Bookworms: Mistborn (2006) by Brandon Sanderson

Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson. Tor Books 2006. 544 pages (e-book). Epic fantasy.

For a thousand years the ash fell and no flowers bloomed. For a thousand years the Skaa slaved in misery and lived in fear. For a thousand years the Lord Ruler, the “Sliver of Infinity,” reigned with absolute power and ultimate terror, divinely invincible. Then, when hope was so long lost that not even its memory remained, a terribly scarred, heart-broken half-Skaa rediscovered it in the depths of the Lord Ruler’s most hellish prison. Kelsier “snapped” and found in himself the powers of a Mistborn. A brilliant thief and natural leader, he turned his talents to the ultimate caper, with the Lord Ruler himself as the mark.

Kelsier recruited the underworld’s elite, the smartest and most trustworthy allomancers, each of whom shares one of his many powers, and all of whom relish a high-stakes challenge. Only then does he reveal his ultimate dream, not just the greatest heist in history, but the downfall of the divine despot.

But even with the best criminal crew ever assembled, Kel’s plan looks more like the ultimate long shot, until luck brings a ragged girl named Vin into his life. Like him, she’s a half-Skaa orphan, but she’s lived a much harsher life. Vin has learned to expect betrayal from everyone she meets, and gotten it. She will have to learn to trust, if Kel is to help her master powers of which she never dreamed.

Brandon Sanderson is a master story-teller, a genius weaver of realistic magic into a world rooted in disaster. Ash from nearby volcanoes has nearly destroyed the ability to grow crops, so the skaa (or slaves) are worked overtime and treated more poorly because of the increasing smaller return. The world is an interesting one; different, though with hints of the familiar woven throughout.

The magic system (allomancy) is based on a person’s ability to utilize the power stored within one of ten certain metals. What makes Mistborns so special, and so rare, is that they can gain power from all ten metals. They are also members of the nobility (or half-noble in Kelsier’s instance, which is not supposed to happen in this world), and their situation in this world is far more stable than Allomancers in general. I loved reading about the ways in which Vin and Kelsier used the metals to manipulate not only their own bodies, but the objects around them, too. 

I loved all the characters we meet in Kelsier’s group, especially Vin. The story truly revolves around the two half-noble Mistborns who are fighting to make the lives of all skaa, or lower-born people, better. They believe that the Lord Ruler, who is their god, has been ruling for so long that he has forgotten what it means to be compassionate and good, if he ever was either of those things to begin with. Kelsier finds Vin, a broken and scared young girl, almost on accident. Soon, however, he takes charge of her life and her Mistborn training, and Vin reluctantly finds herself joining this very strange “thieving crew” Kelsier has put together.

Vin changes so much throughout the novel. She begins as a very shy, very reclusive girl, and blossoms into a confident, head-strong young woman growing into her powers as a Mistborn. When she first joins the crew, she is reluctant to trust anyone. She barely speaks or gives her opinion on things, she simply listens and observes. However, Vin’s transformation is one of the most believable ones I’ve read in quite a while. As a writer, I’m taking notes on how Sanderson did this gradually, so I can put it to good use in my own work!

There are some unexpected twists and turns within the novel, especially toward the last third of the book. The ending is satisfying but also leaves room for the sequel, The Well of Ascension. I haven’t read it yet, but I can only assume that this is where we as readers learn more about how the Lord Ruler became corrupt and why the world was destroyed centuries ago.

If you haven’t heard of Brandon Sanderson, or you have but haven’t picked up any of his books, do yourself a favor and start with Mistborn. It’s the beginning of a trilogy (with another trilogy following it), the magic system is fantastically unique, and his writing will keep you turning the pages. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.