Tharindu Dissanayake's Reviews > The Alloy of Law

"I pride myself on my cheery, optimistic attitude."

… back to Mistborn… and fast-forward 300 years…

Wayne: "I suggest that you never ask her to pass the milk. As she seems likely to throw a cow at you, just to be certain the job is done thoroughly."

Mistborn Era 1 got to be the fantasy series of the year for me. It was perfect in every possible way, from world building to character development to magical system… I had zero complaints! But when I was picking up The Alloy of Law, I was yet again injected with a not so little dose of anxiety: would it ruin the perfect record of Mistborn? However, there was a ‘300-year’ safety net this time around! If this doesn’t work out, I could always consider it a separate series. That and this fourth novel was said to be a ‘short-story’ by some. This was basically my mindset starting Era 2.

Wax: "Doesn’t this seem a little… stiff to you?"
Steris: "Stiff?"
Wax: "I mean, shouldn’t there be room for romance?"
Steris: "There is. Page thirteen. Upon marriage, there shall be no more than three conjugal encounters per week and no fewer than one until a suitable heir is provided. After that, the same numbers apply to a two-week span."
Wax: "Ah, of course. Page thirteen."

Well, it turns out no safety net was necessary. While not quite reaching the awesomeness that was the Era 1, Sanderson begins the new sub-series here with a light, relatively short and an action-packed intro to the new timeline, the modified setting, and the new characters. And most importantly, this is loads of fun! The plot might have gotten simpler from the days of Final Empire, but the characters have become much better (and funnier). I think Wax & Wayne could even end up being my overall favorites, replacing Kelsier and Vin.

Wayne: ”That’s different. She was a woman. Good at lying, they are. The God Beyond made’m that way.”
Marasi: ”I’m not certain how I should take that.”
Wax: ”With a pinch of copper. And a healthy dose of skepticism. Just like anything Wayne says.”

Sanderson has also found a clever way to scale the original magical system from the days of Kel and Vin. We now have ‘Twinborns,’ who are able to use both Allomanantic and Feruchemical abilities. This allows some cool new possibilities, making the magical system even more interesting. While it is a bit sad to see that there will no longer be any real mistborn running around, the possibilities and limitations of the new systems seems more intriguing.

Wax: "I once shot the tail off a dog by mistake. It’s kind of a funny story."
Steris: "Shooting dogs is hardly appropriate dinner conversation."
Wax: "I know. Particularly since I was aiming for its balls."

As I understand it, the Mistborn is planned as a trilogy of trilogies, and The Alloy of Law is not part of any of these trilogies. So I guess I shouldn’t be surprised by how short this was (compared to the first three). But, in my opinion, this book did a wonderful job of whetting the reader’s, and preparing them for the journey to come.

Wayne: "It’s a pretty good book. You should try it. It’s about bunnies. They talk. Damnedest thing ever."