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The Man #1
Man: The Animal
Two hundred years after the war between the sexes, the vast majority of women have come to believe that the human male no longer exists. Even the word man has been eliminated from the language. Only a few top clearance officials at the United Earth Internal Security and Investigation Center know the truth. At the end of the war, an adequate genetic pool of men was imprisoned beneath the facility to serve as semen producers. All of their basic needs are attended to by robotic means. Due to this lack of contact with anything outside their cells, the males have reverted to nothing more than brutal animals.
This process continues undisturbed until Dr. Juliet Matheson, a leading scientist at the United Earth Zoological Research Foundation, becomes curious about a strange creature mentioned in a speculative article. Always on the leading edge of discovery, she is determined to find out what a man is.
Julie is shocked when she sees that men are the male of the human species. Based on her remarkable achievements in animal research, she is permitted to have a male for a top security research project. In order to preserve the secrecy, Julie resigns from her position at the UEZRF and sequesters herself with her pet project, Max.
Then the training starts. If you had a human with no knowledge of language or civilized behavior and wanted to educate him, where would you begin? Will Max become the product of Julie’s dreams . . . or her nightmares?
Watch for the exciting, sensual sequel to this novel, entitled, the Slave.
This process continues undisturbed until Dr. Juliet Matheson, a leading scientist at the United Earth Zoological Research Foundation, becomes curious about a strange creature mentioned in a speculative article. Always on the leading edge of discovery, she is determined to find out what a man is.
Julie is shocked when she sees that men are the male of the human species. Based on her remarkable achievements in animal research, she is permitted to have a male for a top security research project. In order to preserve the secrecy, Julie resigns from her position at the UEZRF and sequesters herself with her pet project, Max.
Then the training starts. If you had a human with no knowledge of language or civilized behavior and wanted to educate him, where would you begin? Will Max become the product of Julie’s dreams . . . or her nightmares?
Watch for the exciting, sensual sequel to this novel, entitled, the Slave.
177 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 4, 2011
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10 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
July 18, 2015
Uniquely Intriguing, Psychological, Action-Filled, and Sensually Romantic!
First of all, let me say I hope that the author will find a way to add a third book to her series as I've enjoyed these first two immensely! I cannot believe I am the first to review this wonderful book that was published two full years ago or that I personally had to add it to Goodreads as it slipped through the cracks so much as to not even have been listed (even though its sequel was). I will grant you that I don't generally spend $7.99 on an obscure ebook with no reviews, but I'm glad I took a chance on this one by doing so, and I hope you will as well.
Perhaps, someone should consider dropping the price a tad? That said, I don't feel I wasted my money at all, and I can only give it all the stars available. Why, you ask?
Well, explaining that is the challenge, and, I'm sure that's why this book has slipped through the cracks without earning so much as one review until now! I honestly can't compare this to any other book or genre; it's wholly unique (to me anyway).
In this first installment of "The Man Series," men are thought to be mythical animals at best on a futuristic Earth inhabited mostly by women. 200 years prior, men and women existed together as they do now. Then, feminism and misogyny were both taken to new fanatical levels, which caused a civil war between the genders. Women won, and they began a tradition of keeping only a handful of men alive at a time in a very secret lab where they were handled and cared for by only robots in soundproof enclosures that prevented them from hearing or seeing females and also kept them low to the ground, which forced a primate-like posture (thus enhancing their status as animals rather than human beings). They were routinely exterminated at the age of 35 (to prevent knowledge from being acquired and spread, though after having lost the knowledge of speech generations before, that was probably unnecessary), and the men had only had each one another for company. Male testosterone combined with captivity and sensory deprivation in the areas of love and reassurance yielded "creatures" that did resemble primitive primates in behavior and posture.
In "Man: The Animal," we meet Julie, who has a seemingly unquenchable thirst for knowledge and has run out of interests after successfully providing synthetic vocal chords to chimpanzees, thus gifting them with the power of true speech. As a resolution to her ennui, she decides to get to the bottom of the "man myth." After pulling several strings, she's led to the Center where the men are kept (unbeknownst to most women). Before agreeing to the experiment, the Center's Director explains the true history of their species and the current purpose of the small male population (procreation through donation). She agrees to allow the scientist, Julie, to study a man, thinking the results might be intriguing and not caring at all what Julie's methods may be. The only concern is secrecy, and it's clearly understood she'll be monitored and killed if she breathes a word of her experiment or what she has learned to anyone at all. The man, should she succeed in her experiments, will be an innate danger to their peaceful way of life, so, it is stated from the beginning that he will be terminated at the conclusion of her experiment for the good of all Womankind.
By the end of THAT interview, the scientist is forced to pretend she still views men as nothing more than mere animals, which becomes more difficult to handle when she considers how primitive they truly are (not having been exposed to language, intellectual stimulation, or ANY human kindness is tough to witness for the insightful and kind woman).
Julie chooses the oldest man, because he seems to be the most intelligent of the group (as he is the least scarred from fighting with the others), and because his "expiration date" is approaching. She's probably a bit attracted to him as well; they only keep the most perfect specimens after all.
A significant portion of the book deals with the challenges of unlocking the inherent intellect and humanity trapped within the animal shell. She stumbles through communication barriers, explanations of the world in which they live (a world he has never seen and knows he's never MEANT to see), and, finally, the conflict surrounding finding herself housed with an equal rather than an animal -- an equal marked for death -- an equal she'd be killed for protecting and one she finds she wouldn't want to live without anyway.
The pace of the novel isn't steady, which is actually a plus. The beginning was interesting to me as I found myself trying to guess (sometimes even with a degree of accuracy) what either of them would do next. I found that the intriguing psychological portion revolving around the language barrier moved along at a decent pace. After that barrier is broken, and the man, Max, is established as an equal in Julie's eyes, the pace only continues to escalate until I found myself on the edge of my seat wondering how they'd ever survive!
The themes of the book revolve around humanity and the invaluable natures of life, freedom, love and compassion. This one book manages to be gritty, psychologically insightful, witty, funny, realistic, and even adventurous all under the same title. It's not average by any stretch of the imagination, and, despite the limitations imposed by Max's initial level of development, I didn't find it at all boring - only thought provoking.
I suppose of you have zero interest in how the mind works, psychology, or in philosophy, then this book might lose your interest before it picks up speed. I personally would love to take on the challenge of educating a man like Max, who needs to be taught "from scratch" essentially. He also has to grow up emotionally pretty fast as well to catch up to Julie. Not everyone will share those interests, so that's the only caveat I can list as I sing the praises of this clever and very original novel.
There is no erotica; lovemaking is just that and is mostly left to the imagination. This is a sensual romance. There are only moral and intellectual dilemmas in the beginning. I actually appreciated both elements as they aren't my standard literary fare. It felt like quality to me. Also, the grammar fanatic in me was satisfied. There were a few glaring errors, but definitely not enough to cause distraction.
If you're in the mood for something different or feel like a chuckle at the expense of the male "animal" (men will be men after all), then I highly recommend throwing caution (and $7.99) to the wind and reading something a little bit different. I'm hoping you'll be cheering the couple on as much as I was by the end.
** WARNING: This really should be on Amazon's description somewhere, but, since I'm the only reviewer so far, I suppose it's up to me... Before I issue the warning, let me just say that if there was EVER going to be a good excuse for something that is NEVER excusable, it's going to be here. Before the man becomes Max ... Before he can speak, read, or understand anything aside from cruelty or neglect, he truly is solely equipped with the reasoning skills and instincts of an animal -- one that's NEVER so much as seen a woman before this experiment... That being said, I owe it to those of you who reply upon these reviews and warnings... There is ONE incident of female rape. It's not detailed, because she passes out, but the descriptions of how she fared afterward (both emotionally and physically) were detailed, and that may be too disturbing for some women. Unless this is a red flag for you, though, please don't disregard the whole book for it. Once he's humanized, Max understands, and he's definitely not proud of his actions and does all he can to earn her trust... **
First of all, let me say I hope that the author will find a way to add a third book to her series as I've enjoyed these first two immensely! I cannot believe I am the first to review this wonderful book that was published two full years ago or that I personally had to add it to Goodreads as it slipped through the cracks so much as to not even have been listed (even though its sequel was). I will grant you that I don't generally spend $7.99 on an obscure ebook with no reviews, but I'm glad I took a chance on this one by doing so, and I hope you will as well.
Perhaps, someone should consider dropping the price a tad? That said, I don't feel I wasted my money at all, and I can only give it all the stars available. Why, you ask?
Well, explaining that is the challenge, and, I'm sure that's why this book has slipped through the cracks without earning so much as one review until now! I honestly can't compare this to any other book or genre; it's wholly unique (to me anyway).
In this first installment of "The Man Series," men are thought to be mythical animals at best on a futuristic Earth inhabited mostly by women. 200 years prior, men and women existed together as they do now. Then, feminism and misogyny were both taken to new fanatical levels, which caused a civil war between the genders. Women won, and they began a tradition of keeping only a handful of men alive at a time in a very secret lab where they were handled and cared for by only robots in soundproof enclosures that prevented them from hearing or seeing females and also kept them low to the ground, which forced a primate-like posture (thus enhancing their status as animals rather than human beings). They were routinely exterminated at the age of 35 (to prevent knowledge from being acquired and spread, though after having lost the knowledge of speech generations before, that was probably unnecessary), and the men had only had each one another for company. Male testosterone combined with captivity and sensory deprivation in the areas of love and reassurance yielded "creatures" that did resemble primitive primates in behavior and posture.
In "Man: The Animal," we meet Julie, who has a seemingly unquenchable thirst for knowledge and has run out of interests after successfully providing synthetic vocal chords to chimpanzees, thus gifting them with the power of true speech. As a resolution to her ennui, she decides to get to the bottom of the "man myth." After pulling several strings, she's led to the Center where the men are kept (unbeknownst to most women). Before agreeing to the experiment, the Center's Director explains the true history of their species and the current purpose of the small male population (procreation through donation). She agrees to allow the scientist, Julie, to study a man, thinking the results might be intriguing and not caring at all what Julie's methods may be. The only concern is secrecy, and it's clearly understood she'll be monitored and killed if she breathes a word of her experiment or what she has learned to anyone at all. The man, should she succeed in her experiments, will be an innate danger to their peaceful way of life, so, it is stated from the beginning that he will be terminated at the conclusion of her experiment for the good of all Womankind.
By the end of THAT interview, the scientist is forced to pretend she still views men as nothing more than mere animals, which becomes more difficult to handle when she considers how primitive they truly are (not having been exposed to language, intellectual stimulation, or ANY human kindness is tough to witness for the insightful and kind woman).
Julie chooses the oldest man, because he seems to be the most intelligent of the group (as he is the least scarred from fighting with the others), and because his "expiration date" is approaching. She's probably a bit attracted to him as well; they only keep the most perfect specimens after all.
A significant portion of the book deals with the challenges of unlocking the inherent intellect and humanity trapped within the animal shell. She stumbles through communication barriers, explanations of the world in which they live (a world he has never seen and knows he's never MEANT to see), and, finally, the conflict surrounding finding herself housed with an equal rather than an animal -- an equal marked for death -- an equal she'd be killed for protecting and one she finds she wouldn't want to live without anyway.
The pace of the novel isn't steady, which is actually a plus. The beginning was interesting to me as I found myself trying to guess (sometimes even with a degree of accuracy) what either of them would do next. I found that the intriguing psychological portion revolving around the language barrier moved along at a decent pace. After that barrier is broken, and the man, Max, is established as an equal in Julie's eyes, the pace only continues to escalate until I found myself on the edge of my seat wondering how they'd ever survive!
The themes of the book revolve around humanity and the invaluable natures of life, freedom, love and compassion. This one book manages to be gritty, psychologically insightful, witty, funny, realistic, and even adventurous all under the same title. It's not average by any stretch of the imagination, and, despite the limitations imposed by Max's initial level of development, I didn't find it at all boring - only thought provoking.
I suppose of you have zero interest in how the mind works, psychology, or in philosophy, then this book might lose your interest before it picks up speed. I personally would love to take on the challenge of educating a man like Max, who needs to be taught "from scratch" essentially. He also has to grow up emotionally pretty fast as well to catch up to Julie. Not everyone will share those interests, so that's the only caveat I can list as I sing the praises of this clever and very original novel.
There is no erotica; lovemaking is just that and is mostly left to the imagination. This is a sensual romance. There are only moral and intellectual dilemmas in the beginning. I actually appreciated both elements as they aren't my standard literary fare. It felt like quality to me. Also, the grammar fanatic in me was satisfied. There were a few glaring errors, but definitely not enough to cause distraction.
If you're in the mood for something different or feel like a chuckle at the expense of the male "animal" (men will be men after all), then I highly recommend throwing caution (and $7.99) to the wind and reading something a little bit different. I'm hoping you'll be cheering the couple on as much as I was by the end.
** WARNING: This really should be on Amazon's description somewhere, but, since I'm the only reviewer so far, I suppose it's up to me... Before I issue the warning, let me just say that if there was EVER going to be a good excuse for something that is NEVER excusable, it's going to be here. Before the man becomes Max ... Before he can speak, read, or understand anything aside from cruelty or neglect, he truly is solely equipped with the reasoning skills and instincts of an animal -- one that's NEVER so much as seen a woman before this experiment... That being said, I owe it to those of you who reply upon these reviews and warnings... There is ONE incident of female rape. It's not detailed, because she passes out, but the descriptions of how she fared afterward (both emotionally and physically) were detailed, and that may be too disturbing for some women. Unless this is a red flag for you, though, please don't disregard the whole book for it. Once he's humanized, Max understands, and he's definitely not proud of his actions and does all he can to earn her trust... **
December 19, 2024
Wow the stupidity of the supposedly smart scientist female lead was APPAULING
Who would teach someone they perceive as an animal how to speak... with their lips?! Yea. She thought: hm... if put my lips on his and speak, he will get it! 🙄
Who gets frustrated a "dangerous animal" isn't using a spoon and then just opens its door and walks right up to it?
Who would, after seeing someone show their growing intensive knowledge of technology, give them access to the remote that would open the door they are locked behind?!
Who would give someone you are supposed to keep hidden from a world... A CELL PHONE?!
I just... can't keep going. I tried so hard but her stupidity is making me nauseated. The tipping point for me was when she was essentially held captive in the basement and (after several missed opportunities to escape) creates a moment to make a run for it by kneeing him btw the legs and then looks back and says: "Every rational impulse told her to get out while she had the chance, but something in her heart would not allow her to go" 🤮🤮🤮 I almost threw my phone away in disgust... like wtf you were brutally assaulted TWICE and almost assaulted AGAIN right before this?! Girl what?! Leave!
The story had potential which is why I gave it 2 stars and not one 🙄
Who would teach someone they perceive as an animal how to speak... with their lips?! Yea. She thought: hm... if put my lips on his and speak, he will get it! 🙄
Who gets frustrated a "dangerous animal" isn't using a spoon and then just opens its door and walks right up to it?
Who would, after seeing someone show their growing intensive knowledge of technology, give them access to the remote that would open the door they are locked behind?!
Who would give someone you are supposed to keep hidden from a world... A CELL PHONE?!
I just... can't keep going. I tried so hard but her stupidity is making me nauseated. The tipping point for me was when she was essentially held captive in the basement and (after several missed opportunities to escape) creates a moment to make a run for it by kneeing him btw the legs and then looks back and says: "Every rational impulse told her to get out while she had the chance, but something in her heart would not allow her to go" 🤮🤮🤮 I almost threw my phone away in disgust... like wtf you were brutally assaulted TWICE and almost assaulted AGAIN right before this?! Girl what?! Leave!
The story had potential which is why I gave it 2 stars and not one 🙄
June 14, 2014
My take on a world without men; until one gets out!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews