Brandon Sanderson and Janci Patterson have opened their new Skyward Flight trilogy with a hit. Blightfall, the first book in the Riftwake series, debuted at No. 2 on The New York Times Young Adult Hardcover list after its release, and it turns out the book also sneaks in a nod to the most famous character in Sanderson's Cosmere.
Blightfall was published by Delacorte Press last month in hardcover and ebook, with an audiobook from Listening Library read by Eddie Lopez and Suzy Jackson. Sanderson marked the launch on his official X account:
An Instant Bestseller
Sanderson's literary agency, JABberwocky, announced the result shortly after launch (September 9th), confirming that Blightfall had landed at No. 2 on the Young Adult Hardcover list in its first week on sale. The book went on to spend several more weeks on that list through September.
Critics have been kind too. School Library Journal gave it a starred review, calling it "A wonderful sci-fi novel that will teleport off shelves faster than the speed of light," while Publishers Weekly described it as "a blast."
It is a familiar position for Sanderson. His earlier Skyward novels also made the Young Adult Hardcover list, with Starsight debuting at No. 1 in 2019, and his adult fantasy regularly tops the charts. Audiobooks have been part of that success for years, too, with Wind and Truth reaching No. 1 on The New York Times Audio Fiction list in December 2024.
What Blightfall Is About
The novel picks up after humanity's long war against alien oppressors has ended. Arturo Mendez, the leader of Skyward Flight, gets a postwar assignment that looks simple on paper. The Defiant Defense Force has found evidence of other human settlements that were cut off during the war, and his pilots are sent to escort a team of diplomats as they make contact.
Nothing goes to plan. The planet Blightfall is surrounded by mysterious debris and covered in giant, invasive forests, and Arturo's team is attacked as soon as it arrives. With the settlement not what it seems, the pilots have to find allies and uncover long-buried secrets if they want to escape. Penguin Random House pitches it for readers aged 12 and up, and the first edition comes with sprayed edges and exclusive endpapers.
Hoid Makes A Surprise Appearance
The detail Cosmere fans will enjoy most is a cameo from Hoid, the worldhopping storyteller who turns up across Sanderson's fantasy books and narrates Hoid's Travails, the line that includes Tress of the Emerald Sea and the new The Fires of December. In an interview with Polygon, Patterson revealed that a taynix, one of the slug-like creatures with cytonic powers, is named Hoid, which Polygon described as the first time the two universes cross over.
It was not part of some grand master plan. "There was a thread on the 17th Shard fan forums where everybody was talking about the book and somebody made a joke that we should name a slug Hoid," Patterson explained. "I didn't know if it would pan out, but then I put it in the book and [Sanderson] didn't stop me."
Patterson was also clear that this does not merge the two settings. The Cytoverse is not part of the Cosmere, but because the series takes place in Earth's far future, the Cosmere exists in it as a popular work of fiction that characters can reference.
How The Collaboration Works
Patterson and Sanderson previously teamed up on the Skyward Flight novellas Sunreach, ReDawn and Evershore in 2021. She told Polygon that Sanderson sets the parameters, the two brainstorm, and she writes the outline and draft, with feedback from him at each stage.
Part of that feedback involved reining in cytonic teleportation. "It's really hard to put pressure on people who can just teleport home," Patterson said, and Sanderson came up with the idea of an inhibitor that limits those powers on Blightfall.
Spensa, the hero of the main Skyward books, is being held back in case Sanderson ever wants to write another solo novel about her. Riftwake focuses on the supporting characters instead, and was designed so that new readers do not need to have read every earlier Cytoverse book.
Songrise Is Already Written
Fans will not be kept waiting long for more. Patterson told Polygon that she has already completed Songrise, the second Riftwake book, and was two-thirds of the way through the untitled third and final installment at the time of the interview. No release date has been announced for Songrise yet.
Did you spot Hoid in Blightfall, and are you more excited for Songrise or for Spensa to get another solo book someday?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.