The only reason I didn’t give 5 stars is because the ending made me so sad and I’m a baby

 If you have ever felt the magic of a well-created fantasy world, then you will understand the awe Brandon Sanderson crafts in this magnificent conclusion to the Mistborn trilogy.

The Hero of Ages, set in a dying world, picks up where the previous book left off: Vin, Elend, and their friends are trying to grapple with the fate of Scadrial. With Ruin coming, each of them must search for answers to what the mysterious Deepness is and how it works. Because of this, the stakes in this book are higher than they have ever been. Deeply embedded in the story are themes of sacrifice and leadership, concerning the difficulty of good against evil.

Perhaps one of the most riveting aspects in this book is character development. Vin has grown from a street urchin into a strong leader, but still has monumental challenges to go through. Elend grows so much as he considers the treacherous path of leadership and responsibility. These characters have complicated, interesting dynamics that make their problems feel deeply realistic.

The Hero of Ages continued to develop the truly impressive world-building. Over these first three books in this saga, Sanderson has slowly and painfully built a cosmos with its own history, cultures, and magical systems that feel unique and profound.

His blending of these ideas into the narrative enhanced my whole reading experience. Every element in his carefully created cosmos seemed alive and purposeful. His writing is flawless, allowing me to easily grasp and enjoy the complex magic systems and political nuances.

For all those who love deep world-building, complex characters, and thought-provoking fantasy stories, I definitely recommend The Hero of Ages. Not only does it live up to the expectations of the first two books, but it takes them to an entire new and distinguishable level, as Sanderson is excellent at balancing action with great emotional impact.

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I did it. I finished Mistborn. And in the end, it's a mixed bag that highlights the best and worst parts of the series. The last one-hundred pages are cool, but before that? I found it a real slog - 600 pages of it. Things just take a long time to pick up because we spend a LOT of time with the main characters (What if I told you that one of them is imprisoned for 2/3rds of the book and we're waiting for them to break out the whole time?). And that wouldn't at all be a problem, except that there are just bits of tonal shifts in each new book. During each entry in the series, it seems like Sanderson thought 'I feel like putting a lot of narrative focus on this character' even though we didn't get much of them before. In particular I had a problem with the two main characters, one smart and one strong: one of them gets a sort of 'powerup', to the point where now they're both strong, somewhat casting away the dynamic of them looking at situations differently. So a lot of little instances of those sudden character shifts make the book feel disjointed and unplanned. And yet, the series definitely has many through lines; but I think perhaps that Sanderson started out with a big outline, and decided where he wanted to start and end. So oftentimes there are character arcs that appear or shift radically to help us get from point A to B. However, if you've been enjoying the series for the first two books, I can guarantee that the resolution will leave you fully satisfied. 7/10.

With the mystery solved we're left to a paper thin set of characters and bad tropes that are often ill considered.