A review by eesh25
Firefight by Brandon Sanderson

4.0

4.25 Stars

When it comes to this book or this series in general, my foremost thought is about how underrated it is. Well, maybe underrated's not quite the right word. Underappreciated?

This is the sequel to Steelheart, which introduced us to the world of superpowered beings, who're all evil. We also met smart and dorky David. And the Reckoners. They had a mission to kill the most powerful Epic in the world. And they were successful. But it turns out, killing Steelheart wasn't the hardest part. The world is still full of Epics, and they all seem to be doing their best to destroy it. And the Reckoners' current method of operation might not be enough. That's why David wants to try something new.

At the end of book 1, we found out that the Epics aren't evil people with powers, but that it's the powers that make them do bad shit. And as we saw with both Prof and Megan, not using these abilities, or using them in moderation, can return them to their non-evil selves. David thinks working with Epics could be the only way to save the world.

That's what I love most about David. He can be very stubborn about things he believes in and can be reckless when it comes to finding the truth, but he doesn't have an ego. To him, the right choice, the right answer, is what matters. Even if it's not his. So if you prove that he's wrong about something, he'll be embarrassed, but he won't get angry and defensive. But when he's convinced that he's right, then he's going to keep going no matter what anyone says. Honestly, the series wouldn't be the same without him.

But David doesn't get all the credit. The Epics are, well... epic. We've got a new villain, and her name is Regalia. She controls the town of Babylon Restored, formerly Manhattan. And I don't wanna say much about her because it'll be much more fun to find everything out via the book. But she's very powerful, and Sanderson keeps you guessing when it comes to her intentions.

David, Prof and Tia are the ones to head to Babylon Restored to join a different team of Reckoners to stop Regalia. But David has his own mission too. Megan, aka Firefight, is supposed to be in the city as well. And even though Prof is adamant that she can't be trusted and needs to be taken down, David can't let that happen. He wants to find Megan and find out for sure. Which is a good idea. I mean, if Prof can manage to be good, then why not Megan? And there's also the part where the Reckoners, mainly David, are trying to figure out what the hell is even going on in the city because something definitely is.

So we've got multiple plots, old characters, new characters, and a lot of answers to be found. And all these elements are put together very well. This was a great sequel, and I enjoyed it more than Steelheart, even. I also love the concept of Epics more with every new piece of information we get about them. And I can't wait to see how this all will end.