Book Shelf: Steelheart (Reckoners #1) by Brandon Sanderson

Ten years ago, Calamity came. It was a burst in the sky that gave ordinary men and women extraordinary powers. The awed public started calling them Epics. But Epics are no friend of man. With incredible gifts came the desire to rule. And to rule man you must crush his wills.

Nobody fights the Epics...nobody but the Reckoners. A shadowy group of ordinary humans, they spend their lives studying Epics, finding their weaknesses, and then assassinating them.

And David wants in. He wants Steelheart - the Epic who is said to be invincible. The Epic who killed David's father. For years, like the Reckoners, David's been studying, and planning - and he has something they need. Not an object, but an experience.

He's seen Steelheart bleed. And he wants revenge.

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Review:

Steelheart is the first novel in The Reckoner's series by Brandon Sansderson and is a deliciously action packed tale that is X-Men meets Superman with a villianous twist in what is a great start to a promising series!

Ten years ago a meteor named Calamity shot across the sky and in it's wake ordinary men and woman developed incredible abilities. Though no one can say exactly why these extraordinary powers appeared, those blessed to inherit them found themselves changing. Known to the public as Epics, their desire to rule, to destroy, to control saw them become twisted. Nobody fights the Epics....nobody but the Reckoners; a small group of ordinary humans who dare to stand against them. Eighteen year old David has spent the last ten years planning to kill an Epic who is believed to be invincible. Steelheart killed David's father and now rules Newcago through fear and death. Years of planning and studying means David knows his best chance of taking out Steelheart is with the help of the Reckoners, but with the elusive group hiding their own secrets will David and his new friends be able to stop Steelheart or will they simply be more victims of the Epic many say can't be killed.....

Despite being a focal voice within the fantasy genre, Steelheart marks the first novel of Brandon Sanderson that I have read and I must admit, despite getting off to a slow start in the beginning, I really ended up enjoying the experience. The world that Sanderson has created is very unique and vivid, mixing fantasy with science fiction aspects to create an interesting society of superheroes and villains with powerful abilities.

Sanderson litters Steelheart with some very personable characters, all with different personalities and attributes. Following main character David who is a very likable, but daring nerd, Brandon Sanderson creates a vivid bunch with the Reckoners who have a great dynamic together. Prof, Tia, Megan, Cody and Abraham are all very different but make for some funny dialogue and situations. They all compliment each other really well.

I must say there were plenty of twists at the end that I really wasn't expecting. Sanderson allows you to think you know some of the characters, only to turn things on their head with revelations and secrets coming to light. It was spectacularly well done on his part and makes for some very promising developments.

Well written, clearly well thought out and very entertaining, Steelheart was a wonderful book from Brandon Sanderson and leaves me ready to jump straight into what I'm sure will be an action-packed sequel! A great read!
 
Rating:
Source: I bought from The Book Depository
Publisher: Orion Books              
Format: Paperback
Release Date: September 26th 2013
Purchase: Bookworld | Booktopia | The Book Depository | Amazon
Final Thoughts: A great read; I'm ready to jump straight into the next one!