The powerful and innovative magic realm that Sanderson weaves is captivating. However, I found his writing too gory for my taste. I do not want to know exactly what the mutilated body on the floor looks like, thank you very much.
There is a constant identity struggle throughout this book that continues throughout the series as the characters learn about their own capabilities, as their capabilities strengthen, and as they change. There is a lot of description - scenes, especially battle sequences, are played out step by step so that a fight choreographer for a movie would have nothing left to do. I didn't mind knowing exactly what was being thrown at whom, but I didn't need to know what the blood coming out of each person looked like. There was a lot of blood in this book.
The main character is a young woman who grows independent in a way that is great for her, because she is alone and needs strength and has power to help others, which she does. I don't see her as a role model though because her situation is so unique (and gory).
This is one of those books that I finished and felt like the time reading it had been mostly wasted. I'm putting it on the 'not recommended' list for me.
