Tress of the Emerald Sea is set in a fantasy world that has pirates and trade routes in the oceans, but there aren’t oceans. They are instead spores, and if these spores come into contact with water, they explode in different ways. Most of these ways will kill you. Tress, the main character, loves collecting cups and talking to her friend Charlie. Then she realizes he may be more than a friend, at which point Charlie is sent off to find a bride. Tress embarks on a journey to find him, and herself.
I loved so many things about this book, especially Tress’ character arc, which was a fun one. I haven’t read much of Brandon Sanderson’s work, only the Stormlight Archives. Even though I’ve only read the Stormlight Archives, I recognized Wit (Hoid) which was really entertaining. The plot twists in this book were genuinely unexpected, and it wasn’t too long of a book. The writing is also good at creating imagery, which helped to immerse myself in the book. There wasn’t really anything horrible about this book, nor particularly bad, not worth mentioning at least. It just wasn’t the best book I’ve read, for no reason other than it wasn’t foundation breaking.
I do recommend this book, especially if you’re overwhelmed about starting to get into Brandon Sanderson’s Cosmere. I was overwhelmed by the amount of books in the rest of the Cosmere, and this was a good way to start.
