The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson

 

**This review will contain spoilers for the first books in this series, Mistborn and The Well of Ascension, as well as some mild spoilers for this book. The spoilers for this book will be clearly marked.**

I decided to pick up The Hero of Ages for my next read so I could wrap up the Mistborn trilogy and cross it off my Finally in 2022 Challenge list. I liked the first book in the series and felt mixed about the second book. I was still enjoying the experience overall though, so I was interested to see how the story would wrap up. I got started hoping for a satisfying and exciting conclusion.

The plot of this novel picks up a short time after the second book concludes, with Vin accidentally releasing Ruin into the world and making Elend a Mistborn in the process. Ruin's release has further hastened the environmental collapse of the world. The volcanic ash is falling faster and thicker than ever before, clogging waterways and choking crops. The mist is still killing people. Earthquakes are ravaging the land. It's clear that the end of the world is near and Vin, Elend, and the surviving members of their crew are desperate to prevent it.

Vin and Elend aren't exactly sure what they need to do to fix everything, but Vin can sense there's a mystery still to unravel. Ruin isn't quite at full power, which must mean there is a way to defeat him. Luckily, she and Elend stumble onto a trail left by the previous Lord Ruler, full of cryptic clues that they struggle to decipher. Together, they must try to crack the code and figure out a way to return their world to normal before everything is completely destroyed.

My thoughts on this novel closely mirror my thoughts on the previous installments. World-building and story were excellent, but character development was weak. On the positive side, I thought the pacing in this novel was improved from The Well of Ascension. There were less boring political and philosophical discussions. There were definitely still slow parts--in particular, there was a lot of indecision and self-loathing to read through in the characters' minds, and there was also a lot of repeating information from previous books, but on the whole, I thought it was easier to get through. The evolution of the magic system continued to be interesting, and the action sequences remained strong. Sanderson is incredibly skilled at creating fantasy worlds in which every detail feels deliberate and complex. The seeds of the resolution for this novel were planted all throughout the previous volumes in ways that were subtle and clever. The ending tied up all the loose ends. This series was definitely an achievement and this final book felt like a fitting end for it.

That being said, I was still irritated by the lack of effective character development. No one in these novels really comes across as human to me. There's always something missing. We're consistently being told how the characters feel rather than being shown. I didn't like a lot of the choices Sanderson made either. Elend becoming Mistborn made him less interesting, as it eliminated his weaknesses and turned him into more of a generic hero-type. Vin was imprisoned for a large portion of the novel, leaving the more boring (and overwhemingly male) characters to pick up the slack. Sazed falls into a pit of deep depression and self loathing that was rather torturous to read through. I thought TenSoon was the most interesting, but we don't spend much time with him at all. We do get one more female character here with Beldre, but again, she is only around to further a male character's development. She is also a fool. So, the issue of there not being enough diversity among characters persists.

Vin's relationship with Elend continued to be wooden and passionless too. There is one scene in particular between them that I loathed. At one point, they attend a ball and dance together for the first time. I don't think I have ever actually cringed while reading something, but I could barely make it through this section. It was just so not as sweet/romantic/funny as it was supposed to be that I felt embarrassed for Sanderson while reading it. People, and especially women, are just not his strong point as a writer.

**The next paragraph contains spoilers**

I wanted to quickly reflect on one aspect of the ending as well. Sazed becomes the new Hero of Ages in the final chapter of the story after Vin and Elend die. This is fine, I guess, although I was disappointed to see another man rise to prominence in this almost all-male universe. What actually bothered me the most about this was the way Sanderson spoke about his gender at the end. All throughout the novel, the characters comment on the gender neutral language used in the prophecy. This prevented them from knowing if the hero would be male or female. Sazed was castrated as a child as part of the Lord Ruler's partial genocide of his people. When he takes up the mantle of hero at the end, Sanderson comments that this must have been the reason for the gender neutral language. It wasn't to cloak the gender of the hero - it was to allow for the fact that the hero wouldn't be male or female. So, we are left with the idea that Sazed is no longer a man because he was maimed in a horrific act of violence against his people. That hit me wrong. I think I was supposed to think it was clever. I thought it was just a bizarre way to think. There's something weird going on with how Sanderson thinks about sex and gender.

**End of spoilers**

Ultimately though, I still thought this was a pretty good fantasy series overall and The Hero of Ages was a decent ending to it. I had a lot of issues with how Sanderson presented his characters, but his world-building and intricate storylines are unparalleled. I'm glad I read it, but I don't think I need to go any deeper into Sanderson's other works. He's just not the author for me, despite all the hype and glowing reviews associated with his writing. That's just how it goes sometimes. I'm happy to keep on trying new-to-me authors and continue the search for new favorites.

Challenge Tally

Finally in 2022 - Series Edition: 10/28

Total Books Read in 2022: 30