The stakes are about as high as they could be now - all life on the planet faces destruction, or more aptly Ruin. Sanderson continues to ably avoid or subvert the common gamut of fantasy cliches, which is a welcome change of pace from the too-typical genre piece to say the least. He also does a good job of broadening his focus to include additional perspective characters with significant plotlines (Spook gets to be important!) not directly tied to our principal duo without leaving us feeling out of touch with the latter. Speaking of whom, Vin continues to just be all kinds of badass (though still fallible enough to be believable), in case anyone was worried on that score. By far the most impressive feat Sanderson manages, however, is to draw an absolute multitude of plot threads and elements from earlier in the book and the series and weave them into the resolution of his saga without making it seem either predictable or contrived. And on the topic of the resolution, to say as much as I can without spoilers, Sanderson is absolutely fearless in defying one of the most unshakable conventions not merely of fantasy, but really of fiction altogether. People have lavished praise on Sanderson and on these books in particular. He deserves it.