Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson | Book Review

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Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson
Series: The Mistborn Saga #1
Published by Tor Books on July 17, 2006
Genres: Epic Fantasy
Pages: 576
Format: Paperback
Source: Purchased

Content Warnings: Abuse, Death, Genocide, Murder, Prostitution, Sexual Assault, Slavery, Gore, Torture, Violence, Classism

Rating:

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. Then Kelsier reveals 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. She will have to learn trust if Kel is to help her master powers of which she never dreamed.

Mistborn: The Final Empire is my introduction to Sanderson, and what an introduction it was! I can see why he is so highly recommended in fantasy spaces and can't wait to read more of his works. The world-building, character development, magical system, and story are all top tier. I have little to say that others haven't already said before, so if you have seen other raving reviews, then you have certainly seen mine.

The Final Empire takes place after the installation of a tyrant, despite apparent rebellions in the past. A ragtag team of rebels comes up with a crazy scheme to rob and defeat the Empire to free the Skaa from their oppressors. There's certainly nothing unique about the themes and tropes in this story, but it's done in such a beautiful way that it's hard not to love it. What really pushed it over the edge for me was the magic system, which really is like nothing else out there.

Some people have mocked the system as just "eating metals," but it's so much more than that. From a scientific and witchy perspective, the idea that like attracts like and that metals have different vibrational powers was a fantastic basis for a magic system. Sanderson incorporated Hermetic principles with modern physics and chemistry to create a fantastical magic system that works in profound ways. I finished reading Mistborn in February, and I am still thinking about it.

On top of a beautiful magic system, the world-building is effortless and spans the entire book. Sanderson does not simply tell us what the world is like; he immerses us in it. We learn and explore as our main character, Vin, does. Vin has been so sheltered her entire life, struggling to survive in the slums of the city, that when she begins exploring the wide world around her, we too explore it with her. But it is not just Vin through which we see the world; we are also seeing it through the eyes of Vin's mentor and leader of the rebels, Kelsier. Through Kel, we are able to adventure out into the agricultural districts to see just how differently Skaa in the city live versus Skaa in the fields.

While all this is happening in real time, we are also given glimpses into the Lord Ruler's past and how he came to be through journal entries. I love exploring the past in such a way, given snippets of information periodically throughout the story as it either becomes available or is necessary to understand the plot.

The story ends with a bang. We suffer great loss as well as great revelations. There is a major twist at the end, more than one in fact, but the story wraps up in a nice bow, allowing this to act as a stand-alone if you want. It wraps up so nicely that I haven't felt the need to pick up books two and three yet, instead focusing on other books that have been sitting on my shelf longer. If you are afraid to dive into the Sandserson-verse, don't be. Mistborn: The Final Empire is s great starting place and won't leave you feeling like you have to read 10 more books to understand what is going on.

I highly recommend fantasy readers pick up The Final Empire sooner rather than later. Make the jump! You won't regret it!