The Well of Ascension (Mistborn, #2)

by Brandon Sanderson

Yet he found it hard to think ill of these people. They were struggling to survive, their already harsh world suddenly made unpredictable.

“Good men don’t need to become legends.”

“What is a government but an institutionalized method of making sure somebody else does all the work?”

A man can only lead when others accept him as their leader, and he has only as much authority as his subjects give to him. All of the brilliant ideas in the world cannot save your kingdom if no one will listen to them.”