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What do you do when you find out you’re the thing you fear most?

Seven months ago, the Void Virus was set loose on Earth. The world is now in chaos. The origin of the virus has been unveiled, and mysteries of my past have come to light.

A lot has changed during that time. I started out alone, struggling to survive. Now I had four guys, my sister, and Puppy who all had my back no matter what.

Not only did I gain a strange healing ability, but now Lincoln could create fire. That isn’t the last of the weird things going on, though. On top of that, I discovered I was created in a lab, with the intention to bring about a great change. Those intentions weren’t necessarily good. Now that I’m back on their radar and I know more about what I might be capable of, I have become the thing I fear most, and am left with more questions than ever.

We receive word of some sort of sanctuary for survivors. A place that promises protection for those who seek it. It could be a trap, but it could also be true. We do our best to travel in search of this place, but rotters aren’t the only things standing in our way. Our journey is filled with twists, turns, and straight up chaos.

If there is a safe place for survivors, we won’t stop until we find it.

Together, we will find The Salvaged.

**18+ Reverse Harem Romance. Warning: this book contains some scenes and references of abuse that some readers may find triggering**

208 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 12, 2019

319 people are currently reading
129 people want to read

About the author

Maya Riley

27 books158 followers

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5 stars
254 (41%)
4 stars
200 (32%)
3 stars
123 (20%)
2 stars
26 (4%)
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5 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews
Profile Image for Kira.
1,032 reviews32 followers
January 3, 2023
Salvaged is the second book in Releasing the magic series by Maya Riley.

Blyss and the guys along with her sister Maura continue their journey for survival in this one and keep fighting the rotters in order to escape. There were some pretty dumb moments in this one with Blyss' plan of travelling the world and killing every rotter in order to get rid of the virus taking the cake. I mean if it was supposed to be some kind of joke, I am utterly disappointed because it wasn't really funny.

Nothing much seemed to happen in this one apart from Adam's wind power getting unlocked and if I am guessing it right, it's possible that the next two book would focus on Jonah and Mateo's power and the final one would be them all working together against the void virus.

I have a major problem with the scaling of this book, they are supposed to be travelling across the country but still somehow are able to run into the same groups of people and no other humans whatsoever.

I am hoping the next book picks up the pace and gives us something worthwhile.

2.5 stars.
Profile Image for ❀ Crystal ✿ -  PEACE ☮ LOVE ♥ BOOKS .
2,532 reviews308 followers
December 30, 2022
3.5
This book really had me questioning everyone’s sanity and IQ levels. Every time something appears like a trap and is indeed a trap, they walk right in. Every moment they are distracted and feeling on top of their game rotters pop up out of nowhere. They make a lot of stupid choices that really had me rolling my eyes. Even now in the end they so trustingly and blindly I might add, followed this radio transmission across the dang country without knowing whose behind it or anything at all. They can potentially be walking right into the hands of the agency looking to harness her blood and talents, just in a new location. Worse, though while inevitable, is how often those that are gifted have to use their ‘magic’ out in the open as if they really need psycho doctor discovering what they can do. It’s also wild to me how often other people are able to follow the group or randomly pop up at a house they all happen to be staying in. It’s a big freaking country and they traverse from Pennsylvania to Texas so all these odd coincidences just became ridiculous after a while. I’m a sucker for a zombie story, one that’s RH to boot, so I’m really hoping some of these characters smarten up and stop letting every bad guy get the first shot in the next book.
654 reviews20 followers
December 1, 2023
DNF- Finished 100% of book 1 & 2 - 69% of book 3

**Review Shared for Series**

**Some very light spoilers ahead.. mostly things you wouldn't really understand unless you read it anyway**

My biggest reason for not finishing is because the amount of enemies kept piling on, and they were all after the group. The scientists would have been enough but then they had the scavers, rotters (obviously), psycho rotters, the reclaimed... And with each of them come questions that continuously don't get answered... you have to give us SOMETHING so that we can keep up. Things just keep going right for the antagonists. Only the antagonists. Otherwise it just feels like it's them against the world to the extreme and just gets tedious to read.

Also the amount of time someone was on duty to "keep watch" and then ended up leaving everyone and going out which left the sleeping people in their group vulnerable was soooo annoying. What's the point of having someone "keep watch" if they are just going to leave and do their own thing anyway.

Blyss ends up doing some crazy sh*t in book three and finally has someone around that she can ask questions to, and yet she doesn't make it a priority to seek him out and get answers that are pretty freaking important all things considered. Another annoying thing that happened one too many times.

Needless to say there were one too many annoying things in the series so I gave up. Especially consider there was two more books to get through. The whole series is just going soooooo slow with absolutely NO resolutions to the 900 problems the main characters face.

- deaf mmc
Profile Image for Jessica Robbins.
2,598 reviews50 followers
November 25, 2019
*I received a free copy of this book which I voluntarily chose to write an honest review for.

First off I must say that I am completely in love with Puppy!!! Best protection ever!!! Blyss has become attached to all of the guys by this point as they travel together keeping each other safe. After the events of the last book they just need a breather. After hearing a brief radio message they start traveling running into all sorts of hazards along the way. New twists on every page yet still a steamy RH making for a great balance. I am totally hooked on this world and cannot wait to see what happens next. I really liked it so I give it 4/5 stars.
Profile Image for Froggy.
703 reviews21 followers
September 10, 2020
So, not as much happens in this book as in the previous book, but it’s still a really interesting and engaging story. This is sort of the ‘filler/journey/camping’ part of story where you see some plot and relationship development but you don’t actually learn anything that advances the overall plot. You learn more about the characters (but still not everything) and you get to see a lot of survival and zombie oriented action. This is definitely a slowly developing story, but it is a really fun read.

Some things happen that don’t entirely make sense to me in the grand scheme of things. Like they kill some people for threatening a kid in an alley, but they leave the gang that flat out tried to murder them knocked out? There was no reason they couldn’t end the threat there, but they were really obviously left alive to be used as a future plot conflict. There were a couple little things throughout the story that nagged at me like this. Not necessarily plot holes, but rather illogical occurrences. It also rubs me the wrong way that the characters know they’re attracting large groups of zombies and decide to head to a sanctuary... kinda a dick move (it’s giving me some zombieland 2 vibes and I’m anticipating a scene like in the movie)

The first book was a 4 for me and this one is just a notch down because of the lack of new information. I think we needed to have at least a little bit of an unveiling or surprise in this story to kick it up a bit.
Profile Image for Myriam.
645 reviews26 followers
March 5, 2020
I loved this book even more than the first one! And I have a feeling this will be an occurring trend as I continue with the series. The ending is incredibly intriguing, as was to be expected, and the whole story seamlessly flows from previous book into the next one. Fantastic!
And yes, Puppy is the best dog in the world, although I really love all the other characters as well. I love how the author develops them further, goes deeper into their personalities, and as Blyss gets to know them, we get to know them. And I love the way the author gives an insight into Blyss' past, fears, expectations, and hopes. 
The author further develops the world as well, and shows the grim reality of post outbreak. Some of the villains come back and some are completely new but I have a feeling that we haven't seen the last of them. There are some interesting chapters from alternative points of view which I absolutely loved. They add so much to the story.
The book is full of action, it is fast paced, there are twists and turns and blood and gore, and pages just fly. It was a great read and I immediately continued with the next book. This is an amazing series!
Books should be read in order: Infected (Releasing the Magic Book 1), Salvaged (Releasing the Magic Book 2), Reclaimed (Releasing the Magic Book 3), and Veiled (Releasing the Magic Book 4).
Profile Image for Country Goose.
1,131 reviews12 followers
February 7, 2020
Solid 3

So, the adventure continues, and rotters appear around every turn in droves. We still don't know why, but we are getting closer to the answer.

There is no character growth. As in, none at all. Yeah sure, she has sex, but no one acts differently. Other than an honorable mention, no one acts like they've become closer with loving.

My last favorite phrase is used over and over. "Once done." Find a bit more description and not use that phrase ever again. One more thing, since we're on the subject, "shoulders bouncing in a chuckle." Maybe use that once, at most twice in a book, please. I imagine Turtle Club every time I read it. "Turtle, turtle." If you don't know what I'm talking about, Google it, watch the movie. Back to the topic at hand, the plot does progress. Directions are slightly off. Going from Memphis to Texas does not put anyone through Pine Bluff. I know the area well, and ps, there is no mention of maps, so how did they now what way to go from their original starting point?

Would I continue the series? Probably.
Profile Image for Charlotte.
420 reviews1 follower
March 20, 2020
Awesome read. I really enjoyed this second installment. I love the whole apocalypse Rotter scene. Quite fitting for where the world is at presently.

I love blyss obviously puppy She is all kinds of awesome.
The guys are brilliant. We do see sex scenes but this is fairly slow burn.

I would like and hope to see a bit more emotional building going into the next book #3. As I feel the main character and her guys are a little stagnant. They need to get closer show more emotion. Their relationship needs to grow a little.

I would also love to see what the other guys can do with their power and I'm hoping blyss comes into some of her own apart from healing.

But over all I love this story and will continue on this exciting journey.

4 x rotters ( stars ) from me.
Profile Image for ChristinaReads5.
755 reviews2 followers
March 10, 2023
still interesting but definitely got slower pacing then the first book.

Blyss, the guys, Maura and Puppy are on the run. Blyss can heal, Lincoln can make fire and the world is complete chaos.

I still enjoy the story but there were some parts that definitely needed a little more refining. The timeline of the zombies taking over and some of the rot is kind of weird. Like it took less than 2 years for people to completely go bad and hurt people just to hurt people and then the amount of loot they find and they keep bringing up expiration dates.

Then the crazy doctor guy? And the missing assistant POV? Kind of confusing.

Still gonna jump to book 3.
Profile Image for Kit.
1,517 reviews17 followers
May 7, 2020
Read: May 7, 2020
Rating: 3 Stars


This was okay, a little different from the first one in the sense that it felt slower and a little more drawn out, less progression.

There is one thing that bugs me immensely tho


for the rest it's okay, just feels very filler like.
Profile Image for April.
177 reviews8 followers
May 31, 2020
Slow Entertainment

I enjoyed this book. But it felt lacking. Each time they stopped or had a run-in it did not seem quite cohesive. Kind of like reading a book with short assorted stories. One more man now has powers from Blyss. So that’s progress. And they have finally made it to the Salvaged Lands. Maybe I just feel like it’s lacking romance. I like the character Maura but I’m having trouble connecting with her. And I feel like she’s a hindrance to Blyss and her relationship with the guys. But I still like the story and I’m still eager to read more.
Profile Image for Amber.
637 reviews16 followers
November 6, 2020
I'm officially HOOKED!

I am hooked in this series! I started and finished it in one sitting, I've been completely useless today because I couldn't put this book down!! Blyss continues on her chaotic adventure, running into one dangerous situation after another. Action, witty banter, and excitement was throughout the entire book. I do wish it was a little more sexy, I'm starting to notice a pattern with the series, being that each book has one sex scene with one of her guys, which I admit, is a little disappointing. Otherwise, I have absolutely NO complaints.
Profile Image for Lyndsey Gollogly.
1,367 reviews5 followers
July 1, 2021
So this was a struggle at first which was annoying as I enjoyed the first book so much, I still like her style of writing and the fact it wasn’t relationship led. Something was missing and it wasn’t till the last few chapters it got exciting. I’m hoping she is just setting the next book up as I was close to give this a 2 star rating. It was one of those books that just plods along not bad but not brilliant either. I’m curious to find out more about the magical side and the powers Blyss is bringing out.
Profile Image for Mikal Baker.
96 reviews
November 21, 2023
I love it!

This is so good!!! It’s giving the walking dead in a sense but still completely it’s own. I wanted a zombie romance and this is that and some!

It’s a slow burn but I’m very down for that, I love all of the characters. While the plot may overall be moving slower than expected, at the same time it’s moving so good and everything that is happening makes sense. I think if this series keeps going the way it is, that it might be one of my favs ever!

Any wait to devour the next one!
594 reviews1 follower
February 15, 2024
Not Great

For me this was a bit dull. Yes yes we know, they keep getting attacked by hordes of zombies, the same thing again and again - she slams her knife through a skull, same line in the book again and again.

Also, they are walking and driving through the United States and they keep coming across the same two groups of people? That was stupid. I didn’t love book 1, but it was interesting enough that I went to book 2, but I am done now.
114 reviews
November 12, 2019
I need more!

I loved this book even more than the first! Blyss is seriously one of my favorite FMC’s. I love her strength and her sass. I can’t wait to find out more about their powers and how they work and to see what lies ahead with how this one ended! (Sorry, can’t be too specific because....spoilers and all that jazz)
Great job Maya!
Profile Image for Katy Jenkins .
513 reviews2 followers
November 12, 2019
What an amazing addition to the series. I can’t express how much I enjoyed this book! I really like that in this series we learn how the apocalypse started and why. Blyss is such a strong amazing character and her men are so protective and caring it makes my heart happy.I am very interested in seeing where this story goes I have some theories and can’t wait to see if I’m right.
142 reviews
November 19, 2019
Great addition! The story picks up where we left off. The action and adventures continue with Blyss and her crew. We gain more magic along with our zombie battles in a search across lands for a safe community. Maya still manages to keep the tension, romance and heat amidst the gore. Leaving us with another cliffhanger- I eagerly await more of this apocalyptic adventure!
Profile Image for Mardi Sauve.
436 reviews8 followers
May 30, 2020
Excellent story!

A dystopian world with rotting corpses, handsome guys and a young woman who brings supernatural talents to light. Fight scenes, evil corporations, dastardly human villains, plotting, romance and to top it off a loyal dog. A unique, intriguing and fascinating story that was book two in this series and I can't wait for the next book!
Profile Image for Laura.
1,229 reviews11 followers
June 10, 2020
Interesting apocalypse tale

This is an installation to the series 'Releasing the Magic'. It's rather interesting if you're good with reading about basically zombies and how people are like after an apocalypse. The charcaters take some getting used to, the romance is there but in a simple R rated version. Overall, decent read and good idea on the author's end.
488 reviews1 follower
August 28, 2021
A bit slow going but great story so far

There are plenty more books to come so I’m not concerned about the lack of progress made in this book but I’m really hoping that the next one picks up. The survivors have travelled but relationship wise there’s not really been much advancement which is disappointing.
1,014 reviews11 followers
December 31, 2022
Great world building

Blyss and her group fight every day to survive. Defending themselves from the zombies is a stinky disgusting chore but battling against scavers and crazy people is dangerous on a different level. Still Blyss finds time to make out with the man of the moment. There's the romance and heat every good apocalypse deserves!
Profile Image for Kylee.
44 reviews1 follower
November 6, 2024
I'm dnfing at 75%
I am enjoying the story Iine and while I like blyss I can't seem to connect with any of the characters I also feel like there is little to no intimacy between blyss and her guys there is a little kissing and one spicy scene so far but I don't feel the emotions behind it.
I very well could just not be in the right mood for this book.
Might try again later
Profile Image for Boo.
3,673 reviews14 followers
November 6, 2019
It picks right up where the first book left off. Thank goodness. I had my heart in my throat. But wow this book definitely keeps you ensnared and waiting for more. It was great and I can’t wait for the next book.
209 reviews
November 14, 2019
I have loved this series sir far. Puppy is my favorite lol 😂. Blyss and the guys work great together to get stuff done. I can’t wait to see what happens next now that they found their destination. Don’t want to give anything away. Happy reading fellow book lovers.
Profile Image for T..
Author 13 books573 followers
February 8, 2020
Salvaged, book 2 of the Releasing the Magic series, is a book I picked up during my Kindle Unlimited trial. This is one zombie series with a strong storyline and well-developed characters. The plot took an interesting turn and I am curious where the plot will go.
Profile Image for Robin Dorf.
166 reviews14 followers
November 13, 2019
OMG!!!! OMG!!! This series keeps getting better and better!!!

Can't wait for book 3!!!
Profile Image for Jamie.
630 reviews2 followers
November 14, 2019
Pretty awesome

Well written paranormal romance love the storyline each male character has there own pov at some point. Can't wait to read more.
Profile Image for Amber.
2,213 reviews60 followers
November 27, 2019
🔥🔥👍👍

This is such a fascinating series! It's like The Walking Dead and Resident Evil had a love child. I can't wait to see where it will go. Two thumbs way up.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews

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