I loved how this “humanized” the Epics and made the unbeatable readily defeatable. And that kryptonite can be the smallest, silliest thing you can imagine. Like Superman, every Epic has his kryptonite. Brilliant as well is the idea of the Epic weaknesses. The explanation for why that is the case is also excellent. The world building, which puts a twist on the typical ideal of the superhero and places us into a land of super villains instead, is superb. I loved just about everything in this novel. Sometimes after reading a truly fantastic book all you want to do is gush. They take him to their lair where he talks them into remaining and taking on the biggest target of all – Steelheart himself, the strongest Epic overlord in the country. With David’s help, the Reckoners make their kill. It comes when their assassination attempt is almost botched by interference from another Epic. When David finds out they’ve returned to Chicago to take out a Steelheart minion known as Fortuity, he watches for an opportunity to hand them his resume. The Reckoners stay one step ahead of the Epics by moving constantly. He plans to execute his vendetta by joining the Reckoners, a shadowy group of ordinary humans who study the Epics for weakness and assassinate them once that weakness is found. Since that day David has lived for only one thing – vengeance on Steelheart. It is only through a lucky series of coincidences he survived. Or so he thought.ĭavid Charleston lived through the encounter that left Steelheart with his scar. He eliminated all witnesses to the event. Many have tried to eliminate him but he has bled only once, a single encounter that left a small silver scar across his cheek. Utilizing his power to take control over the city of Chicago, he forces the human citizenry to live in a place where they can be killed at any time, for any reason by an Epic. Impervious to bullets, bombs, and blades, he can transform anything unliving around him into steel. Steelheart was one of the first of the Epics, humans transformed by Calamity into near god-like beings. Ten years ago Calamity appeared in the sky and changed all that. Ten years ago the United States was not a fractured nation being fought over by savage warlords. Ten years ago mankind was living in a world run by humans, in cities with things like electrical power, sunlight and clean water. Yet I am always happy to stumble across a book that renews my faith in them like this one did. Too much of a time commitment, too many disappointments over the years. ![]() But even though I like some things about series, I constantly swear I am done with them. The romance which undergoes a slow buildup with lots of hurdles along the way can be richer for the length of time we spend on it. The epic story line that requires several books to tell in full can be quite delightful. Yes, they can be great, containing recurring characters that we fall a little bit farther in love with after every book. ![]() When I saw this book in the store I was leery of picking it up.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |