Book Review: Mistborn: The Final Empire

Mistborn: The Final Empire
Brandon Sanderson

I am going to blaspheme myself from a whole host of readers I think when I say that Mistborn: The Final Empire was just okay. I didn’t hate it, I didn’t love it, but I strongly liked it. My main reason for my tepid response to it was that for a book supposedly about a heist, it had none of the pacing required, which made certain reveals at the end of the book predictable.

I was hoping for it to grip me like Nevernight, and while I kept turning pages, there wasn’t my usual fevered compulsion like I experience when reading something. I don’t particularly want to scream about it either; because for such a long book (clocking in at more than 650 pages for the paperback I read), I truly don’t feel like a lot happened that couldn’t have been condensed. I think it’s one of the things that, for adult fantasy, I will likely have a hard time looking past — the time commitment to read it.

Never the less, I do want to emphasize, that I did enjoy this first title in the Mistborn series! It hovered between “I can turn my brain off for this book” and “there’s a mystery afoot and I must solve it!” without committing wholeheartedly to either one. It was incredibly well crafted, which I will dive in to particular successes after this quick blurb…

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.

This saga dares to ask a simple question: What if the hero of prophecy fails?

Goodreads

The dialogue saved this book for me during moments where my eyes might have glazed over from the paragraphs of (admittedly well written) imagery. I found most of the characters likeable, even loveable. Sazed in particular. He reminded me of Alfred a la Batman, with a little bit of Black Butler’s Sebastien. His strict formality and adherence to protocol often offered levity to stark situations, and was a frequent source of relief and mirth for me.

Vin, his charge, is a well written protagonist, with a traumatic past that manifests perfectly over the course of her character’s arc. I particularly enjoyed Sanderson’s use of her as an isekai of sorts since she is completely unversed in the magic of the world, as her whole life has been survival up until that point. She is plucked from her life as a con artist’s good luck charm, and introduced to the world of Allomancy.

Allomancy, as well as feruchemy, are two of the magic systems presented in this world. This first novel does an excellent job of laying the groundwork down for them, especially with Vin’s “outsider” character learning about them as a stand in for the reader. At first glance, they seem to make sense, though I question their balance. The material cost and bodily risks of performing such kinds of magic, especially allomancy, isn’t experienced first hand by Vin or the other characters; merely discussed. It is something I hope to see expanded upon in the next novel, because yes, I will be reading The Well of Ascension.

One of the reasons, despite this being an “okay” fanatasy novel in terms of pacing, I am going on to read the next book in the series, is I my curiosity has been piqued. It’s the kind of book you have to sit on and mull over; and I have many questions that, as my friend has said “RAFO” — read and find out, when it comes to Sanderson. The characters are unique and compelling, and I hope we get to see more of Vin and Sazed in the next novel.

The one character I haven’t spoken about, despite being a noteable PoV in the book, is Kelsier. Mainly because the best ways to describe him might give things away for anyone still on the fence about him. His hatred for the Lord Ruler, a villain that didn’t get the payoff I was hoping for, and The Final Empire truly defines him and all of his motivations. I am sure to have many conversations with fellow readers about him; but I feel comfortable stating he may be a protagonist/mentor of sorts, but he is not a hero.

Overall, I think once I read more of his work, I will likely find the magic that seems to have enraptured so many of his readers. For now, his craft has enticed me enough to continue with the series… Reviewing this book has been interesting, since I’d much rather talk and theorize about it I realize. If you’ve read it and have some Theories you want to talk about, the comments section will not be spoiler free (fair warning!).