Book Review: The Well of Ascension

The Well of Ascension is the second book in the Mistborn Trilogy. I cover the first book in the Mistborn Trilogy in another hub. This book starts where the first left off. The grand revolution had some success in the first book but lost their great leader. The apprentice Vin is overwhelmed by the job that stands in front of her. All seek the Atium that the overthrown government left behind but no one is quite sure where it is. The armies set siege to Luthadel. Here is where the story gets going. The Well of Ascension begins to loom large in the protagonist's minds as they realize it may be the solution to all of their problems. Vin and Elend have a continuing romantic involvement that winds through the entire book and adds just a little extra tension as their love ebbs and flows through the normal gamut of emotions. Mr. Sanderson does a great job in his second book in the series--often middle books drag a story out that could be told in a much shorter manner. Sanderson adds enough political intrigue and other issues to make the story stay interesting. And he continues to shell out fantastic action scenes.

 This book rates behind the first book in the series.  That is fairly common.  The biggest issues this book faces are some pacing problems--it has a couple of very slow chapters.  In my estimation the book could have been about 50 pages shorter and been much better.  But that is it on the bad front.  On the good side, the story continues marvelously and the dialogue, intrigue, politics and action are all very solid.  I especially enjoy the interaction of the great leaders in this book and how they use their "special" weapons--those who can burn metals.

 Great book.  The Well of Ascension ranks as a solid 8.75 out of 10 for me.  It struggles a bit through the middle with pacing.  There was enough intrigue and action to keep me going but there were a few parts that could have been cut out.  Overall, a great second book for a series--it keeps the series moving and adds enough new characters and plot to keep me interested in finding out what happens.  I would definitely recommend this book and the entire series to anyone looking for some great fantasy reading that is just a bit off the common path. It seems that each of Mr. Sanderson's books stand out from the crowd not just because of the great writing, but also because they never follow the "formula" of standard fantasy books.  That is a good thing.  Get the book and read it.