INTRODUCTION

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson comes a standalone Cosmere novel of demons and destiny. Illustrated by Tran Nguyen.

In a forgotten land sustained by colorful rivers of demon blood, a child was born in the last cold hour of the last cold day of the last cold month. Let us call her December.

As an orphaned foundling, December grew up doing her best to fit into the roles society prepared for her. But after a transformative experience, she learns a cataclysmic plague is on the way, one that will curdle the blood rivers and ravage the kingdom.

But who will believe her, a poor woman from a small town on the riverbank? Against impossible odds, she sets sail up the River Violet to warn the king’s court, determined to stop a devastating destiny. Armed only with her wits and accompanied by her new friends—a chatty priestess and a fledgling fashion designer—December must navigate incredulous royal officials, twisted court intrigue, and a roguish count who might hold the key to her quest…and her heart.

In the cold days of her youth, society knew what to do with December. But now her eyes burn with wisdom beyond her years, and she will carve out whatever role she must to stave off disaster.

THE FIRES OF DECEMBER ART

INTRODUCTION

#1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson expands his Cosmere universe shared by The Stormlight Archive and Mistborn with a new standalone novel for everyone who loved The Princess Bride.

The only life Tress has known on her island home in an emerald-green ocean has been a simple one, with the simple pleasures of collecting cups brought by sailors from faraway lands and listening to stories told by her friend Charlie. But when his father takes him on a voyage to find a bride and disaster strikes, Tress must stow away on a ship and seek the Sorceress of the deadly Midnight Sea. Amid the spore oceans where pirates abound, can Tress leave her simple life behind and make her own place sailing a sea where a single drop of water can mean instant death?

Note from Brandon:

I started writing this in secret, as a novel just for my wife. She urged me to share it with the world—and alongside three other secret novels, with the support of readers worldwide it grew into the biggest Kickstarter campaign of all time. I’m excited to present this first book to you at last: a different type of Brandon Sanderson story, one I wrote when there were no time constraints, no expectations, and no limits on my imagination. Come be part of the magic.

TRESS OF THE EMERALD SEA ART

INTRODUCTION

From the #1 Kickstarter campaign of all time—#1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson adds to his Cosmere universe shared by Mistborn and The Stormlight Archive with a new standalone novel especially for fans of Asian pop culture. Illustrated by Aliya Chen.
There is a world. One of endless night, surrounded by an even deeper darkness. Filled with nightmares come to life, twisted shapes that slink to windows and ease open doors, sliding across floors to look down on helpless faces.

There is another world. A bright world, so bright it burns. Filled with stacked stones that call forth miracles, raised by callused hands that tremble in their work, drained with each stone lifted, settled, lifted again.

Between these worlds two souls connect. Collide. Entwine.

A bridge. A path.

A road to both worlds changing forever.

Yumi has spent her entire life in strict obedience, granting her the power to summon the spirits that bestow vital aid upon her society—but she longs for even a single day as a normal person. Painter patrols the dark streets dreaming of being a hero—a goal that has led to nothing but heartache and isolation, leaving him always on the outside looking in. In their own ways, both of them face the world alone.

Suddenly flung together, Yumi and Painter must strive to right the wrongs in both their lives, reconciling their past and present while maintaining the precarious balance of each of their worlds. If they cannot unravel the mystery of what brought them together before it’s too late, they risk forever losing not only the bond growing between them, but the very worlds they’ve always struggled to protect.

NOTE FROM BRANDON:

Even for a compulsive planner like me, sometimes a story emerges like magic. Unexpected, unprompted. You build an outline in days, craft worlds during a compulsive daydream, and develop characters with a burst of imagination like the brief flash of a firework.

That was Yumi and the Nightmare Painter for me. The unanticipated story of two people who find one another.

May your dreams live as mine sometimes do.

YUMI AND THE NIGHTMARE PAINTER ART