Wells, Stacy Whitman, Sarah Bylund, and Benjamin R. Lee Player, Kimball Larsen, Bryce Cundick, Janci Patterson, Heather Kirby, Sally Taylor, The Almighty Pronoun, Bradley Reneer, Holly Venable, Jimmy, Alan Layton, Janette Layton, Kaylynn ZoBell, Rick Stranger, Nate Hatfield, Daniel A. In no particular order, these people are: Ben Olson, Krista Olsen, Nathan Goodrich, Ethan Skarstedt, Eric J. These tireless folks provide feedback on my novels in the early stages, dealing with all of the problems, typos, and inconsistencies before I get them worked out.

Thank you so much, all of you! Another round of thanks needs to go out to my alpha readers. Finally, I'd like to thank the Tor publicity department-specifically Dot Lin-which has been wonderful in promoting my books and taking care of me. Shawn Boyles is the official Mistborn Llama artist, and a great guy to boot. Isaac Stewart, a good friend of mine and a fellow writer, did all of the map work and the symbols for the chapter headings. And, speaking of artists, I think the amazing Christian McGrath did a brilliant job with this cover. Seth Lerner, Tor's mass-market art director, is a genius at matching books to artists. Larry Yoder (the best sales rep in the nation) did a wonderful job selling the book. There are some other fine folks at Tor who deserve my thanks. They have my thanks, as do their assistants, Steve Mancino (an excellent agent in his own right) and Denis Wong. This book in particular required some thoughtful drafting, and they were up to the task. Summary of Book One ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First off, as always, my excellent agent, Joshua Bilmes, and editor, Moshe Feder, deserve high praise for their efforts. ISBN: 978-0-7653-5613-0 THE WELL OF ASCENSION TOR BOOKS BY BRANDON SANDERSON Elantris Mistborn The Well of Ascension The Hero of Ages* FOR PHYLLIS CALL, Who may never understand my fantasy books, yet who taught me more about life -and therefore writing- than she can probably ever know (Thanks, Grandma!) CONTENTS MAPS PART ONE: Heir of the Survivor PART TWO: Ghosts in the Mist PART THREE: King PART FOUR: Knives PART FIVE: Snow and Ash PART SIX: Words in Steel EPILOGUE ARS ARCANUM 1. Maps and ornaments by Isaac Stewart A Tor Book Published by Tom Doherty Associates, LLC 175 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10010 Tor® is a registered trademark of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC. THE WELL OF ASCENSION: BOOK TWO OF MISTBORN Copyright © 2007 by Brandon Sanderson All rights reserved. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Sanderson is astonishingly wise.' -Orson Scott Card THE WELL OF ASCENSION BOOK TWO OF MISTBORN BRANDON SANDERSON A TOM DOHERTY ASSOCIATES BOOK NEW YORK This is a work of fiction. along the way to the grand finale, anyone who cares to can learn a great deal about the underside of power.' -Faren Miller, Locus Praise for Brandon Sanderson 'Brandon Sanderson is the real thing-an exciting story-teller with a unique and powerful vision.' -David Farland 'It's rare for a fiction writer to have much understanding of how leadership works, how communities form, and how love really takes root in the human heart. Mistborn examines the makings of hero and villain, legend and myth, as seemingly different stages of what may be the same process.

Highly recommended to anyone hungry for a good read.' -Robin Hobb 'Brandon Sanderson made a sensational debut with Elantris as another in the recent crop of fantasy writers who use familiar epic forms to produce far-from-generic results. It also has a great cast of believable characters, a plausible world, an intriguing political system, and a very satisfying ending. Vin's a beautifully realized protagonist whose struggles are wonderfully written and, as always, the world-building is unusual and compelling.' -Romantic Times BOOKreviews 'This entertaining read will especially please those who always wanted to know what happened after the good guys won.' -Publishers Weekly 'Vin's struggles with love and power inject the human element into Sanderson's engaging epic.' -Booklist Praise for Mistborn 'Mistborn utilizes a well thought-out system of magic. Praise for The Well of Ascension 'Sanderson's hallmark is to take traditional high-fantasy tropes and turn them upside down, and he doesn't disappoint here.

Coppermind elarel