The Sentinels novels by Van Allen Plexico comprise a sequence of superhero fiction works in prose format with occasional interior illustrations. They are set primarily in the present-day United States. The first novel was published in 2006. Plexico has said his reason for writing superhero stories as novels rather than in the more traditional comic book format is, "I'm able to both cover a LOT of ground, time-wise-- more than a year's worth of story in just one book--and go more in-depth with the characters, the way a novel allows you to do."