A thrilling conclusion to the epic sequel series of Mistborn Era One!

It’s been a long time coming for long-time fans of the series, but finally, we’ve been given the last book, which follows the final battle of Wax and Wayne against The Set and Autonomy. It’s an epic showdown, delivered in a novel of traditional Sanderson length—perhaps not as long as more recent works in The Stormlight Archive, but just as impressive as his earlier work with the first Mistborn series.

It’s been six years since Wax and Wayne last tangled with The Set, and much has changed. The Bands of Mourning are under the protection of the Kandra, the Southern Scadrians have entered into the politics of The Basin, Wax has become more senator than lawman, and Harmony—who for 300 years after Vin and Elend’s victory was Scadrial’s greatest protector—is now vulnerable.

The stakes have never been higher as this epic conclusion reveals the deadly plot of The Set, led in part by Wax’s estranged sister, Telsin, who has become the avatar of the Shardbearer Autonomy, seeking to take over the planet from Harmony. Harmony, for some reason unable to see or do battle with this foreign invader, tasks Wax with once again being his sword and uncovering Telsin’s evil plans.

The scale of the danger, when revealed, shows that the threat has never been greater. The plans The Set have put in motion have been years in the making, and our beloved heroes are playing a desperate game of catch-up that may be too late to stop the total destruction of all that Sazed preserved when he restored the world after Ruin’s destruction.

While I’ve never been entirely convinced of the necessity of this second era of novels, I have overall enjoyed them—especially the comedic and deductive acts of Wax and Wayne and their unique personalities. It is interesting to see just how much these characters have changed over the years between their first and last outings in these novels, something we were unable to witness in the original trilogy due to the shorter time span between those books.

The characters who have progressed the most, by far, since their introduction are the sisters Marasi and Steris. The former was introduced as a prospective love interest for Wax, and the latter was initially just a side character, providing an introduction to the stiff, upper-lipped high society of Elendel’s elite. By the final book, Marasi has become an entity unto herself, separate from Wax and Wayne, with her own goals achieved and battles fought.

Steris, too, has grown greatly from her original stiff and logically dull character into an intelligent, brazen, and commanding voice in the narrative. While neither face the same physical trials as the primary protagonists, their transition from background characters to protagonists in their own right has been some of Sanderson’s best work in this series.

Furthermore, Sanderson once again uses this final entry to build on his last novel in the series, A Secret History, and establish the shared space that those in the Cosmere occupy. It’s a tantalising glimpse of the crossovers we will undoubtedly see in the near future, and it’s masterfully done without taking the focus away from the protagonists of this story. It remains a separate tale from the main narrative of the Mistborn book series.

While it hasn’t always been Sanderson’s best work, it has always been entertaining and inviting. The ending continues to promise more exciting things to come from the world of Scadrial and the battle with the wider Cosmere, and I, for one, can’t wait to feast my eyes on those stories when they come to print.

8.5 out of 10.