Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson

My son had been encouraging me to read Mistborn for quite a while, and I finally took his advice!

The first thing that grabbed me was the magic system. I loved discovering a completely new kind of magic and, more importantly, learning the rules that govern it. I have realized that this is a major factor in how much I enjoy fantasy. I like a world that establishes its own rules and then follows them. When characters suddenly develop a convenient ability because the plot requires it, I tend to lose interest. Sanderson doesn't do that. Kudos.

The villain (Lord Ruler) and his hench-people/creatures are genuinely despisable, which makes the conflict much more satisfying.

The heroes are equally interesting because they aren't simply all-powerful. They each have different abilities, limitations and personalities. It’s fun watching Vin discover what she is capable of.

I enjoy Vin and Elend's relationship. They are equals, but they bring different strengths to the relationship. Neither one has to become a copy of the other for them to work as a pair.

This was a great introduction to the series for me. My husband is actually on the second book now, too -- so apparently my 16yo son has successfully recruited the family.

the shadow rising

Oh man, The Shadow Rising—the longest book in the Wheel of Time series—honestly feels like it sometimes. But there’s so much good stuff that you push through.

First off, Mat. That scene where he storms through the enchanted doorway demanding to know his future—and then—oh, the universe’s hilarious “plot twist”—he just has to get married. Classic. I found that very funny.

Dreamwalking. Hmm. Still feeling like we need clarity on the rules here. I don’t like “anything goes and anything can change” settings because it feels like the author can cheat.

Perrin, once again, is killing it. Taking us back to the Two Rivers and feeling like home again. And a wedding! Finally. We needed that. (His frustrated humility is great. “Stop calling me Lord.”)

Questions: I don’t understand why nobody in the story figured out that the weapon was to be an a’dam necklace for a male who could channel. I feel like someone should have guessed that? And Slayer…seems pretty obvious who it was, so why did it take Perrin so long?

I was devastated to read that Siuan and Leane were stilled. Hoping that comes around later—like, some a group of 13 to take, and a group of 13 to give back situation? Fingers crossed.

Min’s storyline? Still annoying. Still hating the same first-letter names. Gawyn and Galad, I can’t keep them straight. Unrelated — Morgase’s boyfriend who was trying to kill the girls—do we ever find out who he sent? Missed that memo, apparently.

My least favorites: Rand’s visions in Rhuidean? Molasses. Slow, sloggy, meh. Not memorable at all. And Logain becoming a bigger character at the end? Honestly, snooze if he features highly in the next book.

These books are a marathon, and you need a nap after finishing one. But the good news is, they are still popular enough that there is ALWAYS a multi-week hold line at the library. So that’s irritating enough to make me excited to keep reading.

The Dragon Reborn

The Dragon Reborn is where things start to feel big. We’ve got prophecies, Aiel popping out of the shadows, and the Stone of Tear looming like a final boss level.

First, Faile. Yes, please. Perrin needs this. A+

Now, Galad and Gawyn… good grief. This is where I start thinking Robert Jordan just ran out of first letters. Egwene, Elayne, Galad, Gawyn, Moiraine, Mat, Min, Morgase, Padan, Perrin—there are too many similar names. Stop that. Some of us are trying to read fast because we are worried about people dying and we need to get there faster, Robert.

Speaking of villains, Liandrin continues to be the worst. Unfortunately, for me, the Forsaken are a let-down. I don’t know enough about them to be hate-able. I mean, I’m sure they are awful but we barely know them.

I’m irritated that Morgase’s boyfriend (another “G” name—really, Robert?) is out there doing the absolute most and she doesn’t know. It makes her look weak, which is frustrating because she could be better.

Also, I reiterate what I said before — there are updated cover designs for these books in more modern printings, but you cannot beat the hilarity of this cover. Everything here is Hanna-Barbera glory. It’s so funny. I only wish I could have deliberately pictured Rand with that haircut and in those clothes, but unfortunately he’s still too cool when you read the book and your brain makes him the hero anyway.

The Great Hunt

Book 2 of The Wheel of Time is a lot of setup. It’s interesting because, despite the name, there’s not really much active hunting (in my opinion), and, instead, we find ourselves zipping around to expand the cast. To me, this book is like party introductions when you are a freshman. You will probably need to know all these people later so pay attention and try to grab a quick fact about everyone you meet to tell them apart.

Perrin and Lan are still my favorites, the Children of the Light and the Machin Shin are freshly disturbing, and Selene is so exhausting (stop the pining, Rand, you teenage boy, ugh). Also, you had to know Thom wasn’t dead because he kept being mentioned and all the other characters that die are just forgotten.

The Seanchin collars are a fantastically diabolical new evil that I feel is a great setup for what could come. The whole kidnapping arc there also further develops a strength of this series that (other than Dena, RIP) the females are actual characters instead of just pawns and prizes. Hooray!

Nynaeve is so endlessly irritating that I love her (and it’s a testament to Jordan’s understanding of humans that to make someone irritating loveable, have a lovable character love them). Loial is an awkward delight, as well. Ingktar is confusing, but, I guess, the point is that choosing a side is not permanent? I feel as though that is critical backstory again for what may come. Redemption could be possible.

Sigh. Mat and the dagger, Mat and the horn. Mat seems unable to keep himself away from entanglements.

Ending note: I hope we come back to the final-battle-worldwide-sky-projection later because… why? what? how? Hmm. I did not love that. (I also hated Min’s declaration at the end, entirely. Left field. Zero stars for that twist.)

The Eye of the World

Let me first start by saying that I read these books by accident. I know that sounds crazy since it’s thousands (maybe millions) of pages. But I am not that girl. I am already nerdy about so many things. I wasn’t going to add high fantasy.

Like when people are like, “Did you see Dune?” I’m like, “Yes, I saw all 187,240 words as I read Frank’s masterpiece cover to cover.” In my closet you can find both a costume for Star Wars and a costume for Star Trek. I am literally wearing Jurassic Park earrings with a Doctor Who T-shirt as I type this blog post.

Like I said — I already have a lot of nerding happening. I don’t need more.

But I have a teenage son whose reading habits make it harder to keep him full of reading material than it is to keep him in shoes and pants that fit (also saying something since he’s almost 6’). My point is, this is my son’s fault.

HE wanted to read Wheel of Time because he had already read, well, everything else. And HE left the book on the couch. So it is HIS fault that I picked it up just to get a sense of the tone and accidentally read all 300,147 words. Oops.

First things first. This cover is so glorious. There are so many other book covers from other print releases since this, and they all pale in comparison. I mean look at that stupid work of art. Bask in it. This is what drew me in to appx. 57 kajillion hours of page-turning.

As stated previously, the Wheel of Time made me like the first book of the Eragon series less because this was written first (and yes, I know all stories are retelling the same story and I know Harry Potter is Star Wars) but truly it’s just too similar. Note: Eragon is still worth reading though, for the rest of the series.

What do I like in Wheel of Time? Thank you for asking. I like Perrin and Lan. I like that the female characters are actual characters. I like that there are multiple kinds of threats. I like that the magic has a cost. I like that there is highly developed lore within the world. I like that the three best friends constantly wish they were more like each other.

Oh! And I like the way the Fades cape’s don’t move. What a creepy and awesome detail.

the plot

I had absolutely no idea what I was getting into with The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz, and honestly, that may be why I loved it. From page one, it felt like I was being pulled down this twisty, mysterious rabbit hole, and every time I thought I had a handle on things… nope. She kept throwing curveballs. So many things were happening at once that I couldn’t always see the connections, but I could feel that there was a bigger picture at work. And let me tell you—the payoff was worth every second of joyful confusion.

This book is a page-turner in the truest sense. I found myself reading way past bedtime because I just had to know how it all connected — and moments after I finished I handed it to my sister-in-law and basically watched her read it cover to cover.

The way she slowly pulls all the threads together… chef’s kiss. The climax… oh, the climax. I won’t spoil it, but picture a roller coaster and just when you think it’s over—BAM! The ending is sooo smart and satisfying.

Reading The Plot felt like a breath of fresh air. It’s clever, gripping, and just plain fun.