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Legion #1

Legion

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"Stephen Leeds, AKA 'Legion,' is a man whose unique mental condition allows him to generate a multitude of personae: hallucinatory entities with a wide variety of personal characteristics and a vast array of highly specialized skills. As the story begins, Leeds and his 'aspects' are drawn into the search for the missing Balubal Razon, inventor of a camera whose astonishing properties could alter our understanding of human history and change the very structure of society"--From publisher's description

88 pages, Hardcover

First published August 31, 2012

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About the author

Brandon Sanderson

398 books251k followers
I’m Brandon Sanderson, and I write stories of the fantastic: fantasy, science fiction, and thrillers.

Defiant, the fourth and final volume of the series that started with Skyward in 2018, comes out in November 2023, capping an already book-filled year that will see the releases of all four Secret Projects: Tress of the Emerald Sea, The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England, Yumi and the Nightmare Painter, and Secret Project Four (with its official title reveal coming October 2023). These four books were all initially offered to backers of the #1 Kickstarter campaign of all time.

November 2022 saw the release of The Lost Metal, the seventh volume in the Mistborn saga, and the final volume of the Mistborn Era Two featuring Wax & Wayne. The third era of Mistborn is slated to be written after the first arc of the Stormlight Archive wraps up.

In November 2020 we saw the release of Rhythm of War—the fourth massive book in the New York Times #1 bestselling Stormlight Archive series that began with The Way of Kings—and Dawnshard (book 3.5), a novella set in the same world that bridges the gaps between the main releases. This series is my love letter to the epic fantasy genre, and it’s the type of story I always dreamed epic fantasy could be. The fifth volume, Wind and Truth, is set for release in fall 2024.

Most readers have noticed that my adult fantasy novels are in a connected universe called the Cosmere. This includes The Stormlight Archive, both Mistborn series, Elantris, Warbreaker, and various novellas available on Amazon, including The Emperor’s Soul, which won a Hugo Award in 2013. In November 2016 all of the existing Cosmere short fiction was released in one volume called Arcanum Unbounded. If you’ve read all of my adult fantasy novels and want to see some behind-the-scenes information, that collection is a must-read.

I also have three YA series: The Rithmatist (currently at one book), The Reckoners (a trilogy beginning with Steelheart), and Skyward. For young readers I also have my humorous series Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians, which had its final book, Bastille vs. the Evil Librarians, come out in 2022. Many of my adult readers enjoy all of those books as well, and many of my YA readers enjoy my adult books, usually starting with Mistborn.

Additionally, I have a few other novellas that are more on the thriller/sci-fi side. These include the Legion series, as well as Perfect State and Snapshot. There’s a lot of material to go around!

Good starting places are Mistborn (a.k.a. The Final Empire), Skyward, Steelheart,The Emperor’s Soul, and Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians. If you’re already a fan of big fat fantasies, you can jump right into The Way of Kings.

I was also honored to be able to complete the final three volumes of The Wheel of Time, beginning with The Gathering Storm, using Robert Jordan’s notes.

Sample chapters from all of my books are available at brandonsanderson.com—and check out the rest of my site for chapter-by-chapter annotations, deleted scenes, and more.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 3,398 reviews
Profile Image for Patrick.
Author 73 books239k followers
January 29, 2015
I've yet to be disappointed by any Brandon Sanderson story I've picked up, and this novella continues his winning streak.

This is a cool take on a detective story, and honestly, I'd be surprised if someone in LA hasn't grabbed the rights to turn this into a TV show. It's a show I'd love to watch.

I only have two quibbles with this book, and it only relates to the Audio version, not with the story itself.

1. There were only two tracks on the audio version of the book, each about an hour long. That makes for awkward navigation of the book.

2. (And I recognize that this is *extra* quibbly) The audio narrator sounded like Bob Newhart to me.

Don't get me wrong, he did a good job. He's a pro. But I couldn't get over the fact that his voice sounded like Bob Newhart. I kept thinking, "Wow. He sounds like Bob Newhart." and it would pull me out of the story.

But that's probably just my own mental damage, and shouldn't keep you from picking it up, either in print, or on audio... As I said, I really enjoyed it.
Profile Image for Khurram.
2,086 reviews6,670 followers
July 29, 2024
Another great book by Brandon Sanderson as usual. Insanity, madness, and genius go hand in hand. There is a thin line between each of these, and they probably have more intersection between them them people want to admit.

Steven Leeds has been called all three. He is a hot property to be studied as he is for his services. When a world changing price of technology goes missing, he is recruited to get it back. This is a detective story with a twist on the deductive principle. I really like the clever ways Sanderson shows the power of our subconscious mind at work in this story and perceptions as our reality. This is a great little book. I can't wait to read the next one.
Profile Image for Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽.
1,880 reviews23.1k followers
July 23, 2018
Reread as part of Sanderson’s upcoming Skin Deep, which will collect all three Legion novellas (the two previously published ones and a new, concluding one) under one cover. Heads up for NetGalley members: the "Read now" excerpt on NG for Skin Deep consists of this entire first novella, which is kind of nice. So if you haven't read "Legion" and are interested (or just want a copy), grab it!

Upping my rating from 3.5 to 4 stars on reread, because the psychological elements in this story are just so clever and enjoyable.

Legion is a nifty science fiction/mystery novella, with the detective role played by Stephen Leeds and his legion of hallucinatory, brilliant alter egos. In the Skin Deep preface, Sanderson comments:
Psychology-as-superpower is a recurring theme in my works. I’ve always believed that the personality traits that make us each distinctive (the way we process information, the way we motivate ourselves, the way we shelter our psyche from the bad while learning to cherish the good) can be either our greatest strengths or our most dramatic limitations…

The premise was simple: What if a man’s hallucinations proved beneficial to him in his life, rather than the typical distraction?
Such a fun concept!

The mystery in this first story involves a search for a mysterious camera that can take pictures of people and events at any time in the past. Various shadowy groups get involved in the fight to control the camera and its inventor, pulling Stephen Leeds into the case. The time-shifting camera is a device that's been used before in at least a couple of classic SF works that I know of, Isaac Asimov's short story "The Dead Past" and "E for Effort," a novella collected in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame: Volume 2B. Legion doesn't really add anything new here, from a science fictional point of view. The story points out some of the problems with the theory of time travel (branching paths of reality; Earth not being in the same place in space as it was in the past you are traveling to, or taking pictures of) ... but it doesn't ever try answer those questions.

But the real attraction of this story is the main character, Stephen, and the hilarious and colorful cast of characters hallucinations surrounding him:

description
J.C., the trigger-happy Navy Seal and weapons expert;

description
Armando, the trick photography expert who thinks he's the rightful emperor of Mexico;

Tobias the schizophrenic historian and philosopher; Kalyani the linguist; and so on. Stephen's hallucinations all are brilliant in different fields, all have their own different mental issues, and all are utterly real to him (even though logically he realizes they aren't real, somehow Stephen is able to compartmentalize that realization). Someone points out to Stephen:
"You create these delusions so that you can foist things off on them. Your brilliance, which you find a burden. Your responsibility -- they have to drag you along and make you help people. This lets you pretend, Mister Leeds. Pretend you are normal. But that's the real delusion."
But real or not, Stephen's legion of invisible experts is a whole lot of fun to read about.
Profile Image for Emily (Books with Emily Fox on Youtube).
618 reviews67.7k followers
June 10, 2018
(3.5?) My main problem with novellas is that too often my review consist of "way too short".

I love any Brandon Sanderson's book, so I obviously enjoyed this one but it's the first time I felt like something was lacking.

Super interesting premise and characters, I'm hoping that reading the second book will make it better!
Profile Image for Ahmad Sharabiani.
9,563 reviews545 followers
July 23, 2020
Legion (Legion, #1), Brandon Sanderson

Legion is a series of science fiction novellas written by American author Brandon Sanderson. The first book, titled Legion, was first published on August 31, 2012 by Subterranean Press, followed in November 2014 by Legion: Skin Deep, and in September 2018 by Legion: Lies of the Beholder.

Legion tells the story of Stephen Leeds, better known as 'Legion', a man whose unique mental condition allows him to generate multitude of personae. He is a brilliant problem solver, rich and quite good at what he does, helped by his hallucinations. However, he would rather be left alone, and that means no researchers or psychologists who want to get to the bottom of his abilities. ...

تاریخ نخستین خوانش: سال 2012 میلادی

عنوان: لژیون؛ براندن ساندرسن؛ مترجم: عماد ذبحی؛ تهران، آذرپاد، 1391؛ در 128 ص؛ شابک: 9786006225333؛ موضوع: داستانهای نویسندگان امریکایی - سده 21 م

نقل از آغاز متن: (فصل اول: اسم من «استیفن لیدزه» و من آدم کاملاً سالمی هستم.؛ هرچند توهمات من مطلقاً روانی هستن.؛ صدای شلیک گلوله ای مثل صدای ترقه، از اتاق «جی. سی.» بلند شد.؛ با اینکه زیر لب غرغر میکردم، گوشگیرهایی که پشت در اتاق اون، آویزون کرده بودم رو برداشتم، یاد گرفته بودم که اونها رو اون جا بذارم، و رفتم توی اتاق.؛ «جی.سی.» هم گوشگیرهای خودش رو، به گوشش زده بود، اسلحه ی کمری اش رو دو دستی بالا گرفته بود، و به عکس «اسامه بن لادن»، روی دیوار، زل زده بود.؛ آهنگ «بتهوون»، داشت پخش میشد.؛ با یه صدای شدیداً بلند.؛ داد زدم «مثلاً داشتم با تلفن حرف میزدم!»)؛ پایان نقل

تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 01/05/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی
Profile Image for Dana Ilie.
405 reviews383 followers
March 20, 2018
Another story that is too short... Damn!!!
I enjoyed Legion. As always, I thought Sanderson’s writing was top notch and not boring. The imagination involved and the detail that went into each of the characters — Stephen Leeds as well as his aspects were astounding. Not only does Legion have a cool plot, but it also has fascinating, multi-faceted characters. Typical Sanderson though, and I definitely mean that in the best possible way.
Profile Image for Anna [Bran. San. Stan].
368 reviews248 followers
July 28, 2023
I was intrigued, I laughed, I marveled. Non-fantasy Brandon for the win.

Stephen Leeds, genius private detective, lives in a mansion, mostly because he needs the space to house his many hallucinations
(also called aspects). So you would think he is clearly insane, which, according to him, is just a matter of definition. “You cross the line into insanity when your mental state stops you from being able to function, from having a normal life. By those standards, I’m not the least bit insane.“

No matter if you’re inclined to agree or disagree with this statement, and I suppose it really has no bearing on your enjoyment, you can tell Brandon had a lot of fun with this and creating all the different personalities: there is Tobias, the walking encyclopedia and philosopher, who converses with an imaginary astronaut orbiting the world in a satellite, giving weather forecasts; Ivy, the psychiatrist; Audrey, the handwriting expert; Kalyani, the linguist; Armando, His Majesty, Megalomaniac and professed Emperor of Mexico; and my favorite, J.C., master gunman and ex Navy SEAL.

“Truth?” I asked Ivy.
“Can’t tell,” she said. “Sorry. If I could hear a heartbeat . . . maybe you could put your ear to her chest.”
“I’m sure she’d
love that,” I said.
J.C. smiled. “I’m pretty sure
I’d love that.”
“Oh please,” Ivy said. “You’d only do it to peak insider her coat and find out what gun she is carrying.”
“Baretta M9,” J.C. said. “Already peeked.”


Giving the hallucinations all those different skill sets is a really cool way to make your narrator/protagonist an unparalleled expert, a genius and a jack-of-all-trades. Of course, Stephen is ultimately the one who absorbs information based on which he creates a new aspect, but because of his hallucinations, he is not just another genius detective like Sherlock Holmes. Instead of Sherlock Holmes, in fact, Brandon gives us a variety of intriguing characters and a sci-fi mystery to solve, thus creating something immensely entertaining.

And, fun fact, apparently Brandon feels that Stephen “is very close to [him] in that sort of middle manager of a whole bunch of voices in [his] head“ (TLM release party); a statement that made me look at Legion in a whole different way.

All in all, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed these mere 70 pages. Fantasy Brandon is usually my favorite but, turns out, sci-fi mystery Brandon is up there as well. I’m really excited to read the other two Stephen Leeds novellas!
February 10, 2022
"My name is Stephen Leeds, and I'm perfectly sane. My hallucinations, however, are all quite mad."


Brilliant. This is just brilliant. And cool. Very cool.

Do I really have to review this story? It's too awesome for words. You really should just read it.
“Your hallucination . . .” “Yes?” “Your hallucination has hallucinations.” “Yes.” She settled back, looking disturbed.
Brandon Sanderson I love you. The premise of this story is pure genius.
“I’m not a hallucination,” J.C. snapped. “I have state-of-the-art stealthing equipment.”
Legion is about insanity, religion, science, faith… and a very special camera. Mix it all up, shake well, add a good dose of humour, a dash of action and voilà!
“The truth is, Monica, I don’t want any of this. I’d gladly be free of it, so that I could live a more simple life. I sometimes think the lot of them will drive me insane.” “You . . . aren’t insane, then?” “Heavens no,” I said.
The "lot of them"? The aspects! J.C. the trigger-happy navy seal (I think I'm in love), Ivy the trypophobic therapist, Tobias the schizophrenic historian, Armando the megalomaniac emperor… I love them all.
“I'm not going more mad,” I said. “I've stabilized. I'm practically normal. Even my non-hallucinatory psychiatrist acknowledges that.”
This was good. Really good. So do yourself a favour and read it.

· Book 2: Skin Deep ★★★★★
· Book 3: Lies of the Beholder ★★
Profile Image for edge of bubble.
251 reviews176 followers
February 7, 2017
My first Brandon Sanderson book -if we don't count WoT- and I was expecting to be thrown into an epic fantasy world, for some reason. I hadn't read anything about it beforehand.

It went more along the lines of this;



And caused me to start the story, feeling disoriented.

It was different, well written and didn't feel rushed despite being a novella. I loved the interactions between the hero and his imaginary friends.



But... I didn't enjoy the story. *it's not you book, it's me* I am left with with no wonder, no anger, no feelies. Narrator didn't help either. While he had a lovely voice and he did good job with the nuances of different characters, he mostly sounded lifeless to me. Just droning on...
Profile Image for Michael.
Author 115 books94.8k followers
September 27, 2012
I've been a big fan of Brandon Sanderson for a number of reasons. His excellent Mistborn (he really knows how to develop a magic system and kick off a story with a bang). His participation with readers (such as him stopping in on reddit), his desire to bundle print and ebooks, and for his excellent writing classes (which have been video taped and posted).

So when I heard about this short story I picked it up immediately and read it in a single sitting. It was nice seeing the humor of this piece and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Plus it has one of the best opening lines ever..."My name is Stephen Leeds, and I'm perfectly sane. My hallucinations, however, are all quite mad."

Some have complained it was too short, I disagree. I think it was the perfect morsel and I look forward for more tidbits in the future.

Profile Image for Armina.
176 reviews96 followers
November 24, 2014

Buddy reading book #2: Legion: Skin Deep tomorrow November 25th with the usual suspects. :) If you still haven't read this one, now is the time!

4.5 STARS

One of the best opening lines ever: "My name is Stephen Leeds, and I'm perfectly sane. My hallucinations, however, are all quite mad."

This was a hilarious read not less amusing than Steelheart hence the rating I'm giving it.

Stephen Leeds, a.k.a. "Legion", is a genius whose unique mental condition allows him to generate a multitude of personalities or aspects as he calls them: hallucinatory entities with a wide variety of personal characteristics and a vast array of highly specialized skills(we have an ex-Navy seal /not a marine!:)/ who gives him military action, weapons and strategy advice; a scholar who knows more than any (net) encyclopedia; an Indian linguist and several others no less fascinating ones). As the story begins, Leeds and his 'aspects' are drawn into the search for the missing Balubal Razon, inventor of a camera whose astonishing properties could alter our understanding of human history and change the very structure of society.

I very much loved the concept behind this story. I'm always fascinated by the way Sanderson ties religion, or rather faith with science into his books. And this means a lot coming from an atheist like me.

I highly recommend the audio. Oliver Wyman did a fantastic job with the different voices and accents for all the characters.
Profile Image for Deborah Obida.
691 reviews690 followers
March 24, 2018
Another great book by Brandon Sanderson, I love it and am not surprise because he is yet to disappoint me, I love all his books that I've read so far.

The world building and writing is amazing, perfect depictions of everything, The characters are cool too, both Steven and his hallucinations, can't wait to see what they do in the next book.

My name is Stephen Leeds, and I am perfectly sane. My hallucinations, however, are all quite mad.

So he says, He thinks he is normal which is so not true.

“You accept that the things you see aren’t real?” Monica said, turning to me.
“Yes.”
“Yet you talk to them.”
“I wouldn’t want to hurt their feelings. Besides, they can be useful.”
“Thanks,” J.C. said.
“Some of them can be useful,” I corrected.


Profile Image for Eli24.
182 reviews125 followers
August 29, 2024
واقعا چرا اینقدر به این مجموعه کم لطفی شده؟
ایدش خیلی خوب هست و سندرسون مثل همیشه گل گاشته🫠
حقیقتا دلم یدونه جی‌سی میخواد که داشته باشم خیلی خوبه تازه حاضرم نیست قبول کنه واقعی نیست🤭 بنظرم بشه گفت ژانر این کتاب علمی تخیلی باشه اما برای کسی مثل من که اصولا خیلی با علمی تخیلی کال نمیکنه اصلا اذیت کننده نبود و اون بُعد جادویی ماجرا برام ملموس‌تر بود(حالا شما بگو جادو نبود علم بود... به من چه🤷🏻‍♀️😈)

پ.ن۱: به زودی جلددو هم میخونم
پ.ن۲: ایکاش زودتر چاپش موجود بشه😭
پ.ن۳: به قول دوستی عزیز، به غیرکازمیر هم باید فرصت داد😈😎
Profile Image for seak.
440 reviews469 followers
Read
April 3, 2023
With Brandon Sanderson, you can always expect something unique and well thought out. It's not even a question. Well, maybe a bit because of that whole finishing the Wheel of Time thing...but otherwise, you can expect what I just said.

That's one of the best parts about reading Sanderson. Yeah, he's got great characters, compelling plot twists and stuff. But what makes him a pleasure to read is the way he makes something like epic fantasy vibrant and new. His unique ideas and magic systems become characters of their own and half the reason I continue to read is because I want to experience more of it.

Legion is no exception. As the novella begins, "My Name is Stephen Leeds, and I am perfectly sane. My hallucinations, however, are all quite mad."

Leeds lives in a 47 bedroom mansion inhabited by himself...and his hallucinations. They are each unique, we're lead to believe, but we only deal with a few of them for this story.

His hallucinations tend to specialize in different things that help Leeds to be quite the problem solver, which lends well to detective work, not to mention the desire for every shrink in the world to want to study him.

The uniqueness to this story is that the hallucinations essentially make Leeds a genius. In some way that is not explained, as long as Leeds takes some time (a very short time actually) to familiarize himself with a particular discipline (such as weapons or linguistics), he will immediately create a hallucination that is an expert in that subject.

Having recently read The Hollow City, I can't help but wonder who had the idea first. I know Wells and Sanderson are friends. Not that they're exactly the same conept, they just both deal with a protagonist who has hallucinations. This one's much more Sandersonized (of course) with the well thought-out system whereas Wells' seems to be closer to actual schizophrenia.

In the end, it's a really fun concept and tons of fun to read, especially when for instance the hallucinations are tied up along with Leeds and one of them frees himself up to untie the rest. Or, when they drive, each of the hallucinations needs their own seat.

As if you needed any impetus to read this novella, just do it, have fun, be happy. :)

4 out of 5 Stars

Note on Rating: While a fun concept (I know, I can't stop saying "fun"), it's not my favorite of his. I can see this concept expanding into more, but I think it really worked well with this shortened format. I think I would have tired of it were it any more. I'm sure I'll have the opportunity to find out.
Profile Image for Robin (Bridge Four).
1,811 reviews1,610 followers
November 24, 2014
4 I see Imaginary People Stars.

Quick Re-read before Legion: Skin Deepis released.
My name is Stephen Leeds, and I am perfectly sane. My hallucinations, however, are all quite mad.

If that isn’t a great opening line to a story I don’t know what is. Brandon Sanderson is great at thinking outside of the box and congratulations again on coming up with an incredibly unusual premise to write a story on.

I really like that the main character is a functional crazy person. Sure he has hallucinations but at least he knows they are hallucinations, so how crazy can he actually be. It seems more like he is a genius that has just found a creative way to make compartments for all his knowledge.
“Believe what you will,” I said. “But I’m not a genius. My hallucinations are.”
“Thanks,” J.C. said.
“Some of my hallucinations are,” I corrected.
“You accept that the things you see aren’t real?” Monica said, turning to me.
“Yes.”
“Yet you talk to them.”
“I wouldn’t want to hurt their feelings. Besides, they can be useful.”

This was just a quick mystery of sorts to figure out and a nice introduction into Stephan’s world. The actual mystery was only so/so for me although how much can you pack into less than 100 pages. But, I loved the characters and the weirdness that was Stephan’s mind.

I’m intrigued by some hints about his Stephen’s backstory and how perhaps he wasn’t as well adjusted with his hallucinations as he is today. There seems to be a deeper mystery there that I’m hoping Legion: Skin Deep might delve into a little.

P.S. The audio version of this was great!
Profile Image for Lau ♡.
475 reviews497 followers
April 3, 2021
My name is Stephen Leeds, and I am perfectly sane. My hallucinations, however, are all quite mad.

I read the first line and I was immediately hooked. Even though this novella is nothing like Mistborn series, I enjoyed it so much!! My eyes were full of tears because some scenes were HILARIOUS! It was so funny to see his hallucinations arguing with each other, and I loved the philosophy of the main character, Stephen, to deal with all of them. It was ✨brilliant✨!!

I truly recommend it to anyone looking for a novella full of action and fun, and who doesn't mind that most of the characters are not quite human.

A couple of my favourite scenes:

“You accept that the things you see aren’t real?” Monica said.

“Yes.”

“Yet you talk to them.”

“I wouldn’t want to hurt their feelings.”



“Stephen Leeds. Have you fulfilled your promise to me? I must be restored to my throne.”

“Working on it, Armando,” I said, handing him the picture. “We’ve got another one.”

Armando sighed, taking the photo from my fingers. “Armando benevolently agrees to consider your supplication.” He held it up.

“You know, Steve,” Ivy (also an aspect) said, poking through the room, “if you’re going to create hallucinations, you really should consider making them less annoying.”



Rating: 4.25/5
Profile Image for Montzalee Wittmann.
4,944 reviews2,297 followers
June 20, 2018
Legion
By: Brandon Sanderson
Narrated by: Oliver Wyman
Series: Legion, Book 1
This is a fascinating book about a man with multiple personalities, who is rich, and extremely intelligent. He is asked to help with a special project that is super awesome...to find it and the man who made it. Super intriguing!
The narrator does a wonderful job with this short novel!
Profile Image for Kaya Dimitrova.
330 reviews74 followers
March 13, 2017
За първи път се срещам със стила на писане на Брандън Сандерсън и смея да твърдя, че няма да е за последен! Мистериозна камера, заснемаща личности от миналото, чийто собственик и изобретател е в неизвестност? Със сигурност случая, който Стивън Лийдс и „хората” му искат да поемат. Книгата беше напрегната, имаше достатъчно обрати, а за малкото страници действието се развиваше бързичко. Допадна ми и откачената нотка, която усещах, в следствие на шизофренията на главния герой и интересните и колоритни личности, плод на въображението му. Единствената причина да отнема една звезда на книгата е, че ми се стори твърде кратка, а исках още, и още от Стивън Лийдс и образите, които живееха в главата му. За щастие, разбрах, че има продължение, почти три пъти по-обемно от предшественика си, което ми вдъхва надежда, че ще си отговоря на многото въпроси, останали отворени след тази книга (новелка).
Profile Image for Paige  Bookdragon.
938 reviews634 followers
August 26, 2015
Why so shoooort?

description

Legion is a short story about Stephen Leeds who has multiple aspects.

My name is Stephen Leeds, and I am perfectly sane. My hallucinations, however, are all quite mad.

I’m a Sandersonitis for life and when I saw this book in a book sale, I immediately grabbed it. (Of course I paid for it.) I know this book wouldn’t disappoint because it’s A BRANDON SANDERSON BOOK . His name alone is guarantee.

Although this book is only 88 pages (sooo shoooort), it’s still as awesome the way a Sanderson book goes.

The banter between Stephen’s hallucinations are hilarious.

” You may approach His Majesty,” Armando said. He stood at his window. Which was triangular-he occupied one of the peaks of the mansion. He’d demanded the position.

“Can I shoot him?” J.C asked me softly. “You know, in a place that’s not so important?A foot, maybe?”

“His Majesty head that,” Armando said in his soft Spanish accent, turning unamused eyes our direction.


And…

”Can I shoot her?” J.C asked.

Ivy rolled her eyes. “Remind me why we keep him around?”

“Rugged good looks,” J.C. said.


Really, I love everything about this book. The mystery, the characters (even if some are just hallucinations) and just pure old Sanderson.

Time for book 2..

description
Profile Image for Frank Hidalgo-Gato Durán.
Author 9 books231 followers
June 12, 2021
No tengo mucho que decir. Estaba deseoso de leer a B. Sanderson y, no está mal, aunque ciertamente he leído cosas mejores. Es un tanto juvenil para mi gusto, aunque el tema no tenga nada que ver con ello. No sé, quizá sea el estilo.
Es un libro corto, como la trilogía en sí. La idea está muy bien y la manera de contar la historia engancha. El tema sobre el el trastorno de identidad disociativo (TID), me aburre un poco ya. No obstante hay que decir que aquí el autor lo maneja muy bien y con unos pinceladas de humor muy originales.
Me gustó...sí. 😊👍
Profile Image for Sara.
372 reviews395 followers
September 21, 2020
This was a whole lot of fun to read but way too short!
I feel like i was just properly getting in to it when it ended.
Glad this is a series though, I will continue and pick up more!
Profile Image for Carole (Carole's Random Life).
1,935 reviews573 followers
February 16, 2015
This review can also be found at Carole's Random Life.

4 Stars!

I am quickly becoming a HUGE Brandon Sanderson fan. I only recently become introduced to Sanderson a couple of months ago when I read Steelheart and I am starting to realize that I have really been missing out. This story was completely unique and entertaining. I love how different this story was from anything I have ever encountered before. This story is short but it is highly complex and detailed.

I decided to read this story because I thought I had the audiobook already in my audible account, I discovered that I actually had the second book in the series so I quickly remedied that situation and started listening right away. I think that the narrator did a fantastic job with this story. He voice was soothing to listen to and he did such a fantastic job with a wide range of characters.

Steven Leeds is probably one of the most interesting characters that I have encountered in a book. He is never alone. He lives with his aspects, otherwise known as his hallucinations. Each one of his aspects is an expert in a certain area. Steven claims that he is not a genius and that his aspects are the intelligent one. Of course, he also claims that he isn't crazy and to be honest he acts completely sane if you ignore the fact that he spends most of his time talking to his hallucinations.

Steven is quickly enlisted to help locate a missing camera. This isn't just any camera. This camera takes photos that should not exist. When he thinks about what this camera means to society, he feels he has no choice but to try to find it. Steven and his aspects make quite the formidable team as they work to achieve their goal. There are moments in the story when I just need to stop and think for a bit, moments I laughed a little, and other times where I could find out what was going to happen next fast enough.

The characters in this story are unbelievably good. Sanderson was able to create a man with a mansion full of hallucinations who appears to be completely sane. Every single aspect that were involved in the story had a distinct personality. While everyone around Steven saw a man talking to nobody, we, the reader, got to see exactly what Steven saw and it was amazing. I never experienced a moment of boredom during the story. Of course, how could I? J.C was running around with guns and hallucinations having hallucinations - I simply had no idea what could possibly be next.

I would highly recommend this story to others. I cannot wait to spend more time with Steven and his aspects. I will definitely be reading more from Brandon Sanderson in the not too distant future.
Profile Image for Tina ➹ lives in Fandoms.
464 reviews463 followers
November 29, 2021
3.5 Silver Stars
with Golden Sparks

really one of the hardest to rate. not an ordinary 3, because I liked the characters very much. but not a full-fitting 4 either. (comparing to 2nd part which was so much better, or some of my 3s. it just doesn't seem fair... but... hey... I enjoyed it, partially... but... let's stick to my system, shall we?)

since I recently read another short story by Sanderson Snapshot I want to compare these 2 in a small review, because they're both about solving mysteries, related to crimes & detectives:

both are quick enjoyable reads

the World Building & the Plot in Snapshot was better (& mind you, I had problems with that Plot too), the World Building was kind of fantasy Technology which was both can be imaginary or can be real.
but the Characters (illusions mostly) were understandable, funny & likable in Legion; J.C. Tobias, Ivy & even Stephen, I like them & I will read the next books.
the general Idea was better in Legion too, but it's still a mysterious field for me to completely understand & my knowledge is not complete, so I can't say if it was accurate or fictitious. because at first I thought it was about Dissociative identity disorder (Multiple Personality) but then it was revealed it's not.
-
Plot: ★★★/5
Characters: ★★★★/5
Written style: ★★★(★)/5
premise: ★★★/5
General idea: ★★★★/5
Profile Image for Olethros.
2,699 reviews515 followers
December 10, 2019
-Quizá la versión que ofrece Sanderson de las novelas de detectives de toda la vida… de las juveniles, quiero decir...-

Género. Novela corta.

Lo que nos cuenta. Legión (publicación original: Legion, 2012) nos presenta a Stephen Leeds, un investigador rodeado por una serie de “amigos imaginarios” o alucinaciones, más de cuarenta, cuyas habilidades son muy variadas y pueden ser aplicadas por Stephen. Una fotografía que debió realizarse mucho antes de que se inventara el proceso fotográfico introduce a Stephen en una investigación en la que hay muchos intereses en juego. Primer volumen de la saga Legión.

¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:

https://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com...
Profile Image for Kells Next Read .
574 reviews585 followers
January 10, 2016
"Your hallucinations has Hallucinations"

Well, Well, Well, this was such an intriguing read. It goes without saying that I love legion and his band of weird but loving personalities/aspects, that comes along with him. JC I must admit was my favorite. He had me in stitches.

This concept is amazing. The only downfall was that this was way too too short. I'm speeding off too read Skin Deep. I want more from these characters and Mr Leeds.

~~Sanderson Never Fails~~
Profile Image for Theresa Ijachi.
103 reviews71 followers
April 2, 2018
I've wondered for days and nights, trying to figure out where Brandon Sanderson gets his ideas from. He took a simple thing and turned it into a master piece that's actually less than a hundred pages. The first line I read from this novella was enough to make me very interested. This is by far the best novella I've ever read in my entire life.
Profile Image for Connor.
702 reviews1,703 followers
February 9, 2017
My Video Review:

https://youtu.be/xOI3CQZFfyo

[3.5 Stars]

I really enjoyed this! I love meeting the different hallucinations and learning what their specialties are. I liked that this very lightly touches on holding yourself back and being in your own way preventing you from greatness. I thought that the plot suffered from the story being so short. There is hardly any struggle for the main character, so I wished we had seen him have to work a bit harder. We'll see how I feel about Skin Deep when I read that soon!
Profile Image for Gavin.
996 reviews417 followers
November 24, 2014
I've read this short contemporary fantasy novella multiple times and it is always an entertaining read. In this story Stephen Leeds, AKA 'Legion,'and his multitude of 'aspects' are hired to track down the missing inventor of a potentially magical camera, which has the ability to take photos of the past. Stephen is a very likable character and he uses the knowledge gleaned from his various aspects to help him solve the case.

The best part of this has to be the witty banter between Stephen and his various aspects.

I loved the mystery, humor, and fast pace of the story. The ending was very intriguing and has left me eager to read the sequel.

Rating: 4 stars.

Audio Note: Oliver Wyman is a fantastic narrator who has no problems providing distinct voices Stephen and all his aspects.
Profile Image for Phrynne.
3,725 reviews2,509 followers
March 16, 2016
Only eighty pages long but they are eighty pages of sheer genius! Brandon Sanderson is a truly remarkable author and to be able to include so much in such a short novella is amazing. Luckily there is a sequel already in print which I believe is a bit longer. I will be searching it out immediately to find out what happens to Stephen Leeds and his multiple personae.
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