't grainy, but just not as rich as I'd hoped.

White Sand, Vol. 1
Brandon Sanderson & Rik Hoskin
Dynamite Publishing
June 29, 2016

I enjoyed this graphic novel a lot. Brandon Sanderson just has a way with creating stories that you cannot help but get sucked into. I do have to say though if you love Brandon Sanderson but don't like graphic novels then you might not enjoy reading this book, but that is just my opinion since reading a graphic novel is quite different then reading an actual book. Back to what I love about White Sand, the magic system is another well crafted masterpiece by Sanderson. Even though this is a 150 page book he still is able to inform you on how the system works without completely dumpy so much onto your plate. The world is very well built with the planet being separated by Dayside and Darkside. I am a little nervous on how this story will wrap up in just two more books. I just don't want to see anything rushed or see the story lose its magic. That is why I am giving it a 3 stars rather then a 5 stars.

As a big fan of Sanderson, I found this story to be somewhat disappointing. The artwork, while impressive with scenery and creatures, was a bit messy and sloppy with characters. Perhaps I'm too used to the style of manga and manhwa; thus found this to be less refined. The story itself has some parts where if felt like it could get good, then sorta fell back into a slump. Felt disjointed with abrupt statements and transitions. The worst part was how the main character was laughing and smiling in scenes shortly after the mass deaths of people close to him. While I know this is a fantastical world, I still expect some human realism. All that said, I am curious to check out the next volume, so to me it's not a complete loss. There is a flavor of Sanderson's work in here somewhere; just gotta squint to see it.

I know the name of Brandon Sanderson but I've never read anything by him before this. I thought that this might be a good introduction to him and his work. I was wrong.

<em>White Sand</em> is based on an unpublished work of Sanderson's. Cool. I love the idea of using new/old material from an author and bringing it to life in a new way. And I really liked the concept here of 'sand wizards' on a desert planet. Though I will admit I was often thinking of <em>Dune</em> (the desert planet part).

The story follows Kenton, a young man just learning to control his powers. But like many young men, he is full of vigor and a know-it-all sense of rebellion, willing to stand up to anyone he thinks is wrong (which is most people). Somehow, he needs to grow up both as a Sand Wizard and as a man. It is the only way he will be able to save his culture.

There is a lot to like here. The concept and the characters are truly interesting, and it makes me eager to branch out and read some Brandon Sanderson. But this graphic novel doesn't quite satisfy.

First: it is dialog heavy. There are pages here that are difficult to see the art because of the abundance and size of word balloons. Good graphic novels really need to find the balance between telling the story with dialog and narrative, and telling the story with art. As I reflected on this, I was thinking about how difficult it likely was for author Rik Hoskins to adapt a work, not originally intended as a graphic novel, to the medium. And while it does happen, it occurred to me that not every written work translates to the graphic novel format well.

The other problem with the book is with the art itself. The style of art isn't too bad, but the art doesn't seem to be matching the story. I don't get a sense of story-telling, but instead a series of panels (which are sometimes so confusing we need the arrows to tell us which panel to read next). There's so much more to graphic novel art than simply drawing a bunch of characters doing things.

I also recognize that it must be difficult to draw panel after panel in which the background is generally sand. But once I again I think that not every work of fiction is suited to becoming a graphic novel.

My digital ARC was poorly formatted to see the art. The art was constantly blurry, no matter whether I zoomed in or zoomed out, the image was blurry. It made it difficult to really appreciate the book from a review point of view.

I want to read more Sanderson, based on the concepts here, but as a graphic novel, I can not recommend this.

Looking for a good book? <em> White Sand</em>, a graphic novel based on an unpublished manuscript from Brandon Sanderson, is not well-suited to the graphic novel medium and is not helped by the author or artist, though the idea is promising.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

The story starts with Kenton - a young, stubborn man who needs to prove his father and himself that he deserves a proper rank among Sand Masters. With his weak sand-mastery and a rather unusual fighting skills, he's throwing himself to a trial, that only strongly-gifted are supposed to survive.

Even though it's supposed to be the whole volume, it felt more like an introduction to the world, the characters, the situation. The first meeting of certain people that will make a mark further in the story, everyone with their own goals and distinct personalities. There's still plenty going on - the trials Kenton goes through, the attack on his homeland, seeing the city, and more of the barbarians. Full of action with some breaks that slowly reveal the plot and character's reasoning and goals. Overall - nicely done, but I want more :D.

And what about graphic? - I loved it! The colors (they aren't limited to these shown on the pages above), the panel setting, the dynamic. I loved this new world - split into two parts, seemingly apart, but somehow coexisting. The curious magic system, the aggressive barbarians from the Dayside and technologically superior Darksiders - all nicely shown with just enough space for your imagination to fill in the gaps.

Yet another graphic novel I'd gladly add to my library in a shiny hardcover version.

This novel was my first meeting with Sanderson's writing. Maybe it wasn't the perfect first impression, but I still enjoyed it quite a bit. And if you're wondering why I haven't read his books yet - it's the volume! and the fanbase. And the amount of them. It's just so... overwhelming. But since I finally reached for Rothfuss's story, I might just make another step into these wonderful fantasy worlds.

To sum it up this was graphically stunning, an interesting introduction to the world and main characters. I'll gladly reach for the next volume and see what will happen next. Right now I have some questions and I hope they will be answered in the next parts.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Brandon Sanderson is a fantastic world builder. Admittedly, I've only read a couple of his solo books and the ones he wrote for the Wheel of Time series. Each of the stories felt distinct though. This one goes off in another direction compared to his other stories I've read. I know this connects into some of his other works, but I haven't read those and this still felt like a solid story.

It is set within a desert region of a planet. There is a group of people known as Sand Masters that are able to manipulate sand using magic. The protagonist is a member of this group, but at the lowest levels because his ability is minimal. After some events that I don't want to spoil, he sets out on a journey with a group from another region of the world, which opens things up quite a bit.

I thought the art fit this book perfectly. It can be monochromatic, which makes sense in a desert, and the illustrations have a grainy quality to them. There were times when I found it difficult to differentiate characters because of this though. As the story progresses, there is more color introduced. Only a couple of times do any of the images stand out.

As the first part of the story, this sets the tone really well. It has a mostly self contained story while setting up the next portion. The main character is a stereotype of sorts. Maybe its because of the fantasy genre or perhaps it is Brandon Sanderson, but I felt like the attitude and situations were not unique. That said, this book was enjoyable and I'm looking forward to continuing the story.

'Brandon Sanderson's White Sand, Volume 1' is an adaptation of an earlier Brandon Sanderson work that had remained unpublished. This is explained in the foreward by Brandon Sanderson. The comic book adaptation is by Rik Hoskins with art by Julius M. Gopez.

The planet Taldain has a dark side and a light side. On the light side are deserts and living in them are the Sand Masters, people capable of magically controlling the sand in ribbons. Kenton wants to be a Sand Master, but his ability is different and his father stands in his way. When a tragedy strikes Kenton's tribe, he finds himself in the company of Khriss, who lives on the dark side. His ways are tribal and nomadic, hers are more sophisticated. There are other characters introduced, but there stories look like they will be continued in the next volume.

Along with the story, there are character design pages and panel breakdowns. The problem with adapting a novel is that it can feel overly descriptive, and that's how the story starts out. The review copy I was provided gave scaled down quality for the art, but it looks to be fine in some "real" pictures I've seen. The problem I have is that the panels on every page are created in oblique shards. This is fine for a bit but it started being something I noticed and I wish they had done more interesting things with the panels than just geometric shapes. The story kind of bogs as more characters are introduced and they feel like they just suddenly appear with no introduction or reason given for them to be in the story. These stories begin to be known as the volume ends, so perhaps the next one will settle in. I like Brandon Sanderson's writing and the trademarks are here. I'm just not sure a graphic novel was the best way to present this one.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors, Dynamite Entertainment, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

I loved this vivid and imaginative new world that Brandon has created. We get just a glimpse (this is part one of three) into the cultures and people, and I feel the choice to go with a graphic novel was a sound one. Is it perfect? No. But it sparks your imagination, and whets your appetite for volumes 2 and 3.

What I liked:
-Sand Masters
-KHRISS!
-The interesting politics of the eight professions (usually I hate political fiction, but this was refreshing and interesting)
-The mystery surrounding the Kerztians and their A'kar

What I didn't like:
-There were a couple times in the beginning where it was difficult to distinguish between two characters, or was unclear
-Ais' relatively little character (Granted, I understand we've seen precious little of the character, but I just wish there was a little more)

All in all, this was an enjoyable new format for Sanderson. I hope he continues to write graphic novels alongside regular novels.

i was surprised to open this and find such a small book. Then I opened it to see it was a comic book. Something those "Manga" or Japanese Anime type drawings. Set up in separate "cells" like the comics in the Sunday paper, but of differing sizes, and obviously better quality.
The drawings are pretty good. But the story-line is a bit disjointed.
I found it difficult to understand which cell was supposed to be read next.
VERY think comic book. Think "novella" that can be finished in a hour.

This is fine. It's not outstanding, but it's very good. There seemed to be a little too much confusion for me. Like the mystery of who betrayed who seemed really obvious. And the mystery of who are the same called "sand mages". Totally obvious.
It's all good, but I was kind of expecting more. It's very well written, but very smart characters seemed to miss things that were very obvious.
The art is pretty good, but I wish the magic system was explored a little more in this early part of the story.

*I received a free copy through NetGalley from the Publisher in exchange for my honest, unbiased review* Thank you!

Cover: Intense
Rating: 4 Stars
Overall: Exciting
Characters: Likeable
Plot: The Sand Masters are fear and revered by all, or they were. Now they are under attack and must rely on an unlikely hero if they are to survive!
Page Turner: Yes
Series Cont.? Yes
Recommend: Yes
Source: NetGalley

Short Review: I am so glad I was able to read and finish this book! I have always enjoyed graphic novels, and am a fan of Sanderson after his work on the WoT series, but this is the first of his works that I have read outside of the WoT books. I am so glad they chose this one to make into his first graphic novel, and that he saved it for the right moment. With it's fun characters, exciting action, and plenty of promise, this it a series to follow!

Although I have not read in all of Sanderson's universes, I have read enough of his works to be interested in a new tale. White Sand is typical to Sanderson in that the reader is dropped into a fully-formed world and has to learn the characters and decipher the backstory to events because details always matter. This is not just a story about Sand Mages, it is also a crime novel and political intrigue plot-boiler weaved together in a fantasy world. And White Sand is also a graphic novel full of vibrant color and shadows. Sanderson and the graphic artists have done well in producing this volume. If you like Sanderson or good fantasy graphic tales, you will enjoy White Sand!

I enjoyed the story but was not blown away by it.The strongest aspect is the world building. It is believable yet fantastical. I am looking forward to reading the remaining volumes when they come out but not as eagerly as I am for the remaining books in The Stormlight Archive.
While I enjoyed the visuals, I felt that apart from a few of the main characters it was hard to tell apart the rest visually. For example, the sand masters all looked the same to me. I also initially thought the Trackt Ais was a man with long hair. Khrissalla looks amazing on the cover of white sand and just not as beautiful inside the pages. I just wasn't a fan of the artwork when it came to the characters and felt they had a hazy, undefined feel to them. I hope the remaining volumes, help explain Kenton's sudden power (after inexplicably losing it) and how the sand masters' powers work among many other questions I have.

With Brandon Sanderson starting to become a household name synonymous with the fantasy genre I'm almost embarrassed to admit that White Sand, Volume 1 was my first introduction to his work. Oddly enough I own Elantris, Mistborn, and The Way of Kings, but have been too intimidated to commit myself to reading them. White Sand was a great introduction into what Sanderson is truly capable of as a writer and left me craving more.

White Sand balances it's dialogue, narration, and visual story-telling beautifully, a huge credit goes to Rik Hoskin (co-writer on Dynamite’s Mercy Thompson graphic novels) who adapted Sanderson’s novel for the graphic novel format. Sanderson's story, characters, and ideas translate beautifully on the page. Although the artwork itself is not the best in the industry it does provide a strong visual narrative to compliment Sanderson's writing.

I'm very excited to continue the story of White Sand in volume two and will finally explore Sanderson's more complex prose. White Sand feels like a great starting point for people interested in Sanderson's other work. Highly recommended.

In some ways I think this may be one of my favorite of Sanderson's works - in a lot of ways I identified with Kenton (constantly seeking approval despite the array of odds against him, the frustrating knowledge that no matter what you do you'll be judged for what you can't do) and for the first part (when he's undergoing the Master's test) I was rooting for him the whole way.

So of course when the meat of the story occurs very quickly - the attack on the Sand Masters and Kenton meeting Khriss - I was a little let down about the brevity of time we spent with Kenton and his fellow Sand Masters.

The story suffered for two reasons - 1) if you're a fan of Sanderson's works you're used to a more detailed introduction to the world and its particular blend of magic and political atmosphere. Words on a page with more words and sometimes illustrations, but that's it. For a reader like me, who focuses on words not visuals, this is wonderful. WHITE SAND however relied on comprehension of the words while busy visuals were crowding around also trying to make their point.

While the "big" illustrations herein were eye-catching, the average panel distracted more then it helped to convey the story. Much of understanding what's happening involved reading the panels, then going back and looking at the illustrations for each. There was a disconnect for me between the two that made it hard for me to comprehend both at once. My problem wasn't with the illustrations themselves - like I said some were eye-catching and the overall style is pleasing - but with the layout of the action and paneling. I'm so far outside the world of mainstream comics I'm not sure if the illustrator has done superhero comics before, but it didn't have the easy transitioning between panels you'd expect from a more veteran illustrator.

The second problem is more of a "what if" sort. Sanderson has an introduction that details where this idea came from, how he's tweaked it and what made him finally bring it out again but in a different (read: non-prose) format. This is part of his larger "Cosmere" universe (I believe this is set at one of the earliest points in the current known timeline), so fans will see hints that tie it in (as this is the first volume of three its largely speculated the next two volumes will contain more clues, hints and information), but not so much that non-fans will be like "what is even?".

It both reads like a Sanderson novel and doesn't. The meat of his novels isn't the dialogue between characters (which is almost always fun), but the world building. A lot of this is shown in context, though some is, by necessity, explained (for instance in WARBREAKER, biochromatic breath is explained to us several different times because its a very visual magic system, whereas in the Mistborn books its shown to us through the characters' actions and reactions with few "tutorial" explanations). The Sand Masters' (and other spoilery characters) magic may have had more of an effect on me if it had been explained without the visuals to me.

If this has been published as a novel first, I would have gotten more out of it. The pacing feels off - not enough time is given to Kenton and his fellow before/during/after the Master's test (it was over and done before I could blink!) so it lost some emotional resonance with me. I liked Khriss quite a bit, but she just...appeared in the story after the too short introduction to Kenton's people (I gathered that Kenton had traveled quite the distance from the site of the massacre).

tdlr; - I enjoyed this, I'm happy Sanderson is branching into (yet another) type of media to conquer, but I wish more thought had been put into the pacing and overly busy illustrations.

Brandon Sanderson's first novel, never before published, rewritten as a graphic novel. Our main character is Kenton, a sand mage of little power but great control. He's constantly in conflict with his father who considers him a disappointment. Two issues in, the series takes a huge turn and the Darksiders arrive who are much more technologically advanced. This is the first of 3 planned volumes. Sanderson still provides us with a highly detailed, fully realized world, it's just that it is mostly presented to you visually instead of in words. The art is quite good. Most people who are complaining were reading the advance copy from NetGalley which is a really lo-res, blurry version of the final art.

Received an advance copy from NetGalley and Dynamite in exchange for an honest review.

This graphic novel is supposedly set in Sanderson's Cosmere universe in which I have not read any other books of his with this particular world in it. I suspect that if I had, I might have enjoyed this graphic novel more, but unfortunately, that was not the case. The world itself just from this graphic novel is very elaborate. There are people of different backgrounds, races, and religions along with a well thought out magic system. Of course, I would expect nothing less from Brandon Sanderson, the master at fantasy word building and magical elements. I will not attempt to try and explain this world in detail because I found the information contained in this graphic novel did not allow me to fully understand the world and its elements fully, but I really liked the idea of each aspect of it nevertheless.

I think it is important for you guys to know that I am not one who has great luck with graphic novels. I can never really enjoy them as much as I enjoy full-fledged novels, but I had high hopes that this one would be the one. The one that opened my eyes to the idea that graphic novels don't always have to feel as if they are missing something important and can keep me engaged. White Sand had all the ingredients and potential with a great world, wonderful fantasy elements, and a great author, yet it still somehow fell a bit flat for me.

Some of the characters had the ability to control sand which I thought was awesome and gave me a The Last Airbender vibe. Their powers are great but still limited. There are dark and light-siders. We mostly explore the light-sider world in this book, and dark-siders are mostly characterized by their dark skin color. It is easy to tell that the world has its own story behind each of the different groups of people who have their own culture and politics. There are some who worship a sun god and some who are more or less atheist. There were even different languages. Talk about attention to details! There were so many elements and none were explained very closely (at least in this first volume), so I was left feeling like I had missed out on such a great, expansive universe Sanderson has created. Once again, maybe having read one of his other novels set in this world would have remedied all of this.

As for the artwork, I did not particularly enjoy it, but I feel like I cannot fairly judge it by just reading the eARC format I received from the publishers on Netgalley. In this format, most of the pictures were blurry and not well detailed, but I am sure they look ten times better in the finished copies. I probably would have had a better reading experience if the artwork had been clear and finalized as the artists and publishers envisioned it.

Overall, this was a book that had a lot of potential, but I think I expected too much before actually jumping in. I do have to say that it was still a great read and I'm sure those who read the finished versions will enjoy it much better. It was also good enough to have me wanting to pick up the next graphic novel in this series or one of Sanderson's other books written in this universe.
*Received book free in exchange for an honest review*
Originally posted on Blue Books and Butterflies

Sanderson is known for his intricate and original magic concepts and that creativity is definitely to be found in White Sand. And certainly the artwork is intricate and full of detail and originality. Yet taken as a whole, this never comes together to create a very good graphic novel. The story is bland, overwordy/dialogue heavy, and the illustrations fail to convey the subtlety of the writing. The plot is confusing and the setting odd and unresolved. Characters are flat and very caricature-like, creating a very disenfranchising read.

Story: Kenton is the son of the master 'sand wizard' - and is learning to control the sands on his desert planet. Full of rebellion and idealism rather than sand manipulation talent, he is the disappointment that his father cannot live down. When the Sand Masters are betrayed and slaughtered, he must find a way to save his culture, battling from within and without as he finds his own magic.

I think the problem here is that the art just doesn't match the story very well. Sanderson's story appears to be full of nuance and subtlety but the illustrations are very emotive, with characters always appearing to be overreacting (yelling, gesticulating, etc.) or in odd positions for body shots (appearing to be walking in a scene where they should be standing). It was very incongruous and made everyone seem like they were always screaming or angry, regardless of situation. And I found the static pictures of groups of people very strange - with legs crossed and arms extended in very theatrical positions that made no sense for the scene. Combined with a very slavish attention to the idea of 'white' in White Sand it meant that nearly 3/4 of the images are pure white - leaching the graphic novel of color and energy. It looked more like white snow than white sand and I felt there really needed to be a hint of yellow in all that white.

The plot/setting was fairly mundane. Parts were over explained to death (many times over, the magic system) and other areas never explained at all (daysider vs darksider, etc.). And other areas made no sense at all - such as the costuming and how no one every remarked or noticed Kenton in his Sand Masters outfit or his Darksider friends in their elaborate costumes despite there being a war at that point. Add in a useless early plot device about a race and a LOT of dialogue/exposition and this can be a chore to read. The art isn't allowed to tell the story at all and is clearly fully subservient to the story - it makes for poor synergy and a pointless waste of the graphic medium.

I obviously did not enjoy White Sand. Admittedly, I've only read one Brandon Sanderson book so I am not 'invested' in the author. As a graphic novel, this felt like a missed opportunity that never really came together to create a compelling story. It's also a really good lesson on how author/illustrator synergy can create a great work of art or completely fail to gel into a compelling read. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

For me, I really enjoyed volume one. I'm a huge fan of Brandon Sanderson, and I've read most of the cosmere books including the Stormlight Archive series which were truly amazing. I think that this was a very successful first atempt at a graphic novel, and really I only had 1 complaint. Besides the huge battle at the biggining where most everyone died, not a lot happened. It was very short and it ended almost right as you really got into it. That said, the artwork was incredible and I really enjoyed the world that Sanderson gave us this time. The different kinds of powers that he gives us in every book he writes is so uniquely brilliant that it just ads a spark to his works that you look for so often but you rarely find.
There are definitely limitations to writing graphic novels that you don't find when working with other forms of literature. For example, it's harder to express the characters emotions and thoughts, you don't get to explain as much of the culture as you normally would, the readers will not feel as much of a deep understanding for the characters, you can't have long dialog, and those are just the ones off the top of my head. And yet even with all those limitations he's not used to, Sanderson was still able to adapt and produce an entertaining read.
Overall I think white sand was a success and I can't Waite to read volume 2, (so hurry up Brandon).

I received an ARC for an honest review. Thank you, Netgalley!

I am on the fence about this one. First off being a graphic novel, the artwork is as important as the story. It was hard to review the artwork as this being an ARC, none of the artwork was clear. Meaning it was very pixelated and blurry even, so it was hard to distinguish one character from another. In some panels it was hard to distinguish anything. Having reviewed other ARC graphic novels, I know the artwork can be very clear- like you have the book right in front of you. This wasn't the case here and so I can not fairly review it.

Now- the story. I know the author is influenced by Dune and other classic sci-fi. I also understand that this was a story he came up with early in his career and didn't release it until now. Granted, I'm sure it went through fine tuning and whatnot first, probably over many times. I also understand that this is one of a few volumes so we won;t get the whole story now. When I first started reading the story I thought, "Oh no!! Is this a wanna be Dune??!!" I continued on and thank god it did start changing. That being said, I felt like things didn't really go anywhere. Yes- there was world building.Yes- characters were introduced. It even seemed as though the magic was being introduced. But did that really need to be introduced separately? No- it should be incorporated into the character development. We can easily learn about it that way. The problem facing our main characters only really came into being near the end of the novel. I don;t feel a whole volume needs to be dedicated to just world building and introductions to characters or whatever. It really should start getting into the meat of the story. Yet, I don;t feel like it really did.

Kenton seems like an interesting character. He was someone set out to prove he could be just as good as the other masters without having the abilities they had. However, what ability he did have he did master. He had great control over what he could do. That should have been appreciated within his people but it wasn't. So, he has a chip on his shoulder. Not only was his magic not good enough, but he was also of mixed blood. This was also frowned upon. In reaction, he lashed out against authority and at times, acted like a child. I get all that. I just don't see how he suddenly did a 180 during the council meeting and began to be mature and try to work with authority. Granted, he was trying to save his people, but still. The progression was lost on me. That being said ti will be interesting to see how he handles being leader, how he can prove Drile set it up so almost all of the Sand Masters were killed, while also convincing the council that his profession should not be dissolved. Seems like quite a bit to put on his shoulders.

Another character that seems interesting is Dutchess Khrissalla. She's on a mission to find out how her fiancee died and did he find what he was looking for. He was on the search for a weapon but we don't know until the end that this weapon are a group of people- the Sand Mages who are also Kenton's people. I do wonder why her finacee wanted this "weapon" and as of yet we don't know. I am also interested to know more about Darkside and more about Khrissalla's history. Perhaps in future volumes we will find out more.

At the writing of this review, these are the only two characters that really stood out and seemed interesting. Which I guess is good since they seem to be the main characters. Also, I hope the story REALLY picks up in the future volumes. One that just drags on without anything really happening is boring. In regards to this volume, overall it was just ok

Quite disappointed. I have read every piece of cosmere work and this falls quite short. It's an interesting premise, but I can't help but feel that you lose something primal and very much necessary to the story-line when you switch from a book structure to a graphic novel. Events that should be properly explored are glossed over and it's become really, really hard for me to care about the characters. In fact, I finished this book yesterday and I've already forgotten the name of the protagonist. If Volume 2 comes out I will purchase it, simply because I want to find out more about the cosmere. But as of right now I feel robbed.

I was upset because this is a "graphic novel" and it was not stated as a "graphic novel" in the description. I love Brandon Sanderson, but on a Kindle, I could not read or follow the story. I ended up abandoning the kindle version all together. I am not a fan of graphic novels.

I love Sanderson's work but this one left me feeling a little lost. The story line felt like being dropped into the middle of the unknown. I will probably read the next book and hope things get better. I like the graphic novel details themselves.

Extremely disappointing addition to the Cosmere sequence. The things that make Sanderson a great read - world-building, intricate magical systems, character development - are seriously hindered by the graphic novel format. The book is very clunky in parts where new scenes or new characters are introduced, and the busy art style makes it very difficult to figure out who is who and what is going on in places. There is something to be said for the graphic novel format, to be sure, but this wasn't written as a graphic novel, this was a 1000 page prose hacked and slashed to fit a graphic novel.

I purchased this Kindle ebook as a pre-order set to deliver to my Kindle Fire. When I went to read it, I found that my Kindle was saying that the ebook wasn't compatible with my device. Talking to support, I learned that the publisher actively blocked my device from being able to download the book. I find this unacceptable. I paid for the book, why do you not allow me to have it?

Unusually shallow novel. I hope this graphic novellas is just an experimentation - it can't substitute the deepness of character and world building like we see in Sanderson's other books (of which I am a huge fan btw).
The pace of the actions looks forced and the motivation of the protagonists very, very shallow (as already mentioned).
Can we get a proper book instead of this?

after reading the original full novel of White Sand a couple of years ago i'm disappointed in how small a part of the story this graphic novel covers. I bought it to support Brandon after being a big fan of his, not knowing it was only a fraction of the story being included. It doesn't have the same feel as the novel and I enjoyed imagining the original story while reading it instead of looking at the pictures as i went. I don't feel it was worth the amount of money paid.

The advertisement for this graphic novel should have made it clear that this is a graphic novel. Brandon Sanderson is one of my favorite authors, so I bought the kindle edition without realizing it is a graphic novel. I would never have purchased it if I had known. I feel like I got ripped off!

The free sample of the book consists of a few graphic drawings and the author's foreword. I'll have to go see if I can find a readable sample of one of his other books to see if I like his writing style or the story line. It would be a good idea to have a human check the samples.

I choose this rating not because Brandon Sanderson is not a a good author, he is. I choose the rating because it is in a comic book format and very difficult to see. I am very disappointed and out $15.00. It is also novella length. I will research further before I will purchase another of his books. Very disappointed.

I asked my daughter to buy this book as a birthday present, A little disappointed that this was a graphic novel The discription didn’t mention it and I was disappointed when I received it. I prefer reading a book.