The Hero of Ages
(Mistborn Era 1, Book 3) Book Review
By Brandon Sanderson
Finished 07-16-2019
Genre: Fantasy
Basic Plot: In the third installment of the first era of Mistborn, Vin and Elend find themselves pitted against greater odds than even they understand. War, love, destruction and hope are the focal points of the epic ending to the days of the first era.
(Unsure of original artist, not my image)
This was the most heartbreaking, soul crushing experience I have yet to have with Mistborn. I am going to try to get through this review without giving spoilers. Mistborn had a slow and rocky start for me personally. I couldn’t grasp why this is the series that broke Sanderson through and made him a household fantasy namesake. This book is why. This is one of his older series so the plot was thick and sometimes felt semi repetitive or even stalled due to character building and plot build. That being said, without the deep emotional builds he invested in the first and second book, Sanderson could not have created such an epic ending. Emotionally, this book packs a hard hit. So much nostalgia is embedded in his narration that I didn’t even realize I felt. Scenes I will never forget, beautifully crafted and realistic to the point I tear up ever so slightly just thinking about it. At the ending I wanted to throw my e-reader and scream. I was devastated. I didn’t believe I was too invested into this series, but then the resolution begins and it’s impactful. I cried at this ending. I cried for character resolutions, frustrations towards turn of events, and overall becoming so highly invested accidentally and then being destroyed emotionally while equally being given so much beauty. I think jury’s still out on how I felt overall about this ending but I can’t deny, I felt it. Wholeheartedly.
I gave this a entirely deserved 5 out of 5 because Sanderson really is a master of the pen. He creates vivid action scenes that couple with his dramatic characters to create an overall encapsulating plot that drags you through it’s events in ways most authors can only dream to achieve. He is an emotional composure who delivered everything you want in an epic fantasy series, even in his most inexperienced works. This series starts slow and dense but this last book, this ending, it’s honestly one of the most incredible stories I have experienced in a long time.
