Yumi and the Nightmare Painter

Wonderful as always!

Being a high fantasy writer, Sanderson is obviously not known for the romances on his books.
Despite this, all the books I've read from him have a bit of romance, and while this is not the reason I enjoyed them, I always find his love stories the best ones.

In his easy writing style and magical world, Sanderson always writes couples with an undeniable connection, who support and respect each other, and whom I see working on the long run, no epilogues needed to confirm it - Raoden and Sarene (Elantris), Vin and Elend (Mistborn Era 1), Dalinar and Navani (Stormlight Archive) and, the most recent, Tress and Charlie (Tress of the Emerald See)

While Yumi and the Nightmare Painter can be considered his most romantic book, it is much more than a love story, and will certainly be appreciated by all Cosmere fans, while possibly being more attractive to new readers.

“I only stare”, he said, “when I see something too beautiful for my eyes to take in all at once”

There is much to love in this book:
- It was inspired by the anime Your Name, which is absolutely brilliant (among other inspirations).
- Relatable characters and problems: both Painter and Yumi struggles will feel close to home for a lot of readers. They are acutely lonely and isolated. More than a romance, I find this book to be about what it means to be human and the need to find connections and to have a purpose. Our ability to learn and start again, and how important it is to accept our flaws and ask for forgiveness (ours and from others)
- Heavy on what I think Sanderson does best: Character and relationship development. This applies to both main and secondary characters and it really makes the story shine.
- Interesting magic system and world building, with heavy connections with other Cosmere worlds
- Well balanced in terms of pace
- Gorgeous illustrations by Aliya Chen. I'm definitely going to buy the hardcover as well (and desperately need for someone to bring the original cover from US because the postal costs are insane)

Regarding the one million dollar question:
In which order should I read this book?

While I'm a strong believer all Sanderson standalones should be good entry points, and that in no way is he expecting people to read almost 10 000 pages (count before secret projects) to pick up this book, I found it more heavily connected with the Stormlight Archive than I was expecting.
The connections in this book are not as subtil as usual and don't feel like the typical Easter eggs he plants in all his novels. I believe I would have preferred to read it after finishing SA. That said, it does not spoil anything of other books, and though I had one theory confirmed in this book, it would be absolutely indifferent if it was my first Cosmere novel.

If this is the book that leaves you curious enough to start reading his works, just do it.