Fantasy Book Club discussion

Wow. Mistborn is so great!!!!! I don't want to put it down.

The only Sanderson I've read is Elantris. It was okay, but not enough to compel me to pick up more. Do you think Mistborn is better? If so, I might take a look...

Mistborn is ok but by no means his best. The Way of Kings is far far better

When i can't read I've been listening to the audio version.

oh I can't do audio books

I enjoyed Mistborn! The magic he developed for this series is very intriguing. I agree with Graham, though, The Way of Kings is amazing!

The Way of Kings was my first Brandon Sanderson...I loved it. I have several other books by him, but making time to read them is a problem.

I loved Mistborn and it led me to The Way of Kings... It is my FAVORITE book of all time!!! I cannot wait for the next book! I love the way Sanderson mixes morality, religion, politics, war, love and fantasy. I don't even realize how deep things are until I'm done and I'm blown away! It's definitely worth reading more!

I picked up Elantris, and really liked it (I didn't LOVE it by any stretch of the word). I read the Mistborn Trilogy next since it was the closest thing to me on my bookshelf, and thought it was absolutely FANTASTIC!!! The trilogy was, by far, three of the best books I've read in quite some time--the story was so original and the climax was insane. I'm about halfway through The Way of Kings now, which is incredible.

Mistborn is a strange series for me.

I read The Final Empire and found it decent; I wasn't blown away like the hype led me to expect. At first I found the overall vibe of the book a bit off putting.

Then I read The Well of Ascension, and was completely bored out of my mind. Vin read too much like a YA heroine for my tastes, and the only saving grace was the ending. It wasn't enough for me to pick up the third book right away.

And then months later, I picked up The Hero of Ages and that book completely blew my mind. Wow. I don't think there was a single chapter I wasn't left just completely hooked. It's crazy.

And mainly because of my sentiments to the Hero of Ages, if anyone asks me these days, I don't hesitate to name Mistborn as one of my favorite series. I literally found myself liking it more and more then longer it simmered in my mind; I can't even discuss it here without feeling a strong urge to go re-read it.

This was my first epic fantasy & I was blown away with the world creation, characters and magic-system. It is one of my all time favorite fantasy series :)

Mistborn was good (but felt too YA for my tastes), the second was okay, and I couldn't finish the third one. Something about that back cover blurb irked me, and I was kind of bored with it, which doesn't happen often with me and Sanderson books. I prefer most any of his books over Mistborn. Especially the Stormlight Archive.

Stormlight Archive is so BIG & thats what scares me :D

@Manju: You can pretend it's an omnibus edition, because it practically is: I forget how many POVs there are, but it's pretty much like three books in one. Just pace yourself. ;)

And it's so worth it. Mistborn is good, but The Way of Kings blows it out of the water.

@Talitha & Marina: Thanks, I'll try to pick it up early next year. Hopefully there'll be third book out by then :D

Manju wrote: "@Talitha & Marina: Thanks, I'll try to pick it up early next year. Hopefully there'll be third book out by then :D"

That would be good, wouldn't it? Apparently he's planning ten in the series, so it'll be a long wait to find out what happens in the end, but I'm prepared to go along for the ride if they're all as good as the first two!

Mistborn is one of my favourite series. I began reading The Way of Kings after, but couldn't get into it after a few chapters. Life was pretty busy at the time though, so I'll likely give it another go in the future.

Marina wrote: "Manju wrote: "@Talitha & Marina: Thanks, I'll try to pick it up early next year. Hopefully there'll be third book out by then :D"

That would be good, wouldn't it? Apparently he's planning ten in t..."

Yeah, I think it is only Sanderson who can write a series of this epic proportions. That man is a MACHINE when it comes to writing books:D

my love affair with sanderson started with Elantris which was really good. then i read Warbreaker and was amazed. but Mistborn blew everything i thought i knew about fantasy out the window. i mean WOW!! can a book get any better than that? great world, amazing charcters, and the MAGIC... and the TWISTS!! sanderson is my favourite author by a mile. and seeing all the responses saying stormlight is better...

For me Brandon's books fulfill what a "good book" should have (were I to be asked), as mentioned previously, there are awesome twists but most importantly it's the alomst religious sticking to his own rules and hiding things in plain sight.

Mistborn is possibly the best example of this, where you can basically figure out every single of the twists and surprises before it happens, since you know in detail how the world works and so on, but you also never do and end up with the bittersweet but still amazed feeling of "how didnt i see this coming?"

A slight downside (at least for me) are the outright explanations he has in the books. This is good to make the story move forward without having to wait for the reader to figure things out themselves, but sometimes it seems to me he's too obviously letting a character give a lecture to the reader. The opposite case I might think of would be China Mieville's Bas Lag books, e.g. Iron Council, where the characters need to go through what is called the cacotopic stain - I don't recall a single word of explanation what it is but you can gradually get it from the way the charactres approach it.

And finally. Why is everyone advertising the Stormlight archive? Now I want to read it but we are only two books in so I'd have to wait so long! :)

Yeah the Mistborn series is one of the best I've read and it wasn't even close to the first fantasy book I read.

Yes, there were a few YA elements but they were well written.

FYI

The Mistborn discussions from '09 are in the Archive 2009 Discussions.
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...

Just finished reading Mistborn, two things that stuck out for me, which made the book a little different to others in the epic fantasy genre was the magic system, and the fact that it was set in a world ruled by a dark overlord. The magic system, especially was quite unique, and one that - I could be wrong, but seems like it to me - Brian McClellan took inspiration from and developed in the Powder Mage series, using gunpowder instead of metals

I've been reading through this, and I quite liked it.

The magic system is good, and the twists and turns are handled nicely as well. I wasn't a fan of the romantic elements, however. They kind of muddled the books up a bit for me, especially in the first one where they felt out of place (at least two me).

I do like that he handled the ending well. So many great series fall apart at the end.

But it is not for children.

definately should have been marketed as YA

Wow, what a pure boat of silliness! Mistborn has to be YA...gosh, guess I don't know as much about fantasy as I think!

What makes you guys think it's YA?

I remember a couple people told me it was YA before I started and I was worried because I never like YA books. Buy as soon as I started reading it was clear in my opinion there it wasn't. The prose is far more advanced than any YA book I've ever read and it has dark scenes you would never see in a YA book (everything related to hemalurgy). Sure it's not as dark as Abercrombie or realistic as martin but that doesn't mean it's a children's book. I truly don't get why some people say it's YA, it's just non-dark fantasy.

I don't even understand where this YA comes from. I figure there are baby, child and adult books, and that is that. What age does YA even encompass?

Mistborn is too complex and graphic for children.

Well said Daniel.

Judging from Ben's reading list he's only used to darker assassin-style books, so I can understand the confusion. I would expect Tom to know better.

Looking again, Ben didn't even read the book, so I guess if you want to go with that kind of familiarity then that's the kind of review you might get.

I guess it's how one defines YA. I know there are some readers who think the Harry Potter books are not children`s books as they are also read by adults and they believe contain some gritty themes!

I love Mistborn. It has such interesting characters who aren't cliches, and the magic system is very unique with a defined set of rules (so no pulling something out of nowhere like the Sword of Truth or Wheel of Time). Vin is one of my all-time favorite characters. I really hope they bring this series to life either on the big or small screen.

Mistborn was my first introduction to Sanderson. I think it was a daily deal on my kindle and I just picked it up on a whim.

I'll always have a soft spot for Mistborn because it re-introduced me to the fantasy genre. I had moved away from the genre as a whole, and Mistborn was the first one I had read where the magic system was closer to science than anything I had seen before. It blew me away and my interest in fantasy was piqued.

That being said, The Stormlight Archive is a much better read in my opinion. But Sanderson has always said the Stormlight Archive is always the story he's wanted to tell, just didn't have the ability as a writer and Mistborn was still a series put out by a relatively inexperienced author.

As for the YA tag, I don't really get that either. While Sanderson is never, ever going to right like some of the grim-dark authors, I also don't think he skims over difficult concepts either. Just read Steelheart to see what Sanderson looks like when he is actually writing in YA.

I think (and this is just my opinion) that people brand it as YA, simply because the main character is a young twenty something girl. The YA field has been saturated with heorines like this (may I present Bella, Katniss Everdeen and Tris as primary evidence) and so whenever a writer has main characters that fit this mold, it runs the risk of being labeled YA. I also think The Well of Ascension has a bit more romantic emphasis, with some of Vin's inner-conflicts revolving around her feelings for Elend that give the YA vibe.

I don't think that qualifies it enough to be YA. Also, YA, even in fantasy and science fiction, tends to recognizable to the readers. Teens like to read about themselves, or at least a dopplerganger for themselves. It's one reason a lot of YA is in first person. Mistborn is not very recognizable to the average teenager. Not in the way Twlight, Hunger Games, and the Divergent series are. Also, you typically don't see the POV of adults in YA. In the first book Vin shares the spotlight with Keisler and in the third(and kind of the second) it is with Sazed.

We never get to see Haymitch's thoughts on the Quarter Quell, for example (which would be awesome IMO...bitter, jaded thoughts with flashbacks of his own Hunger Games, would be just amazing).

But really, how awesome is it that the whole series grew out of the idea: "What Happens if the Dark Lord Won?"

I have not read Mistborn but I keep hearing how great it is. That said, I haven't really liked anything by Sanderson so far. Steelheart to me was just okay and felt very middle-school audience.

I dumped the audiobook of The Way of Kings but picked up the ebook so I can at least skim. It's excessively verbose. People keep telling me the book gets much much better...

I have yet to read more of Sanderson, but Mistborn sure was a good read. It was fun being sucked into that world for a while.

The Final Empire I think is one of Sanderson's best book, hands down. Even 'slightly' better than The Way of Kings but BARELY. It's a near perfect self contained novel that get's expanded upon with the follow up Mistborn books. We didn't have the expanded Cosmere yet (even though it WAS there). We didn't have an explanation of the flaws in the world. But it was Vin's and Keisler's tale and it was blood epic in it's own right.

The books that followed, just hammered home how awesome and developed this setting was.

Ondrej wrote: "And finally. Why is everyone advertising the Stormlight archive? Now I want to read it but we are only two books in so I'd have to wait so long! :)"

That's because it is sooooooo good! I usually don't pick up unfinished series because I dislike the wait. But I was hankering for more Sanderson after finishing Elantris and Mistborn. TWoK was intimidating and it took me quite a while to decide to take the plunge.
And boy was I hooked! WoR was the first book that I've ever bought and read upon immediate release, because I simply cannot wait to delve back into the world of The Stormlight Archive!

If it's any consolation, the 10 books will be split into 2 series of 5 books each according to Brandon. And he is intending to release 1 Stormlight every other year.

On Mistborn itself, my favourite book was The Final Empire. That being my first Brandon book, I was suitably astounded by the magic system and enjoyed his story-telling style. And Kelsier quickly became one of my favourite characters in a fantasy series.

A good series, overall, but the first book (Final Empire) was a step above the other too.

TS wrote: "Ondrej wrote: "And finally. Why is everyone advertising the Stormlight archive? Now I want to read it but we are only two books in so I'd have to wait so long! :)"

That's because it is sooooooo go..."

I plan on getting into the Stormlight Archive either this year or next. One person who reviewed The Way of Kings said it was the most exciting book he's ever read where nothing really happened in it, so I'm interested to check it out.

Just finished the trilogy and really liked it! I definitely have to read the rest of Sanderson's work soon, I've only read WoT, Elantris and Legion so far.

I do agree with L.G. however, the first book was better than the other two, which is a minus. I also didn't like his religious hints and comments in the last book - Sazed felt like a traditional, weak straw-man character and in general religious arguments are kind of lost in fantasy precisely because it's a fantasy setting that's different than our own.

Still liked it a lot tho. Great world-building, several awesome characters, fantastic action and story-telling - good stuff.

mistborn is a good series over all, but like a few others have said, the final empire is a step above the following 2 books imo,

I'm reading the first book right now and I'm having a pretty weird experience...
I really like the book. I like the setting and the plot and the characters. I have no complaints and it IS very immersing. I have a 45 commute to school and I have no problem passing the time while reading the book.
However! I don't really feel the need to pick it up, for any other reason than when I want to pass the time. And I can easily read a few pages of the book and then put it down.

I had a similar experience with Royal Assassin (Which I still haven't finished, a year later...). I actually loved the book. It just wasn't a "I have to find out what's going to happen now now now" kinda book.

Also, the praise I've heard the most about Mistborn are the action and the magic system. Now, I usually skim the action in fantasy (with some exception like Homeland), so my not-enjoying-it is no fault of Brandon Sanderson. However, the magic system I don't get. It's original, yes, but... what else? I guess I had pretty high expectations since a lot of people said the magic system was very scientific, and so far it's definitely not.
Now, I'm hardly halfway through the Final Empire so there's probably more to it in the future. At least that's what I hope.

Alice wrote: "Now, I'm hardly halfway through the Final Empire so there's probably more to it in the future. At least that's what I hope. "

There is more to it. But no, it doesn't get "more scientific". :D I don't know who was that said to you that it's scientific, but it's definitely not. The fact that Sanderson changed words like "mana" and "energy" with types of metals is interesting and fun to read but it's as far from science as homeopathy and astrology (and mana, and energy). :P
(And I personally loved the action in Mistborn, although I too, often, skim action in fantasy, cause it's often badly done)

I'm about halfway through Mistborn and I'm struggling with the fact that the plot is so incredibly straightforward. The crew has outlined what they should do at page fifty, and the last three hundred pages has just been them doing the preparations. There have been no obstacles, no plot twists, nothing truly important that has happened. I'm kind of disappointed by this, because people seem to love this series so much.

The problem with mistborn, if it is a problem, isnt with the books themselves, its more with how sanderfans go on about it, how great it is, how defined the magic is etc etc, it leaves u expecting something far beyond what it actually is, so its a matter of perception and expectation from this, which when hyped so much doesnt really deliver, mistborn is really a YA series,
The stormlight archive (the way of kings and words of radiance) suffer from the same problem, there good books but not the greatest thing ever like sanderfans make out,
im a fan of brandon sandersons books myself but wouldnt think his books are the greatest ever

Celine wrote: "I'm about halfway through Mistborn and I'm struggling with the fact that the plot is so incredibly straightforward. The crew has outlined what they should do at page fifty, and the last three hundr..."

I agree with this. I just finished part 2 of the book, and in the end there's a bit of a struggle (Don't know if you've gotten that far), but it completely lacked buildup, (which is pretty ironic since the book so far has been build up-only) so it wasn't as exciting as it could have been. :/

I know I say a lot of negative stuff, but I promise! I really DO like the book :) I agree with Sam, it's probably because I expected too much from it, I thought it was going to blow my mind...

But isn't that true of all books?
You're a fan, you say it's the greatest, but your best friend hates it.
;)

Alice wrote: "Celine wrote: "I'm about halfway through Mistborn and I'm struggling with the fact that the plot is so incredibly straightforward. The crew has outlined what they should do at page fifty, and the l..."

It's the same for me! I actually do like it, but because everyone keeps saying how flawless and amazing it is, I feel like I should point out the flaws. I wish my expectations had been more balanced

I just finished The Hero of Ages. I loved this trilogy. It had flaws, a lot of them but what made the series so great in my mind was that despite all of the flaws Sanderson kept me wanting more, I kept wanting to turn those pages. There were times when I didn't think anything was happening and then I would think about the previous 100 pages and be amazed with how much happened, how much Sanderson did and he just made it seem effortless.
I wouldn't recommend Mistborn to everyone but the people that I am going to recommend it to will love it.