Mistborn: The Bands of Mourning

Another masterpiece 🤌. I love how all of his works that I’ve read so far seem so natural and make sense.

Spoiler warning for Mistborn: The Bands of Mourning

Plot twists

Telsin

I don’t know how but, and I’ve been saying this since after I finished The Final Empire, every plot twist always surprises me. And in hindsight all of them seem so logical! I mean just this book, Telsin being an even higher up than his uncle of the Set. It makes sense with how she was characterized in the short story of her and Wax as youths in the Village. And then Wax figuring it out just as they make it to the Bands and then pulling out a gun on her and her pulling a gun out on him.

Or how about the Bands of Mourning? With multiple twists. First there’s the thing with the Bands not even beeing inside of the temple but right outside of it. I love how Wax is always just on the verge of figuring stuff out and then figuring it out eventually. Marasi figuring out that the Bands of Mourning is the spearhead they encountered at the entrance is great. She’s a constable now, of course she would know this stuff.

The Southerners

Allik and Marasi

It was quite weird to discover an entirely different people that are way more technologically advanced than those in the Basin. How were these people never mentioned in books 1-5? Probably because none of the important story took place there. It is just insane but makes so much sense at the same time. And sadly the Set found them first and tried to learn from them and their technology in a violent way. And then also the medaillions which gave people the ability to tap or fill metalminds also sets up the Bands nicely. Speaking of the Bands. In the entire book it is assumed that they were created by the Lord Ruler. At first I found it weird that he would create his bands in such a way that they could be used by anyone. If someone somehow managed to steal them they could become as powerful as the Lord Ruler himself. Why would he make them not tethered to his Identity? But he didn’t make them. It was made clear after Allik described how his people were saved by the Sovereign. The Lord Ruler couldn’t have survived as we saw it through the eyes of Vin that he didn’t. The Sovereign was Kelsier, or his ghost whatever that means.

The Sovereign

The Sovereign

Something happened and Kelsier now has a spike through one of his eyes. And he can or at least could use Allomancy and Feruchemy somehow. Or he created the Bands in some other way. Or someone posed as him to create the Bands. So many questions. OreSeur ate Kelsier. How did he get a body? What happened? Who used Metallurgy on him? And why?

Finishing Thoughts

All in all, what a great book with great mysteries and plot twists and revelations and lore. I loved it a lot and I can’t wait to read The Lost Metal.