Brandon Sanderson’s Tress of the Emerald Sea is a one-of-a-kind book. It has all the qualities of a classic light-hearted adventure story, featuring a plucky female protagonist, a Prince Charming in need of rescuing, plenty of pirates, a talking rat, infectious spores and other chaotic shenanigans to keep the pages turning.
Although set in the wider Cosmere universe and narrated by Hoid (the mysterious world-hopping storyteller who makes cameo appearances in most of the author’s books), Tress of the Emerald Sea can also be read as a whimsy standalone fairytale. You don’t need to know the intricacies of what happens in the Stormlight Archives or the Mistborn books to enjoy the narrative or make sense of its fungi-inspired magic system, though Cosmere devotees will appreciate all the Easter eggs and little references.
At its heart, Tress of the Emerald Sea follows the simple (but not so straight-forward) story of Tress, a young woman with a penchant for collecting cups, growing up in a little island in the middle of an emerald ocean. But when she discovers that Charlie, her beloved childhood friend and Duke’s son, has been imprisoned by the Sorceress of the Midnight Sea, she decides to venture into the vast unknown. Armed with nothing but her wit, courage and determination, Tress sets sail to rescue her love, befriends a group of pirates, leads a mutiny, bargains with a dragon and masters the art of wielding spores as weapons.
Delightful, compelling and cozy, Tress of the Emerald Sea is the perfect book to curl up with if you’re keen on a fantastical voyage across pollen-infested seas. In fact, Sanderson wrote the book in secret, as a gift to his wife who’s a big fan of The Princess Bride. And it was funded as part of the “Secret Projects” Kickstarter campaign—one of the most successful campaigns on the platform!
So whether you’re new to the Cosmere or you’re in the mood for some cozy fairytale adventures, our list of books that thematically or narratively vibe with Tress of the Emerald Sea has got you covered!
The Princess Bride
As Brandon Sanderson writes in the “postscript” to Tress of the Emerald Sea, the chief inspiration for the book was William Goldman’s The Princess Bride. During the lockdown, Sanderson had shown the film to his family and his wife Emily had wanted a story where Buttercup had gone searching for Westley.
Thus was born the story of Tress who goes looking for Charlie, even when his own family have given up hope. The Princess Bride also has plenty of encounters with outlaws and pirates, as Buttercup and Westley face several trials and tribulations that test the bonds of their love and commitment. There are also some meta-fictional elements in the text, designed to evoke the magical feeling of being told a bedtime tale by a master storyteller—clearly Hoid learned his lessons somewhere!
The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making
Tress of the Emerald Sea and The Girl Who Circumnavigated Faeryland in a Ship of Her Own Making have several things in common. Both of them were funded on Kickstarter before being picked up by major presses. Both books feature strong female protagonists who take matters into their own hands—there’s Tress with her unruly hair ready to embark on her first voyage and there’s twelve-year-old September who’s about to step foot in Fairyland.
Finally, both books feature a vividly-detailed secondary fantasy world where things are not what they seem. Catherynne M. Valente’s book, in particular, has plenty of strange and whimsy Wonderland-esque locations for readers to get lost in.
The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi
If the piracy shenanigans was your favorite bit in Tress of the Emerald Sea, you’ll definitely enjoy The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty which is a swashbuckling adventure across the high seas that also delves into themes of motherhood and loss of religious faith.
It also has a frame narrative, wherein Amina, the book’s middle-aged protagonist and whose granddaughter has gone missing, narrates her tale to a scribe. Carefully researched and filled with pirates, sorcerers and a magical heist, The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi is a thoroughly entertaining and exhilarating ride.
Yumi and the Nightmare Painter: A Cosmere Novel (Secret Projects Book 3)
For those craving more of the Cosmere but not quite ready to dip their toes into Sanderson’s longer series, Yumi and the Nightmare Painter can be a suitable compromise, especially if you enjoyed the friendship/romance between Tress and Charlie, and wanted more of it.
In Yumi and the Nightmare Painter, Sanderson brings together a girl and a boy from different worlds/cultures, and the two have to swap bodies and get to the heart of the mystery that connected them together. Intricately plotted, heartfelt and filled with unexpected twists and turns, Yumi and the Nightmare Painter is a love story that has all the warmth and political depth of a Studio Ghibli film. Also, Hoid returns as a narrator here, explaining the more technical aspects of the worldbuilding in a rather easy and funny way.
Howl's Moving Castle
Like Tress of the Emerald Sea, Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones also has a sweet and unconventional love story at its heart, along with other whimsy elements and characters making the best of their situations despite becoming “cursed”. The story follows Sophie Hatter who is turned into an old crone by a powerful witch; she becomes the cleaning-lady for Howl, a handsome tantrum-throwing wizard, and strikes a bargain with his demon, Calcifer.
And just like Hoid who can drop hints but not spell out the exact details of his curse to Tress, Sophie too has to figure out stuff on her own, even as she slowly falls for the young wizard. Cute, exciting and endearing, Howl’s Moving Castle has actually been adapted to a delightful Studio Ghibli film, with a strong anti-war message.
