November 16, 2017
The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson
The basics
Title: The Alloy of Law
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Series: Mistborn #4
- The Final Empire (July 2006) - The Well of Ascension (August 2007) - The Hero of Ages (October 2008) - The Alloy of Law (November 2011) - Shadows of Self (October 2015) - The Bands of Mourning (January 2016) - The Lost Metal (2018?)
Add it: Goodreads
Goodreads Summary:
Centuries after the Mistborn trilogy, Scadrial is on the verge of modernity - railroads, electric street lights, and skyscrapers. Waxillium Ladrian can Push on metals with his Allomancy and use Feruchemy to become lighter or heavier at will. After 20 years in the dusty Roughs, in the city of Elendel, the new head of a noble house may need to keep his guns.
Here is a spoiler summary of what happened in The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson to help refresh your memory before you read the sequel.
what happened in The Alloy of Law
- Prologue: Wax gets into a gun fight in the Roughs. He meets up with Lessie, who, along with the rest of Wax’s crew, are hunting Bloody Tan. Turns out that Wax is a Twinborn, meaning he’s a Feruchemist and an Allomancer. They find Bloody Tan, and Lessie is captured. Wax shoots at Bloody Tan, who uses Lessie as a shield. Lessie dies. Wax shoots Bloody Tan in the head.
- Wax attends a party in Elendel. He leaves the party via the balcony. He gets into a fight in an alleyway, but he makes it out okay.
- Wax meets with Lord Jackstom Harms to discuss a marriage agreement between Wax and Steris Harms.
- A shipment of steel has been stolen from House Ladrian. House Tekiel also experienced a similar problem.
- Wayne shows up at Wax’s mansion. He’s meant to be in Weathering but, clearly, he’s not.
- Lord Harms arrives. Wayne pretends to be Wax’s uncle. Steris introduces her cousin, Marasi. Both houses will benefit from the marriage. Ladrian is having money problems, and the Harms House needs influence.
- Wax wants to investigate a gang of thieves called the Vanishers. He reads up on them.
- Wax prays to Harmony and thinks about Lessie.
- Wax and Steris go to a wedding dinner. They gossip – sorry, “talk politics” – about the other guests. Wayne shows up, pretending to be a waiter. Then everything changed when the Vanishers attacked.
- Wayne wants to fight, but Wax is worried about other people’s safety. The Vanishers want people’s jewellery. They take Steris and Marasi as hostages, and the theft is a front. One of the bandits shoots Lord Peterus. Wax and Wayne finally start to fight them. Marasi stuns the bandit who was holding her and wounds him. The leader of the bandits escapes.
- Marasi visits Wax. She says Lord Harms will pay for Wax to rescue Steris.
- Wayne disguises himself as Captain Guffon Tenchant and interviews some Vanishers. He’s also looking for Captain Brettin.
- Wax and Marasi talk about Wax’s past, philosophy, and Marasi’s education. Wax insults her.
- Tillaume poisons Wax’s tea and then tries to shoot him. A bomb goes off and Wax uses Feruchemy to fall through the floor. Wax and Wayne decide to use their deaths as a cover so they can seek out the Vanishers.
- Wax, Wayne, and Marasi investigate the Vanishers some more. They search one of their hideouts. Wax asks Marasi if she has heard of Miles Dagouter, a former lawman.
- We then switch to Miles, who is talking with his crew about his morals and stuff. Mister Suit talks to Miles about the wedding incident. Miles tells Mister Suit that he’ll deal with Wax.
- Wayne decides that he ships Marasi and Wax.
- Wax and Miles meet and get into a fight on top of a railcar. Miles tries to win Wax over. Wax Pushes Miles off the railcar, leaving him behind.
- The trio goes to Ranette’s. Wayne offers Ranette Wax’s gun as a bribe. Ranette makes guns for people. She has also been making something called Hazekillers, which is used against Allomancers. She gives Wax a new gun, called Vindication.
- Mister Suit and Miles talk again. Mister Suit is from a group called the Set, which wants a revolution. And they also want Wax dead.
- Wayne dresses up as an old woman at the train station and learns about the Breaknaught. Wax enters the Breaknaught and it sets off.
- Miles knows that Wax is there. He takes the Breaknaught back to his workshop and tells his men to fire when they get it open. They yank the door off, but unfortunately Wax has put dynamite there.
- There’s the beginnings of a fight, and then Wayne blows the roof off the workshop and drops in. One of the thugs messes with Vindication but Wax gets it back. Wax escapes Miles again. Wayne gets shot in the arm and then goes to find Marasi. Wax shoots at Miles while wearing a mistcloak. That last bit is very important.
- Wax chases after people and defeats them. He and Marasi trap Miles in a bubble and they wait for the police to arrive.
how did it end?
The police agree to let Wax help them in the future. Wax and Steris become engaged. Miles is executed, which Marasi witnesses. Ironeyes gives Marasi a book to give to Wax. It turns out that Edwarn Ladrian is actually Suit (or the other way around?). Wax goes to see him, but can’t keep him from leaving. Wax steals his logbook.
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