Timewaster's Guide Archive

(Mister M moonlighting under his wife's account until he can be bothered to reset his password)

So I just finished Mistborn about a day ago, and I figure it's time to jump on the comment-posting bandwagon.

First off, very good book, Brandon. It gave me some good adrenaline rushes, and some of the description is beautiful. Good work, and I eargerly await the sequel.

Now, some negative reactions, for whatever they're worth:

- Marsh's becoming an Inquisitor is a beautiful plot twist, but it didn't quite sit well with me for a few reasons. Foremost among them were (1) why did the Inquisitors "induct" him after so short a time in their ranks? He was barely out of acolytehood, after all; (2) why didn't Kelsier and Vin notice the multiple bodies used to create Marsh-the-Inquisitor? Vin pointed out the excess blood, but I would expect there to be an extra hand or something lying around, too; (3) and why did the Inquisitors basically "jump" Marsh to induct him? His note indicates no idea about it coming (likely the real reason he was going to have an hour alone, I know), but forcefully turning people into Inquisitors seems like a poor way to keep morale up. (I realize you probably have answers for these questions; I just didn't see them in the text.)

-Vin's victory seemed too easy. Yes, she had to struggle and almost failed, but as soon as the Lord Ruler's bracers came off, he suddenly lost all Allomantic ability. I might have missed something, but shouldn't he have still been able to ironpull the bracers back to him, youth or no youth?

*thinks* Actually, those are my only two big beefs with the story. They're just so critical to the resolution that they nag me. Most everything else was nice, and I especially liked Vin's story arc. I felt from early on that the story was actually about her, and it shows in how much screentime and depth she gets.

On a completely different note, I'm seeing a common thread among Sanderson protagonists. Kellsier reminded me very much of Raoden, and and even moreso of Topaz (a character from Dragonsteel, one of the two unpublished manuscripts I was able to read). They all have extreme optimism/humor, and they're all builders of societies (if that makes any sense). Those of you with more Sanderon novels under your belts can tell me if I'm seeing a true trend here, or just a coincidence.

I'd have to say it's learned, but there's still hope for your girls.  When I was younger, I'd play with Barbies (my two poor G.I.Joes got to be "sons" because no one made teenage boy Barbies in those days), watch Disney movies, want to be a princess, and play make-believe where I was a princess and could cast magic spells.  Admittedly, right after playing with Barbies I'd run outside and climb trees, but still....

In middle school, I liked to read any suspense/horror/ghost/etc. books I could find (like Joan Lowry Nixon's work).  It wasn't until eight grade, when the teacher had us read The Hobbit and I discovered an Anne McCaffrey short story in our textbook, that I was actively introduced to the wonderful world of speculative fiction.  My parents aren't geeks, and none of my sisters have really followed in my footsteps, but now I roleplay with a passion and am the one who owns the video game systems.

So anyway.  There's hope yet.