Shadows of Self
Waxillium
Ladrian, a high-ranking member of society and former frontier lawman, finds
life in the city of Elendel to be far from the sedate affair people would have
him believe. All that chic and elegance is
merely a front for an avalanche of crooked shenanigans that keeps both him and
his team – Wayne and Marasi – on their toes.
What do I mean? Here’s a
little clue from the book blurb.
*******
Three
hundred years after the events of the Mistborn trilogy, Scadrial is now on the
verge of modernity, with railroads to supplement the canals, electric lighting
in the streets and the homes of the wealthy, and the first steel-framed
skyscrapers racing for the clouds.
When family obligations forced Waxillium Ladrian
to forsake the frontier lands and return to the metropolis of his birth to take
his place as head of a noble House, he little imagined that the crime-fighting
skills acquired during twenty years in the dusty plains would be just as
applicable in the big city. He soon learned that there too, just being a
talented Twinborn ― one who can use both Allomancy and Feruchemy, the dominant
magical modes on Scadrial ― would not suffice.
This bustling, optimistic, but still shaky
society will now face its first test by terrorism and assassination, crimes
intended to stir up labor strife and religious conflict. Wax, his eccentric
sidekick Wayne, and brilliant, beautiful young Marasi, now officially part of
the constabulary, must unravel the conspiracy before civil strife can stop
Scadrial’s progress in its tracks.
*******
I enjoyed this sequel to The
Alloy of Law, as Sanderson advances Scadrial’s history by allowing its citizens
to dictate the pace and direction the story arc takes.
Yes, the world itself is much
more settled now. Things are as they should be and nature is slowly adapting to
find its place. But society? Though Vin, Elend and Sazed worked hard to free
the people of oppression at the hands of a dictator and an unfair class system,
we find human nature has a nasty habit of sliding back into old, long-adopted
habits. Habits that can spell disaster if they’re not tempered in some way.
Socioeconomic instability. Political
intrigue. Empire building. Out and out scoundrels. Poignant blast’s from the
past. They’re all there, in a superbly crafted tale that bundles you along at a
cracking pace. As always, the characters themselves help the story along, as
they each struggle with their own hurdles while contending with the ever
shifting foundations that makes you wonder just how bad things are going to
get. And the drama doesn’t leave Wax’s family untouched, either.
In what way?
Let’s just say, there are two
sides to every coin. And as a coinshot hunter of the lawless, Wax finds his
loyalties tested by the evidence he uncovers. Evidence that points to an
escalation of unrest and violence that could very well bring ruin to all that
the last 300 years has achieved. And his own family is involved in it. Yes, the
threads of Harmony and Ruin run deep, and only Wax and his friends stand a
chance of steering things in the right direction.
With superb interplay between
the characters, and a clever marriage of steampunk, wild west and otherworld –
yet oh so familiar – fantasy magic as you’ll ever see, it’s riveting stuff.
