The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson

The Alloy of Law is book one in the Misborn era 2 series by Brandon Sanderson.

It is a short book, comparatively to other books from Sanderson. It benefits from the fact that we already know the magic system, thanks to the first era of Mistborn.

It has a different setting though, as this takes place in an early Industrial Revolution set-up plus a hint of Wild West.

Being relatively short, it made for a perfect read in one day and I had a blast that day on the plane, while traveling home.

We essentially discover two main characters, Wax and Wayne, who take us through this adventure; on top of this duo, we also get to know and root for Marasi (and marginally for Steris).

This book gave me strong western vibes; for example, the assault to the trains, the use of sheriff-like positions, the guns and the use of cities (the main location of this story is actually the city of Elendel) as opposed to the Wild West (that are called the Roughs in this story). The world building was absolutely outstanding for me; I find myself more and more attracted to steampunk settings and this fit the bill perfectly.

The other aspect that engaged me were the challenges of the characters (in other words, the character arcs). I liked particularly Wax’s development. He starts as a heartbroken character, broken in more ways than one; in particular, having to regain his control in difficult situations and his abilities to confront evil. Yet, I like also the fact that he chooses to make decisions as Lord Ladrian, decisions that he would normally not make as Wax the lawkeeper in the Roughs. I think this makes him a dynamic character, someone who needs to find his way into society.

Wayne is the comedic relief of this story; he is always showing up when he is the least expected and in disguise; he has a pretty traumatic background story and it explains his aversion to guns (it was a very touching story and I have mixed feelings about it; yet, this makes Wayne and the overall story more realistic). With his issues in his early days, he became a lawkeeper and he is perfectly paired to Wax. He has also an uncanny ability to disguise himself as anybody really, taking accents in the most unexpected ways (and it is something Wayne remarks specifically about).

I also enjoyed getting to know Marasi and Steris. I like to find out their relationship and what they can contribute. I like that Steris, the heiress of a rich merchant, would the perfect wife to be for Wax from a political point of view, as Wax is the heir of an impoverished yet long-standing name is society. It is a marriage of convenience that happened often in our world and it provides this story (and this element of the story) gravitas.

With this said, I end up falling in love with is actually Marasi. A young woman who is a different woman compared to how she is initially introduced as (and the reality is more interesting than anticipated) is also unusual in her pursuits, being a student of law and actually being a fan of Wax and Wayne (and their adventures, which are available through news articles) and actually being able to shoot and wanting and being able to contribute to any fight.

I truly love the magic system; as usual Sanderson does not leave us “just” with the old system. Sanderson also uses scientific developments, starting from the fact that aluminum is the metal that few can touch and can be used to kill many magic wielders, to the addition of feruchemy (which is an ability that is conducted through the relevant metal, so someone can heal themselves, or can gain speed or strength) and hemalurgy (which removes abilities but I am not sure this is use effectively yet in the story). I especially loved the use of Wayne’s ability in this story.

I also liked - and I hope to get a lot more about it - the use of gods in this story. First and foremost, this is one of my favorite tropes in fantasy, getting gods down to earth and meddling with events of mortals. This is exactly what happens here, although in a fairly low-key way (hopefully only for the time being).

I also wonder if they are the incarnation (or more than this) of Vin and the others from Era one. I am particularly curious about the plot they are weaving and that involves Wax in particular.

I cannot wait to see what this series has to offer next; I will probably focus on this series in the next month (May 2023) and try to finish it as quickly as I can, since I cannot wait to know what the overall plot is and where the characters will be going.

Have you read the Mistborn era two? Have you enjoyed it? What is your favorite aspect of the series? What is your preferred aspect of the story?