Review: Mistborn

Mistborn: The Final Empire (Mistborn, #1) by Brandon Sanderson
Publisher: Tor Books
Format: Paperback
Pages: 643
Source: Borders 
Amazon | Goodreads
★★★★★

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.

If you are looking for an innovative, epic fantasy, Mistborn is it! This book is so much more than your typical lord of the rings type fantasy. It contains one of the most original and innovative magic systems I have ever seen. I love the way that Sanderson managed to thoroughly describe the world, politics, and magic system without ever making me bored. Trust me, politics in books normally bores the crap out of me! That is a feat in itself.

To start, Brandon Sanderson writes some amazing characters! Not only are they believable and consistent, but they are just plain likeable. And I’m not just talking about the main characters! Some of the most entertaining and heartbreaking scenes involved the secondary characters. There was something about Kelsier and Vin that I just fell in love with. Their relationship was like that of father and daughter. Kelsier, though he could be egotistical and manipulative at times, maintained hope in even the most grim of situations. Seeing Vin go from a scrawny, insecure, abused girl to a confident and trusting woman was incredibly rewarding and inspiring. She certainly grew throughout the story, thanks to the incredible cast of characters.  I could go on and on about how much I love them all… I’m just happy I should have another couple books to get to know them better!

The plot of Mistborn was extremely well thought out. Sanderson constantly had me on edge thinking that the crew might give up or fail. I don’t want to go in depth with the plot and give something away though. I can, however, tell you that the fight scenes throughout the book were amazing and well choreographed. What a treat!

I was excited to find a developing romance in this book as well! I honestly did not expect one but it was a most definitely a pleasant discovery. Once again, you won’t squeeze the details out of me! Just know that the relationship is cute and awesome.

If you are a fantasy fan like me, then I can pretty much guarantee that you will love this book. It was refreshing and original like no other fantasy I have read. I already have the next two books and will hopefully get around to reading them before the end of the year! What was originally supposed to be a trilogy will have a new addition, The Alloy of Law (Mistborn, #4) on November 12th, 2011!




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