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White Sand #2

Brandon Sandersons Weißer Sand (Band 2) - Eine Graphic Novel aus dem Kosmeer

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Die Sandmaster sind tot – lang leben die Sandmaster! Oder zumindest Kenton, der Sohn der Obersten des Sandmaster-Ordens und einer der wenigen, die das große Massaker an den Sand-Magiern überlebt haben, versucht verzweifelt, den Orden wiederzubeleben und zwischen den Herrschern der Nacht- und Tag-Seite zu vermitteln. Politik scheint ihm dabei mehr zu liegen als die Sand-Beschwörung. Aber gegen die Attentäter, die versuchen seine Mission zu verhindern und ihn zu töten, wäre ein wenig "Feuerkraft" schon ganz gut … Graphic Novels vom preisgekrönten Fantasy-Autor Brandon Sanderson.

160 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 21, 2018

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12761 people want to read

About the author

Brandon Sanderson

470 books279k followers
I’m Brandon Sanderson, and I write stories of the fantastic: fantasy, science fiction, and thrillers.

The release of Wind and Truth in December 2024—the fifth and final book in the first arc of the #1 New York Times bestselling Stormlight Archive series—marks a significant milestone for me. This series is my love letter to the epic fantasy genre, and it’s the type of story I always dreamed epic fantasy could be. Now is a great time to get into the Stormlight Archive since the first arc, which begins with Way of Kings, is complete.

During our crowdfunding campaign for the leatherbound edition of Words of Radiance, I announced a fifth Secret Project called Isles of the Emberdark, which came out in the summer of 2025. Coming December 2025 is Tailored Realities, my non-Cosmere short story collection featuring the new novella Moment Zero.

Defiant, the fourth and final volume of the series that started with Skyward in 2018, came out in November 2023, capping an already book-filled year that saw the releases of all four Secret Projects: Tress of the Emerald Sea, The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England, Yumi and the Nightmare Painter, and The Sunlit Man. These four books were all initially offered to backers of the #1 Kickstarter campaign of all time.

November 2022 saw the release of The Lost Metal, the seventh volume in the Mistborn saga, and the final volume of the Mistborn Era Two featuring Wax & Wayne. Now that the first arc of the Stormlight Archive is wrapped up, I’ve started writing the third era of Mistborn in 2025.

Most readers have noticed that my adult fantasy novels are in a connected universe called the Cosmere. This includes The Stormlight Archive, both Mistborn series, Elantris, Warbreaker, four of the five Secret Projects, and various novellas, including The Emperor’s Soul, which won a Hugo Award in 2013. In November 2016 all of the existing Cosmere short fiction was released in one volume called Arcanum Unbounded. If you’ve read all of my adult fantasy novels and want to see some behind-the-scenes information, that collection is a must-read.

I also have three YA series: The Rithmatist (currently at one book), The Reckoners (a trilogy beginning with Steelheart), and Skyward. For young readers I also have my humorous series Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians, which had its final book, Bastille vs. the Evil Librarians, released in 2022. Many of my adult readers enjoy all of those books as well, and many of my YA readers enjoy my adult books, usually starting with Mistborn.

Additionally, I have a few other novellas that are more on the thriller/sci-fi side. These include the three stories in Legion: The Many Lives of Stephen Leeds, as well as Perfect State and Snapshot. These two novellas are also featured in 2025’s Tailored Realities. There’s a lot of material to go around!

Good starting places are Mistborn (a.k.a. The Final Empire), Skyward, Steelheart, The Emperor’s Soul, Tress of the Emerald Sea, and Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians. If you’re already a fan of big fat fantasies, you can jump right into The Way of Kings.

I was also honored to be able to complete the final three volumes of The Wheel of Time, beginning with The Gathering Storm, using Robert Jordan’s notes.

Sample chapters from all of my books are available at brandonsanderson.com—and check out the rest of my site for chapter-by-chapter annotations, deleted scenes, and more.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,004 reviews
Profile Image for Petrik.
771 reviews62.1k followers
April 24, 2018
Sanderson, I consider you my favorite author of all time. But please, for the love of god never EVER do this kind of graphic novel adaptation for your work again.

This won't be a full review, I don't need a full review to explain how unpolished this volume is. Bottom line is that this shouldn't have been published in this current state. First, the dialogues are poor and I mean really poorly written and awkward. Poor characterizations, stories are damn boring and felt messy. Artworks used to be the saving grace of the first volume and yes, it's still gorgeous here, ONLY during action sequences. This was a two stars book and then the final chapter happened. The cover artist changed and suffice to say, Spongebob Squarepants felt like a more intense television show in comparison to this cartoon. My god what were they thinking publishing this in this state!? I’ve praised Sanderson's works countless times already but this? I won't even consider this his work. Sorry, just no.

I hope Sanderson will rework his manuscript of this novel and release it as a standalone.
Profile Image for Jonathan O'Neill.
249 reviews581 followers
September 30, 2021
1 ⭐

Holy Hoid, have mercy fellow SanderFans! I swear by the feathered glutes of Quetzalcoatl, I never wanted this! I tried. Oh, Stormfather how I’ve tried! But White Sand – Vol.2 is so densely packed with horseshit that it curves the very fabric of space with its Gravitational Pull!


Sanderson is a very prolific author whose had a lot of success and for good reason. He’s an incredibly imaginative guy and his books are of consistently high quality in the realm of Modern Fantasy. How does this Graphic Novel fit into that equation? Well, if you can imagine a couple of prolific procreators who have had a string of brilliant children. Little Benjamin sits atop a high-backed chair, in the corner, playing Bach’s Suite No. 1 in G major on his Cello. The beautiful Sophia sits cross-legged on the floor, text books splayed out in front, so, so close to bringing the theories of General Relativity and Quantum Mechanics together into a cohesive whole. Pedro isn’t home today, he’s only 9 but he’s driven. He trains hard and is pushing for selection in Real Madrid’s senior squad. And then there’s Santiago who’s laying on his stomach, facing the wall. He’s a curious little Gremlin, and at the moment he’s shovelling Crayons down his gob and seeing how far up his nose he can push the chalk sticks that he stole from his old man’s study. Santiago is this Graphic Novel, and while you really want to love him as much as all the others…. You also kinda wanna take him to the market and ”forget” to bring him home.


That’s a joke of course. Just muckin’ around, havin’ a bit of fun. I’m not really a monster but this book is awful. An absolutely lacklustre plot, weak characterisation, an uncharacteristically shallow magic system, action scenes that are messy and hard to follow sending you cross-eyed as if your eyes were two positive magnets attracted to the negative bridge of your nose and some really mundane, tedious internal dialogue from the main protagonist. Oh, and how could I forget, the subtle-as-a-sledgehammer Art Style change in the final chapter. Something’s gone down behind the scenes there and I swear by Odin’s empty, decaying eye-socket, Sando’s just gone, “Fuck it, I’ma finish this myself! Jeeves, fetch me my Derwents!!” I’m obliged to continue as I bought all 3 like the compulsive simpleton that I am but you can still save yourselves the heartache. Give this one a miss guys.
Profile Image for Anna [Bran. San. Stan].
441 reviews297 followers
September 22, 2022
Sorry, this medium (or rather the execution of it) is just not my thing. I just don't like the aesthetics and the story is hard to follow. I’m so grateful I also chose to listen to the GraphicAudio production. This way I’ve come to love White Sand! Sanderson and Cosmere - what’s not to love?

Story: 5 stars
GraphicAudio: 5 stars
Graphic novel: 2 stars
Profile Image for Wera.
475 reviews1,449 followers
October 2, 2020
3 stars

Story: ★★★
The story picked up somewhat. It wasn't fantastic, but I am more invested and am enjoying what I am reading. The new developments are there, however when comparing it to the first volume, I barely feel like we moved at all. That being said, the pacing was better and the things happening overall were more enjoyable to read about. Although there is less shock moments in this volume, there is more time spent with characters and making them into not-cartoons. Overall I liked the story, but didn't love it. I don't know how this can be wrapped up in one volume remaining. I feel like a lot was set up with little space for pay-off.

Writing: ★★★
The writing greatly improved. There is much less showing not telling in the way that Kenton used to talk at us in info-dumps and move on. This is good. However, in moments the dialogue still feels very rusty and forced. I appreciate how the writer and the artists clearly have worked more together when creating this second volume as it is much easier and more and enjoyable to read.

Art: ★★★
Ah yes, the infamous art-style change happened. To discuss this I will talk about how I liked the first art-style and why I think although the new one does change some things, it doesn't take away from the overall conveying of the story to readers. The biggest pro of the first art-style is 100% the way it portrays the atmosphere of Taldain. The biggest negative of this, however, is that it was kind of hard to look at sometimes. Often I needed to look at it twice to really understand what was going on. The new art-style makes the story easier and more comprehensive, however it doesn't have that same level of showing Taldain's atmosphere. The new art-style is much more simple, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing.

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Books in Cosmere:
Mistborn: Era 1
#1 The Final Empire: ★★★.5
#2 The Well of Ascension: ★★★★.25
#3 The Hero of Ages: ★★★★.5
Era 2
#1 The Alloy of Law: ★★★
#2 Shadows of Self: ★★★.25
#3 The Bands of Mourning: ★★★.5

Novellas / Short-Stories:
Mistborn: Secret History: ★★★★.25
The Emperor's Soul: ★★★★.25

Standalones:
Elantris: ★★★.5
Warbreaker: ★★★.75

The Stormlight Archive:
#1 The Way of Kings: ★★★★★
#2 Words of Radiance: ★★★★.75

White Sand:
#1 Volume One: ★★
#2 Volume Two: ★★★
#3 Volume Three: ★★★.25
Profile Image for EveStar91.
267 reviews272 followers
August 9, 2025
"The sand mages are doomed..."
"Perhaps, perhaps not... It sounds like what they need, Duchess, is a skilled diplomat on their side. "


White Sand, Volume 2 follows Kenton and Khriss as they make a deal to help each other - Khriss to garner diplomatic support for Kenton's organization, and Kenton to help Khriss' country in its war later with their magic.

This volume has a bit more character development for Kenton and Khriss, showing their vulnerabilities as well as their strengths. The plot, the secondary characters and the city politics get more interesting, and the protagonists working together move the story along well. I particularly enjoyed Khriss' efforts in understanding sand magic and her research into it, trying to find a way it could help their country.

I read the unpublished prose version long ago, which can be accessed by emailing the author or signing up for his newsletter. It's been fun to read it again in this format, especially seeing the art around the magic system using, if you guessed it, white sand, but can't comment on the graphic aspects and structuring of the novel as I don't usually read this medium.

Recommended for anyone interested in Brandon Sanderson's work and the Cosmere worlds, though I would have probably appreciated a polished version of the prose novel itself, generally preferring characters' thoughts and background to visual depictions focusing on action.

🌟🌟🌟3/4🌟
[3/4 star for the premise; 3/4 star for the characters; 3/4 star for the plot; 3/4 star for the world-building; 3/4 star for the writing/ graphics - 3 3/4 stars in total.]
Profile Image for Manisha.
514 reviews90 followers
June 30, 2018
Actual review: 2.75

There are some stories meant to be written, some meant to be watched, and some meant to be read with pictures. This is definitely not one meant to be read in a graphic novel format.

Not only has a story that was meant to be one novel been divided into three graphic novels, but this middle installment was underwhelming. The artwork was poor, but it was the graphic novel format that hindered the storytelling the most.

I could tell that there were important facts missing. It felt rushed, only touching the surface of what could have been an entertaining novel. There was no depth, and I wished we had words and descriptions to help with context.

The world building and the characterisations have suffered due to the wrong format of telling this story.
Profile Image for Calista.
5,432 reviews31.3k followers
October 17, 2019
This is sort of a political fantasy thriller. Kenton is trying to save the Diem and the Sand Masters but there are assassins trying to kill him. The San Masters were very secretive and he is having to look at traditions that have turned the people away from this idea.

I like the story and the world set up. I want to know more about the Sand Master's. We really don't know much about the history of what is going on and there is so much more to know. I want to know more about the Darksiders. I was disappointed we didn't find out who is sending the assassins and what the goal is. This was a set-up volume. We didn't get many questions answered, just more questions. I hope the last volume will wrap it all up nicely.
Profile Image for Eli24.
222 reviews144 followers
December 4, 2022
حس میکنم بار اول که این داستانو خوندم اصلا وقت مناسبی سراغش نرفته بودم چون اصلا ازش لذت نبردم درست برعکس ایندفعه.
تازه تونستم اصل شخصیت کریس و کنتون درک کنم(به شخصه عاشق کریس شدم چیزی که اصلا فکرشم هم نمیکردم😂)
ولوم سوم تازه برا بار اوله که میخوام برم سراغش ک جوری که بازخوانی دو ولوم قبلی بهم چسبید باعث شده تا کلی مشتاق شروعش باشم😁✌🏼
Profile Image for Victor Almeida.
380 reviews6,033 followers
October 25, 2022
Não acho que essa história combina com o formato de quadrinho. Toda a trama política acaba ficando mal explicada e mal desenvolvida (sem contar confusa).
Profile Image for Bradley.
Author 9 books4,865 followers
May 6, 2020
I'm only going to compare this story to the bulk of Brandon Sanderson's other work because most of us already know he's both prolific and fun and he rarely ever writes a bad story.

The same is true for White Sand. I stayed up late into the night last night reading far past my normal bedtime, enjoying the hell out of Vol 2 and most of Vol 3.

In retrospect, the story may be slightly predictable, but it is fundamentally the same as Game of Thrones in the broad brushstrokes.

The fate of a *small* kingdom of Sand magicians is beset by a council that wants to shut them down permanently after a tragic occurrence. He must change how they are perceived and he must earn or otherwise force the votes of the council in two weeks in order to save his people.

In other words, it's a political fantasy with assassination attempts, great worldbuilding, good characters, and plenty of twists and turns.

It's definitely not a bad work of art by any stretch. I just wanted to keep on READING at all costs! :)

Bottom line? Worth it.

But what happened with the last issue in this volume? I was LOVING the sketch-art! Why couldn't it continue???
Profile Image for Kyriaki.
482 reviews246 followers
June 6, 2020
Μου άρεσε λίγο λιγότερο από τον προηγούμενο τόμο, όχι για κανέναν άλλον λόγο αλλά γιατί νιώθω ότι δεν συνέβησαν και πολλά σημαντικά πράγματα!

Όσο αναφορά το σχέδιο, ισχύουν τα ίδια με τον πρώτο τόμο μόνο που εδώ στο τελευταίο κεφάλαιο είχαμε αλλαγή στον καλλιτέχνη. Και ευτυχώς ήταν μόνο ένα κεφάλαιο γιατί δεν με ενθουσίασε καθόλου το καινούριο σχέδιο. Όχι γιατί ήταν τόσο κακό αλλά γιατί νομίζω δεν ταίριαζε τόσο με την ιστορία (το προηγούμενο ήταν πολύυυυ πιο ταιριαστό!). Απ' ότι είδα στον τρίτο τόμο το σχέδιο το έχει αναλάβει ένα τρίτος καλλιτέχνης οπότε ελπίζω να είναι καλύτερο, γιατί όχι ακόμη κι από το πρώτο!
Profile Image for Marnie  (Enchanted Bibliophile).
1,031 reviews139 followers
August 26, 2021
”Take my hand, Duchess. Don’t tell me you aren’t curious to experience sand mastery first hand?”

K&K

This one was disappointing. The art was all over the place and the story didn’t go anywhere. There was no new information, nor was any secret revealed.
I still feel that you can’t put work as voluminous as Sanderson’s into a small comic series; I feel I’m missing so much.
Profile Image for Reem.
359 reviews
December 7, 2025
I feel guilty for this rating, but I didn’t enjoy this volume as much!
Profile Image for Matías Racedo.
381 reviews60 followers
September 18, 2022
2022 reread update:
I enjoyed it a bit more. I was able to look past the change of artist and the unfinished look of the last chapter and focus of the story, which moved forward in this volume. I would love a novel based on Taldain in the future, such an interesting world and magic system, with so much left unexplored!

First read:
I like the story, I think I would have loved the book if Sanderson had published it as a regular novel, instead of being published separately as graphic novels. But sadly that is the case, so I'm not enjoying these White Sand volumes very much.
To start with, it's a bit confusing, so much world building and magic to explain with so little text, most of it dialogues. And I've never been a fan of the artwork, the details most of all. But what they did with this last volume, using a different artist for the last chapter, was... not cool.
Of course I'll read the last installment, because it's an important part of the Cosmere, but I can't imagine how they will tie every loose end in just one more volume. Only time will tell.
Profile Image for Chad.
10.3k reviews1,060 followers
April 18, 2018
Volume 2 focuses on Kenton trying to get the necessary votes to keep the Sand Masters guild alive. There is a lot of political intrigue as he meets with each of the council to try and sway their vote. At the same time, he has to fend off multiple assassins as a religious order has named him a blasphemer. I like what's been done with the translation from prose to comic. I'll have to see if I can track down the original novel once this is finished.
Profile Image for cors.
334 reviews68 followers
January 3, 2019
I need the novel version A-S-A-P!

RTC
Profile Image for Daniel.
812 reviews74 followers
March 25, 2018
U prvoj svesci smo imali postavku sveta, upoznavanje sa likovim i osnove price. U drugoj svesci sada dolazi do razvoja te price i nekako dolazimo do jednog od vecih problema ovog projekta: prica je prevelika da bi moglo da se smisleno prebaci u stripsku formu bez ogromnih rezova a opet imamo puno likova i ekspozicije na ustrb akcije i onoga sto stripovima daje prednost nad knjigama vizuelnom identitetu. Svaka strana je nabijena razgovorima sto jednostavno crtacima ne da mogucnost da svet dise i da dobijemo na vremenu da obradimo brdo informacija.

Plus u zadnjem poglavlju cak dolazi i do vidnog promea stila crtanja koji meni vise lezi posto je jendnostavniji ali opet takva promena stila isto izbaci iz koloseka.

Magisjki sistem jeste originalan i interesantan kao i sam svet ali to jednostavno ne dolazi do izrazaja.

Steta.
Profile Image for Thomas J. Benedict.
89 reviews31 followers
April 6, 2018
You break a book into three parts, and you get three incomplete stories. That’s what White Sand is.

This second instalment wasn’t terrible, but it’s the middle of a story, not really a whole story by itself. Kinda hard to rate. I did enjoy this book, even though it took me super long to finish.

Plus, something really bothered me. This world had a “day side” and “dark side.” People from the sunny day side have light skin, while people from the dark side have dark skin. It’s illogical. Skin pigments are natural sun protection.


I’m looking forward to seeing how this story ends.
Profile Image for Robin (Bridge Four).
1,942 reviews1,658 followers
June 29, 2021
Picking up right after the events of White Sands #1 Kenton is now trying to convince the counsel to keep the DM intact. Not as easy as you might think. The sand masters have not really been apart of society for years and only take from their community. Not many are willing to even hear Kenton out and he is the worst diplomat ever. Still Khriss might be able to help him out in that area. Now if assassins would just stop showing up to try and kill him.

I liked this one even better than the first. Digging into why someone might have wanted to get rid of all of the Sand Masters, finding out more about Khriss’s traveling companions and working through some of the politics of the land were all entertaining. Kenton might not be a great diplomat but her is able to think outside of the box and I like the direction he is taking the Sand Masters, that is again if he can stay alive. Plus, the body guard following him, well she might do her duty but makes no qualms about telling him all the time how much she hates his people.

This book also ends right when things are getting a little hectic and some nice size revelations are made. On to the last book for me.
Profile Image for Mitticus.
1,158 reviews240 followers
February 7, 2018
3.5

I got problems once again with my e-arc pdf copy , the images were not clear and a number of missing letters do a very frustrasting reading of an otherwise engaging story, more complex this time.

Kenton, now as Lord Mastrell of the remaining sand masters require the votes of the Lords to keep The Diem . But everywhere he turns for help or alliances found old grudges against the sand masters, religious prejudice and asassins attacks.

Maybe is time that some things change. The old ways of the sand masters produced a lot of enemies. Khriss is willing to help with diplomacy ... for some information.

-----------------------

La Duquesa Khrissalla es un personaje caprichoso, la tipica noble que se sle con la suya, y me resulta francamente antipática. Persigue Kenton , primero reprendiendolo y despues buscando respuestas. Presenta un lado ahora algo más erudito ahora, intentando hallar una explicación científica a los poderes de los maestros de arena para poder replicarlos en su patria. Hay otros problemas en el Darkside, aunque no se elabora cuales seran, y se ve que hay posibles traidores.

Un personaje mucho más complejo revela ser Ais, la guardaespaldas designada por al Jueza, que tiene extremo prejuicio religioso en contra de Kenton, pero igual cumple con su deber mientras intenta seguir con otra investigación y mantener a su familia a salvo.

También es interesante Aarik, el amigo todoterreno, que deja entrever que Kenton ha estado demasiado inmerso en su drama con su padre y ahora mantener el Diem, para aprender más de su amigo y que cosa le aqueja personalmente.

*Se nota el cambio de dibujante -Julius Otha- a partir del capitulo 6. El dibujo es más sencillo.

image
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Booksource: Netgalley in exchange for honest review.

#BrandonSanderson'sWhiteSandVolume2 #NetGalley
Profile Image for Jon Adams.
295 reviews58 followers
November 9, 2018
Well, at least it had pretty pictures... until the last chapter that is.

I can't fathom why the reviews are so high for this.
Profile Image for C.P. Cabaniss.
Author 11 books157 followers
March 10, 2018
While I think that this volume is an improvement over volume one, I still had issues with it. I am not sure that Sanderson translates well to this format. While the world is interesting and the characters have potential, it lacks the touch that his novels have. This was based on a draft of the novel that he wrote a long time ago, so it makes sense that it might not seem as polished as his recent stuff, but I still have a hard time with it presented like this.

How are they going to wrap this up with one more volume? I haven't read the prose version yet, but I find it hard to believe that it was this light and left things this open. The plot didn't seem to progress all that much and with it trying to follow more than one character (though Kenton was the main focus), it was impossible for any of the characters to develop much either.

It also listed in the front of the book the fact that the art for this volume was done by two different artists and that was very apparent when the switch happened in the last chapter. I am not sure why this is the case nor can I say which artists work I prefer. They are quite different styles.

So overall this was enjoyable but not an absolute favorite. I am interested to see where the third volume takes us and hope that we won't have to wait too long for its release.
Profile Image for Scott.
640 reviews65 followers
December 23, 2025
I have started my foray into reading Brandon Sanderson and his well-known Cosmere books. For those who are new to reading Sanderson, the Cosmere is his fictional universe in which most of his fantasy books share a single creation myth, a single cosmology, that includes underlying theorems of magic for all those connected worlds. There is a large tapestry of history and cross-over of characters and storylines.

I am in the middle of my Cosmere journey, having finished “Elantris”, “Warbreaker”, “Mistborn” (Era 1 and the first three books of Era 2) trilogy, the first two books in the “Stormlight Archive” series, and “Arcanum Unbounded”.

Next up has been my search for the rare and very expensive three volumes of Sanderson’s “White Sand” graphic novels. Not an easy one. Luckily, my local library carries all three volumes, so I was able to reserve all three of them. When I got my hands on them, I was surprised by what good shape they were in.

“White Sand” is a fantasy graphic novel series that Sanderson worked with Rik Hsoskin to write; artwork provided by Julius Gopez, Cassandra James, and Fritz Casas; lettering by Marshall Dillon; and coloring by Sophie Campbell.

It was originally published in 3 volumes by Dynamite Entertainment - #1 in June, 2016; #2 in February 2018; and # in September 2019. An anniversary edition that collected all 3 volumes in a “White Sand Omnibus” was also published in December, 2022. These editions are rare and usually cost hundreds to even thousands of dollars, depending on the seller and availability. You can also buy an electronic copy of the “Omnibus” edition on the Amazon Kindle format.

Sanderson has been working on his unfinished “White Sand” novel manuscript(s) for many years. He originally wrote the first version back in 1998, revised it in 2001 and 2008, and still expects to publish it at some point in the future. For now, we have the graphic novels to read and enjoy.

Please note that rather than providing a review of each of the 3 volumes, I am writing a single review that combines all of them together since they are all one complete story with a beginning, middle and end. Call it an “Omnibus” review.

“White Sand” is an essential part of Sanderson’s Cosmere connected novels and short stories. It takes place on a desert world of Taldain, where half of the planet is covered by darkness every day, and the other half is covered in sunlight and a lot of sand. It is full of typical Sanderson elements – multiple characters and storylines, magic systems, history and culture, and strong worldbuilding

The story involves multiple characters and plotlines that intersect and collide in typical Sanderson style:

-Kenton, a Daysider young man is training to become a Sand Master by harnessing an arcane magic that manipulates sand, including turning it into water.

-Khrissalia (or “Khriss”), a mysterious scholar from the Darkside of Taldain, has traveled to Dayside searching for her missing fiancé, as well as the secrets of sand mastery/

- Ais, a senior Kerztian law enforcement agent, searching for a criminal mastermind that has been terrorizing her people while battling personal guilt over her feelings towards sand mastery.

Surprisingly, this is a pretty ambitious project to take on, trying to bring Sanderson’s Cosmere into a graphic comic format. Not an easy thing to do by any means, but I can see why Brandon specifically choose “White Sand” as his first experiment in such a visually focused medium.

For me, there were some things that worked and some things that didn’t work as well. Let me also, add that my comments are based on reading the three volumes, and not the omnibus, in which I understand several corrections were made to fix and strengthen continuity and presentation issues.

I liked the overall characters, storylines, and worldbuilding. I liked Kenton and the conflicts he faced with several challenges to overcome in a very short period of time. Sanderson created some really strong conflict and Kenton’s weak sand mastery added to the tension of the story. I also liked Khriss. I really “liked” Khriss. She was smart, analytical, and to be honest, absolutely beautiful in comic form. She was mesmerizing, and knowing that she will likely play a key role in the “Cosmere” universe only added to her allure. Just be aware that this was pretty much presented as a one-off story and did not address Khriss’s greater “Cosmere” role that has been insinuated in Brandon’s other works, so we’ll have to wait on any future developments.

I also enjoyed the multiple plotlines and how they intersected and connected throughout the overall arc of the story. We had magic systems, history, political intrigue, culture and religious conflict, environmental influences to name a few. The concept of a world that stays half covered by the sun and half covered in the dark (my guess is that the planet does not revolve like the earth does) creates several interesting differences for the two cultures living there. That’s for sure

At the same time, there were some things that I struggled with. The art and wording had moments that came across as really busy. I had to slow down my reading multiple times to make sure I was reading in the right direction and confirm who was saying what. Also, when the artists changed, it was hard on the eyes adjusting from one to the other. It was a tough distraction.

Another thing I struggled with was the pacing. At times it was smooth (especially in Volume I), but at others, it was rushed, and the payoffs didn’t always seem to deliver the emotional impact that I was hoping for. I am not sure if it was how Sanderson delivered the story to the comic writer, or if it was how the comic was written, but for me it feels like the latter. I would also add that a major factor for most of my complaints is that this graphic novel project was done earlier in Sanderson’s career, and if he were to do it again now, the overall art and quality would be significantly improved.

Let’s wrap up. Overall, I was rather surprised that most of Sanderson’s style was able to show up as well as it did. Even with my constructive comments, it was an enjoyable read and left me wanting to read the novel version when Sanderson finally gets it published.
Profile Image for Jeraviz.
1,018 reviews636 followers
February 27, 2018
No me convencen estas incursiones de Sanderson en el cómic. La idea es buena como siempre y se pueden apreciar los elementos clásicos del autor pero al transformarlo en novela gráfica tengo la sensación de han recortado por donde han podido para hacer la historia más directa: infodump-acción-infodump-acción.
Tal vez para jóvenes que no sepan nada de Sanderson pueden comenzar en el Cosmere por aquí. Así ven cómo funciona un sistema mágico típico del autor. Pero los que llevamos años leyéndole se queda a medio gas.
Profile Image for Amber.
1,193 reviews
June 4, 2019
Pretty good Volume of the White Sand graphic novel series by Brandon Sanderson. Very action-packed and more. If you enjoy Brandon Sanderson, be sure to check out this graphic novel series and wherever books are sold.
Profile Image for Kimbot the Destroyer.
753 reviews15 followers
November 16, 2024
This has more story but I am still glad they are on KU and didn't cost me extra time or money. If I had to drive 5 minutes to the library to get these, I would have resented it.
Profile Image for Marc *Dark Reader with a Thousand Young! Iä!*.
1,500 reviews312 followers
April 6, 2020
My complaints from the preceding volume persist, and in addition the art changes jarringly at the last collected issue in this volume. It elminated the constantly-dirty look of the prior art, but managed to make the characters look even worse, especially that long-haired drunken lord.

If my library acquires the third volume I will read it just to see if the story goes anywhere, but if this represented any kind of actual time commitment I would not bother to do so.

Profile Image for Juraj.
224 reviews10 followers
October 1, 2023
Everything bad from Volume 1 applies here too but Khriss is now insufferable in the first half of this volume (at least gets better later), Kenton is just visiting one place after another and the worst character in whole Cosmere is probably introduced further here - Ais. I have Warbreaker flashbacks. The saving grace of this series was the art but the last chapter was for some reason drawn by another artist and the quality in comparison looks like child doodles.
Profile Image for Miguel Aguila.
158 reviews10 followers
March 14, 2024
2.5 Stars rounded down to 2 Stars. The concept and art are great, but the execution, story, and writing are extremely lacking. I found myself so bored through most of White Sand Vol 2, and really didn't care much for any of the characters. There's some interesting tidbits and mystery, but not interesting enough for 3 or more stars. Easily my least favorite work of Brandon Sanderson, as well as his weakest (in my opinion).
Profile Image for christene_littlelibrary.
296 reviews41 followers
September 17, 2022
3.5 ⭐

White Sand is a quick read of a magical and interesting story of Kenton, who has the ability to manipulate white sand at the cost of his water supply. The plot is not bad and the characters are interesting.

I wasn't really into graphic novel but this one gets to me when I saw who the author was. While it was not quite epic or satisfying as other masterpieces of Brandon Sanderson, the world building of the story is great and the character development is also good but I'm afraid it was confusing at first it was really fast paced that I was having a hard time understanding the story, though the artwork is not bad, I'm kinda also confused with the characters mostly at the first few pages. But I'll give it a 3.5⭐.

Oh and yes it's a free read on kindle unlimited! Maybe you might want to read. I'll definitely finished the series
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,004 reviews

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