Book review: Mistborn
Mistborn, by Brandon Sanderson
I wonder if that’s his real name. It “rolls” too easily, at least in the sense that I wouldn’t have named my kid Brandon if that was my last name. But hey, that’s just me. On to the book.
I went into this not expecting much at all – I just picked it up because I know he is going to be finishing up the last WoT book(s?) and so I wanted to see how good of a writer he is, and how well he creates on his own before seeing what he does with RJ’s notes.
So, I was quite surprised when this book turned out to kick some major fantasy ass. It’s sort ofTolkien-esque in the sense of “odds stacked massively against the heroes”, and it starts in an even darker place than Tolkien did, but that’s a good thing. I genuinely felt like the “heroes” might not pull it off…right up until the end I was still thinking that, in the vein of the rest of the book, and the excellent atmosphere Mr. Sanderson built up, I was still expecting the worst. Sure, bad things happen, but they could have been worse. Of course, the sense of impending dread is still there. He built up a really interesting universe that is not quite like one I’ve seen yet.
The characters are also likable, and I identified with them enough to worry about them, etc. The magic system he has created flows a bit awkwardly off the tongue, but it is new and creative. The “novice” learning the various ropes felt a bit like Master of the Five Magics to me, but not in a bad way. The whole “learning from different masters” isn’t exactly a rare event in fantasy lit.
So yeah, if you’re looking for a new fantasy series to pick up, I don’t think this one will disappoint.
good review.
Weird: I AM looking for a new fantasy series to pick up. Just kidding. But I will try to read it. :)
I just want to beat off
all my demons…
I’m not gonna lie to you, this is the worst review of Star Wars yet.
[...] Onefinemess – “So, I was quite surprised when this book turned out to kick some major fantasy ass. It’s sort ofTolkien-esque in the sense of “odds stacked massively against the heroes”, and it starts in an even darker place than Tolkien did, but that’s a good thing. I genuinely felt like the “heroes” might not pull it off…right up until the end I was still thinking that, in the vein of the rest of the book, and the excellent atmosphere Mr. Sanderson built up, I was still expecting the worst. Sure, bad things happen, but they could have been worse. Of course, the sense of impending dread is still there. He built up a really interesting universe that is not quite like one I’ve seen yet.” [...]