From #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson, the Mistborn series is a heist story of political intrigue and magical, martial-arts action.

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. Only then does he reveal 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, and gotten it. She will have to learn to trust, if Kel is to help her master powers of which she never dreamed.

This saga dares to ask a simple question: What if the hero of prophecy fails?

Other Tor books by Brandon Sanderson

The Cosmere

The Stormlight Archive
The Way of Kings
Words of Radiance
Edgedancer (Novella)
Oathbringer

The Mistborn trilogy
Mistborn: The Final Empire
The Well of Ascension
The Hero of Ages

Mistborn: The Wax and Wayne series
Alloy of Law
Shadows of Self
Bands of Mourning

Collection
Arcanum Unbounded

Other Cosmere novels
Elantris
Warbreaker

The Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians series
Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians
The Scrivener's Bones
The Knights of Crystallia
The Shattered Lens
The Dark Talent

The Rithmatist series
The Rithmatist

Other books by Brandon Sanderson

The Reckoners
Steelheart
Firefight
Calamity

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Intrigue, politics, and conspiracies mesh complexly in a world Sanderson realizes in satisfying depth and peoples with impressive characters.” ―Booklist on Mistborn

“Enjoyable, adventurous read that. . .should satisfy even easily-bored teens.” ―Locus on Mistborn

“A fascinating world . . . one that deserves a sequel.” ―The Washington Post on Mistborn

About the Author

Brandon Sanderson grew up in Lincoln, Nebraska. He lives in Utah with his wife and children and teaches creative writing at Brigham Young University. He is the author of such bestsellers as the Mistborn® trilogy and its sequels, The Alloy of Law, Shadows of Self, and The Bands of Mourning; the Stormlight Archive novels The Way of Kings and Words of Radiance; and other novels, including The Rithmatist and Steelheart. In 2013, he won a Hugo Award for Best Novella for The Emperor's Soul, set in the world of his acclaimed first novel, Elantris. Additionally, he was chosen to complete Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time® sequence.

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Product details

Mass Market Paperback: 672 pages
Publisher: Tor Books; First edition (July 31, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0765350386
ISBN-13: 978-0765350381
Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1.1 x 6.8 inches
Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 1,956 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #277,347 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #4258 in Sword & Sorcery Fantasy (Books)
- #7633 in Epic Fantasy (Books)

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Ashley

My review does NOT contain spoilers, but does contain violence/language/etc warnings

September 26, 2018

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

It's not a bad book, but be warned that it is very long, and that space isn't filled with new and exciting adventures. It's filled with a lot of random events, sometimes ones that have no effect on the outcome. However, the characters are easy to get to know, and though it isn't for me, I'm sure others will get absorbed into it.

There is a lot of violence. Gory violence. I need to remind people that this is a young adult book with lots of adult themes. Young adult does not mean it is okay to read to your children. This book should be read by people who are over 18, but that is my opinion. I would never want this book read to anyone under 14, though just 14 or 15 would be pretty messed up too. I don't remember the story containing any harsh language, and I don't remember any sexual scenes. However, there are mentions of 'whore-masters' as they call them in the book. Prostitution is not a main theme, and it is very minor and only mentioned off on the side, not affecting any main characters. There are mentions of a rape-and-kill situation of a CHILD, but the child is not harmed in the end.

The book contains very dark themes, just as one would expect from their type of setting. Morals are all but thrown out the window with murder and such, so that's another reason not to read it to children. It should be read by someone who understands what their morals are.

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Thebookbella

A unique magic system with so many wonderful characters!

January 12, 2019

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

4.5*

So this book was really really enjoyable.

Our main character, 16-year-old Vin is working as a theif to a street criminal when she is recruited to work with the infamous mistborn, Kelsier. Keliser is wanted by the Empire as a fugitive who escaped their jail several years earlier. Vin, having known only heartless criminals, learns that sometimes people can be nice and trustworthy.

Kelsier, being the iconic crazy guy that he is, plans to overthrow the empire to free all the Skaa slaves from abuse and oppression. With many hiccups and problems along the way, the stakes are high as he takes on the immortal and godlike Lord Ruler.

The magic system in this world is wonderfully unique, as Allomancers eat metals and each metal gives an Allomancer a different ability. Most Allomancers are just Mistings (who only have the ability to use and burn one metal). Then you have the rare Mistborn who can use and burn all of the metals.

I loved all of Kelsier's crew and I have to say my favorite is Sazed because he is the scholar (and I always have a soft spot for the scholars). Sazed is not your typical Allomancer. He actually stores his abilities in metals so that he can draw upon them later. Sazed is also a kindhearted and loyal companion to Vin.

I love this whole book, however as I was reading the 4th section there was a lot of repetition of points that were being made about the way this world works that allowd me to predict the ending and all the details quite accurately. I would have liked for it to be less predictable, but I still really and truly enjoyed the ending. The whole book and the magic system were very well constructed and there were so many good characters to love. Also this book made me tear up, and for it to do that on top of everything else is quite as feat as I'm not a cryer.

Loved this book and plan to start the next one in the series very soon!

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MereChristianTop Contributor: Manga

The Beginning of One of the Most Epic Fantasy Trilogies of Modern Times

January 12, 2015

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Brandon Sanderson, the author chosen by the late Robert Jordan's widow to finish his *Wheel of Time* series, was chosen based on the fact that Jordan's widow took a liking to his previous work. One of those works is the *Mistborn Trilogy*. To be sure, calling it a “trilogy” is now misleading, as Sanderson is writing other books in an attempt to flesh out a “history” of his fictional world. I guess eventually it will be called the “Original Trilogy”, or something to that effect. I digress. The first book in this world is the first of the original *Mistborn Trilogy*, *Mistborn: The Final Empire*.

The series is set in a world where there are massive “ashfalls”, from volcanoes, and other ecological disasters. In the midst of this, the ruler and “deity” over the world, known as the “Lord Ruler” controls the massive caste system in his world-wide empire. The upper-crust, called the “nobility”, are those whose ancestors are said to have supported the Lord Ruler's rise to power as he fought against the evil forces destined to destroy the world before his “ascent” to “godhood”. The truth is that the Lord Ruler is *not* a god. He is a man who gained power upon doing the mighty deeds of legend, and in the intervening years grown more and more evil. He has destroyed all of the prophecies and religions in the world before his time. Thus all truth is removed from the world. Only a small underground network of scholars is left trying to use magic to preserve knowledge and seek out the truth.

The nobility rules over the under-class, called skaa. These people are shorter in stature, though arguably stronger physically, and lacking the traits which give them magical powers called “Allomancy”. Allomancy is the ability to take swallowed amounts of specifically mixed metal alloys of different varieties, that are then “burned” by the Allomancer's body to perform feats. These Allomancers are split into groups according to their ability. Either an Allomancer can burn only one metal granting them a specific power, or they can burn *all* metals to exercise all of the powers. Those that can do such are called “Mistings” and “Mistborn”, respectively.

The Lord Ruler, to prevent the existence of skaa Mistings and Mistborn, who could rebel against him, outlaws romantic relationships between the nobility and the skaa, only allowing such to take place if the nobleman kills the skaa before she can become pregnant, as well as trying to kill so-called “half-breeds”. Some such half-breeds escape alive and turn to crime to survive, or a few legitimate businesses while hiding their abilities. This is a world where the Lord Ruler uses magic, physical violence, and psychological warfare, to oppress the populace. This is about to change.

One of the “thieving crews” of skaa decide to attempt the impossible. They are to attempt to help the insignificant skaa rebellion to overthrow the Final Empire and kill the tyrannical Lord Ruler. Things seem to be impossible, and indeed, there are many setbacks. But in the end, it just might happen.

The best part of the story is that the author learned from such greats as Robert Jordan, and Robert Jordan's inspiration, J. R. R. Tolkien. What I mean by this is that Sanderson managed to infuse the story with the same sense of wonder and friendship that Tolkien used in *The Lord of the Rings*, as well as the same emphases on themes of friendship and sacrifice, and a detailed, well-though out mythology.

The systems of Allomancy and Feruchemy, the other major (also metal-based) magic system are very intricate. The author clearly spent quite some time thinking over his systems of magic, and the story certainly benefits from it. The various ecological, and geographical, aspects of the world and it's problems, are also described in *pain-staking* detail.

Perhaps the best part of the book, in my opinion, was the earlier referenced focus on friendship. The ways that the characters love each other and look out for each other. Vin, one of the two main protagonists of the novel, is looked after and tutored by another half-skaa Mistborn, named Kelsier. It is Kelsier's vision and planning that results in the team's successful rebellion at the end of the book.

Vin starts out not trusting anyone, but slowly, over the course of the novel, Kelsier and his crew invited her into their midst. They slowly show her the true meaning of friendship and help her to learn that people, *can*, indeed, love and trust each other.

I can't really think of anything to dislike about the book, except that I wish that the “love story” was not so rushed. It made no real sense in the tale. We have Vin's point of view, but not her love interest's. That really made it hard to “root” for the characters. Or, at least, to root for the love interest. Only the passion of Vin makes the couple anything interesting. Oh, don't get me wrong. The love interest *is* interesting, but his thoughts are so limited on any subject, and most of the time he has a point of view, he spends hardly any time thinking about how he loves Vin, or “Vallette” as he knows her, as compared to other topics.

All together a fun novel, and a good introduction to the “Mistborn” world. I look forward to starting the second book, *Mistborn: The Well of Ascension* soon.

Highly Recommended.

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