Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson: A Fantasy That Kept Me Thinking
A young thief joins a crew plotting to steal an empire in Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn. Its distinct characters and moral questions kept me engaged, even as I wished I’d felt a little closer to the characters.
I went into Mistborn knowing almost nothing beyond the fact that it was the start of a fantasy trilogy. I wasn’t sure what kind of reading experience I was in for, but I ended up having a great time with it. I liked the characters, rooted for them, and wanted to see where the story would take them.
My only gripe is that I wished I felt a little closer to them.
Getting to know the characters
For a while, I couldn’t quite put my finger on what created that distance. I wondered if I needed more insight into the characters’ inner lives, but that wasn’t really it. Sanderson gives us plenty of their thoughts. I understood what they believed and why they made certain choices; I just didn’t always feel as emotionally connected to them as I’d hoped. In Mistborn, Sanderson’s writing engaged my intellect more than my emotions, even though there were moments that moved me.
One of my favorite things about the book was how individual the characters felt. Their descriptions, dialogue, and ways of thinking were so distinct that, by the end, I felt I could have followed a full conversation even without speaker tags.
The ideas I kept coming back to
I loved watching Mistborn’s characters question things they had long taken for granted. Kelsier’s sweeping assumptions about the nobility stood out to me because the story pushes him to confront them. That felt familiar to me. I’ve seen how quickly people form opinions about someone without taking the time to get to know them.
The book also gave me plenty to think about between reading sessions. Throughout the story, characters raise dilemmas about right and wrong, competing truths, and the hypocrisies inherent in our own beliefs. Their conversations are worth remembering, and that’s something I appreciated about Mistborn and hope to encounter in future Sanderson books.
After the final page
What I like most about Mistborn is that it provides such a layered reading experience. The characters did and said things that linger with me, sometimes bobbing to the surface unexpectedly as I go about my day. I revisit my annotations regularly because the book has given me so much to think about.
I would have loved a deeper emotional connection with the characters, but I still enjoyed Mistborn very much and am looking forward to continuing the trilogy.
Book: 4 stars · Audiobook: 5 stars
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