Calamity

by Brandon Sanderson
417 pgs  (The Reckoners series #4)

Twelve years ago, Calamity, a High Epic, suddenly appeared as a red light in the atmosphere high above the earth. His arrival ushered in the age of the Epics. Hundreds of humans suddenly gained superhuman powers, and within a short time, those powers corrupted their possessors. They became known as Epics, and they used their new powers to kill, enslave, and destroy anything, or anyone that stood in their way.

The story began in Steelheart, with young David Charleston witnessing the death of his father at the hands of Steelheart, a particularly ruthless epic that ruled the city once known as Chicago. David saw something else that day that shaped the course of the rest of his life--he saw Steelheart bleed. The Epics had weaknesses. If he could discover what each of them was, maybe he could destroy them and return things to the way they once were.

The rest of Steelheart, and the next book, Firefight, tells how David joins a small group known as the Reckoners, whose purpose is to destroy the Epics, one by one.

In this final installment, the stakes are as high as they can get. Prof, the former leader of the Reckoners has become corrupted by his powers and if David can't find a way to bring him back, everything he's worked for his entire life will be for nothing.

Sanderson wrote The Reckoners series primarily for younger readers, but that shouldn't discourage adult fans from reading it. The series is smart, funny, and is packed with high-speed action sequences that are becoming a trademark of Sanderson's writing, regardless of which of his various series he's writing. Calamity gives the series the ending it deserves. It's very enjoyable and further justification for why he's steadily becoming a standout among writers of the genre.

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

Firefight

by Brandon Sanderson
416 pgs  (The Reckoners series #2)

By my count Brandon Sanderson is currently writing six different series of books: The Stormlight Archive, The Reckoners, Mistborn, The Rithmatist, Legion, and the Alcatraz books. Let me explain why this prolific pace works so well. First of all, they're all very good books, different from one another, both in style and, to a lesser extent, genre. But most of all, it means that I'm never waiting too long for the next book by him to be written. There are other fantasy series that I'm in the middle of reading right now, and my biggest point of frustration is having to wait five or more years for the next book in the series to come out. So while I know I'm going to have to wait about two years or so between each of the books in his Stormlight books (his magnum opus), I know that while I'm waiting, two or three books from his other series will come out and will keep my frustration in check.

Firefight is one of those books. It's book two (or three if you count the short novella Mitosis) in The Reckoners series. David and the other Reckoners were able to prove in Steelheart that the High Epics, individual who were altered and given unique super powers that drove them evil years ago, were in fact vulnerable; that they all had a weakness that could be discovered and exploited in order to kill them.

Having dealt with Steelheart, their attention is drawn to Regalia, a High Epic who rules over what used to be Manhattan. Regalia has the ability to control water and has used that power to flood the borough. She can also project images of herself within a range of her physical body, so no one knows where she's actually at. David believes that Regalia holds the secret to the true nature of all Epics. If he can find her and discover it, he may be able to save the Epic he fell in love with and lost in his battle against Steelheart--Firefight.

Firefight is excellent. Just like everything Sanderson has written so far, it's got plenty of action and the storyline is intelligent and full of surprises. It's written primarily for a young adult audience, but I'm pretty sure I enjoyed it just as much as my teenage daughter will, now that it's her turn to read it.

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

Mitosis

by Brandon Sanderson
44 pgs  (The Reckoners series #1.5)

Mitosis is a very short novella that takes place chronologically between Steelheart and Firefight in Sanderson's Reckoners series. It was originally published only as an e-book, but a small number of copies were printed by his publisher in the UK.

In it David, and the other Reckoners are up against the Epic known as Mitosis, another of the many people who were changed when Calamity occurred and obtained a unique super power. Mitosis, as his name implies, obtained the ability to divide into as many different copies of himself as he chose. He's come to Newcago searching for the person who killed Steelheart, one of the most powerful and ruthless Epics ever known.

Mitosis continues the action-packed pace that Sanderson established for the series in Steelheart and it's a great primer for the just-released Firefight. Only read it if you've read Steelheart, and it's available for free on Sanderson's website. It's worth the few minutes it takes to read.

★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Steelheart

by Brandon Sanderson
384 pgs  (The Reckoners series #1)

If you had superpowers, would you use them for good, or for evil?

In the first of a new series of books by Brandon Sanderson, he explores that idea, as a small minority of ordinary people one day inexplicably gain super powers.  Epics, as they become known, possess any one of a variety of these powers, but without exception, they all use them for their own selfish interests. The rest of humanity is left to live in a constant state of fear, trying to live their lives without become the next victim of an Epic's destruction.

Ten years ago David witnessed his father's death, as a particularly ruthless and seemingly invincible Epic known as Steelheart killed him along with almost everyone else who was there. David was the lone survivor of that event, and he escaped with not just his life, but with a secret as well, one that only he knows and which may change everything one day--Steelheart isn't invincible, he saw him bleed.

David dedicates the next ten years of his life to studying everything he can about Steelheart and every other Epic he can. He believes that the more he knows about the Epics, the better chance he has of discovering their weaknesses and maybe one day being able to avenge his father's death.

Normally I'm a very selfish reader, and when an author is writing a series that I really like, and then releases a book that's not part of that series, I tend to get irritated and question why they're not spending all their time writing the book I want them to write. But I think Sanderson is curing me of that attitude. While I'm anxiously awaiting the next in his Stormlight series, he's begun two additional series that quite honestly I'm almost as excited about reading.

Steelheart is a great book. It's written for a slightly younger audience, but that in no way detracts from how good a book it is. From what I can tell, the only significant difference between Sanderson's books for adults and young adults is the length of the book. The characters, action, and world building that Sanderson creates so well are all there no matter who his intended readers are. Buy the book for your teenager, but then borrow it afterwords.

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆