elfaz's review
4.0
Graphic: Classism, Violence, Toxic relationship, Torture, Slavery, Religious bigotry, Hate crime, and Forced institutionalization
missgarceau's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Moderate: Torture, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Slavery, Stalking, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Blood, Child abuse, Classism, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Body horror, Body shaming, Gore, Hate crime, Death, Rape, Physical abuse, Violence, and War
maulikki's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Slavery, Classism, Colonisation, Death, Murder, Racism, Genocide, and Grief
Moderate: Physical abuse, Violence, War, Bullying, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Blood, Cursing, Child death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, and Torture
mayr3adsab00k's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Slavery, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Abandonment, Alcohol, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Violence, and War
Minor: Confinement, Cursing, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, and Physical abuse
andreia's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
this is one of sanderson's earlier works, published in 2006, which is now a long time ago when we consider how the fantasy genre has evolved in recent years. in the context that this was published in, i'd say this is a pretty great story, with a very satisfying progression of events, interesting enough characters, and it even holds up well as a standalone book. in short, it's understandable why it's one of sanderson's most beloved works. the complexity of the world-building is fascinating and i know there's still so much more to discover about this world in the next books.
although i haven't read anything else by him, i'm sure sanderson has improved a lot as a writer since publishing this, as he's claimed himself. so for now i guess i can excuse the things i didn't love about this. i also know that most people seem to prefer his more recent books, so i'm excited to keep reading!
things i didn't love so much (with some mild spoilers):
- vin's character was infuriating at times and the worst part was how painfully clear it was that some of her actions / thoughts were just poor writing choices and not actually a reflection of her character. how is it believable that someone who suffered so much all her life, is constantly battling her instinct to not trust anyone (not even people who clearly want to help her), suddenly goes to a ball, has some meaningless superficial conversations with people who would literally kill her without batting an eye, and decides that the nobility are good and deserve redemption? just because they have pretty dresses and houses? it's just so contradicting to the basis of her character that reading her inner monologues when it comes to the nobility feels like a completely different character.
- in general, the other characters don't really stand out much aside from kelsier and sazed. and this is a big cast of characters. the rest of the crew, although lovable, were honestly very forgettable at times. also, the fact that vin is basically the only significant female character in a cast of 8+ important characters is very, well, 2006-fantasy-written-by-a-man, i guess. not to mention the only other women (2) who occasionally make an appearance, are all antagonists.
- this definitely didn't need to be 600+ pages long. it was a little repetitive at times, with the characters having the same inner monologues time and time again. also, i didn't feel that there was much info-dumping, but there were definitely moments way past half of the book where we were revisiting concepts of this fantasy world for the second, third time, as if to make sure the reader didn't forget it.
- some small cliche moments like
Spoiler
the villain turning in his chair to face the protagonist, the villain being defeated and having one last speech about how he was "saving everyone" and "you don't know what you've done"i'm hoping these are all aspects that will be improved in the next books or, at least, in other sanderson series. other than that, i'm very excited to read the next one since i have no clue where it's going!
Graphic: Violence, Toxic relationship, Murder, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Death, and Abandonment
thevietvegan's review
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Blood, Death, Violence, Toxic relationship, Torture, Slavery, Murder, Child abuse, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Grief, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Physical abuse, and Racism
Moderate: Sexual violence