Mistborn discussion (Possible Spoliers)

Ah! Sorry! the message decided to post itself when I had only typed one letter. Anyway, I think a lot of us on here have read Mistborn after the Elantris book read a while back. I just finished it last night and after finding a lack of any thread dedicated to it, decided to start one. I'll try not to give anything too major away just in case.
It was an amazing book. I loved all 541 pages of it. Elantris was wonderful, but I think that I like this book even better. The characters were all so real that I felt like I really connected with them. And the magic! It was so unique that I was drawn to it.
All the twists and turns were wonderfully done. The ending was NOT something I would have predicted.

I cried.

I can't wait to read the next in the trilogy but now I have to read a book for my school book club. I'll share more of what I thought after a few people post.

And yes, I admit that I am indeed in love with Kelsier :)

I loved that book, too! So did BlueSalamanders.

I thought the second book in the trilogy was even better, and I can't WAIT for the third one.

I can't believe we have to wait until May 2008!

Brandon is so good at creating incredibly intelligent, interesting magic systems.

Magic system was great. Also, a very cool ending for the first book in a series.

I think Kelsier is a little too brutal for a crush, tho.

I have to get my hands on the second book! I don't usually buy books in hardback (so expensive) but I think this calls for an exception to the rule.

May 2008. Brandon, you have my deepest thanks. The final book in the trilogy is the best graduation gift that anyone could give me :D

;) Thanks for the head-swelling, folks.

If you have questions or the like about the process or the book, just let me know.

I'll join the crowd, as I loved the book too! I haven't had time or money to get the second book yet, unfortunately; I will in maybe a month, though. I adored Vin and Elend and so much of the character development, as well as the cool magic system that actually made sense.

I didn't predict the ending either. I loved it, surprises are awesome.

btw, I highly recommend Brandon's website, which has fascinating annotations of all his books.

See you in Half Moon Bay, Brandon.

I agree about Kelsier being too brutal for a crush.

But he was amazingly charismatic, wasn't he? I can absolutely understand why people would want to follow him. But he was no shrinking violet. And he REALLY had an enormous chip on his shoulder about the noble houses. I mean, it was understandable, but still!

He was a man who had the fires of conviction.

I was less interested in the characters in the second book, but the plot was GRIPPING.

As dressagegrrrl said, I love these books as well (which Brandon already knows, since he commented on my livejournal! :).

I will admit I wasn't terribly thrilled with the ending of the second book (although I liked everything up to it a lot), but I imagine my objections will be dealt with in the third book. I never much noticed second-book-in-a-trilogy issues before, but then I don't usually read books before the whole series is out.

I really like the way Vin grew and changed - it was much more subtle and believable than similar emotional growth in other books I've read.

Yeah, I would totally agree about Kelsier being charismatic. His strong feelings about what he was doing made me love his character more than anything. True, he didn't always make the best choices, but he made them because he believed with all his heart that what he was doing was the right thing. That's a real quality to be admired.

Vin's character intrigued me as well. I agree with bluesalamanders about her emotional growth. It happened slowly instead of *boom* I'm a better person.

One thing that really touched me in the book was the part about Reen (Vin's older brother). We were led to believe that he had betrayed her, but then we find that he spent the last part of his life defending her against the Empire.

>#11 I agree! That was so touching, and I thought it was a good catalyst for her to start being able to move past the fear and mistrust that had so plagued her because of his perceived betrayal.

It was a nice touch on Brandon's part.

I loved the way all of the mistborn scenes were written. I felt like when Vin and Kelsier were flying through the air pushing and pulling on metals, I could really feel the joy/fear of almost-flying.

I loved the way the magic worked. It was a very cohesive system. The fight scenes were awesome.

I loved the priest character (I forget his name and I've loaned out the books), especially in the 2nd book. I guess that's not surprising since I liked Hrathen the most in Elantris.

Hehe, my chance to wake up a dormant thread! And as LT has been down all day I've been aching to write this for almost 12 hours... Forgive me if I get a bit enthusiastic/unedited in my ramblings.

After having Mistborn sitting on my shelves since October last year, glowering at me whenever I dare look in its direction, I finally picked it as my next read. And now it's done/with - read, finished...! - and I thought about checking this thread for what the rest of you thought about it.

When I read #4, from friend Littlegeek, I winked in her direction as I remembered our conversation about Ibn Khairan (Lions of Al-Rassan), another not altogether nice man ;-)
I confess no crush on this Kelsier guy, though, but this have nothing to do with brutality but with his Jesusish appearance.
(No crush on that other guy either, because it's a BOOK, eh, dontcha figure, it's fiction! but anyway...)

About halfway through I figured out that he would die before the story ended, so I was prepared for that, and all in all the book offered very few surprises - I think about the only one was that yes, the protagonists really were a bunch of thieves, and nowhere throughout the story do we get a moralistic prayer about 'do not steal'. I read through the first quarter of the book waiting for a switch in point of view but it never came. Not that I complain, the story was very compelling, but in combination with the Jesus allegory I don't know where to stand.

I also think it lacked in political intrigue - it was non-existent. A shade of politics - yes; politicking - no. Same with the main characters - likeable but lacking in depth other than in being tagged as something we usually disagree with - thieves and murderers, something that is not delved upon.
I'm left feeling that I missed something. Can anyone tell me what? Because I keep looking and looking, almost feeling left out.

Yes, they try to survive in a society trying to oppress them. Yes, they try to overturn the Lord Ruler. But the messianic thread, and themes of friendship and trust, makes everything else polite background.

Now it sounds like I didn't like the book, but I really did. Right now I'm contemplating if I should go out and buy Well of Ascension in hardback when it will be available in paperback in a couple of weeks... and then I will want to get Hero of Ages ASAP and I know I won't be able to resist the urge to get it in hardback because I won't wait until next year to read part III.

Brandon really knows how to tell a story - it's like his love for the story makes the pages shine! - and he knows how to make magic seem natural and... I think a lot of people can identify with Vin, because no one is 100% self assured all the time, and as she grows more and more secure in herself we revel with her because we feel she deserves to have a good life.

I hope to get to know some of the others better, in the other books!

I've had Mistborn a while now, I like to *try* and wait for all the books to come out before reading them, but that usually fails. I've got the Well of Asc., on pre order for when it comes out in paperback (along with Friedman's The Wings of Wrath, Lackey's Snow Queen and Flewelling's Shadows Return all of which also come out in June). I might just cave and read it now since Elantris was so enjoyable.

Brandon's books are much more about magic system/plot than anything or at least this is where he shines. He's usually got a lot to say about religion, and in very intriguing ways, and I personally find that compelling. If you're looking for a political thriller, or a melodrama/romance, then pass on by. His books are downright prudish, but he's a religious guy IRL so that's his perogative.

I agree. I think my comment about politics is more of a reflection on what other people have said, here or in their reviews, than on a wish for more politicking.

His takes on religion is always interesting, and I find I have to question my own prejudices about religion while reading his books. I think the lack of overt sex is more or less made up for by massive slaughtering, don't you think? ;-)

Now, I don't particularly think these are the most important matters, so maybe that's what I find lacking - I enjoy the story and the writing style, and I like the characters, but it won't engage on a more intellectual level?

I'm generally awed by his imagination. The creatures, all those systems of magic, the worlds, the people... awesome.

Off to buy Well of Ascension tomorrow, I think :-)

the lack of overt sex is more or less made up for by massive slaughtering, don't you think?

lol! Well put. Actually, I usually prefer sex to violence but I'll forgive Brandon this one. As you say, his imagination more than makes up for it.

:D
Definitely there with you on the sex vs violence stuff, in both regards.

I agree with everything everyone said, but I really didn't find any of the religious stuff off-putting. I love how Sazed is always offing up new religions for people to try, with a comment like, "This one might suit you." Like a shirt bought off the rack. Plus, if I was ever going to cave in and join any faith the only one in here that would work for me would be the religion of the Bennet, who made maps. They believed there would be peace and harmony once they'd charted the entire world. LOL Where's DaynaRT?

clam - I didn't mind the religion in Mistborn. It became more and more problematic for me in the sequels, however.

It seems you are NOT alone in that. I asked my daughter about it and she said it wasn't a problem for her in the sequels. I'll try to stay open-minded as possible.

I never had any problems with the first book, or the second - it was the third that really grated :(
The others was good enough for me to get the third in preordered hardback :)

I didn't like the end of either the second or third books.

However, I didn't dislike them enough to stop me from reading his other books. Just enough to stop me from running to get a copy as soon as they're out.

yeah, third book ruined Sazed for me. And the unambiguous ending re: religion comes off as disingenuous.

Uh oh. I should have stayed out of this thread. LOL

Sorry, clam. You might have a different take on it.

Mistborn is brilliant, I love the magic system. The characters are believable and the twists and turns had me consistently off balance. I also really liked the ending in the first book, rarely will you see a series with such a nicely wrapped up first book.

Generally books with a religious background irritate me to no end, like itching balls during an important meeting. With mistborn I wasn't bothered at all, it probably had something to do with Sazed constantly offering up new religions and letting people choose for themselves. The thing that grates is when religious people push there beliefs on someone, I didn't have that feeling while reading this book. Which means I get to comfortably enjoy the magical exhileration of the fighting scene's. :)

I've finished Mistborn, and Well of Ascension and am partway through Hero of Ages as I write this. I should note first off, that I was a comparative religion major in college and I LOVE the subject. With that in mind, I actually like the way Sanderson plays out the religion of the Survivor in the series. He does a really good job of playing with your sense of what it is and whats going on (some might say jerking you around, especially with what we find out in the third book) but I like the different take he offers.

The Lord Ruler, much as I disliked him, in a sense he was one of my favorite characters, and we find out in the third book that he was deliciously more complex and nuanced than he came off at the beginning of the series. I guess one reason I like the Mistborn trilogy is the amazing job Brandon did of making you question whether there was really any stereotypical "bad guy" (at least I found myself doing this).

Ugh, I hated these. I was really looking forward to them too. I was mainly bothered by the prose - the amount of times Vin paused infuriated me to the point I started blacking those pauses out with a pen. Seriously, now that I've mentioned it, I guarantee you'll notice it:

"Vin paused."
"Vin paused."

~tears out hair~

I found the characters unengaging, the magic boring.

Bored and infutriated does not a good reading experience make.

I'll be trading them in.

After reading the first one, I was really looking forward to reading the rest of the trilogy. I felt like the second one was slow as mud, though the third is a lot better. However, seeing as most of the second book was taken up with the main characters being stuck in a city that was under seige, thats kind of understandable. A lot of it was politics, which, no offense, Sanderson does passably, but its not his strong suit at least in terms of making it engaging.

I thought the first book was great with the exception of the very last scene ( a bit over the top and came across cheesy). The second book was a big step down but enjoyable nonetheless. However Hero of Ages might be the most satisfying ending I've read in a fantasy series and more than made up for any earlier.

32> I really liked the fact that he decided to actually kill of Vin and Elend at the end. Its not something I think many authors would do, but I think it works really well in the plot.

I do find it interesting when people can have such opposite views of books. I thought the end was the worst part of the book and just fell completely flat.

30 > I'm not real surprised about your reaction, since your favorite books by Hobb drive me insane. I can't stand reading her any more. I'd put Sanderson on a far end of the spectrum from Hobb.

33&32> I agree that the ending was fairly well-done. It takes a lot of guts and confidence to kill off a main character and even more skills to do it well. I didn't really like the second book all that much except for Elend's father's death and the interaction between TenSoon and Vin.

30 & 35 - funny, Hobb & Sanderson are my 2 fave authors!