***Spoilers for the first book in the series***
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The Well of Ascension:
I loved the first book in this series, The Final Empire. I love a well-done Fantasy heist, and I dearly loved the characters, so I was eager to get into the second book. This was a completely different beast. The Well of Ascension is much more focused on the politics of rule, especially after the end of a tyrant. Kelsior’s Crew has installed Elend Venture, the young political idealist, as the King of Luthadel. Vin, now the only Mistborn member of the crew, has become increasingly paranoid that someone is out to assassinate Elend. She feels increasingly hopeless when she runs out of Atiom, the Allomantic Metal used to predict an enemies moves in battle. Meanwhile, Elend is having a hard time keeping the former nobility in line. His own father marches to lay seige to their capital, and that’s not the only army planning to try to take him down.
This book was a BEAST to get through, but not in a bad way. There were just a LOT of characters, both old and new, and a ton of moving parts, different cultures, and new magical terms. This is not a book that you can skim, nor should you. This should be savored like the finest wine or nicest dinner.
The Hero of Ages:
I can’t write too much about specifics of the plot without giving away all that happened in The Well of Ascension, but suffice it to say that once again our heroes are in some deep shit.
I spend the better part of a month listening to this audiobook because I just didn’t want it to be over. Sanderson has created a Goddamn Masterpiece with this trilogy. When it ended, I sobbed. I don’t mean I shed a tear. I mean I UGLY CRIED so hard that I freaked out the dog I was sitting and had to assure a big German Shepherd that I was indeed OK. Spoiler Alert: I was not. These books will live in my heart for years, and I can’t wait to introduce them to other fantasy nerds.
Audiobook specific:
The narration for this series is FANTASTIC. I definitely recommend listening if audiobooks are your thing.
CBR 15 Bingo: Politics – These books are mostly political. Lots of debate and wars over who is going to rule them, who is going to feed the people, if the main characters will go to war, and with who. Just a fantasy political hotbed and I loved every minute of it!
