![]() ![]() That may be a bit of an exaggeration but there are some strange ones listed. ![]() Some are mundane, some completely ridiculous: standing in the shadow of a righteous man on a Tuesday wearing a leopard skin bikini hopping on one leg. Every Epic has a weakness, away to cancel out their power. If people couldn’t understand how Epic powers works, how can you replicate that same thing in a piece of technology? Laws of physics appear to be flexible when it comes to the Epics, but laws of reason seem to also have been dismissed. This also leads to the inclusion of Epic based technology. Laws of physics should be bent, not broken. If we are talking about a story that involved a level of magic I could accept this, but this is not the angle Sanderson is taking. There were some elements that didn’t come across well or gel coherently for me, the biggest one being a concept that many of the Epics' powers break the laws of physics, which I found a little hard to take. The final confrontation keeps you glued to the page and it is difficult to try not to surge ahead too fast or skip anything to find out what happens next. The attention to detail and sharpness in the action scenes both small and large is well planned and executed. The banding together of individuals trying their best to make a difference in a world turned upside down and David’s continual attempts at terrible analogies are a great source of humour. In contrast to the heavy subject matter of human subjugation and world domination there is still a lightness to the characters and story that I found surprising. My own Epic theories, include (no spoilers here):Ĭalamity the comet is a secret government Satellite ![]() You come up with wild theories around weaknesses, their history. Sanderson provides the reader with an opportunity to participate (in their own heads at least) in the story by trying to work out certain aspects of the Epics. A self-fulfilling epitaph for Steelheart’s reign and the humans who live under him. A city in perpetual darkness, clothed in steel, cold, hard and enduring. Cold, remorseless and unstoppable, a world where ordinary humans have no value apart for the amusement and worth of an Epic. It was a great introduction to the humanity and guise of the Epics. It’s been a while since an opening chapter has captivated me the way Steelheart’s was able to. There are hints towards the end of the book that point to the reasons for this change in psyche of ordinary human to mad men and women, but it I don’t think it will be until the next book we get some answers. What’s that old adage, “Absolute power corrupts absolutely”. Overall the approach works, but due to the whimsical and flamboyant pseudonyms they take for themselves I found it a little hard to take them seriously, even when death and destruction follow in their wake. We have fantastical groups of villains, though once human have been granted a cornucopia of staggering abilities and instead of benefiting human kind decide to rule it. This is neither a good or bad thing but should be taken up on it own merits. The best way I can description the world Sanderson is laying out for us is a bastardised smash up of Watchmen and Superman’s DC Universe. Is it a bird? Is it a Plane? Is it a 1990’s Rock band? No, its tyrannical super-human dictator, hell bent of crushing the will of the masses! Ridiculous name and all. ![]()
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