Brandon Sanderson Follow

Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians (Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians #1). By Brandon Sanderson, Narrator: Ramón de Ocampo. 2007. Recorded Books. ISBN-13:
9781461833758 (Unabridged audiobook, 6 hr, 54 min).

Dark One (Volume 1). By Brandon Sanderson, Writers: Jackson Lanzing & Collin Kelly, Illustrators: Nathan Gooden, Kurt Michael Russell & Andworld Design. 2021. Vault Comics (ARC eBook).

In Mirandus, there is the Narrative—an unending cycle of light versus dark. In every generation a fated evil arises and a destined champion emerges to defeat it. This has never, and will never, change. Or so the Narrative says. In New York City, teenager Paul Tanasin is being haunted by a sister he doesn’t remember and seeing visions of dark spiraling towers in the sky. But when a menacing, mounted, knight pursues him through the streets, Paul discovers that his delusions are real and he’s about to bring a bit of chaos to Mirandus.

Sanderson is a very good worldbuilder and I thought volume one did a good job of getting our feet wet in Mirandus and the Narrative. The strong black lines and color pallets was very complimentary for the settings and tone, while also evoking a nice retro throw-back vibe.

*Vault Comics ARC via NetGalley

I listened to the audiobook version of this novel and was absolutely captivated. The two narrators were everything you'd imagine from an "epic fantasy" voice. The story took characters that I was extremely interested in and made me fall in love with them. It is a fairly large cast, so caring so deeply about each of them uniquely was a testament to the author's talent. I think Shallan is easily one of the most admirably strong female protagonists I've ever read. Even at 48 hours of listening time, I am glad it's only the second book in the series, because I can't wait to dig in even deeper!

This book is an immersive venture into a whole new world. I couldn't believe how deep the descriptions went, how completely original it all felt. The first few chapters had a bit of a steep learning curve as far as the magic went, and the pacing was meticulously detailed, but the effect was that the book felt as realistic as true life. I took my time reading this book (It's not for the faint of heart at 1,200 pages!) but genuinely loved the payoff.