Mistborn Trilogy

Arts & Media Books, Literature & Writing
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I recently read the Mistborn Trilogy, and I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed the books!

I really enjoyed the story itself. The twists and turns of it kept me hooked, and I felt that the universe was well designed.

The system of magic was awesome. I have never read about another system of magic like that, so I found it to be really original and well done. It was really well defined. Even though the it was revealed to the reader slowly throughout the book, everything ended up making sense within a certain framework. It is generally one of my pet peeves when I read something containing a system of magic and get the feeling that the author is just throwing stuff in to keep things exciting, but it might introduce contradictions as the story progresses. There were no contradictions here. Everything fits together in a clearly defined way in the end. While you are reading the books you might not understand how it works but in the end of the books you will understand everything perfectly.

So I guess what I can appreciate a lot about the books is that they were well planned by the author.

I have no authority as a literary critic, but I did feel occasionally, that the way the story was told was a little too simplistic and straightforward. What I mean is that sometimes I enjoy when authors describe a setting or emotions and such, indirectly. It makes it more interesting to read than a direct statement.

Anyway, would like to hear what you guys thought about the books, if you read them. If you havn't, you should read them!

 

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Sounds interesting. i have been searching a very long time to find another great fantasy series. I'll pick it up and give it a read. My recommendation if you haven't read it is to read the Belgariad. Some people say its to generic of fantasy. But i have read it at least 20 plus times and its still my fav for fantasy. 

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Yes, Mistborn is a great trilogy.  I read it a couple of years back. The elemental magic system definitely is fairly unique.   

I first discovered Brandon Sanderson when he was selected to complete Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series.  I was a bit incredulous that anyone could have filled Jordan's shoes and complete The Wheel of Time, but he did and I personally think his three Wheel of Time books were better than the last couple of ones Jordan wrote before he died.

Mistborn is definitely well thought out and evolves well through books two and three.  It is a bit heart breaking at the end, but well worth the read. 

If you are looking for another trilogy that has a very unique magic system or actually magic systems, try reading The Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb.  it is a very different fantasy series.  It starts slow but really grabs you.  You can also try The Way of Kings. It is also written by Brandon Sanderson and also has a very unique magic system.

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So here's what happened when I went to read the Farseer Trilogy. I read the last book first by mistake....F$#@#$@#$&%(*$)@!!!! I have no explanation as to how this happened. I just...I....I'm so STUPID! When the book was coming to an end, I was thinking to myself, "WOW I wonder how epicly the next 2 books are going to end! What more is left to resolve? Fitz's love life?".....fml. Let this never be spoken of again.

Anyway, I liked the last book, and can mostly piece together the first 2 so I'm not gonna be reading those now. I'm considering reading the follow up trilogy which follows Fitz & co. again (Tawny Man), but not really sure.

As far as Way of Kings, I'm usually apprehensive about starting unfinished series. I'm already reading a few unfinished historical fiction series, one by Bernard Cornwell (The Saxon Stories), another by Simon Scarrow (Eagle Series), and two by Christian Cameron (The Tyrant Series and The Long War Series) and it's really frustrating to wait, especially after the whole Harry Potter waiting game.

I just started reading the First Law series by Joe Abercrombie because it's rated well on goodreads.com. What series of novels have you enjoyed the most?

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That's too bad about the Farseer Trilogy, but you are right.  If you have read the last book, much of books one and two will be spoiled.  But you do get to see in more detail how horrible Regal is and Fitz's close bond with Chade.

I haven't had a chance to read the Tawny Man yet, but it is in my "queue"

I totally understand not wanting to start an unfinished series.  Especially, one that looks to be drawn out.  The Way of Kings was a great book very epic, but it is the first of a planned 10 book series, and it certainly seems Sanderson has no short term plans to complete the series or even finish a second book.

By far, the best fantasy series out there is A Song of Ice and Fire.  Again, I know this is an unfinished series, that will not be completed for at least another five years, but it really is by far the best one out there.

You can try The Wheel of Time.  It's a good fantasy series, but is more of a traditional one.  But Robert Jordan is such a good writer that he makes traditional fantasy very interesting, and there is enough differences.  His work is very much influenced by Hinduism.  It is probably more traditional since he started writing the series in the late 1980s, the first book was published in 1990.  But it is a very long series, 14 books about half are roughly 1000 pages.  Even if you are an extremely veracious reader, it will take you at least four months to complete.

Some of my friends like the series The Malazan Book of the Fallen.  I read the first two books in the series, but it did not hook me enough to continue.  I can certainly see why they like it, but it just did not interest me enough.  They told me that the first two books are really world-building, and the series gets really good after that, but I have been burned by that before.  It is 10 books and the series is now complete.

Another fantasy series that I like is the Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks.  It is a mix between traditional and modern fantasy, but it is gritty and has a lot of grey characters.  It has a couple of different magic systems, one is pretty unique.  Weeks is very much influenced by Robert Jordan.  One of the magic using factions in the series is almost taken verbatim from The Wheel of Time.  And the guardian of the portal to the "afterlife" is almost an exact replica of something similar from the Wheel of Time.  But Weeks is a good writer and spins a very entertaining tale.

I am actually looking for another good fantasy series to start.  I may also try First Law, but I have not decided yet.

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The Mistborn trilogy is amazing! The storyline, how dark the setting is, and the insane magic system with the right characters make this series well worth the read to anyone slightly interested in fantasy or science fiction.

I could almost see this being made into a movie, which if done right would be amazing!

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I want wheel of time to be a HBO series, but we know that wont happen ahahha too many characters in the wheel of time ...... :(

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That would be badass. But make it on netflix so I don't have to pira...get HBO.

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Wheel of Time was a great read, although after the 7th book I got a little tired of it :(. Brent Weeks first trilogy was decent enough to read however his new series is much better (MUCH MUCH BETTER!!!) and his writing has improved (for me anyways).

I have read the first Malazan Book of the Fallen series and only had half an idea of what was happening throughout the book but still want to finish the series.

I have heard that The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant The Unbeliever was an inspiration to the Wheel of TIme series so I have started that (only 100 pages in).

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Ahh but there is one big glaring contradiction present throughout the entire series, one that could change the entire direction of the story. it is clearly stated that Ruin cannot know your thoughts, however, from the very beginning of the story Ruin often responds directly to a  few of the characters thoughts in a conversational manner that would only be possible by someone who could 'hear' the other side of his conversation, and if Ruin couldn't do this then he couldn't have twisted Vin to his desires to release him, also, if the lord ruler had been allowed to live for 2 more years, then his previous experience with the wells power would have allowed him to expertly correct his thousand years previous mistakes, kinda making Kelsier, Vin and Elend into the real antagonists who couldn't leave well enough alone. I still agree that they are very good novels and i enjoyed them greatly, but the story defeats itself.

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Ruin changed all written stuff that wasn't in metal or something

At least that was a good enough reason for me. As for the two year correction thingy I don't think that would have been allowed by the guys missing eyeballs. Inquisitors? Might have to read this series again. If I remember correctly didn't the lord ruler kill off the original guy who was supposed to save the world in the first place?

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Yes, He did kill the original 'Savior', however mere moments after stealing that individuals chance at the well of power, the lord ruler realized the error in his actions and immediatley set into motion his own plan to fix everything a thousand years later when the power well recharged, but Vin killed him, and repeated his exact same mistake for herself, and in so doing put the world into an even darker state than the lord ruler had it, for the next two years (would have been the next thousand AGAIN had they not found another way to defeat ruin), again pointing out that had they just left the lord ruler alone, he would've fixed everything better than before. as i said, a self-defeating story, all the main characters are the real 'bad guys' thinking they were doin such great stuff only to fuck up the plans of a god-like being who really did know better (made all the more apparent by there hunting down his cache's which contained instructions on what to do should the lord ruler die, so basically they killed him and stole his plan and carried it out half-assed).

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Well. Crap. Trying to remember the entire series. Will have to read it again. That wasn't the vibe I was getting though. The lord ruler surrounded himself with all these crazy dudes with superpowers granted by Ruin. Kinda. That and I think the Lord Ruler was a little unhinged. Mostly because of the whole murder thing. Give me a week to read over the series again and I can say that with more confidence. I'll start on it right after I finish the Game of Thrones series. Probably. At any rate a much more understanding soul fixed it all, and it wasn't Vin. Let us not forget the type of rule the Lord Ruler set up while waiting for a chance to unfuck everything. The morality behind that is not justifiably.

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the society the lord ruler established was a necessary evil, everything he did was necessary Vin admits this to herself after she kills him, takes the power, and sees the situation for what it is, hence why they search for all of his caches. he created a class disparity because he had fucked up the planet by pulling it too close to the sun, he made microbes to eat ash to try and keep people alive, and the caste system was to ensure that society managed to grow enough food to stick around until he could fix things properly, he did not surround himself with ruins servants, the inquisitors became ruins servants only after the lord rulers influence was gone. now this bit here im a little fuzzy on as its been a few months since i read it, but im pretty sure that the lord ruler had pretty much put ruin into a state of submission right up until Vin killed him, releasing ruin to the fullness of his power, which brought back the lethal properties of the mists, thats another point, by killing the lord ruler and letting the mists become lethal again, Vin indirectly murdered hundreds of thousands of people that the lord ruler, had he been allowed to live, would have saved along with the entire planet. the novels are a great example of how Tyranny, while unfair, is a much better form of government then democracy, 1 power 1 plan, and things will actually get done, but as long as rulership is a game of hot potatoe (pass control off once you've fucked it up) a society is doomed to an endless parade of half-assed rules and regulations made out of (sometimes) good intentions, but is ultimatley nothing more than a popularity contest. which is democracy's biggest issue, so long as ruling parties are decided on based on a damned popularity contest (which is what voting and campaigning is) then the right man for the job will never be chosen, what governments need is men and women whom are willing to make the right decision regardless of wether or not it is the popular decision. because we all know that the Majority vote only means all the idiots are on the same side, as it is also common knowledge that intelligence is the exception in people, not the rule. and this went a little bit off topic.

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That went into a those who have power should keep it rant. I think. If that is where you were headed then the victors of the rebellion gained the power which should justify the deaths from the mists. The characters are great because you never really like every decision made by any of them. So many laws and customs were broken in this book that the ending was good enough. Power corrupts.

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This will be a Necropost, and I am fine with that. Read Anyting else by Sanderson, for a one of book The Master of White Storm. Brent Weeks is another good author. Peter V. Brett atleast the first two books and the short stories are great. For something kind of unique, try the Far Kingdoms or any of Allen Cole or Chris Bunches books, they are old though are really well written. And try Stephen Erickson ( sic ), I always misspell his last name. The first book, stick with it until halfway through it. The reviews says it's about out ( the series ), I say it's about being decent.

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Finally other people who've read these books! Holy hell they are so good. Just epic. Can't even begin to describe how I feel about them. Brent Weeks' Night Angel trilogy is the same way for me. Such amazing stories.

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I bought the Night Angel Triology at a bookstore I preordered a book at, hated the cover, it looked really Ninja. I like books where magic is rare. Like Lies of Locke Lamora. This thread will be locked down by mods soon. So let's keep it going.