"Perhaps someone else would have come to carry this terrible burden. Someone who could bear it far better than I. Someone who deserved to be a hero." 
 For once, I am rendered speechless (or perhaps, I am reduced to babbling...) This book has confused me to no end. It picked me up, and swung me around; it disoriented me, knifed me in the back, and then revived me. Then finally, blessedly, it laid me down, only to keep me up into the night with thoughts and thoughts and dwellings. This book is deep in a way that fantasy rarely is. This not only explores the world run by a tyrant- no, that is a common theme- but it explores the world of the savior, and not the savior who saved, but the one who failed. 
 I repeat: What if the savior failed? 
 One of the common plots of fantasy is the one of the hero. The protagonist is the hero who delivers the world from the darkness, the depths, and the evil. When, in this genre, has there been a book in which the prophesied savior fails to save the world, and instead, leaves it in greater turmoil? 
 This is what Brandon Sanderson writes about. This is the uncharted territory that he explores, and it is thought provoking. 
 For a thousand years the ash fell and no flowers bloomed. For a thousand years the Skaa slaved in misery and lived in fear. For a thousand years the Lord Ruler, the "Sliver of Infinity," reigned with absolute power and ultimate terror, divinely invincible. Then, when hope was so long lost that not even its memory remained, a terribly scarred, heart-broken half-Skaa rediscovered it in the depths of the Lord Ruler's most hellish prison. Kelsier "snapped" and found in himself the powers of a Mistborn. A brilliant thief and natural leader, he turned his talents to the ultimate caper, with the Lord Ruler himself as the mark. 
 Kelsier recruited the underworld's elite, the smartest and most trustworthy allomancers, each of whom shares one of his many powers, and all of whom relish a high-stakes challenge. Only then does he reveal his ultimate dream, not just the greatest heist in history, but the downfall of the divine despot. 
 But even with the best criminal crew ever assembled, Kel's plan looks more like the ultimate long shot, until luck brings a ragged girl named Vin into his life. Like him, she's a half-Skaa orphan, but she's lived a much harsher life. Vin has learned to expect betrayal from everyone she meets, and gotten it. She will have to learn to trust, if Kel is to help her master powers of which she never dreamed. 
 The thing with this book is not just its utter depth. The writing is extremely unique and the world is so vivid. The whole culture is dark and twisted, yet so clear. The magic is creative and its technicalities and rules make sense. It's logical. It's believable, and that is what Fantasy is truly about. It's taking that which is impossible, and turning it on its side to make it believable. It does this to question society and human nature. For what purpose do stories hold if not to teach us about ourselves? 
 This is what Sanderson excels at. Questioning, pushing, pulling, and story-telling. As far as stories go, this does not lack. It has the traditional beginning, middle, and end. It has action, it has magic, it has romance, and it has human rights. It contains tragedy, humor, and hope. The writing is concise and flows properly. The plot twists were astounding. The characters were realistic and easy to relate to. It had all these things, but it feels so shallow to report this. Of course, as a reviewer, it is my duty to say these things and give an honest account of the writing and talent of the author. Still, this book was so much more than the writing. 
 Honestly, I cannot say much more than this: Please, give this book a chance. Even if you have a hard time at first (I must own that I it had me worried at first. On moral levels, personal levels, and even my boredom levels, but I persevered and I am so glad that I did), continue to the end before making a final judgement. 
 "If men read these words, let them know that power is a heavy burden. Seek not to be bound by its chains. The Terris prophecies say that I will have the power to save the world. 
 They hint, however, that I will have the power to destroy it as well.