Overbooked Reader

If you've read my review of Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson, you'll know I absolutely loved the fantasy novel. I initially wanted to postpone reading The Well of Ascension , book two of the Mistborn series, so I could take a breather from the awesomeness of the first book. But I couldn't resist! I finishing reading the second book over the weekend. I did the bulk of my reading on Valentine's Day afternoon in Starbucks 515 Shaw, which is like my second home. Thus, the Heart's Day greeting sticker on my cup of coffee. Book two begins shortly after book one ends, with Vin killing The Lord Ruler and overthrowing The Final Empire. As the new king of Luthadel, Ellend quickly sets up his parliamentary government. He gives equal power and representation to the noblemen, the merchants, and the skaa (former slaves), in hopes of building an empire where everyone is equal. However, things seem to be turning out for the worse than for the better for the ...

In Mistborn: The Final Empire , the first novel in the Mistborn trilogy written by Brandon Sanderson, The Lord Ruler controls the Final Empire, a kingdom wrought with slavery and political strife. This kingdom is a land where constant ashfalls have blackened the color and greenery of life, leaving everything covered in soot, and where the mist rules over the night. It's been lifetimes since the last skaa (slave) rebellion rose up against the Lord Ruler and the noble families who support him. He crushed this rebellion easily, like he did those that came before it. Many believe the Lord Ruler is invincible, that he is a god. Slowly, the common people have lost hope. All they seem to know now is work and death. They live to work until they die. However, a new rebellion is brewing. Kelsier, formerly the best thief guild leader in the kingdom, now one of the most powerful Mistborn Allomancers of all time, is gathering his most trusted men for a new contract--perhaps an imposs...

Elantris is not your typical Brandon Sanderson novel. It's a short stand-alone work, around the length of Neil Gaiman's Stardust . In fact, it was purposely envisioned it as a stand-alone story, though a sequel may be released in the near future. Sanderson talks more about this on his website page  FAQ: Will There Be a Sequel to Elantris . Elantris proves that Sanderson can write short fiction filled with both action and depth.  My previous attempt at writing a synopsis for this review ended up as four long, tedious paragraphs that barely touched the surface of this complex story.  Elantris was the capital city of Arleon. It was populated by demigods with magical powers. It was considered an honor for ordinary citizens of Arleon to transform into these demigods, until the magic failed, and the people of Elantris devolved into leper-like beings. Now, the citizens of Arleon fear being afflicted with the taint. The novel focuses on the sto...

I'll be honest here. I bought my copy of The Way of Kings (Part 1 of The Stormlight Archive ) by Brandon Sanderson for two reasons. First, I though he wrote all of the Wheel of Time epic-fantasy series. He wrote co-wrote a few of them, but only after Robert Jordan died in 2007. Second, I really dig its white book cover. I even bought an entire roll of plastic cover just to wrap that one book. I'm trying to catch-up on reading fantasy and science fiction books that, regretfully, I didn't read when I was younger. Thus, my recently reading Orson Scott-Card's Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow , as well as J.R.R. Tolkien's The Fellowship of the Ring ,  all of which I've reviewed previously. This is also the reason why I bought The Way of Kings (Part 1) in Fully Booked, Alabang Town Center.  Me being silly again, I thought the thick tome was the entire book, but it was only half of it! Luckily, I found Part 2 in Fully Booked, Greenbelt 5. Af...