Please note this review will contain spoilers for the first book The Final Empire.

“I want to be more than my ideas, though. I want to—need to— be a man others can look up to.” 

The Lord Ruler is defeated, yet the lands within the Final Empire have far from prospered. King Elend desperately tries to fight for his rulership, to install a fairer government, to bring peace to the nation and maintain freedom for the skaa, but at every turn his father, Straff Venture, seeks to usurp him. As if that wasn’t bad enough, a second army led by Lord Cett also threatens to invade Luthadel. Meanwhile the people starve, fall prey to diseases and live in chaos and squalor.

As Elend and the remains of Kelsier’s crew begin to doubt whether they did the right thing by overthrowing the Lord Ruler, another threat emerges, one that is a danger to the whole of The Final Empire. Something is very wrong with the mists. Through Sazed’s travels he hears rumours of the mists occurring during the day and killing people, and Vin can feel the oddity too. Both must try to uncover what is happening and why, before it’s too late.

The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson is the second book in The Mistborn trilogy and follows directly on from the turbulent ending of the first book. From the onset Sanderson shows that getting rid of a tyrant is not a magical cure to heal a nation, it is far more complex than that. Sometimes even a cruel ruler is better than no rules at all. Whilst this book is very different from The Final Empire which revolved around a heist and a rebellion, we now follow a story which focuses on politics, the philosophy around religion and uncovering mysteries.

At the heart of every Sanderson novel I read, it is in his ability to create heartfelt or absolutely villainous characters which always draws me in. Once again, Breeze, Ham, Clubs, Dockson and Spook remain their bantery selves. Even though Kelsier’s absence is largely felt, they often reminisce or curse Kel for leaving them, but they don’t allow their dire situation to dampen their spirits. They each use Kelsier’s philosophy of laughing in spite of the enemy. Sanderson shows us how this band of former thieves and soldiers are worth far more than any noble man. When an attack strikes it is Kelsier’s crew who take charge, who fight, whilst the supposed leaders cower. 

We see much more depth to the characters this time around. For example on the surface Breeze appears nonchalant, as though his proprietary and his own image matter more to him. Yet when we see from Breeze’s perspective we discover that he cares a great deal for others, that he constantly uses his Soothing allomancy to put others at ease everywhere he goes.

We also get a deeper portrayal of the villains this time around. Whilst the Lord Ruler was a formidable oppressing figure, we never actually got to see his POV, albeit for good reasons because his mystery was part of what made him terrifying. However in The Well of Ascension we get perspectives from both Lord Straff Venture, and Zane who were both the biggest threats. Straff Venture is presented as a vile man, one who treats women and skaa in abhorrent ways. He’s a man who is oh so easy to hate. Whereas Zane is much more complex and troubled, he hears the voice of “god” who tells him to kill everyone he meets. He resists these urges, hurting himself to calm the voice at least for a time, but ultimately Zane does some pretty awful things too.

Mostly it is the way Zane manipulates Vin, playing off her insecurities, pushing her to believe Elend will always use her as a weapon, which made me feel animosity towards him. Vin and Elend are precious, I loved how their relationship meandered throughout the book. Elend is in a pretty tight position with a country to run and with a governing body who clearly do not believe he’s capable of being a leader. Elend may be an idealist, but his visions of a fair rulership are not wrong. Yet inevitably he doubts himself, and in turn Vin doubts herself too. She doesn’t believe she’s worthy of being Elend’s partner, not capable enough to protect him, not strong enough to defeat his enemies and not smart enough to discover what is happening with the mists. Yet together they both discover the true meaning of trust. 

Vin fan art by Dan Rossi 

A relationship which I loved seeing develop and which surprised me no end was Vin and her kandra OreSeur. At first they show great prejudice towards each other, but as the book goes on they find kinship as they realise they have more common ground than they think, they are both misunderstood and mistreated because of their abilities. OreSeur has spent a lifetime serving masters, forced to shapeshift and take on the mind and body of others, to hold true to each contract, to obey, to be looked upon with disgust. When he takes on the body of a huge feral dog, he feels ultimate humiliation but is powerless to do anything about it. His powers may be creepy, but much like Vin’s past, OreSeur has also faced a life of being abused. Once again, Sanderson shows us here just how much more monstrous humans can be than creatures with greater powers ever are.

“Have you ever been beaten by a master who knows that no matter how hard he hits, you won’t die? All he has to do is get you a new set of bones, and you’ll be ready to serve again the next day. We are the ultimate servant, you can beat us to death in the morning; then have us serve you dinner that night. All the sadism, none of the cost.”

Speaking of greater powers, our beloved, most humble Sazed truly shines in this book. Free from the Lord Ruler’s oppression the Terrismen find themselves somewhat without direction, and whilst some blame Sazed for his direct interference, something which is frowned upon within his race, Sazed nonetheless attempts to ease peoples suffering by teaching survival skills and bringing long lost religions back to their people. Having a POV from Sazed really helped to cement my affection for his character as Sazed is so wise and thoughtful. He too doubts himself, but in his relationship with Tindwyl, his friendship with Elend and Vin, we see Sazed finally have well deserved companionship. His scenes towards the end of the book are nothing short of thrilling, and heartbreaking as we see Sazed use his Feruchemy in full force. 

Sazed fan art by Zsoszy 

Religion is also greatly explored throughout The Well of Ascension. Kelsier’s death has birthed the Church of the Survivor, a group of people who show great faith in Kelsier and anyone closely associated with him. It’s brilliant how Sanderson has portrayed a religion around Kelsier, which in a way is what he had wanted, he always wanted to give people hope of a better world, a drive to make them rebel against the oppressors. But without any doctrine to follow they wander aimlessly, helplessly, looking for meaning. There is an insightful exploration of what occurs when people have belief but don’t know what to do with it.

Although this book centres mostly on political intrigue, there is also a murder mystery and uncovering an imposter narrative which had me on tenterhooks all the way through. Someone close to Elend and Vin has been consumed by a kandra, and it isn’t until near the end when the truth is revealed. I’m mind blown by who the imposter revealed themselves to be because it makes so much sense, but only when you look back on the clues which were there all along!

The Well of Ascension is another superb read injected with Sanderson’s heartfelt characters and his dark unforgiving world. Allomantic abilities are put to the test, characters are pushed to breaking point, and the fate of a nation hangs upon a knife’s edge. 

“She pretended still. Pretended not to be the girl who had grown up starving on the streets, a girl who had been beaten far more often than she had been befriended.”