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One day, out of nowhere, spider-like mechanical creatures came to earth and started herding humans toward giant transport pods. Those who resisted were killed outright. Those who didn’t, ended up dumped in a strange place with nothing more than what they had in their possession at the time of their capture. Left to fend for themselves, they had to learn how to survive in hostile environments unlike anything they’d encountered before.
Lyda Brightner wakes up in a desert that she thinks might be somewhere in New Mexico. Only twelve years old, her chances of survival are minimal, especially since her parents didn’t make it through the first gathering. She’s raped and sold to a pedophile so others can have food and water.
Eventually, Lyda manages to escape, and she learns how to take care of herself and others. She becomes a compassionate and fair leader, pulling together a community of like-minded people who can work together for the good of the group. But, just as soon as they get settled, the aliens return, usher them into another pod, and dump them into another place—sometimes a not-so-bad place, other times a terrifying place—and the regrouping starts all over again.
After a while, Lyda begins to understand what the aliens are doing, and she figures out how to survive every trial they throw her way—no matter what.
One of the best things about reading author Darrell Bain’s novels is that his unusual writing style makes you think outside the box. Savage Survival left me with an uneasy feeling—not because it made me worry that an alien race might come and get me, but because I was uncomfortable with the way it all came together in the end. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, though. Savage Survival is a novel that grabs you and twists your insides, making you think beyond the boundaries of anything normal.
Mr. Bain has an extraordinary understanding of how people work in strange situations. You’ll have your leaders, you’ll have your followers, and you’ll have those who defy everyone. None of his characters prove to be typical, leaving the plot shockingly unpredictable.
I’ve had the pleasure of reading Mr. Bain’s novels in the past, and I hope to read much more from him in the future. His is a unique style that makes him stand out from the rest of today’s authors.
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