A review by aphelia88
Shadows of Self: A Mistborn Novel, by Brandon Sanderson
4.0
Marasi is now a Constable, so when the brother of the Governor is murdered, she has the inside track. The deceased was auctioning off political favours when he had his throat slit by someone his many guards never saw, in a single-entrance safe room.
The seemingly-impossible murder is a tiny spark that lights a wildfire amongst the labouring class, who are starting to riot in protest of the corruption they see in the aristocratic House system, petitioning for shorter working hours and better pay.
A very old rogue Kandra calling herself Bleeder is setting events in motion, invisibly pulling strings behind the scenes, with the professed goal of "freeing" everyone from the influence of God, also known as Harmony (formerly Sazed).
As Waxilliam's past comes back to haunt him and Bleeder targets him specifically, for reasons he doesn't understand, Wax - along with sidekick Wayne and clever Marasi - must race against time to prevent an all-out civil war, an uprising deliberately evocative of the overthrow of the Final Empire so long ago.
Like the first book, this one is fast-paced, although it is considerably darker and I found it dragged quite a bit in the middle as Wax and Bleeder play an extended game of cat-and-mouse.
The sequences where Wax chases criminals using his Coinshot abilities to fly through the air, pushing on metals, were fascinating. Wayne comes into his own when he schools the kandra MeLaan - who Harmony sends to aid them - in the art of accents, hats, and impersonation although his deliberately inappropriate and sometimes crude humour rings false in a few places.
Twists seem to be a specialty of Sanderson's and he delivers a heck of the one at the end, which tears apart the very foundations of Wax's world.
Betrayed by one God, the gang is surprised when Marasi uncovers existence of another, a yet unknown quantity that seems to have influenced Bleeder's madness.
I'm not sure where Sanderson is taking this story, but it's an interesting journey!
The seemingly-impossible murder is a tiny spark that lights a wildfire amongst the labouring class, who are starting to riot in protest of the corruption they see in the aristocratic House system, petitioning for shorter working hours and better pay.
A very old rogue Kandra calling herself Bleeder is setting events in motion, invisibly pulling strings behind the scenes, with the professed goal of "freeing" everyone from the influence of God, also known as Harmony (formerly Sazed).
As Waxilliam's past comes back to haunt him and Bleeder targets him specifically, for reasons he doesn't understand, Wax - along with sidekick Wayne and clever Marasi - must race against time to prevent an all-out civil war, an uprising deliberately evocative of the overthrow of the Final Empire so long ago.
Like the first book, this one is fast-paced, although it is considerably darker and I found it dragged quite a bit in the middle as Wax and Bleeder play an extended game of cat-and-mouse.
The sequences where Wax chases criminals using his Coinshot abilities to fly through the air, pushing on metals, were fascinating. Wayne comes into his own when he schools the kandra MeLaan - who Harmony sends to aid them - in the art of accents, hats, and impersonation although his deliberately inappropriate and sometimes crude humour rings false in a few places.
Twists seem to be a specialty of Sanderson's and he delivers a heck of the one at the end, which tears apart the very foundations of Wax's world.
Spoiler
His lost lover Lessie turns out to be the insane Kandra Bleeder, who was originally sent to by Harmony like a guardian angel to watch over Wax in the Roughs. Wax is assured by Harmony, directly via a hemalurgic earring like Vin used to wear, that he is the only one who can kill Bleeder, who must be stopped - and he is single-minded in his mission and the righteousness of the hunt. Only to learn that he has been terribly manipulated, told the truth of Lessie's identity by Bleeder herself as she triggers the Kandra's self-suicide process and dies in Wax's arms.Betrayed by one God, the gang is surprised when Marasi uncovers existence of another, a yet unknown quantity that seems to have influenced Bleeder's madness.
I'm not sure where Sanderson is taking this story, but it's an interesting journey!