Everyone here at Tor Teen is thrilled about publishing The Rithmatist, Brandon Sanderson’s first young adult fantasy, in May 2013. Here is the cover, with amazing art by Christopher Gibbs. Our awesome art director, Seth Lerner, designed the jacket, and the book will be fully illustrated by the talented Ben McSweeney.
Brandon is known for his world-building, and I was totally blown away by the unique and inventive magic system he created for this book. The Rithmatist is an epic fantasy set in an alternate version of our world—a world in which life in the American Isles is threatened by the attacks of mysterious creatures known as Wild Chalklings. Chalklings are two-dimensional drawings that can be infused with life by Rithmatists and it is the job of the Rithmatists to keep the Wild Chalkings at bay.
You may wonder how a two-dimensional drawing could possibly be a threat. Here’s the answer: Wild Chalklings scurry across the ground like scorpions or land piranhas, and bite chunks out of your feet. At which point you fall to the ground and they swarm you. Enough said.
The Rithmatist is about a 14-year-old kid named Joel who wants desperately to be a Rithmatist. But he wasn’t Chosen, so he doesn’t have the ability to bring chalklings or Rithmatic lines to life. All he can do is watch as The Rithmatist students at Armedius Academy learn the mystical art that he would give anything to practice. Then Rithmatist students start disappearing, kidnapped from their rooms at night, leaving only trails of blood. Joel’s professor asks him to help investigate—putting Joel and his friend Melody on the trail of a discovery that could change Rithmatics—and their world—forever….
Hope you will all have a chance to read this phenomenal book. Stay tuned for ARC giveaways in the next few months!
Susan Chang is an editor at Tor Teen.
