Action & Adventure Archives - Matt gets LIT-erary

The Well of Ascension and The Hero of Ages

The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson
Published by Hachette UK on March 30, 2010
Genres: Action & Adventure, Fantasy, Fiction
Pages: 800

The original Mistborn trilogy has earned a spot in my favorite fantasy series of all time. The second and third entries in the series continue to expand Brandon Sanderson’s brilliant world. These two books contain loveable characters, twists upon twists, heartbreaking losses, and a highly satisfying ending. Be warned this review has spoilers for the first Mistborn book, The Final Empire. Feel free to check out my spoiler free review of The Final Empire here.

The Well of Ascension has less action compared to The Final Empire, which was essentially a heist story. The sequel digs into the politics of the world. The Final Empire ended with Vin killing the Lord Ruler. Elend now takes control of Luthadel, the capital of The Final Empire. Elend finds himself torn between building a utopic government and doing whatever is necessary to keep control over Luthadel. Multiple factions, one led by his own father, place a siege on Luthadel. They are hoping to overthrow Elend to secure the valuable store of atrium that is rumored to be hidden there. In the meantime, Vin starts hearing mysterious thumping, that only she can detect, and a rival Mistborn is stalking her at night. The Well of Ascension also expands the world of the kandra, introducing an excellent character. And Sazed, (my favorite!) gets a love interest. The second novel concludes with an excellent trope-busting twist. After that ending I was scrambling to find a copy of The Hero of Ages as soon as possible.

I love when fantasy books get political. Fantasy authors, please do not gloss over why leaders make their decisions. I really enjoy the thought process behind political maneuvers, which Sanderson delivers in The Well of Ascension. Once Elend takes on the leadership position, he becomes more likeable. Elend certainly makes mistakes as a leader, even if his intensions are well-meaning. But Elend quickly learns from these mistakes, all while trying to uphold a fair and just government. Sanderson somehow got me to root for a straight male protagonist, which is rare for me in fantasy. And I cannot hype the twist at the end of The Well of Ascension enough! This is my favorite twist of the whole trilogy. Sanderson manages to offer an unexpected new take on the “chosen one” trope.

I will not say too much about the plot of The Hero of Ages, to avoid spoiling events in The Well of Ascension. Every character that survives the first two books gets their time to shine in the final installment. Especially one previously minor character. The ending is spectacular. The conclusion is epic, brutal, and beautifully wraps up the trilogy.

For me, The Hero of Ages, is the weakest entry in the trilogy, but the ending is everything! Sanderson is not afraid to kill off any of his characters, which is essential for me in fantasy. If there is an ongoing war or extreme danger, then some main characters need to die to keep the stakes high. Maybe I’m a bit twisted, but the pain of a loveable character dying feels so good! I really enjoyed Sanderson’s use of religion in all three books. Religion ended up playing a significant role in the final pages, and I appreciated the overall message. After finishing my fist three Brandon Sanderson books, I am impressed with his storytelling skills. Sanderson planned out these novels well in advance. Hints and clues are dropped early on, yet the twists never seemed obvious or predictable. All of Sanderson’s foreshadowing gives Mistborn great rereading potential. I am looking forward to continuing my way through Sanderson’s bibliography. I plan to stick to just the Cosmere universe for now.

All Systems Red

All Systems Red by Martha Wells
Published by Tom Doherty Associates on May 2, 2017
Genres: Action & Adventure, Fiction, Science Fiction, Biopunk
Pages: 144

Sometimes high expectations can ruin your experience with a book. I’ve been meaning to try the Murderbot Diaries for a while after hearing so much praise. Unfortunately, All Systems Red (the first book in the series) was not for me.

The story’s protagonist is a SecUnit (Security Unit) that has named itself Murderbot. Murderbot is a cyborg whose function is to protect its team of humans on space expeditions. Unaware to anyone Murderbot has hacked its government module giving it full autonomy. During their current expedition the team notices missing areas on their government supplied maps. They investigate the missing areas and uncover a conspiracy.

The biggest appeal for all systems red is Murderbot they have a great sense of humor. Their wry observations on the human crewmates are entertaining. Murderbot is arguably just as human as any other crewmate. I especially related to Murderbot’s passion for soap operas and other trashy media.

I thought the plot of All Systems Red was very simplistic and generic. The answer to the main mystery was not exciting. I believe that authors shouldn’t include mysteries in their books unless the answer is clever or surprising. When I read science fiction I want an immersive and complex story. For me Martha Well’s novella lacked world building and character development outside of Murderbot. It’s been a few weeks after finishing the book and I can’t remember anything significant about the human crewmembers. While I enjoyed the character of Murderbot it’s not enough to make me want to continue with the series. This provides me with a great opportunity to work on one of my 2022 reading goals!

The completionist in me wants to finish every book series I start. I have suffered through many mediocre books because of this bad habit. However, it is time for me to embrace one of my 2022 reading goals. I will DNF the Murderbot Diaries. Well, technically I didn’t DNF the book (it was only 150 pages can you blame me?) But I will not read the next book and will spend time with other stories I’ll hopefully enjoy more instead.

Billy Summers

Billy Summers by Stephen King
Published by Simon and Schuster on August 3, 2021
Genres: Action & Adventure, Crime, Fiction, Suspense, Thrillers
Pages: 528

Only Stephen King can get me to read a novel about an Iraqi war veteran turned hitman on a quest for revenge. King’s latest release, Billy Summers, is a thriller without supernatural elements. Billy Summers’ only rule, as a hitman, is he only accepts targets that are “bad guys”. He hopes his latest high-paying assignment will be his last. Billy poses as a writer in an office building across from a courthouse, waiting for an opportunity to take out a murderer as he is escorted up the courthouse steps to stand trial. He uses the downtime waiting for the day of the assassination to write a memoir, ironically becoming the writer he is disguised as.

The first half of this book was excellent. I love when authors make their protagonists writers, it is one of my favorite literary tropes. Billy suspects the individuals managing the hit are spying on his laptop, so he purposely writes his memoir in a dumbed-down voice, to hide his intelligence. Convincingly writing in different versions of one character’s voice is impressive and displays why King is a master storyteller. There are many parallels between Billy Summers and King’s outstanding Misery. Both novels feature male protagonists writing stories that are featured within the novels. Additionally, both Billy and Paul Sheldon are isolated indoors for the majority of their stories. I suspect Billy’s periods of isolation were inspired by King quarantining during the COVID-19 pandemic. King does drop in references to another work in the Stephen King Universe, fans of The Shining will be pleased.

About halfway through Billy Summers there is a major plot shift that drives the action for the remainder of the book. I found the plot in the second half to be less compelling and began looking forward to finishing the novel so I could move on to my next one, which is never a good sign. There is a horrendous instance of brown face in the book, that made me wince. Billy uses many disguises in the novel, one of them is a Mexican gardener (Billy is not Mexican) and involves layers of spray tan. After his first coat of tan Billy is described as “a white man with a desert tan”. After a second coat Billy is still not convinced and says: “This might have been a bad idea” (p. 395). Yes, Stephen King this was a horrible idea to include in the story. The disguise is wholly inappropriate! How did your editors approve this? Please do better! The frequent digs at Trump that I have come to appreciate in King’s latest works are present, but do not make up for this unnecessary, and highly problematic plot point.

I would only recommend this book to Constant Readers (King’s name for his die-hard fans). If you are a Stephen King completionist like myself, I’m sure you will be picking this up no matter what reviews say. For everyone else, there are plenty of better options in King’s massive bibliography to choose from.

Trigger Warnings: Rape, Pedophilia, War Violence