A review by jtbolscher
The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson

3.0

liked it far more than i expected ~halfway through. as always, the world building, magic and politics are on point. the plot is tight and the twists are satisfying, leaving the final confrontation as an explosive and very pleasing aftertaste. unfortunately, sanderson’s faults as a writer are also present: sterile writing, not the best characterization and some atrocious dialogue. these aren’t terminal, and the book is eminently readable, but that’s pretty much it. none of the pages sparkle, none of the characters are particularly believable, and without the long pages and multifaceted plots needed to develop character arcs in this way, it leaves much of the book feeling hollow.

in other words, a fun romp that i will continue reading, great as a supplement to the main epic fantasy mistborn trilogies this follows (and supposedly sets up; whenever sanderson gets to mistborn era 3), but showcases why sanderson should stick to epic rather than “regular” fantasy.