It feels like pretty much every fantasy fan in the universe has read and loved the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson. Naturally, I've been curious to give them a try myself, so I made the books part of my Finally in 2022 Challenge. I decided to start in on the first one this month. Of course, any time you read a book that's been ridiculously overhyped like this one has, there's a big chance that it will fall short of your expectations. So. I went in a bit cautious, hoping that the book could actually live up to all the great things I'd heard about it over the years.
The novel is set in a fantasy kingdom named Luthadel. It has been controlled for the past 1,000 years by a brutal and immortal king known as the Lord Ruler. He enforces a rigid and cruel social structure across his land by dividing most of his subjects into two main classes: the noblemen, a smaller group of the wealthy elite and the Skaa, a larger lower class that function as slaves of the empire. No one thinks to question his rule, since he is viewed as a god, and no one thinks to question why the sun is red, the plants are brown, and ash falls almost constantly from the sky, because that's how it's always been. The noblemen are arrogant and petty and the Skaa are completely broken down and defeated.
One man, however, decides to set out and change all of that. Kelsier is a Mistborn, which means that he can use magical powers by consuming and burning different kinds of metals. This ability is rare in Luthadel; being able to burn metals at all is very rare, and of those people, most people can only burn one type. Kelsier, however, can use them all, making him extremely powerful. He comes from humble origins - he is half Skaa and makes his living as a con man. He is good at what he does though, and his skills in manipulation combined with his magical powers make him a force to be reckoned with. He is determined to defeat the Lord Ruler and free the Skaa. As the novel begins, he has done his research, assembled his crew, and is ready to put his plan into motion.
His plan winds up changing a little when he meets Vin, a teenage street urchin. She's been running with a gang of thieves, but her heart isn't in the work. She's had a very abusive past and is just doing whatever it takes to get by. She tries to keep her head down and blend into the crowd, but she catches the attention of Kelsier's crew by displaying an uncanny knack for soothing people's emotions. It doesn't take Kelsier long to realize that Vin is a Mistborn, like him, and he recruits her into his group.
Suddenly, Vin's life completely changes. She starts training to use her powers, becomes friendly with the crew, and starts to actually trust in people and work in a team. She eventually comes to care about the plight of the Skaa as well, and think further into the future than ever before. She used to only be concerned about where her next meal was coming from. Now, she's daring to dream of accomplishing great things, and saving the entire kingdom from the Lord Ruler's cruelty. Their work isn't easy though. Defeating an immortal leader who has been on the throne for 1,000 years will be nearly impossible. Together, Kelsier, Vin, and the rest of the crew must take dangerous risks, strategize carefully, and fight many battles in the hopes of creating a better future for Luthadel.
This book was a very solid read. The story was engaging and it's clear the Sanderson is extremely gifted at the world-building part of fantasy writing. Luthadel felt like a complex place with a long history. The social structure of the cities, the different classes of people, and the ruling government were thoroughly described, and the details were creative and engaging. The magic system was especially well developed. The whole idea of eating different kinds of metals to perform different kinds of magic was interesting and fun to explore. It's true that a lot of the details about the world and the characters were tropey, but it was all written in an entertaining way, so I didn't mind it.
The action sequences in this book were particularly well done too. There is lots of fighting and magic wielding across the story, and Sanderson does a good job of explaining everyone's movements and making it exciting. Action scenes are usually not my favorite parts of novels, but I found myself actually enjoying many of them here. One of the special powers that Vin and Kelsier can use is the ability to travel through the air by pushing and pulling against the metals around them. This could be difficult to describe with clarity during a fight scene, but Sanderson pulls it off. Battles are similarly well described. I could clearly envision what was going on in my mind, and there was lots of blood and guts to keep things interesting.
So while most of the book was very good, I would not say it was perfect. There were definitely a few things that bothered me, one of which was the amount of female characters. Vin is one of the main characters, but aside from her, there are no other positive female characters in the book. There are a few minor villains, but that's it for women. I've read quite a few other fantasy series lately that feature a crew of characters working together, and it's always a mix of men and women. In Mistborn, it's a fifteen year old girl and a bunch of (mostly) middle aged men. It felt strange to have so few females around. I'm really hoping this aspect improves in the remaining installments in this series.
Another thing I struggled with was the relationship between Vin and Elend. Elend is a rarity in Luthadel; he's a noble that is also a good person. Vin falls in love with him during the story, which is fine, but the development of her feelings for him was basically nonexistent. They meet just a few times in the story, and don't even talk all that much during those encounters, but somehow, this is enough for Vin to fall madly in love and risk ruining the plan she's been working on for a a year with Kelsier and the rest of her friends to protect him. There is no discernible passion between the pair of them. There are no details that show desire. It felt sterile and bizarre. The whole novel was essentially asexual, for that matter. Plenty of graphic violence, but not even mild romantic content. It felt strange to have everything else be so clearly detailed and developed, while the romance of the main character was so clumsy and indistinct. I was surprised to see that issue here, because so many people absolutely rave about this novel. This might just be down to my preferences though--I really appreciate a good romance in a fantasy story, whether it be spicy or sweet, so I was disappointed.
Ultimately though, I did enjoy the novel and look forward to stepping back into Luthadel for the next installment. Sanderson is very skilled when it comes to creating rich fantasy worlds and intricate plots, and I'm interested to see where Vin's story goes from here. I don't think this book quite lived up to the incredible hype I heard for it, but it was still a pretty good time and a worthwhile read.
Challenge Tally
Finally in 2022 - Series Edition: 9/28
Total Books Read in 2022: 25
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