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Firefight The Reckoners Brandon Sanderson Books

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Firefight The Reckoners Brandon Sanderson Books

The Reckoners Trilogy is one which I was initially skeptical of. Despite being recommended to me by literally dozens of fans, I didn't know if it would be my cup of tea. I'm a fairly big fan of the idea that superhuman powers would be a net-positive to the world and tend to be on the idealistic end of things despite being a fan of edgy antiheroes. The Reckoners Trilogy is based around the concept of a world which has been devastated by evil superhumans, so it's one which you'd think was fairly cynical, right?

The first novel, Steelheart, was anything but. Despite the fact it is in a post-apocalypse world where the only remains of human civilization are all controlled by tyrants, I found it to be surprisingly light-hearted and hopeful. The fact it was about a plucky resistance (the Reckoners) against an evil overlord made it closer to Star Wars than Watchmen. I also found out its depiction of superhumans was a lot more nuanced than I initially suspected. The fact the book was genuinely fun helped it as well, so much so that I picked up the second novel as soon as I finished the first.

Firefight picks up not long after the events of Steelheart with the Reckoners having eliminated the city's former overlord as well as re-established human-run civilization. Unfortunately, they can't capitalize on the momentum because they're under siege by a near-endless number of Epics seeking to claim Steelheart's former territory as well as make a name for themselves by eliminating his killers. Things get worse when they attempt to target the city of New York, only to find themselves in over their heads against a water-bending mastermind and a religious-obsessed exploding demigod.

I've got to say I really enjoyed this book all round. It does what a sequel should in that it doesn't repeat what the original book did, expands on the concepts of the first book, allows for character growth, and shows us new material in the same world. Particularly interesting is the expansion of the Professor's background as well as details about the early days of the Calamity.

Brandon Sanderson is an amazing world-builder who certainly details elements of his world which would have eluded other writers. Indeed, it is his greatest strength that he can create unique and memorable locations which are internally consistent. The water city replacing New York is different in culture, environment, and atmosphere to Newcago. I liked the idea the people are more or less resigned to the Epics in New York and generally spend all of their lives partying because their masters keep them fed out of hand.

The villains of Regalia and Obliteration are excellent foils with a lot more development than the late Steelheart. Regalia is a woman with plans within plans and a twisted code of honor that bends around the psychosis afflicting Epics. Obliteration, by contrast, is completely insane but his beliefs are entirely consistent with the deranged world which have sprung up around humanity. They're wonderful comic book-style villains and watching our heroes play off them is excellent.

We also finally get an explanation for how and why Epics are given their powers as well as how their minds are shattered beyond recovery. I'm not entirely satisfied with this explanation but think it works for the story which Brandon Sanderson is trying to tell. Certainly, it provides a lot of dramatic energy which the story exploits from beginning to end. It also results in a massive twist at the end which made me buy the third novel in the series immediately.

The only thing I didn't like about the novel was the romance between Megan and David. Unfortunately, this takes up quite a bit of the novel. David is deeply in love with the treacherous and evil Epic as well as convinced she is secretly good. This is, apparently, purely because he thinks she's hot. Unfortunately, the narrative bears out David's suspicions and it becomes a tedious display of why the power of love wins out over all.

The action scenes in the book are incredible with truly epic fights that are described well. Brandon Sanderson has a movie director's ability to stage them in his text and an unlimited budget to see them on display. He also manages to invoke tension for all of our heroes because we never know who will die or be taken out of play by the events within. That's a rare gift and one which raises the stakes in the book considerably.

In conclusion, Firefight is a really good novel weighed down by what TV tropes calls a "Romantic Plot Tumor." Even so, I'm going to say it's an excellent action adventure novel throughout. It strikes the right sort of balance between fantasy, science fiction, and reality in order to feel like a good comic book. I also cared about the characters enough that I wanted the story to continue. Which is a pretty good endorsement all round.

9/10


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Firefight The Reckoners Brandon Sanderson Books Reviews

So, the first book of this trilogy was a balls to the wall action book. I do not need this level of action in a book, but it came at the perfect time when I was having trouble prioritizing books.

This one, I struggled with a little. The first third or so of the book had some pacing issues, in my subjective view. However, I’d say about one-third of the way through, the second act really picks up.

Then the third act (or should I say part 4 since it is technically split that way) was a thrilling romp all the way through.

Sanderson delivered just as many twists as the last book. Sad things happened as well as glorious ones, and he sets up the finale perfectly as we head for Calamity.

I stand by the opinion that Sanderson’s characters in this work are not as strong as his fantasy, but I’m fine with that, since I view it more as an “action book”. Having spent a book already with several of the characters in this one definitely helped add more gravity to the stakes.

Sanderson has yet to disappoint, even if I was slightly doubtful in the beginning of this one.

Edit - 1/26/19

In retrospect, I dropped it from 5 stars to 4. It is a good sequel, but as I hinted in my review, the first act to me was so-so. I wavered in interest. The same thing is happening w/the third book at the moment (Calamity). While I’m not finalizing my Calamity view yet, I so need to take this star off for Firefight, though it’s very strong finish left me satisfied.
Four years after having read Steelheart, I finally read Firefight, and, to probably no one’s surprise, I very much enjoyed it.

Firefight starts not too far from where Steelheart left off, and the good thing about Brandon Sanderson’s writing is that he was constantly referencing back to things that had happened in the previous installment. While this was a good thing for people like me who had waited years between reading the sequels, I can only imagine it would get somewhat frustrating for people marathoning the series.

David, the main character of the trilogy, is realizing that after what happens in Steelheart, he doesn’t quite have a major life goal anymore. It leaves him feeling odd about his current role in this superpowered world. I forgot how funny David actually is. He’s constantly making weird metaphors and his inner voice is completely goofy, but I like him. He’s a cute little weirdo. My only complaint about the characters in general are that we don’t get enough development from the side characters. I really don’t know anything substantial about David’s love interest or his teammates.

As for the plot of the story, it moves very quickly. I found myself flipping pages and moving through chapters faster than I could keep track of. I wasn’t expecting to fly through a 400-page book that quickly. There were only a few things that threw me off track, such as the villains’ superpowers and some strange details of Babylon Restored.

All in all, if you’re looking for a book about the little guy sticking it to the man, this metaphorically-challenged book might just be for you. David is charming, his antics are ridiculous, and the entire superpowered world is built very well.

4/5 stars

*Note I purchased a copy of this book for myself. This in no way affected my opinion/review.
The Reckoners Trilogy is one which I was initially skeptical of. Despite being recommended to me by literally dozens of fans, I didn't know if it would be my cup of tea. I'm a fairly big fan of the idea that superhuman powers would be a net-positive to the world and tend to be on the idealistic end of things despite being a fan of edgy antiheroes. The Reckoners Trilogy is based around the concept of a world which has been devastated by evil superhumans, so it's one which you'd think was fairly cynical, right?

The first novel, Steelheart, was anything but. Despite the fact it is in a post-apocalypse world where the only remains of human civilization are all controlled by tyrants, I found it to be surprisingly light-hearted and hopeful. The fact it was about a plucky resistance (the Reckoners) against an evil overlord made it closer to Star Wars than Watchmen. I also found out its depiction of superhumans was a lot more nuanced than I initially suspected. The fact the book was genuinely fun helped it as well, so much so that I picked up the second novel as soon as I finished the first.

Firefight picks up not long after the events of Steelheart with the Reckoners having eliminated the city's former overlord as well as re-established human-run civilization. Unfortunately, they can't capitalize on the momentum because they're under siege by a near-endless number of Epics seeking to claim Steelheart's former territory as well as make a name for themselves by eliminating his killers. Things get worse when they attempt to target the city of New York, only to find themselves in over their heads against a water-bending mastermind and a religious-obsessed exploding demigod.

I've got to say I really enjoyed this book all round. It does what a sequel should in that it doesn't repeat what the original book did, expands on the concepts of the first book, allows for character growth, and shows us new material in the same world. Particularly interesting is the expansion of the Professor's background as well as details about the early days of the Calamity.

Brandon Sanderson is an amazing world-builder who certainly details elements of his world which would have eluded other writers. Indeed, it is his greatest strength that he can create unique and memorable locations which are internally consistent. The water city replacing New York is different in culture, environment, and atmosphere to Newcago. I liked the idea the people are more or less resigned to the Epics in New York and generally spend all of their lives partying because their masters keep them fed out of hand.

The villains of Regalia and Obliteration are excellent foils with a lot more development than the late Steelheart. Regalia is a woman with plans within plans and a twisted code of honor that bends around the psychosis afflicting Epics. Obliteration, by contrast, is completely insane but his beliefs are entirely consistent with the deranged world which have sprung up around humanity. They're wonderful comic book-style villains and watching our heroes play off them is excellent.

We also finally get an explanation for how and why Epics are given their powers as well as how their minds are shattered beyond recovery. I'm not entirely satisfied with this explanation but think it works for the story which Brandon Sanderson is trying to tell. Certainly, it provides a lot of dramatic energy which the story exploits from beginning to end. It also results in a massive twist at the end which made me buy the third novel in the series immediately.

The only thing I didn't like about the novel was the romance between Megan and David. Unfortunately, this takes up quite a bit of the novel. David is deeply in love with the treacherous and evil Epic as well as convinced she is secretly good. This is, apparently, purely because he thinks she's hot. Unfortunately, the narrative bears out David's suspicions and it becomes a tedious display of why the power of love wins out over all.

The action scenes in the book are incredible with truly epic fights that are described well. Brandon Sanderson has a movie director's ability to stage them in his text and an unlimited budget to see them on display. He also manages to invoke tension for all of our heroes because we never know who will die or be taken out of play by the events within. That's a rare gift and one which raises the stakes in the book considerably.

In conclusion, Firefight is a really good novel weighed down by what TV tropes calls a "Romantic Plot Tumor." Even so, I'm going to say it's an excellent action adventure novel throughout. It strikes the right sort of balance between fantasy, science fiction, and reality in order to feel like a good comic book. I also cared about the characters enough that I wanted the story to continue. Which is a pretty good endorsement all round.

9/10