A review by emily_j
The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson

adventurous mysterious medium-paced
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
This is an engaging story (I mean, I read half of it in about twelve hours which is a feat I haven't really been able to manage this year), but it's very obvious that it's written by a white person. Brandon Sanderson's grasp of privilege as it functions in the world he's created is shaky at best and the novel is frustrating as a result. I'm especially frustrated by
The Lord Ruler turning out to be a Terrisman, which positions being angry about the people oppressing you as a wrong which will turn you evil, and Elend's role in the climax, which tells readers that minority-lead social movements will devolve into violence without a benevolent oppressor to restore order.
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