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A review by toggle_fow
The Bands of Mourning by Brandon Sanderson
adventurous
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Ok, this book was indeed better than the previous two.
The mission began very quickly at the beginning, so there was little enough time for everyone to slouch around being annoying. Also, I am completely hooked on Steris. Wow. I want to say that her character has evolved so much, but she really hasn't. She's grown a little, but fundamentally remains the same person she always was; it's more like OUR (and Wax's) perspective of her has evolved so much. I love it.
Honestly, Steris is almost too relatable for me. I love gaining perceived control over my fears by wildly overthinking every possible thing that may or may not happen. I also am boring and feel like an awkward alien learning by rote things that other people already have ingrained in their instincts. It was great to see her valued in this story, and to have a relationship between people who aren't 21 years old. Not to be an irredeemable weirdo but the ledger scene in the train is the HEIGHT of romance.
Spoilers from here on out-----------------------
I had read Arcanum Unbounded before this, so I already knew it was Kelsier all along. What I didn't expect was Wax's sister's betrayal. Or rather, I expected it right when he found her in the warehouse. Sanderson clearly meant for me to suspect her here, with that "she shot him" line, and then have my suspicious allayed, all the better to be surprised later. The plan worked perfectly. Bravo, sir.
If anyone gets the Annoying Character of the Book trophy in this one, it's Wax. His mental monologue was altogether too repetitive and mopey for me, and he approaches nearly Batman levels of "PLEASE JUST KILL THE VILLAIN." I'm glad the red-eyed people took Suit out, because someone had to do it. It's not too bad, really, though. Just enough for a suppressed sigh once or twice.
One of the BIG highlights here are the battles. Honestly the warehouse battle is my favorite. It was so intricate and complex, and the way they each fought in their own way while passing off the allomancy cube so that everyone got the benefit of everyone else's powers was awesome. I loved it.
The final battle is more of an escalating crescendo than a battle. I kept thinking, okay, here's the climax, but it wasn't. I'm not sure how I feel about Marasi getting the Bands and then giving them away. Was it empowering? Was it cool? Was it a nice subversion since we already have one Vin in this series and don't need another? I'm not sure. I was definitely surprised by how everything went down, and kept going down.
I kind of expected the pan-Cosmere impact of this book to be bigger, I guess, given the lead-up. Instead, the implications are huge for the Mistborn planet, but only slivers of hints can be scraped out for what's going on Out There. Sazed doesn't even know. The red-eyed people and their world-ending plan are very interesting, though. Can't wait to find out more.
The mission began very quickly at the beginning, so there was little enough time for everyone to slouch around being annoying. Also, I am completely hooked on Steris. Wow. I want to say that her character has evolved so much, but she really hasn't. She's grown a little, but fundamentally remains the same person she always was; it's more like OUR (and Wax's) perspective of her has evolved so much. I love it.
Honestly, Steris is almost too relatable for me. I love gaining perceived control over my fears by wildly overthinking every possible thing that may or may not happen. I also am boring and feel like an awkward alien learning by rote things that other people already have ingrained in their instincts. It was great to see her valued in this story, and to have a relationship between people who aren't 21 years old. Not to be an irredeemable weirdo but the ledger scene in the train is the HEIGHT of romance.
Spoilers from here on out-----------------------
I had read Arcanum Unbounded before this, so I already knew it was Kelsier all along. What I didn't expect was Wax's sister's betrayal. Or rather, I expected it right when he found her in the warehouse. Sanderson clearly meant for me to suspect her here, with that "she shot him" line, and then have my suspicious allayed, all the better to be surprised later. The plan worked perfectly. Bravo, sir.
If anyone gets the Annoying Character of the Book trophy in this one, it's Wax. His mental monologue was altogether too repetitive and mopey for me, and he approaches nearly Batman levels of "PLEASE JUST KILL THE VILLAIN." I'm glad the red-eyed people took Suit out, because someone had to do it. It's not too bad, really, though. Just enough for a suppressed sigh once or twice.
One of the BIG highlights here are the battles. Honestly the warehouse battle is my favorite. It was so intricate and complex, and the way they each fought in their own way while passing off the allomancy cube so that everyone got the benefit of everyone else's powers was awesome. I loved it.
The final battle is more of an escalating crescendo than a battle. I kept thinking, okay, here's the climax, but it wasn't. I'm not sure how I feel about Marasi getting the Bands and then giving them away. Was it empowering? Was it cool? Was it a nice subversion since we already have one Vin in this series and don't need another? I'm not sure. I was definitely surprised by how everything went down, and kept going down.
I kind of expected the pan-Cosmere impact of this book to be bigger, I guess, given the lead-up. Instead, the implications are huge for the Mistborn planet, but only slivers of hints can be scraped out for what's going on Out There. Sazed doesn't even know. The red-eyed people and their world-ending plan are very interesting, though. Can't wait to find out more.