In a time with an overabundance of superhero storylines, it is almost brave for Brandon Sanderson to tackle the genre in literary form. An author more known for his fantasy world building and magic systems decided to set a new story around the dawn of superheroes and the repercussions society felt afterwards. In doing so Sanderson tells a story not set in an imaginative new world, but in a shared reality we can all relate to. This did not stifle his creativity in the slightest. Sanderson uses his creativity and applies it to the way society has reacted to the dawn of superpowers and the superpowers themselves. He is able to tell a unique story involving superheroes that even over 75 years of comic books has yet to tell.

Steelheart is the introductory book to the series that sets up a world a decade after the dawn of superpowers where society has fallen to their reign and a group of humans known as The Reckoners are attempting to curb their influence on society. Firefight is the second book in this series named after that group of humans, known as The Reckoners series. Firefight starts shortly after the ending of Steelheart and picks up the baton running. Sanderson’s writing style is pretty straightforward and to the point. It may be that this story being set in an alternate reality of our own Sanderson didn’t need to spend pages building a world that we can visualize. He merely had to put a spin on a world we live in everyday which leaves him the ability to focus more on story progression and character building. That fact makes it an easy and somewhat fast read. This in no way diminishes the quality of writing or the storyline at all.

Without spoiling the series in this review, Firefight adds a new “Epic” into the Reckoners series and takes place in the alternate version of New York rather than the alternate Chicago that Steelheart takes place in. Firefight takes the characters from Steelheart that you’ve gotten to know and inserts them in a new scenario, in a new location, with a new team of Reckoners. Once again each of these aspects are painted wonderfully by Sanderson. The addition of new characters works great while getting to know the previous cast better was very enjoyable.

Firefight, and the Reckoners series, is easily enjoyed by a wide age range. Although this book is an easy read for the young adult audience, it is also enjoyable at any age. It would seem the target audience for this series would be comic and graphic novel readers, but it is honestly a good story that merely involves superheroes rather than being a story about superheroes. With Sanderson’s writing style Firefight is easily read in a weekends time. If you are looking to enjoy some quality reading time, or have some traveling to do, Firefight and the Reckoners series is a great novel to pick up for the occasion. Look out for our upcoming review of the final book Calamity. There is no way we will not be finishing this series and we will be here to share our thoughts with you and hope you come to share your thoughts with us.