Brandon Sanderson

Emperor Elend Venture, having survived only to become a Mistborn himself, struggles to find clues by the Lord Ruler that will save his world, while a guilt-consumed Vin takes on a task of ending the cosmic power of the Ruin mystic force.

Book Three of Mistborn

The Hero of Ages

Izzy 

But if there were no truth in the religions, was it too much of a stretch to infer that the world was ending merely because it was time?

"If there were a God, Breeze," Sazed said, "do you think he’d have let so many people be killed by the Lord Ruler? Do you think he'd have let the world become what it is now? I will not teach you-or anyone- a religion that cannot answer my questions. Never again." 

Amelia Macy

“There has to be a balance, Vin," Elend said.  "Somehow, we'll find it. The balance between whom  we wish to be and whom we need to be." He sighed.  "But for now," he said, nodding to the side, "we simply  have to be satisfied with who we are.”

why don’t we just support Spook’s Batman arc 😌

Annabelle Gauthier

"ALL RIGHT," BREEZE SAID, "so does somebody want to speculate on how our team's spy ended up becoming a pseudo-religious vigilante freedom fighter?"

The nature of the world is that when we create something, we often destroy something else in the process.

Hope14 

Spook shook his head. “No" he said, folding up the little slip of paper and puting it in his pocket. "No, I'm not troubled. In fact, I actually think everything is going to be all right. Finally.”

At the center of the flowers, he found two people. Vin lay wearing her customary mistcloak, shirt, and trousers. Elend was in a brilliant white uniform, complete with cape.They were holding hands as they lay amid the flowers. 

Somebody would need to watch over the world, care for it, now that its gods were gone. It wasn't until that moment that Sazed understood the term Hero of Ages. Not a Hero that came once in the ages. But a Hero who would span the ages. A Hero who would preserve mankind throughout all its lives and times. Neither Preservation nor Ruin, but both.

On that day. Marsh himself had saved her life. It seemed a twisted irony that she would struggle now, being strangled by him. Not. Yet. 

"Faith," Spook said, “means that it doesn't matter what happens. You can trust that somebody is watching. Trust that somebody will make it all right."

 "It means that there will always be a way," Spook whispered, staring forward, eyes glazed, as if seeing things that Sazed could not. 

Yes, Sazed thought. That is what I have lost. And it's what i need to get back.

I’m sure she will draw upon the mists again, she can only channel them when she has no metals in it, I’m sure of it 

Giving no hint of his motivations. Yomen turned away Irom her again, looking back out his window. Take her away.

"You?" Spook said. "A title? You think a 'lord' in front af your name is going to make that face any less ugly?" Durm raised an eyebrow.

Lord ruler created a whole society whatt 

The Lord Ruler created servants to help him," Elend said. "Using this art... this Hemalurgy... he made soldiers, which we call koloss. He made spies, which we call kandra. And he made priests, which we call Inquisitors. He built them all with weaknesses, so that he could control them.”

I’m silently freaking out. Maybe the figure in the mist is Kelsier

Spook smiled, dropping the ash as he disappeared into the mists. "I never did like him," Kelsier whispered.

Every found family is made of this people 

"I was trained by a surly Mistborn, a sarcastic Terrisman. and a group of disrespectful thieves," Elend said, sighing. "Plus, on top of that, I was a fairly insufferable person to begin with. But, kindly continue with your insultI didn't mean to interrupt."

Theory: Vin has preservation and Elend has ruin and then that’s why Vin has to kill him, a very season 2 Buffy finale and I will love it, please don’t disappoint me 

Allomancy, obviously, is of Preservation. The rational mind will see this. For, in the case of Allomancy, net power is gained. It is provided by an external source-Preservation's own body.

Surprisingly, Spook didn't argue with him. Sazed found it frustrating that his friendspeaple who were, for yet, Spook didn't offer arguments. had the most part, determined atheists--would grow so offended when he threatened to join them in their lack of belief. 

I’m an atheist but the fact that Sazed lost his faith and is somewhat nihilistic now hurts 

It was all meaningless. Everything was ending anyway. No! Sazed thought. I will find the answers. The religions idn't disappear completely-the Keepers preserved them.

Father and daughters trope >>>> romantic ones 

I know," Ham said, sighing. "You're like my own children, adults before I had time to know them as kids. In fact, I probably know you and El better than I know any of them.”

 Vin smiled, and suddenly Elend felt as if the world had been put back together just a bit.

"Seems that fewer and fewer people do, these days.” A canopy kept off the ash, but he seemed unconcemed aho the mists. "It makes me wonder what is so alluring about the real world that gives them all such a fetish for it. It's not a very nice place these days."

Yet, during those months, she had been content. Perhan more content than any other time in her life. She loved Elend, and was glad life had progressed to the point wher she could call him husband, but there had been a delicious innocence about her early days with the crew. Dances spent with Elend reading at her table, pretending to ignore her. Nights spent learning the secrets of Allomancy. Evenings spent sitting around the table at Clubs's shop, sharing laugh- ter with the crew. They'd faced the challenge of planning something as large as the fall of an empire, yet felt no burden of leadership or weight of responsibility for the future.

Vin glanced back toward the sun, glowing like a scarlet ember behind the dark haze of the upper atmosphere. She wished TenSoon were there, so she could talk to him about her worries. She missed the kandra a great deal, more than she'd ever assumed that she would. His simple frankness had been a good match to her own. She still didn't know what had happened to him after he'd returned to his people; she'd tried to find another kandra to deliver a message for her, but the creatures had become very scarce lately.

I think this didn’t suffer with pacing as much as the other two did, but I enjoyed it. A good ending.  

Hannah Bateman

ellie

Beautiful ending to this magical trilogy!

Alison Hinklom

What a finish to a series. Great follow up to books 1 and 2. Flew through the book, looking for the final solution to the story, only to find myself wishing I had slowed down. So many thoughts surrounding the ending. Truly a wonderful series.

Kyle James

lemes bgt kagak usah pada ngomong ama gw….

hana

A Mistborn Novel

3.75/5. didn’t magic me quite as hard as the first book, but had a heck of a resolution. i agree wholeheartedly with the decisions made at the end of the book, but would have liked to have understood more of the world before we lost it. also, i think the book could have been 15-20% shorter if we stopped recapping every 4 chapters.

azza

I want to cry because what was that ending 

Kendall Lobdell

The book begun slowly and just kept ramping up. The ending blew my mind and truly turned this series into a 5/5. THE PLOT TWISTS AHHHHH

Anna

Took me forever to finish this one and boy did it hurt. Thank you Sanderson for being an insane plot writer, I gasped once every like 20 pages from shock.

Core theme of hope and the way our hope and love can touch others is something that will always make me cry. Im not quiet sure how to carry on after this one. 

Sierra Scanlan

Ouch! 

Took me forever to finish this one and boy did it hurt. Thank you Sanderson for being an insane plot writer, I gasped once every like 20 pages from shock.

Core theme of hope and the way our hope and love can touch others is something that will always make me cry. Im not quiet sure how to carry on after this one. 

Tricked into releasing the evil spirit Ruin while attempting to close the Well of Ascension, new emperor Elend Venture and his wife, the assassin Vin, are now hard-pressed to save the world. This adventure brings the Mistborn epic fantasy trilogy to a dramatic and surprising climax as Sanderson's saga offers complex characters and a compelling plot, asking hard questions about loyalty, faith and responsibility.

Sunny

God probably the first book to almost make me cry. A bit of a struggle to get into at the start but oh, was it worth it.

Christine

Vicky  Nuñez 

I did not know what to expect from this book at all, and even though what I got was very different from what I hoped, it was still great.
Brandon Sanderson is a mastermind the way he wrapped up everything so completely and I'm very much looking forward to his other books.

Nick Perronteau

Daphne Li-Chen

Eneko Uruñuela

Tatiana

The Hero of Ages: 4.75/5


  “Somehow, we'll find it. The balance between whom we wish to be and whom we need to be. But for now, we simply have to be satisfied with who we are.”

After about four months, I have finally finished the Mistborn Trilogy, and I could not be happier about the ending. Have you ever read a series, and from the moment you finish it, you know the story will stay with you for years to come? That's how I feel with the Mistborn Trilogy. 

Premise:
The third book within the Mistborn series, The Hero of Ages Vin, and the rest of humanity, must deal with the Deepness resurfacing and environmental disasters. If that wasn't enough, a new, or old, enemy has returned to end the world. The thrilling conclusion to the Mistborn Trilogy is action-packed and full of large and small answers that have been building from the start.

Writing & Plot:
One word to describe the writing in The Hero of Ages is magic. The reader slowly answers questions they had throughout the trilogy, plus some answers they didn't even know they needed, and I was shocked at each one. The Hero of Ages is unmatched. It's no secret I had some issues reading the previous two books because they're long and full of politics which can be a bit slow, but everything was for a reason. I am so happy I stuck with this series because it is now one of my favorites. 

I ate up this novel. It's almost 750 pages, and I read it within a few days because I needed to know what happened next. It's one of those books that plays out like a movie in your head. The plot, the setting, everything comes together in this last installment, and I don't know how Brandy Sandy did it, but he made magic. I'm going to be thinking about this book for years to come. I'm jealous if you haven't read it because you get to read it for the first time.


  “If you give up what you want most for what you think you should want more, you'll end up miserable.”

Characters:
I don't even know what to say. Every character in The Hero of Ages goes through a transformation of some kind. All character development reaches a climax, and I am so appreciative of the time, and effort Brandon Sanderson went into creating these complex characters. Not one character was left out, and I am still in AWE with the ending. I don't want to spoil anything, so I'm going to stop there... teehee...

Conclusion:
Yes. Read it. I had my doubts because I didn't seem to love the first book as much as everyone else, but after this final book, I see the hype, and I understand it. Each book within this trilogy gets better and better, and I am thrilled to see where the Cosmere takes me! I sense an obsession coming along quite nicely. This book is mind-blowing, and I never say that! 

Once again, these books are slow, which is why I can't give them five stars, but it is for a reason. I still think it's so worth it, and I wish I could read it for the first time again. The Mistborn Trilogy is a must-read for any fantasy lover. A one-of-a-kind story with one-of-a-kind characters!

Nate Niederkorn

nina 

and if i say this series has the best world building, magic system, plot that i’ve ever read, then what?

 rating: 4.5

i thought i was ready... but you can never be ready for something like that

Jaden Nelson

** spoiler alert **
           WHAT AN ENDING. Jeez Sanderson, how long did it take you to plan out these books so amazingly? No book will likely ever be quite perfect to me, and this book is no exception. There were definitely times when I found myself a little... bored I guess you could say, or at least wanting more to be happening. I felt like some things may have gotten dragged out slightly longer than they needed to. BUT THAT ENDING JUST STOMPED THOSE FEELINGS TO DUST. Plot twists and meticulously planned plots in books tend to appear in books that end up being my favorites, and this book had both. My gosh, the last about 100ish pages of the book are really good, especially the very end. I had actual chills throughout parts and I was SO HAPPY WITH HOW EVERYTHING TURNED OUT. (view spoiler)[ I was so happy with Sazed becoming the new god and how from his religions and from his past was tying into the prophesy of him being the hero or basically the destined god, that I didn't even mind and was even at peace with Elend and Vin's deaths. (hide spoiler)] There was a lot of talk of religion throughout the book that I actually really enjoyed reading about and it added to the story so much eventually. I had the gut feeling that it deserved 5 stars, so I am going to keep that, for now at least. It was a fantastic ending to a great and very well planned/written series that I think I will be reading again.

Sierra

I cried and I didn’t even think I liked em like that….

"The world was dying. Its gods had to die with it."

Wow, ok - I am finally done with the Mistborn Original Trilogy, phew. That took me far longer than I thought it would and I am... disappointed. The Mistborn series is a lot to take in, it's a really well thought out, deeply intricate and brilliantly masterminded idea and world, the magic system is truly phenomenal, the overall plot of each book and of the whole trilogy is fascinating and, on a base level, is something I would usually absolutely rant and rave over how amazing it is. But I can't say I fully enjoyed this series. There were parts of it that completely blew my mind, there were passages that were so beautifully written that I was in awe and I highlighted so many quotes from these books, but when I really get down to my experience of reading them I would say this was a really tough series for me to get into and to connect with. I think, having read some of Brandon Sanderson's later works, that his writing has definitely improved since he wrote this series and I think that is why I enjoy his later works more than this one. There was something about this that just felt clunky, overwritten and overdone.

As a standalone book the majority of The Hero of Ages was incredibly tedious. The majority of this book follows each character as they slowly unravel the mystery of what is happening in their world and the plan that Ruin and Preservation (the two Gods of their land) laid out for their world. At about the 50% mark I had pretty much come to a conclusion of what the issue was, not in its entirety because the resolution was pretty complex, but, and 

I worked out that the earring Vin always wears was acting as a Hemalurgic spike allowing Ruin to control her. 

It felt like from that point the story dragged on and on, continuously repeating the same ideas again and again in a way that grew very dull. I think a good chunk of this story could've benefited from a heavier hand in editing - it really needed to cut back on the unnecessary repetition and drivel, and focus on telling the actual story, because the underlying story line is incredible.

“There has to be a balance, Vin. Somehow we’ll find it. The balance between who we wish to be and who we need to be. But for now, we have to be satisfied with who we are.”

The last 25% of this book really went off with a bang and tied the entire trilogy together very tidily. I don't know if I was biased towards it though due to my own atheism but the overly religious feeling to the ending of this book felt a bit heavy handed. Towards the end I felt like the book was repeating some well known religious doctrines from reality and it bogged down some of the story line a bit, in my mind, because it felt like the book was trying to say something about certain religions in our world, which I didn't love. It almost felt like a love letter written to certain sects of Christianity. That being said, I did love the twist and revelation right at the end and thought it was a nice way to finish this series but I also didn't quite get that great sweeping, rush of a feeling you want to get when a book is reaching its ultimate climax - it just felt like a bit of a let down I guess. I think this was mostly because the tension building up to this point was so slow and drawn out that by the time I got to the end, I just felt like I wanted to finish the book as quickly as possible sadly. I wanted to know what happened, but I didn't really care too deeply how it ended or who survived. I was rooting for Vin and Elend and their group, but also if anything happened to one of them, it didn't affect me very much.

Overall, I think this was an excellent idea that was not executed as well as I think it could've been. I've seen so many people saying how much they loved this series but for me it just isn't quite there. I wanted to love it but I just don't, unfortunately. I am glad that I read it and am looking forward to reading more of Brandon Sanderson's books, but I don't think this one is for me. It's well written and readable, but just not what I was hoping for.

Genevieve 

"The world was dying. Its gods had to die with it."

3.5 ⭐'s

Wow, ok - I am finally done with the Mistborn Original Trilogy, phew. That took me far longer than I thought it would and I am... disappointed. The Mistborn series is a lot to take in, it's a really well thought out, deeply intricate and brilliantly masterminded idea and world, the magic system is truly phenomenal, the overall plot of each book and of the whole trilogy is fascinating and, on a base level, is something I would usually absolutely rant and rave over how amazing it is. But I can't say I fully enjoyed this series. There were parts of it that completely blew my mind, there were passages that were so beautifully written that I was in awe and I highlighted so many quotes from these books, but when I really get down to my experience of reading them I would say this was a really tough series for me to get into and to connect with. I think, having read some of Brandon Sanderson's later works, that his writing has definitely improved since he wrote this series and I think that is why I enjoy his later works more than this one. There was something about this that just felt clunky, overwritten and overdone.

As a standalone book the majority of The Hero of Ages was incredibly tedious. The majority of this book follows each character as they slowly unravel the mystery of what is happening in their world and the plan that Ruin and Preservation (the two Gods of their land) laid out for their world. At about the 50% mark I had pretty much come to a conclusion of what the issue was, not in its entirety because the resolution was pretty complex, but, and SPOILER ALERT
I worked out that the earring Vin always wears was acting as a Hemalurgic spike allowing Ruin to control her. 
END SPOILER 
It felt like from that point the story dragged on and on, continuously repeating the same ideas again and again in a way that grew very dull. I think a good chunk of this story could've benefited from a heavier hand in editing - it really needed to cut back on the unnecessary repetition and drivel, and focus on telling the actual story, because the underlying story line is incredible.

“There has to be a balance, Vin. Somehow we’ll find it. The balance between who we wish to be and who we need to be. But for now, we have to be satisfied with who we are.”

The last 25% of this book really went off with a bang and tied the entire trilogy together very tidily. I don't know if I was biased towards it though due to my own atheism but the overly religious feeling to the ending of this book felt a bit heavy handed. Towards the end I felt like the book was repeating some well known religious doctrines from reality and it bogged down some of the story line a bit, in my mind, because it felt like the book was trying to say something about certain religions in our world, which I didn't love. It almost felt like a love letter written to certain sects of Christianity. That being said, I did love the twist and revelation right at the end and thought it was a nice way to finish this series but I also didn't quite get that great sweeping, rush of a feeling you want to get when a book is reaching its ultimate climax - it just felt like a bit of a let down I guess. I think this was mostly because the tension building up to this point was so slow and drawn out that by the time I got to the end, I just felt like I wanted to finish the book as quickly as possible sadly. I wanted to know what happened, but I didn't really care too deeply how it ended or who survived. I was rooting for Vin and Elend and their group, but also if anything happened to one of them, it didn't affect me very much.

Overall, I think this was an excellent idea that was not executed as well as I think it could've been. I've seen so many people saying how much they loved this series but for me it just isn't quite there. I wanted to love it but I just don't, unfortunately. I am glad that I read it and am looking forward to reading more of Brandon Sanderson's books, but I don't think this one is for me. It's well written and readable, but just not what I was hoping for.

fiona

i have never suffered like i suffered today

Not once did I know what was really going on, and now I am crying

The Hero of Ages Book Three of Mistborn

Reviews

Highlights