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dillydallysprout's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I’d give a million stars if I could
fableheaven's review
5.0
This is a review for all three parts of The Hero of Ages
First and foremost, the production value is amazing, dialogs, score, voice acting. Incredible. Its combination with Sanderson's words? Out of this world.
I feel this book had a lot more depth than the first two, of course they were great too, but they pale compared to this one. I don't think either of them explored identity, religion and depression as well as this one.
I couldn't have imagined the ending based on The Final Empire's story, and I believe that's the thing that surprises me the most. As people well know I don't mind spoilers, I even seek them out from time to time. Yet, the few spoilers I had didn't prepare me for the story, and I even had confirmation of who the Hero of Ages was all along!
All in all, this was an amazing experience. Brandon didn't write a single line that didn't connect with the ending, that didn't go somewhere. This book was filled with explanations and answers to questions I didn't even think to ask in the first place.
The ending was incredibly satisfying as well. I may have cried for 20mins or more because of the adrenaline and everything that was happening but it was worth it.
First and foremost, the production value is amazing, dialogs, score, voice acting. Incredible. Its combination with Sanderson's words? Out of this world.
I feel this book had a lot more depth than the first two, of course they were great too, but they pale compared to this one. I don't think either of them explored identity, religion and depression as well as this one.
I couldn't have imagined the ending based on The Final Empire's story, and I believe that's the thing that surprises me the most. As people well know I don't mind spoilers, I even seek them out from time to time. Yet, the few spoilers I had didn't prepare me for the story, and I even had confirmation of who the Hero of Ages was all along!
All in all, this was an amazing experience. Brandon didn't write a single line that didn't connect with the ending, that didn't go somewhere. This book was filled with explanations and answers to questions I didn't even think to ask in the first place.
The ending was incredibly satisfying as well. I may have cried for 20mins or more because of the adrenaline and everything that was happening but it was worth it.
kadu_1516's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
mrj's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
dragonbookhoarder's review
5.0
An amazing story that ends with an plottwist! The triology was amazing and I really recommend it!
cosmicllama's review
3.0
I have a lot of feelings surrounding this book, and while I think I ultimately enjoyed it, I don't think it's a particularly good book, especially when compared to the 2 previous books in the series.
First of the beginning of the book has a distinct lack of direction. It makes sense given the ending of Well of Ascension, but it doesn't feel deliberate. Characters are just grinding on in the hopes that what they are doing is correct and "good", without really stopping to ask why. When quiet moments do happen, characters spend them wallowing about the past instead of talking about the present situation, making a lot of scenes feel repetitive, especially after just finishing Well. There is a feeling that the final book should be meditative and thoughtful, questioning the nature of the work the characters have done, but instead is spilling over with repetitive and tedious conversations about the nature of religion and the purpose of leadership. Sanderson tries to balance this out with fast paced action sequences, but often they don't accomplish anything other than to break the monotony.
The opening paragraphs of each chapter, previously used to highlight sections of the Lord Ruler's diary and past, now just straight up explain missing elements of the story, and detail the magic system more thoroughly. It feels like I'm reading from the future and it doesn't really work for the story. I'm being told what is happening instead of gradually discovering the world. This also feeds into the repetitive nature of the final book, going over everything that Sanderson expertly and subtly alluded to in the previous novels.
There is a lot of dissonance within this book, and I don't know how much of it is meant to be intentional. Especially since a lot of the conflict is not exactly resolved with violence, but instead washed over with it. The hard magic system is on full display throughout the book, running parallel to the discussions on the importance of faith and acceptance. However, these two lines of thought never quite met for me. It would have been a huge win had the ideas of faith and actual physical work to achieve that faith been intertwined, but while I internally already know it, I did not feel it within the book itself.
Most of the book feels like Sanderson is tying up loose ends that could not have been easily inserted into the first two books without disrupting their flow, or spoiling the reveals. Not to mention some of the questionable themes interspersed through the narrative mixed in with some genuinely good ideas. The real meat of the book happen in the last 10%, 15% if I'm being generous, where all is revealed. But again, while the reveal is cool and genuinely has some interesting moments that make me want to continue with the series, I couldn't help but ask myself "why do I care?". The characters don't feel worthy anymore. Power levels become the name of the game instead of some internal struggle. The theme of sacrifice is muddied, and there were just huge sections of the book that did not make sense.
Overall, again, I think I enjoyed the experience, but I don't think I liked it. I have too many questions, and they're not about the world. If you liked the exciting, fast paced action sequences of the first two books, Hero of Ages has plenty in store for you. If you are looking for more of the world, and the reason it is the way it is, Sanderson has that in DROVES. But if you wanted something more than just a lore avalanche, this book will somewhat of a let down.
First of the beginning of the book has a distinct lack of direction. It makes sense given the ending of Well of Ascension, but it doesn't feel deliberate. Characters are just grinding on in the hopes that what they are doing is correct and "good", without really stopping to ask why. When quiet moments do happen, characters spend them wallowing about the past instead of talking about the present situation, making a lot of scenes feel repetitive, especially after just finishing Well. There is a feeling that the final book should be meditative and thoughtful, questioning the nature of the work the characters have done, but instead is spilling over with repetitive and tedious conversations about the nature of religion and the purpose of leadership. Sanderson tries to balance this out with fast paced action sequences, but often they don't accomplish anything other than to break the monotony.
The opening paragraphs of each chapter, previously used to highlight sections of the Lord Ruler's diary and past, now just straight up explain missing elements of the story, and detail the magic system more thoroughly. It feels like I'm reading from the future and it doesn't really work for the story. I'm being told what is happening instead of gradually discovering the world. This also feeds into the repetitive nature of the final book, going over everything that Sanderson expertly and subtly alluded to in the previous novels.
There is a lot of dissonance within this book, and I don't know how much of it is meant to be intentional. Especially since a lot of the conflict is not exactly resolved with violence, but instead washed over with it. The hard magic system is on full display throughout the book, running parallel to the discussions on the importance of faith and acceptance. However, these two lines of thought never quite met for me. It would have been a huge win had the ideas of faith and actual physical work to achieve that faith been intertwined, but while I internally already know it, I did not feel it within the book itself.
Most of the book feels like Sanderson is tying up loose ends that could not have been easily inserted into the first two books without disrupting their flow, or spoiling the reveals. Not to mention some of the questionable themes interspersed through the narrative mixed in with some genuinely good ideas. The real meat of the book happen in the last 10%, 15% if I'm being generous, where all is revealed. But again, while the reveal is cool and genuinely has some interesting moments that make me want to continue with the series, I couldn't help but ask myself "why do I care?". The characters don't feel worthy anymore. Power levels become the name of the game instead of some internal struggle. The theme of sacrifice is muddied, and there were just huge sections of the book that did not make sense.
Overall, again, I think I enjoyed the experience, but I don't think I liked it. I have too many questions, and they're not about the world. If you liked the exciting, fast paced action sequences of the first two books, Hero of Ages has plenty in store for you. If you are looking for more of the world, and the reason it is the way it is, Sanderson has that in DROVES. But if you wanted something more than just a lore avalanche, this book will somewhat of a let down.
samantha77's review
5.0
This was one of the most well written finally books I have ever read! I was not able to predict the ending and was completely at awe, speechless and at ease with how it all ended. Even though this book was long there wasn’t a single second that I was bored or lost or not completely entertained!
lavidaenquotes's review
3.0
Giving a rating to The Hero of Ages troubled me quite a bit. After much debating, I settled for 3,5* I wanted to like this book sooooo badly - I fell in love with The Final Empire and was one of my favorite books of last year. Ever since I read it, I've been praising it and recommending it left and right. I love the story, the world, I got to know and love and cheer for the characters, and the magic system left me in awe. Sadly, for me, the third and final book didn't deliver what I was expecting.
Let me start off by saying I understand how amazing Sanderson's work is. He came full circle by the end of this story and seemingly little details and hints that were dropped here and there came back to show their importance and make your jaw drop. How didn't I see that coming. Although, to be honest, I did see many of those things coming, and while there was something that kept me guessing for a while (is she? is she not?) by the time the big reveal came my way, I had seen it coming long ago.
In my opinion, this book could have been shorter. A good 100 pages, if not more. Come to think of it, maybe that's the reason I had so much time to put many pieces together and see things coming. There are chapters in which you read for the thousandth time about Saze's religious crisis, about Spook wanting to be important and relevant, about the ever present ash (did you miss that? There was ash. A lot of ash), so you have plenty a time to ponder about stuff, and the element of surprise vanishes. It's really a shame, because the reveal is utterly clever, but instead of knocking me out of my sit, I went "oh, so... I was right."
The Mistborn Trilogy captivated me with The Final Empire, got a little bit slippery in The Well of Ascension with story line so politically heavy and little allomancy, and almost lost me for real in The Hero of Ages with its redundancies, slow pace, sparse action scenes, and quite an anti-climatic ending.I don't mean Vin and Elend dying. I saw Elend's death coming long before and, even though I could have done without his beheading, it didn't really surprise me. Even Vin's transformation into... Preservation 2.0? was something I could accept - although I do have my reservations. Hell, even Saze's ascension and transformation into a deity was ok. But everyone coming out of... a cave? Into a beautiful green meadow of sorts? Finding Vin's and Elend's bodies? And a note from the new God in town? Who is, apparently, hanging out with all their dead friends in the after life? (side note: is God allowed to have a girlfriend?) It was, after already so much, too much for me, and it left me blinking for a few minutes at the pages, wondering if I had really read that.
This book by itself would get 3 stars from me. However, like I said at the beginning, I recognize Sanderson's work and the complexity of this story. That counts for at least half a star.
Let me start off by saying I understand how amazing Sanderson's work is. He came full circle by the end of this story and seemingly little details and hints that were dropped here and there came back to show their importance and make your jaw drop. How didn't I see that coming. Although, to be honest, I did see many of those things coming, and while there was something that kept me guessing for a while (is she? is she not?) by the time the big reveal came my way, I had seen it coming long ago.
In my opinion, this book could have been shorter. A good 100 pages, if not more. Come to think of it, maybe that's the reason I had so much time to put many pieces together and see things coming. There are chapters in which you read for the thousandth time about Saze's religious crisis, about Spook wanting to be important and relevant, about the ever present ash (did you miss that? There was ash. A lot of ash), so you have plenty a time to ponder about stuff, and the element of surprise vanishes. It's really a shame, because the reveal is utterly clever, but instead of knocking me out of my sit, I went "oh, so... I was right."
The Mistborn Trilogy captivated me with The Final Empire, got a little bit slippery in The Well of Ascension with story line so politically heavy and little allomancy, and almost lost me for real in The Hero of Ages with its redundancies, slow pace, sparse action scenes, and quite an anti-climatic ending.
This book by itself would get 3 stars from me. However, like I said at the beginning, I recognize Sanderson's work and the complexity of this story. That counts for at least half a star.