The Well of Ascension

Mistborn Book 2

Rating

5/5

Date Started

1/18/2024

Date Completed

1/30/2024

Five Powerful Quotes from the Book

Quote 1

“‘You, Elend Venture, are a good man. A truly good man.’

“‘Good men don’t become legends,’ he said quietly.

“‘Good men don’t need to become legends.’ … ‘They just do what’s right anyway.'”

Quote 2

“‘A man can only lead when others accept him as their leader, and he has only as much authority as his subjects give to him. All of the brilliant ideas in the world cannot save your kingdom if no one will listen to them.’

“Elend turned. ‘This last year I’ve read every pertinent book on leadership and governance in the four libraries.’

“Tindwyl raised an eyebrow. ‘Then, I suspect that you spent a great deal of time in your room that you should have been out, being seen by your people and learning to be a ruler.’

“‘Books have great value,’ Elend said.

“‘Actions have greater value.'”

Quote 3

“‘Is that all it is, then?’ Elend asked. ‘Expressions and costumes? Is that what makes a king?’

“‘Of course not.’

“Elend stopped by the door, turning back. ‘Then, what does? What do you think makes a man a good king, Tindwyl of Terris?’

“‘Trust,’ Tindwyl said, looking him in the eyes. ‘A good king is one who is trusted by his people – and one who deserves that trust.’

“Elend paused, then nodded. Good answer, he acknowledged. …

“‘You have no place for guilt. Accept that you’re king, accept that you can do nothing constructive to change that, and accept responsibility. Whatever you do, be confident – for if you weren’t here, there would be chaos.’

“Elend nodded.

“‘Arrogance, Your Majesty,’ Tindwyl said. ‘Successful leaders all share one common trait – they believe that they can do a better job than the alternatives. Humility is fine when considering your responsibility and duty, but when it comes time to make a decision, you must not question yourself.'”

Quote 4

“‘Prophecies, legends, foretellings,’ Vin said, slapping her hand down on her sheet of notes. ‘What’s the point? Why did the Terris even believe in these things? Shouldn’t a religion teach something practical?’

“OreSeur settled down on his haunches upon the chair. ‘What would be more practical than gaining knowledge of the future?’

“‘If these actually said something useful, I’d agree. But even the logbook acknowledges that the Terris prophecies could be understood many different ways. What good are promises that could be interpreted so liberally?’

“‘Do not dismiss someone’s beliefs because you do not understand them, Mistress.’

“Vin snorted. ‘You sound like Sazed. A part of me is tempted to think that all these prophecies and legends were devised by priests who wanted to make a living.’ …

“‘Prophecies do not have to be a scam, Mistress,’ OreSeur said. ‘Or even, really, a promise for the future. They can simply be an expression of hope.’ …

“‘Do not deride someone’s faith simply because you do not share it, Lord Cladent,’ Sazed said quietly.

“Clubs snorted again. ‘It’s all very easy for you, isn’t it?’ he asked. ‘Believing everything, never having to choose?’

“‘I would say,’ Sazed replied, ‘that it is more difficult to believe as I do, for one must learn to be inclusionary and accepting.'”

Quote 5

“‘Your Majesty?’ Sazed asked quietly.

“‘Yes?’

“‘My apologies, but it is not your duty to do what the people want.’

“Elend blinked. ‘You sound like Tindwyl.’

“‘I have known few people as wise as she, Your Majesty,’ Sazed said, glancing at her.

“‘Well, I disagree with both of you,’ Elend said. ‘A ruler should only lead by the consent of the people he rules.’

“‘I do not disagree with that, Your Majesty,’ Sazed said. ‘Or, at least, I do believe in the theory of it. Regardless, I still do not believe that your duty is to do as the people wish. Your duty is to lead as best you can, following the dictates of your conscience. You must be true, Your Majesty, to the man you wish to become. If that man is not whom the people wish to have lead them, then they will choose someone else.’

“Elend paused. Well, of course. If I shouldn’t be an exception to my own laws, I shouldn’t be an exception to my own ethics, either. Sazed’s words were really just a rephrasing of things Tindwyl had said about trusting oneself, but Sazed’s explanation seemed a better one. A more honest one.

“‘Trying to guess what people wish of you will only lead to chaos, I think,’ Sazed said. ‘You cannot please them all, Elend Venture.'”

About the Book

Original Date Published

8/21/2007

The Well of Ascension: Mistborn Book 2 – Audiobook | Ebook | Hardcover – “The impossible has been accomplished. The Lord Ruler — the man who claimed to be god incarnate and brutally ruled the world for a thousand years — has been vanquished. But Kelsier, the hero who masterminded that triumph, is dead too, and now the awesome task of building a new world has been left to his young protégé, Vin, the former street urchin who is now the most powerful Mistborn in the land, and to the idealistic young nobleman she loves.

“As Kelsier’s protégé and slayer of the Lord Ruler she is now venerated by a budding new religion, a distinction that makes her intensely uncomfortable. Even more worrying, the mists have begun behaving strangely since the Lord Ruler died, and seem to harbor a strange vaporous entity that haunts her.

“Stopping assassins may keep Vin’s Mistborn skills sharp, but it’s the least of her problems. Luthadel, the largest city of the former empire, doesn’t run itself, and Vin and the other members of Kelsier’s crew, who lead the revolution, must learn a whole new set of practical and political skills to help. It certainly won’t get easier with three armies – one of them composed of ferocious giants – now vying to conquer the city, and no sign of the Lord Ruler’s hidden cache of atium, the rarest and most powerful allomantic metal.

“As the siege of Luthadel tightens, an ancient legend seems to offer a glimmer of hope. But even if it really exists, no one knows where to find the Well of Ascension or what manner of power it bestows.”

About the Author

Brandon Sanderson – “Brandon Sanderson was born in December 1975 in Lincoln, Nebraska. As a child Brandon enjoyed reading, but he lost interest in the types of titles often suggested for him, and by junior high he never cracked a book if he could help it. This all changed in eighth grade when an astute teacher, Mrs. Reeder, gave Brandon Dragonsbane by Barbara Hambly. Brandon thoroughly enjoyed this book, and went in search of anything similar. He discovered such authors as Robert Jordan, Melanie Rawn, David Eddings, Anne McCaffrey, and Orson Scott Card. Brandon continued to be an avid reader through junior high and high school. He liked epic fantasy so much that he even tried his hand at writing some. His first attempts, he says, were dreadful.

“In 1994 Brandon enrolled at Brigham Young University as a biochemistry major. From 1995 to 1997 he took time away from his studies to serve as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Brandon often says that it was during this time in Seoul, Korea that he realized that he didn’t miss chemistry one bit, but he did miss writing. Upon his return to BYU, Brandon became an English major, much to the dismay of his mother, who had always hoped he would become a doctor.

“Brandon began writing in earnest, taking a job as the night desk clerk at a hotel because they allowed him to write while at work. During this era he went to school full time during the day, worked nights to pay for his schooling, and wrote as much as he could. He says it made for a rather dismal social life, but he finished seven novels during his undergraduate years. Brandon submitted many manuscripts for publication . . . and accumulated quite a pile of rejection letters. In spite of this he continued to be a dedicated writer. …

“It was in 2003, while Brandon was in the middle of a graduate program at BYU, that he got a call from editor Moshe Feder at Tor, who wanted to buy one of Brandon’s books. Brandon had submitted the manuscript a year and a half earlier, and had almost given up on hearing anything, so he was surprised and delighted to receive the offer. In May 2005 Brandon held his first published novel, Elantris, in his hands. Over the next few years, Tor also published Brandon’s Mistborn trilogy, its followup The Alloy of Law, Warbreaker, and The Way of Kings, the first in a projected ten-volume series called The Stormlight Archive. The second book in the series, Words of Radiance, was released on March 4th, 2014. Other projects continue to be in the works.”