AUDIOBOOK REVIEW⤏ SANCTUM

BY SARAH FINE

NARRATED BY AMY MCFADDEN

SYNOPSIS FROM AUTHORS WEBSITE⇣

“My plan: Get into the city. Get Nadia. Find a way out. Simple.”

A week ago, seventeen-year-old Lela Santos’s best friend, Nadia, killed herself. Today, thanks to a farewell ritual gone awry, Lela is standing in paradise, looking upon a vast gated city in the distance – hell. No one willingly walks through the Suicide Gates, into a place smothered in darkness and infested with depraved creatures. But Lela isn’t just anyone – she’s determined to save her best friend’s soul, even if it means sacrificing her eternal afterlife.

As Lela struggles to find Nadia, she’s captured by the Guards, enormous, not-quite-human creatures that patrol the dark city’s endless streets. Their all-too-human leader, Malachi, is unlike them in every way except one: his deadly efficiency. When he meets Lela, Malachi forms his own plan: get her out of the city, even if it means she must leave Nadia behind. Malachi knows something Lela doesn’t – the dark city isn’t the worst place Lela could end up, and he will stop at nothing to keep her from that fate.

THE DETAILS⇣

⤏ GUARDS OF THE SHADOWLANDS #1 

⤏ WHERE DO YOU GO WHEN YOU COMMIT SUICIDE

⤏ A VERSION OF HELL...

⤏ YA URBAN FANTASY
⤏ WITH A SPLASH OF ROMANCE

⤏ LENGTH OF AUDIO - 10 HOURS, 41 MINUTES
⤏ I LISTENED ON AUDIBLE

MY THOUGHTS⇣

Re-read/listen on Audio...the narration by Amy McFadden was not great...it was not only robotic-sounding but rather cheesy at times...and I know she has improved since this book came out because normally I'm okay with her narration.  While not the greatest narration I've heard...it's not the worse either and I'm still glad I gave this a try on audio.  I've docked a half star, though, for my rating, due to the narration.

From my original review of the eBook...Definitely, something different, I really liked this imaginative story.  This is unlike anything I ever read before and in a good way.  It has a kick-ass heroine and a very likable hero.  It still holds true today and also I would add this is a great start to a series that I really enjoyed overall and while the second and third books don't hold a candle to the wonderment that this book has...they still complete the series really well.  With a dark, insidious setting, in the murky depths of hell...this story is YA Urban Fantasy at its best and most ominous.  

BREAKDOWN⇣

Narration Rating⇢ 3½ STARS
Plot⇢ 5/5

Characters⇢ 4.7/5

The Feels⇢ 4.5/5

Pacing⇢ 5/5

Addictiveness⇢ 4.5/5

Theme, Tone or Intensity⇢ 5/5
Originality⇢ 5/5

Flow (Writing Style/Ease of Listening)⇢ 4.5/5

World-Building⇢ 5+/5
Romance/Chemistry⇢ 5/5

Ending⇢ 5/5