The Well of Ascension (Mistborn, Book 2) by Brandon Sanderson is the second book in the Mistborn series. If you have a thought to some day read the first book in this series, stop here until you have. This review will certainly contain spoilers for t hat first book.
What does one do once you have overthrown a god? That's the question is on the mind of Vin and her crew. The Lord Ruler was not really a god but, to the people of Vin's world, he may as well have been. On top of all that, Vin has to deal with seeing her mentor die as well as nearly dying herself. At least the hard part is over and all she and Elend have to do is keep the world from falling apart.
This is where we find ourselves in the beginning of this book. It's starts as a rebirth of not just one culture but, all cultures that have dwindled and died under the iron grip of the Lord Ruler. This is one of those books that answers the question left open by so many stories: What comes after the ending? Once evil is overthrown, what happens next? And then the all important question, can the people left after such an event manage to do what is right and just? Brandon Sanderson does a masterful job of taking the reader through these and many more answers to questions that come after freeing people. It's handled not only logically but thoughtfully and draws you deeper and deeper into the situation at every turn.
'Hard times don't build character, they reveal it' or something to that nature is an axiom that takes center stage much of the time. The characters we have come to know and love or hate are pushed to breaking point but at the end of the last book and here as well. We get to see how it all shapes them and builds on what we know of them already.
The setting, of course, is sill the star of the show. The sun, the ash and the mists are all still there and are a constant that these people must put up with. Sanderson does an excellent job of letting the inanimate help shape the story.
This is a very entertaining continuation of the story. While it is epic in length, it still leaves the reader wanting more by the end. Which is good because, they aren't done yet. It does have some violence which put's it into the PG13 rating for me.
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