~ Spoilers for The Final Empire ~
The Well of Ascension is the second book of The Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson. The book was first released in 2007, a year after the release of the first book. Following the story from the previous book, Kelsier's plan turned out to be a success: Lord Ruler is defeated and Luthadel is finally governed by a new king, Elend Venture, a nobleman who cares about the skaa workers. Kelsier's former crewmembers, including Vin, help Elend in leading his new government. Even though the immortal Lord Ruler is already defeated, things don't get easier for them. Elend is struggling in securing his position as a leader, the Lord Ruler's atium storage is nowhere to be found, and Elend's father and other parties are planning to overtake Luthadel with force. Lord Ruler's death also seems to have mysterious effects on the Final Empire. Mists are staying late until morning, killing people randomly and the dangerous creatures that are once controlled by Lord Ruler are now moving with their own plans. Vin has to find the truth behind these events that are seemingly linked to the Deepness and the Well of Ascension while also figuring out her new role in the crew both as a Mistborn and as Elend's partner.
This book brilliantly carries the torch left by the epic first book. As the pandora box opens up by the death of Lord Ruler, our characters are battling even more formidable enemies left and right, through political ploys, glass daggers, and ancient books. I especially like how Elend gets to grow as a character in this book, how he leads his people with innocent ideals before faced with the cruel reality of political powerplays. His journey is the most memorable memory I have from this book.
The author also manages to expand the world bit by bit seamlessly with the story. We get to know even more about the history of this world before Lord Ruler takes over as a tyrant. We also get introduced to more Allomancy with even more intense and destructive battles. I feel like a little kid again by reading this book. It's just so much fun. Can't wait to read the last one of the trilogy.
