Calamity by Brandon Sanderson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The third book in the Reckoners trilogy, I read this one in just a couple of days (even accounting for child interruptions).

There was a lot to like about this book. David's habit of coming up with weird similes has settled down to a bearable level; Cody was much less present than in the first book, which was a big improvement (Cody is like Wayne for me... nice to have in a pinch, but full of talk that is really obnoxious to slog through on the page); Megan has thawed into a normal human being (she was great, as always); interesting new Epic powers and weaknesses; a fascinating concept for the city location in this story.

There were things I didn't like as well. The pacing is probably the biggest thing to mention. The whole time I felt that the story was both rushed and dragging (an odd sensation). There was both too much detail and not enough at the same time. At times I felt that Sanderson chose the wrong situations or locations to describe in detail, leaving more important ones maddeningly sparse. Even this description feels insufficient, because I'm not exactly sure it is accurate. There was just something slightly off about the pacing that I have had a very hard time articulating.

The book spent way too much time dealing with Prof and not nearly enough time dealing with its namesake, Calamity. The reveal at the end had some build-up, but it was poorly executed, in my opinion. It felt tossed in, not meticulously laid out and hidden in Sanderson's usual manner. Perhaps he did it on purpose, the way David's similes always seem to be done, but ultimately it didn't sit well with me.

Lots of things felt tossed in rather than planned, just so that Sanderson could claim there was "build-up" for it, no matter how insufficient. I just felt that there were a lot of things that could have been handled with more finesse.

In spite of these complaints, it was a good read. I think it says something about the quality of the author that he can write a work readers have such big issues with and still have them like it. I'm definitely going to keep following the Reckoners if Sanderson writes anything more in the world.