Steelheart

The Reckoners, Book 1

By: Brandon Sanderson

Narrated by: MacLeod Andrews

From the number-one New York Times best-selling author of the Mistborn Trilogy, Brandon Sanderson, comes the first book in a new, action-packed thrill ride of a series - Steelheart. 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 will.

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.

©2013 Dragonsteel Entertainment, LLC (P)2013 Audible Inc.

Really fun book!

What made the experience of listening to Steelheart the most enjoyable?

Sanderson has great creativity and twists throughout the book. Hardly any dull interludes are included. The action and descriptions are excellent. MacLeod Andrews does an amazing job with the narration.

What did you like best about this story?

It does a great job of pulling you right in. Within just a few pages the listener is hooked and has a hard time stepping away from the action that Sanderson creates.

What does MacLeod Andrews bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Andrews is superb. He brings the characters to life with vivid color. I can't imagine anyone doing a better job.

Any additional comments?

While I am 30 or so years past the primary target market for this book, I really appreciate how the work was handled. An exciting fantasy that is "clean" is a wonderful thing.

Amazing Sci-Fi. I could not put it down!

I could not put it down and I found myself going through this in what felt like no time at all. If you have read other books by Brandon Sanderson, Mistborn series,
Stormlight Archive series or his hand in the Wheel of Time series, finishing Robert Jordan's work you will notice a change in setting. This book is more Sci-Fi than Fantasy in that it takes place in a modern world with modern weapons and communications. In this modern world there is an event that takes place that empowers a segment of the population with extraordinary ability's, these people are known as Epics.


This was a great start to the series and is one of those books I am sure I will come back and re-listen to.

i like sanderson works

Any additional comments?

the story is a varietion on the "great power corupts". i realy like the idea behind the story, and allthough at times it's very similar to sanderson other books it's still s good story and i like listening to it

Epic start to a new series..

One of the coolest books that I have listened to all year! Very well written with excellent narration from Macleod Andrews which resulted in a very absorbing experience that I really didn't want to end.

The only bad thing about listening to this book is the long wait until Book 2 is released.
For the last few years any new book by Brandon Sanderson has been an instant buy for me. Book 2 of the Reckoners series will be no different.. I would preorder it right now if I could!

Couldn't tear my ears away

I listened to the free five chapter teaser and when it was done I was really anticipating the rest of the story. It does not disappoint. The main protagonist is well rounded. Not perfect, but gives you the best "in" to the story. The narrator does a great job with characterization and his ability to switch between them seamlessly helps during the battle scenes. Kudos to Macleod for an excellent job.

The story though, ooh that story, it's good. I'm a geek, and this story seemed to pluck at every string in my geekiness. Absolute power corrupts absolutely, and "With great power comes great responsibility." are the two main themes here, and Sanderson gives a great exploration into the What if? scenario. I will say that you are dropped into the story and are living it. There is no explanation as to why it happened, and the world has changed a lot since, but it's approached as a given rather than explained. I am looking forward to the next in the series and hope that Sanderson starts to explore Calamity and the reasons behind it, but could also be content letting it go.

This is a good book, a good starting point, with excellent narration, characterization and pacing. Highly recommend it.