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Mistborn
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Mistborn: Book 1

Mistborn (2006) (edit title/settings)

The Final Empire

by Brandon Sanderson (Author) (edit contributors)

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Description edit see section history

Sanderson introduces a totally new concept in Magic, that makes the story much more interesting, with strong characters, extensive world building which is part of over encompassing cosomere, that spans several books by the same author.

Summary edit see section history

Brandon Sanderson, fantasy’s newest master tale spinner, author of the acclaimed debut Elantris, dares to turn a genre on its head by asking a simple question: What if the hero of prophecy fails? What kind of world results when the Dark Lord is in charge? The answer will be found in the... read more (warning: may contain spoilers)

Brandon Sanderson, fantasy’s newest master tale spinner, author of the acclaimed debut Elantris, dares to turn a genre on its head by asking a simple question: What if the hero of prophecy fails? What kind of world results when the Dark Lord is in charge? The answer will be found in the Mistborn Trilogy, a saga of surprises and magical martial-arts action that begins in Mistborn.

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. Readers of Elantris thought they'd discovered someone special in Brandon Sanderson. Mistborn proves they were right.

Characters edit see section history

  • Vin: A half-skaa street urchin who unknowingly possesses the power of a Mistborn. Primary protagonist.
  • Kelsier: The Survivor of Hathsin, and one of the greatest Mistborn Allomancers of all time. He escaped from the Pits of Hathsin where he had been forced to work as a slave, and wandered the world. After being contacted by a skaa hoping for rebellion, Kelsier strikes up his loyal crew with a new contract: the fall of the Final Empire. Secondary protagonist - the story is partly told from his point of view.
  • Dockson: aka Dox. Kelsier's long time friend and crewmember. He is not an Allomancer, but keeps the crew operational by means of his organizational and administrative abilities.
  • Hammond: aka Ham. A member of Kelsier's crew, and a Pewterarm or Thug. Ham enjoys philosophical bouts, especially with Breeze.
  • Ladrian: aka Breeze. A member of Kelsier's crew, and a Soother. Breeze likes his wine, almost as much as he likes himself.
  • Cladent: aka Clubs. A member of Kelsier's crew. He is a Coppercloud or Smoker, and he along with the rest of his apprentices are able to shield their hideouts from the Ministry's Allomancers.
  • Lestibournes: aka Spook. One of Clubs' apprentices, and a Tineye. He hails from the east, and as such speaks with a strange dialect.
  • Lord Ruler: The ruler and "God" of the Final Empire. Nobody knows who he is or where he came from. All that is known is that since his Ascension, the Deepness was driven back and the world has lost hope.
  • Marsh: Kelsier's brother and a Seeker. He is willing to take down the Final Empire, no matter the cost.
  • Sazed: A Terrisman steward to Lord Renoux, and then Vin.
  • Elend Venture: aka El. A nobleman, and son of Straff Venture. He is heir to the Venture House, though not by the choice of either him nor his father. All Elend wants to do is read, philosophize and antagonize his father
  • Teven Renoux: A nobleman who is part of Kelsier's crew.
  • Reen: Vin's older brother
  • Shan Elariel: a wealthy Lutharian noblewoman from the Elariel House.
  • Camon: crewleader for a band of thieves
  • Jastes Lekal: friend of Elend. From House Lekal.
  • Milev: Camon's second.
  • Kar: an Inquisitor.
  • Theron: Skaa theiving crew leader. Colludes with Camon for the scheme at the beginning of the book.
  • Mare: Kelsier's wife who was killed in the Pits of Hathsin, a Tineye.
  • Rashek: A historical Terris packman.
  • Prelan Tevidian: An obligator. Lord Prelan of one of the Ministries.
  • OreSeur: a Kandra
  • TenSoon: The Venture family kandra.
  • Lord Tresting: Nobleman and lord of Tresting plantation.
  • Kurdon: Taskmaster for Lord Tresting
  • Goodman Tepper: Skaa elder
  • Goodman Mennis: skaa elder
  • Ulef: A member in Camon's band of thieves.
Show all 29 characters
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Quotes edit see section history

  • “The right belief is like a good cloak, I think. If it fits you well, it keeps you warm and safe. The wrong fit, however, can suffocate.”
    Sazed
  • “The entire point of life is to find ways to get others to do your work for you. Don't you know anything about basic economics?”
    Breeze
  • “That's kind of what trust is, isn't it? A willful self-delusion? You have to shut out that voice that whispers about betrayal, and just hope that your friends aren't going to hurt you.”
    Vin
  • “The trick is to never stop looking. There's always another secret.”
    Kelsier
  • “Belief isn't simply a thing for fair times and bright days, I think. What is belief--what is faith--if you don't continue in it after failure? ...Anyone can believe in someone, or something, that always succeeds, Mistress. But failure...ah, now, that is hard to believe in, certainly and truly. Difficult enough to have value, I think.”
    Sazed

Setting & Locations edit see section history

The primarily takes place in a region called the Final Empire on a world called Scadrial. One thousand years before the story begins the king of the Final Empire, the Lord Ruler.' In the Final Empire, a Dominance is a territory within the Lord Ruler's empire.
  • The Pits of Hathsin: A place where Skaa criminals are sent to work.
  • Khlennium
  • Mansion Renoux: Home of House Renoux, located in the city of Fellise.
  • Western Dominance: Fadrex City is an important cross roads city in the Western Dominance. Although all cities outside of Luthadel are forbidden from having walls, Fadrex City has a natural rock formation that makes it very defensible.
  • Northern Dominance: Urteau is a key crossroads city in the Northern Dominance. It was the traditional seat of House Venture although the family is based mainly in the capital.
  • Terris Dominance: Terris is the ancestral home of the Terrismen. It is a mountainous region located north of the Northern Dominance. The Terris Dominance is the only Dominance to retain its original name.
  • Central Dominance: Luthadel is the capital of the Central Dominance and the entire Final Empire. Luthadel is the heart of the Lord Ruler's power, as well as the site of his palace, Kredik Shaw.

First Sentence edit see section history

Ash fell from the sky.

Table of Contents edit see section history

I. Acknowledgements
II. Prologue
III. Part One: The Survivor of Hathsin (Chapters 1 - 8)
IV. Part Two: Rebels Beneath a Sky of Ash (Chapters 9 - 15)
V. Part Three: Children of a Bleeding Sun (Chapters 16 - 25)
VI. Part Four: Dancers in a Sea of Mist (Chapters 26 - 34)
VII. Part Five: Believers in a Forgotten World (Chapters 35 - 38)
VIII. Epilogue
IX. Ars Arcanum

Glossary edit see section history

  • Allomancy: The process of burning metals.
  • Allomancer: A person able to burn one or all of the Allomantic metals.
  • Allomantic metals: Eight basic Allomantic metals are iron, steel, tin, pewter, brass, zinc, copper and bronze. The ninth Allomantic metal is gold. The tenth Allomantic metal is Atium. There is rumored to be an eleventh and maybe even twelfth Allomantic metal (names for these are not mentioned in the novel).
  • Brass: External mental pulling metal. A person using this metal is able to Soothe another person's emotions, dampening them and making particular emotions less powerful.
  • Bronze: Internal mental pushing metal. A person burning this metal is able to sense when nearby people are using Allomancy
  • Coinshot: A Misting who can burn steel.
  • Copper: Internal mental pulling metal. A person burning copper gives off an invisible cloud that protects anyone inside of it from the senses of a Seeker.
  • Lurcher: A Misting who can burn iron.
  • Mistborn: An Allomancer able to use all Allomantic metals.
  • Misting: An Allomancer able to use only one of the Allomantic metals.
  • Pewter: Internal physical pushing metal. A person burning pewter enhances the physical attributes of their body.
  • Pewterarm: A Misting who can burn Pewter.
  • Iron: External physical pulling metal. A person burning iron can see translucent blue lines pointing to nearby sources of metal.
  • Rioter: A Misting who can burn zinc.
  • Seeker: A Misting who can burn bronze.
  • Smoker: A Misting who can burn copper.
  • Soother: A Misting who can burn brass.
  • Steel: External physical pushing metal. A person burning iron can see translucent blue lines pointing to nearby sources of metal.
  • Tin: Internal physical pulling metal. A person burning tin gains enhanced senses.
  • Tineye: A Misting who can burn tin.
  • Thug: A misting who can burn pewter, aka Pewterarm.
  • Zinc: External mental pushing metal. A person burning zinc can Riot another person's emotions, inflaming them and making particular emotions more powerful.
Show all 22 glossary entries

Series & Lists edit see section history

This is book 1 of 5 in Mistborn. (standard series)

Followed by The Well of Ascension.

This book is in Random Synapses: 100 Book Reading Challenge (2011). (community list)
This is book 43 of 99 in National Public Radio's Top 100 Science Fiction and Fantasy. (authoritative list)
This is book 5 of 159 in Fantasy Book Review Top 100 fantasy books of all time. (community list)

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

  1. Brandon Sanderson (Author)

Other Contributors:

  1. Christian McGrath (Cover Artist)

First Edition edit see section history

Original Language: English
Publisher: Tor Books
Country: USA
Publication Date: July 17, 2006
ISBN: 0-7653-1178-X
Page Count: 541

Classification edit see section history

  • Library of Congress: PS3619.A533 M57 2006
  • Dewey: 813/.6 22

Notes for Parents edit see section history

Reading Level: Young Adults

If the child can appreciate Tolkien, Robert Jordan, and other epic fantasy novels, this will be a great addition to their library. There is some violence. Mentions prostitutes, abundant gory violence, a few other touchy subjects. However, all the main characters are kind, good people and are usually distanced from all the negatives.

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